Language/Spanish/Grammar/Plurals

Spanish Grammar - Plurals

Hi Spanish learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will focus on Spanish plurals. Plurals are essential in any language as they allow us to refer to more than one thing at the same time. Spanish has some specific rules that determine how to form plurals. After reading this lesson, you will be able to identify when a word is singular or plural in Spanish and form plurals correctly. Don't forget to practice with native speakers on Polyglot Club - Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

Forming plurals in Spanish

In Spanish, we usually form plurals by adding an "s" at the end of the word. For example, "gato" (cat) becomes "gatos" (cats). This is similar to English. However, there are some exceptions to this rule, as we will see below.

Words that end in a vowel

Nouns that end in a vowel usually take an "s" at the end to form the plural. For example:

Spanish	Pronunciation	English
casa	/'ka.sa/	house (singular)
casas	/'ka.sas/	houses (plural)
mano	/'ma.no/	hand (singular)
manos	/'ma.nos/	hands (plural)

Words that end in a consonant

Nouns that end in a consonant generally take "-es" at the end to form the plural. For example:

Spanish	Pronunciation	English
perro	/'per.ro/	dog (singular)
perros	/'per.ros/	dogs (plural)
mujer	/mu.'xer/	woman (singular)
mujeres	/mu.'xe.res/	women (plural)

Words that end in -z

Nouns that end in -z usually change the -z to -c and add "-es" to form the plural. For example:

Spanish	Pronunciation	English
luz	/'lus/	light (singular)
luces	/'lu.ses/	lights (plural)
pez	/'pes/	fish (singular)
peces	/'pe.ses/	fish (plural)

Words with an accent

Nouns that are stressed on the last syllable in the singular form drop the accent in the plural form. For example:

Spanish	Pronunciation	English
sofá	/so.'fa/	sofa (singular)
sofás	/so.'fas/	sofas (plural)
canción	/kan.'θjon/	song (singular)
canciones	/kan.'θjo.nes/	songs (plural)

Irregular plurals

Some Spanish nouns have irregular plurals. You will need to memorize these:

Spanish	Pronunciation	English
hombre	/'om.bre/	man (singular)
hombres	/'om.bres/	men (plural)
niño	/'ni.ɲo/	boy (singular)
niños	/'ni.ɲos/	boys (plural)
mujer	/mu.'xer/	woman (singular)
mujeres	/mu.'xe.res/	women (plural)
pie	/'pje/	foot (singular)
pies	/'pjes/	feet (plural)

Compound nouns

Compound nouns are formed by combining two or more words to create a new noun. In Spanish, the plural usually only applies to the main noun in the compound. For example:

Spanish	Pronunciation	English
lavaplatos	/la.βa.'pla.tos/	dishwasher (singular)
lavaplatos	/la.βa.'pla.tos/	dishwashers (plural)
abrelatas	/a.'βre.'la.tas/	can opener (singular)
abrelatas	/a.'βre.'la.tas/	can openers (plural)

Practice conversation

• Person 1: ¿Tienes un perro? (Do you have a dog?)
• Person 2: Sí, tengo tres perros. (Yes, I have three dogs.)
• Person 1: ¡Qué lindo! (How cute!)
• Person 2: Sí, son muy juguetones. (Yes, they are very playful.)

Conclusion

In this lesson, we have learned about Spanish plurals. Remember, most of the time, to form a plural in Spanish, you simply add "s" to the end of the singular form. However, there are some important exceptions to this rule. If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments section below.
➡ Feel free to edit this wiki page if you think it can be improved. 😎

Sources

• Spanish grammar
• Spanish plural
• Compound nouns
• List of Spanish irregular nouns

Impressive work on finishing this lesson! Explore these additional pages to enhance your understanding: Adjectives, El Verboide, Nouns and Gender & Present Tense Verbs.

Other Lessons

• ¿Pluscuamperfecto?
• Conditional Mood
• Questions
• How to use articles in spanish
• Adjectives
• Negation
• How to use Ser o Estar (verb to be)
• Orientación sobre el uso de Articulos
• Sentense Structure
• The Articles

Sources

• 8 Simple Rules to Master the Plural in Spanish | FluentU Spanish
• Plural Nouns in Spanish | Sustantivo | Vamos Spanish Academy
• Plural Nouns in Spanish Grammar