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Noms pluriels
While most nouns, in both French and English, can be singular or plural, some can only be one or the other – and dozens of these don’t "match" in the two languages. The nouns on this page are plural in French but singular in English.
Grammar note
The French nouns are plural in every respect: they require the third-person plural (ils / elles) form of the verb, plural articles, plural adjective agreement, etc.
Par exemple…
| Je mange des pâtes aux épinards. | I’m eating spinach pasta. | |
| Vos conseils m’aident beaucoup. | Your advice helps me a lot. |
Plural French Nouns
| abats | offal | ||
| affaires | business | ||
| agrès | exercise machine | ||
| alentours | vicinity | ||
| arrhes | deposit | ||
| asperges | asparagus | ||
| auditeurs | audience | ||
| bagages | baggage, luggage | ||
| bestiaux | livestock | ||
| biche(s) | deer | 1 | |
| brocolis | broccoli | ||
| céréales | cereal | ||
| cerf(s) | deer | 1 | |
| cheveux | hair | ||
| chevrons | herringbone | ||
| combles | attic | ||
| connaissances | knowledge | 2 | |
| conseils | advice | ||
| coordonnées | contact information, name and address |
||
| crevettes | shrimp | ||
| débris | debris | ||
| déchets | garbage, rubbish | ||
| décombres | rubble | ||
| dégâts | damage | 2 | |
| devoirs | homework | ||
| dommage(s) | damage | 2 | |
| données | data | 3 | |
| ébats amoureux/sexuels | lovemaking | ||
| échecs | chess | ||
| environs | vicinity | ||
| épinards | spinach | ||
| étrennes | gift | 4 | |
| fiançailles | engagement | ||
| foins | hay | 2 | |
| fruit(s) | fruit | 5 | |
| fumerolles | volcanic smoke and gas | 2 | |
| funérailles | funeral | ||
| graffitis | graffiti | ||
| il y a de fortes chances que… | there’s a good chance that… | ||
| informations | information | ||
| logiciel(s) | software | 5 | |
| maths | math (American English) | ||
| médicaments | medicine | ||
| meubles | furniture | ||
| mouton(s) | sheep | 1 | |
| munitions | ammunition | ||
| noces | wedding | 2 | |
| obsèques | funeral | ||
| ordures | garbage, rubbish | ||
| parasites | static | ||
| pâtes | pasta | ||
| pierreries | gems | ||
| poisson(s) | fish | 1 | |
| preuve(s) | evidence | 5 | |
| prévisions | forecast | ||
| proches | next of kin | ||
| progrès | progress | 2 | |
| ravages | havoc | ||
| règles (avoir ses règles) | period (to have one’s period) | ||
| recherches | research | ||
| remords | remorse | ||
| renseignements | information | ||
| rente(s) | income | 2 | |
| revenu(s) | income | 2 | |
| sables mouvants | quicksand | ||
| sciences | science | 2 | |
| spaghettis | spaghetti | ||
| spectateurs | audience | ||
| ténèbres | darkness | ||
| transports | transportation | ||
| vacances | vacation (US) holiday(s) (UK) |
||
| vêtements | clothing | ||
| victuailles, vivres | food | ||
Notes
1. These nouns have unmarked plurals, meaning the same word is used for both singular (the deer is) and plural (the deer are).
2. These are usually plural in French, but are occasionally used in the singular (lesson coming soon).
3. In fact, "data" is plural ("datum" is the singular noun), but many English speakers use it as if it’s singular.
4. For Christmas or New Year’s.
5. These nouns are countable in French (take an "s" for plural) but uncountable (always singular) in English.
Related lessons
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