Plural nouns worksheets for ESL
20 worksheets · Nouns, adjectives & little words
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Plurals worksheets
20 printable worksheets with answer keys.
About Plurals
Most English nouns form the plural by adding -s (cat – cats). Nouns ending in -s, -ss, -sh, -ch and -x add -es (bus – buses, box – boxes), consonant + y becomes -ies (baby – babies), and many nouns ending in -f or -fe change to -ves (leaf – leaves, knife – knives). A small group are irregular: man – men, child – children, foot – feet, mouse – mice, sheep – sheep.
Plurals are taught at Kids level and A1, usually with numbers, animals, food and classroom objects. Learners overgeneralise the -s rule (*childs, *mouses), add -s to uncountable nouns (*informations), and mispronounce the ending, which can be /s/, /z/ or /ɪz/ (cats, dogs, horses).
Here you'll find printable plural nouns worksheets with answer keys, which can be printed as PDFs or solved online via a class link.
Teaching tips: Plurals
- Sort pictures or word cards into -s, -es, -ies and irregular groups before introducing the written rules.
- Clap the extra syllable in /ɪz/ plurals (buses, boxes, oranges) to support pronunciation.
- Use counting games (one apple, two apples) with flashcards and dice.
- Watch for -s on uncountable nouns such as bread, water and homework; keep them in a separate 'no plural' box.
- Teach irregular plurals in memorable picture pairs: one mouse, two mice; one tooth, two teeth.
Questions teachers ask
Which irregular plurals should young learners know?
The most useful are men, women, children, people, feet, teeth and mice, which appear often in topics such as the body and animals, plus fish and sheep, which don't change.
Why is it 'toys' but 'babies'?
When a noun ends in a vowel + y (toy, day, key) we just add -s; when it ends in a consonant + y (baby, city) the y changes to -ies.
Is 'people' the plural of 'person'?
Yes, in everyday English people is the plural of person. Persons exists but is formal and mainly found in legal or official language.