Plurals and possessives: Getting them right

“The apples are ripe.”
“The apples’ bowl is ugly.”

ESL learners often struggle with plurals and possessives in English due to a mix of linguistic differences and English’s own complexities. Many languages, like Mandarin or Japanese, don’t use endings to mark plurals, relying instead on context or numbers, making the addition of -s or -es feel unnatural or easy to overlook. Similarly, languages such as Russian or Arabic show possession through word order or prepositions rather than apostrophes, so the ’s or ’ can seem foreign and confusing. Interference from native grammar adds to the challenge—Arabic uses internal vowel shifts for plurals, while Spanish employs “de” for possession, leading learners to write “the book of Maria” instead of “Maria’s book.” English irregularities, like “children” or “sheep,” break the predictable -s pattern, and possessive rules shift between ’s and ’ depending on plurality, tripping up those expecting consistency. The apostrophe itself is a hurdle, as it’s absent in many languages and misused by native speakers (e.g., “apple’s” for “apples”), encouraging errors. Phonetically, the subtle or identical sounds of -s in “cats” and “cat’s” can be hard to distinguish, especially for speakers of languages that drop final consonants, like French. Learners might overgeneralize (e.g., “childs” or “dogs’s”) or avoid the rules entirely (e.g., “the dog bone”), either overthinking or underthinking the system. These challenges stem from structural mismatches between English and their native languages, compounded by English’s blend of grammar and punctuation, making practice and exposure key to overcoming the confusion. Understanding plurals and possessives in English can seem tricky at first, but once you break it down, it’s pretty straightforward. Let’s go through each one step by step.

Plurals

Plurals are used to indicate more than one of something. In English, plurals are forms of nouns, pronouns, or verbs used to indicate more than one of something. For nouns, the most common way to form a plural is by adding -s or -es to the singular form, as in “cat” becoming “cats” or “box” becoming “boxes.” However, there are exceptions: some nouns change their spelling entirely, like “child” to “children” or “mouse” to “mice,” while others, such as “sheep” or “deer,” remain the same in both singular and plural. Pronouns also have plural forms, such as “I” becoming “we” or “he/she/it” becoming “they.” Verbs adjust for plurality too, typically dropping the -s in present tense when the subject is plural, like “he walks” versus “they walk.” These rules help English speakers express quantity and distinguish between one and many, though irregularities can make it tricky for learners.

1. Basic rule: Add -s to most nouns.
   • Example: “cat” → “cats,” “book” → “books.”
2. Nouns ending in -s, -sh, -ch, -x, or -z: Add -es.
   • Example: “bus” → “buses,” “brush” → “brushes,” “church” → “churches,” “box” → “boxes,” “buzz” → “buzzes.”
3. Nouns ending in a consonant + -y: Change the -y to -ies.
   • Example: “baby” → “babies,” “party” → “parties.”
   • Exception: If it’s a vowel + -y, just add -s (e.g., “toy” → “toys”).
4. Nouns ending in -f or -fe: Often change to -ves, though some just take -s.
   • Example: “leaf” → “leaves,” “knife” → “knives,” but “roof” → “roofs.”
5. Irregular plurals: Some nouns don’t follow the rules and change completely or stay the same.
   • Example: “child” → “children,” “man” → “men,” “sheep” → “sheep” (no change).
6. Compound nouns: Usually add -s to the main noun.
   • Example: “mother-in-law” → “mothers-in-law.”

Possessives

Possessives show ownership—who or what something belongs to. Possessives are forms of nouns, pronouns, or phrases that show ownership or a relationship between things. For nouns, possession is typically indicated by adding an apostrophe and -s (‘s) to a singular noun, as in “the dog’s bone” (the bone belongs to the dog), or just an apostrophe to a plural noun ending in -s, like “the dogs’ park” (the park belongs to multiple dogs). If a plural noun doesn’t end in -s, such as “children,” it takes ‘s, becoming “children’s toys.” Pronouns have their own possessive forms, like “my,” “your,” “his,” “her,” “its,” “our,” and “their,” which replace the noun entirely (e.g., “her book” instead of “the book of her”). There’s also the possessive pronoun form that stands alone, such as “mine” or “theirs,” as in “That book is mine.” English uses these structures to clarify who or what owns something, making relationships between people, objects, or ideas clear in a sentence.

1. Singular nouns: Add ’s.
   • Example: “the dog’s bone” (the bone belongs to one dog), “James’s car” (the car belongs to James).
   • Note: For names ending in -s, you can use ’s or just ’ (e.g., “James’s” or “James’”), though ’s is more common in modern English.
2. Plural nouns ending in -s: Add just an apostrophe (’).
   • Example: “the dogs’ park” (the park belongs to multiple dogs), “the teachers’ lounge.”
3. Plural nouns not ending in -s: Add ’s.
   • Example: “the children’s toys,” “the men’s room.”
4. Joint ownership: Add ’s or ’ to the last noun if they share it; add it to each if ownership is separate.
   • Example: “Tom and Jerry’s house” (they live together), “Tom’s and Jerry’s cars” (they each have their own car).

Quick tips

• Plurals vs. Possessives: Plurals don’t use apostrophes (e.g., “cats” = more than one cat; “cat’s” = something belongs to the cat).
• Listen to the sentence: Context usually tells you if it’s plural (more than one) or possessive (ownership). E.g., “The cats play” (plural) vs. “The cat’s toy” (possessive).
• Practice: Try making lists of things (plurals) and then describing who owns them (possessives).

Conclusion

In conclusion, ESL learners face significant hurdles with English plurals and possessives due to a blend of linguistic disparities and the language’s inherent irregularities. While English uses suffixes like -s and apostrophes to mark plurality and ownership, many learners’ native languages rely on entirely different systems—such as context in Mandarin, vowel shifts in Arabic, or prepositions in Spanish—making these rules feel counterintuitive. English’s exceptions, like irregular plurals (“children,” “sheep”) and shifting possessive forms (’s vs. ’), further complicate the learning process, especially when compounded by phonetic subtleties and the unfamiliar apostrophe. However, by breaking it down to its core—adding -s or -es for plurals, and ’s or ’ for possessives, with clear patterns and exceptions—learners can grasp these concepts. With consistent practice and attention to context, what initially seems daunting becomes manageable, turning confusion into clarity over time.