The pronoun it is plural. Pronouns in English. Plural exceptions in English

A pronoun names an object or a sign of an object. In English, pronouns are conjugated, just like in Russian. They are divided into personal, demonstrative, possessive and reflexive pronouns.
Personal pronouns can be singular or plural. They also change by case. Example: I take - I take, love me - love me.
Singular pronouns:
I - me I - me, me
He -him He - his, him
She - her She - her, her
It- it It - to him/her
In plural:
We - us We - us, us
You - you You - you, you
They - them They - them, theirs
The pronoun “it” is used when naming an inanimate object or animal. It can also be translated as “this”. For example: Who is there? It's me! Who's there? It's me!
Demonstrative pronouns in English also change according to number.
This - these this - these
That - those
The pronoun “this” denotes a characteristic of an object that is located close to the speaker, and “that” is one that is located at some distance. I don’t want this apple, I want that one. I don't want this apple, I want that.
Possessive pronouns are used in cases where a pronoun without a noun is needed. In singular and plural they are:
My - my
his - him
her - her
its - his/her.
our - ours
your - yours
their - theirs.
Possessive pronouns have a subtype in the form of an absolute form. Can be used independently.
Whose dog is this? She is mine. Whose dog is it? It's mine.
List of absolute pronouns in singular and plural:
Mine is mine
His - his
Hers - her
Its - his/her
ours - ours
yours - yours
theirs - theirs
Separately, you need to consider the turns there is, there are. They usually involve listing either the items themselves or their quantity.
There is a chair in the room. The chair is in the room.
There are a bottle, a cup and a table in the kitchen. There is a bottle, a mug and a table in the kitchen.
The pronoun “some” is used for items that can be listed. Translated as “several, a little.” When questioned and denied, it is replaced by “any”. Although, it can also be used in affirmative sentences. Bring me some cakes. Bring me some cakes. Take any book. Take any book.
The pronouns some, any, no together with -body form another group of pronouns. The same rules exist for them, they just apply to people.
Affirmative sentences will use:
Something - something
Somebody - someone, somewhere
Somewhere - somewhere.
Ask somebody, please. Ask someone.
In negative:
Anything - something, anything
Anybody - someone, anyone
Anywhere - somewhere, somewhere
Do you know anybody, who knows this secret? Do you know someone who knows this secret?
And in interrogatives:
Nothing - nothing
Nobody - no one
Nowhere - nowhere
There is nothing in our refrigerator. There is nothing in our refrigerator.
The pronouns “many” (many) and “few” (several) are used only for countables, and only in the plural. “Much” and “little” are used for uncountable nouns that denote abstract concepts.
Many people prefer a good music. Many people prefer good music.
Take a few glasses and sit with us. Take a few glasses and sit down with us.
Thank you very much. Much appreciated.
Do you speak English? Yes, a little! Do you speak English? Yes, not enough!
Reflexive pronouns in English express an action that is directed to the person who performs it.
I - myself (I)
You -yourself (you)
He- himself (he)
She- herself (she)
We-ourselves (we)
You- yourselves (you)
They - themselves (they)
Translated as yourself, yourself. He likes himself. He likes himself.

We present to you the first article in the “English Grammar for Beginners” series. In this series of materials, we decided to present all the rules briefly and in simple words so that beginners “from scratch” or those who do not remember the basics of English well can independently figure out the grammar, understand it and apply it in practice.

Plural in English

In English, as in Russian, all words are divided into countable and uncountable. This is important to understand when forming the plural of a word. Countable nouns denote those objects that can be counted, for example: table (table), book (book), apple (apple). Uncountable nouns are abstract concepts, liquids, products, etc., that is, things that cannot be counted. For example: knowledge, water, meat, flour. These words do not have a plural or singular.

Countable nouns can be used in singular or plural. A singular noun denotes one thing; this is the form of the word that is indicated in the dictionary: apple - apple. A plural noun denotes several objects: apples - apples.

How to form the plural of nouns:

Usually the plural of nouns is formed by adding the ending -s to the word: book – books (book – books). However, there are several spelling features:

• If the word ends in -o, -s, -ss, -sh, -ch, -x, then add the ending -es: hero – heroes (hero – heroes), bus – buses (bus – buses).

  Exceptions: photo - photos (photo - photographs), video - videos (video recording - video recordings), radio - radios (radio - several radios), rhino - rhinos (rhino - rhinoceroses), piano - pianos (piano - several pianos), hippo - hippos (hippopotamus - hippopotamuses).

• If the word ends in -f, -fe, then change the ending to -ves: knife – knives, leaf – leaves, wife – wives.

  Exceptions: roof - roofs (roof - roofs), giraffe - giraffes (giraffe - giraffes), cliff - cliffs (cliff - cliffs).

• If a word ends in -y, preceded by a consonant, then we change -y to -ies: body – bodies (body – bodies).
• If the word ends in -y, preceded by a vowel, then add the ending -s: boy – boys (boy – boys).

In English there is also exception words, which form the plural irregularly. You just need to learn such words by heart; fortunately, there are not very many of them.

Singular	Plural
man - man	men - men
woman - woman	women - women
child - child	children - children
person - person	people - people
foot - foot	feet - feet
mouse - mouse	mice - mice
tooth - tooth	teeth - teeth
sheep - sheep	sheep - sheep

Try our test to see how well you have understood the material.

English Plural Noun Test

Articles in English

There are two types of articles in English: definite and indefinite. They are not translated into Russian. In the vast majority of cases, one of these articles must be placed before a singular noun.

The indefinite article a/an is used only with countable nouns in the singular: a girl (girl), a pen (handle). If a word begins with a consonant sound, we write the article a (a girl), and if the word begins with a vowel sound, we write the article an (an apple).

The indefinite article a/an is used in the following cases:

• We name any indefinite object, and we have only one, which is why we use the article a, which comes from the word one (one):

  It is a book. - This is a book.

• We mention the subject for the first time in speech:

  I see a shop. - I see (some, one of many) store.

• We talk about a person’s profession or indicate his belonging to a certain group:

  He is a teacher. - He is a teacher.
  She is a student. - She is a student.

We use the definite article the when we are talking about a specific object that is familiar to us. This article can appear before a singular or plural noun.

The definite article the is used in the following cases:

• We have already mentioned the subject earlier in our speech:

  I see a shop. The shop is big. - I see a store. (This) The store is big.

  It is believed that the definite article comes from the word that (that), therefore it is intended to indicate some specific object familiar to the interlocutors.

• We are talking about an object that in this context is one of a kind and cannot be confused with something else:

  Honey, I'm washing the car. - Honey, I'm washing the car. (the family has one car, so we are talking about a specific item)
  Look at the girl in the red dress - Look at the girl in the red dress. (we point to a specific girl in a specific dress)

• We are talking about a one-of-a-kind object, there is no other like it: the sun, the moon, the world, the President of France, etc.:

  The earth is our home. - Earth is our home.

Verb to be

There is always a verb in an English sentence. And if in Russian we can say “I am a doctor”, “Mary is beautiful”, “We are in the hospital”, then in English this is unacceptable: in all these cases, the verb to be must appear after the subject. Therefore, you can remember a simple rule: if there are no ordinary verbs in a sentence, then the verb to be is needed.

The verb to be has three forms:

• Am is added to the pronoun I when we talk about ourselves:

  I am beautiful. - I am beautiful.

• Is is placed after the pronouns he, she, it:

  She is beautiful. - She's beautiful.

• Are is used after you, we, they:

  You are beautiful. - You are handsome.

The verb to be in English is most often used in the following cases:

• We inform you that by whom is a person (name, profession, etc.):

  I am a doctor. - I am doctor.

• We inform you that what a person or thing has a quality:

  Mary is beautiful. - Mary is beautiful.

• We inform you that Where there is a person or object:

  We are at the hospital. - We're in the hospital.

Sentences with the verb to be in the present tense are constructed as follows:

Affirmative sentences	Negative sentences	Interrogative sentences
Principle of Education
I + am	I + am not ('m not)	Am+I
He/She/It + is	He/She/It + is not (isn’t)	Is + he/she/it
We/You/They + are	We/You/They + are not (aren’t)	Are + we/you/they
Examples
I am a manager. - I am a manager.	I am not a manager. - I'm not a manager.	Am I a manager? - I am a manager?
It's awesome. - He's great.	It's not awesome. - He's not great.	Is he awesome? - He's great?
She is a doctor. - She is a doctor.	She isn't a doctor. - She's not a doctor.	Is she a doctor? - She is a doctor?
It (ball) is red. - It (the ball) is red.	It (ball) isn't red. - It (the ball) is not red.	Is it (ball) red? - Is it (the ball) red?
We are the champions. - We are champions.	We aren't the champions. - We are not champions.	Are we the champions? - We are champions?
You are ill. - You are sick.	You are not ill. - You are not sick.	Are you ill? - You are sick?
They are at home. - They are at home.	They aren't at home. - They are not at home.	Are they at home? - They are at home?

We think you are now ready to take the test and test your knowledge.

Test for the use of the verb to be

Present Continuous Tense - present continuous tense

Present Continuous Tense most often shows that the action is happening at the moment.

Every English sentence has a subject and a predicate. IN Present Continuous the predicate consists of the auxiliary verb to be in the required form (am, is, are) and the main verb without the particle to, to which we add the ending -ing (playing, reading).

She is playing tennis now. - She is now plays to tennis.
I am reading a novel at the moment. - I'm currently I'm reading novel.

The verb to be in this tense is an auxiliary verb, that is, it is a word that comes before the main verb (playing, reading) and helps to form tense. You will find auxiliary verbs in other tenses; these types of verbs include to be (am, is, are), do/does, have/has, will.

Please note the following tense words Present Continuous: now (now), at the moment (at the moment), today (today), tonight (tonight), these days (these days), currently (these days), at present (currently), still (still).

Affirmative sentences in the Present Continuous are formed as follows:

Usually in this tense you just need to add the ending -ing to the main verb: walk – walking (walk), look – looking (look). But some verbs change like this:

• If the verb ends in -e, we remove the -e and add -ing: write – writing, dance – dancing.

  Exception: see – seeing (to see).

• If the verb ends in -ie, we change -ie to -y and add -ing: lie – lying (lie), die – dying (die).
• If the verb ends with a stressed syllable with a short vowel that occurs between two consonants, the final consonant is doubled by adding -ing: begin – beginning (begin), swim – swimming (swim).

In negative sentences in the Present Continuous, you just need to insert the particle not between to be and the main verb.

She isn't cooking at the moment. - At the moment she doesn't cook.
You are not listening to me now. - You don't listen me now.

IN interrogative sentences in the Present Continuous you need to put the verb to be in the first place, and after it put the subject and main verb.

Is she cooking at the moment? - She trains At the moment?
Are you listening to me now? - You me now are you listening?

Now we suggest you take a test on the use of Present Continuous tense.

Test for the use of Present Continuous

We have presented you with the first 5 basic topics of the English language. Now your task is to thoroughly understand them and work through them as productively as possible with the help of exercises. In order not to burden you with a large amount of grammar at once, we will release the next article in this series in a few weeks. Subscribe to our newsletter, then you will definitely not miss important information. We wish you success in learning English!

Demonstrative pronouns in English ( demonstrative pronouns / demonstratives) indicate a person, object, or their signs. There are several demonstrative pronouns in English.

Singular	Plural
this– this, this, this	these- these
that- that, that, that	those– those
such- such, similar	such- such, similar
the same- the same	the same- same
it- This	it- This

Now you know what demonstrative pronouns are in English. Next we will look at cases where each of them is used.

Demonstrative pronouns this and these

This these– with plural nouns. These pronouns should be used in the following cases:

1. When we talk about people or things that are close to us. Sometimes in sentences with this And these adverb is used here(here), which also shows the proximity of the object to us.

This table is wooden. – This table wood. (the table is nearby and we point to it)

These books belong to me. – These books belong to me. (several books are near me)

This girl is here and she is waiting for you. – This girl Here, and she is waiting for you.

2. When a situation occurs in the present or future tense, we describe this situation using this/these.

We are going to meet this week. - We are going to meet at this week.

This month you are making a great progress. - IN this month you are making great progress.

3. When we talk about the same thing several times and want to avoid repetition.

I don't want to discuss this but I have to. - I don't want This discuss, but I have to. (implies that this event has already been called before, thus avoiding repetition)

Look at this! He seems to be looking for his money. - Look at This! Looks like he's looking for his money. (the pronoun indicates the situation described in the second sentence)

This is the main goal in my life. – This the main objective in my life.

4. When we introduce people or introduce ourselves in a telephone conversation.

Jim, these are my brothers, Tom and Carl. – Jim This my brothers, Tom and Carl.

Hello! This is Kate speaking! Can I speak to Mary? - Hello. This Kate. Can I talk to Mary?

Demonstrative pronouns that and those

Demonstrative pronoun that used with singular nouns, pronoun those– with plural nouns. Let's see when we can use demonstrative pronouns that And those:

1. When we talk about people or things located far away from us. Sometimes in sentences with demonstrative pronouns that And those adverb used there(there).

I don't like this piece of cake. Give me that one, please. – I don’t like this piece of cake. Give me That, Please. (the piece of cake that the speaker liked is located further from him)

Those ships are too far. I can't see their names. – Those ships too far. I don't see their names. (the indicated ships are at a distance from the speaker)

Look at that! There's a camel. - Look there! Vaughn there camel.

That's my future husband. – That- My future husband.

2. When we talk about a situation that took place in the past.

In those days people didn't have cars. - IN those times people didn't have cars.

We made only four kilometers that day. - IN that day we only walked four kilometers.

3. When we refer to some information that has been mentioned before and want to avoid repetition. We usually talk about a past action.
   

   She got married a month ago. That was wonderful! – She got married a month ago. It was Wonderful!

4. When we start a conversation on the phone and ask the other person to introduce himself. The person on the other end of the line is far from us, so we need to use a demonstrative pronoun that.
   

   Good morning! This is Brenda White. Who's that speaking? – Good morning! This is Brenda White! Who am I talking to?

The picture clearly shows how demonstrative pronouns work this/that And these/those when indicating the proximity or distance of an object.

We also suggest you watch a video from the teacher Alex. It's interesting how a native speaker explains this topic.

Demonstrative pronouns such, the same, it

Other demonstrative pronouns in English include such(such, similar) the same(the same one) and it(This). Let's look at how they should be used in speech:

1. When the noun is singular, then together with the demonstrative pronoun such(such, similar) the indefinite article is used.
   

   It's such an important decision - This such important decision.

   If the noun is plural, use the article after the pronoun such(such, similar) no.

   Don't do such things! - Don't do it such of things!

2. Demonstrative pronoun the same(the same / the same) is always used with the definite article. Nouns after the same can be in either singular or plural form.

Underline the word with the same meaning, please. – Please underline the word with same meaning.

He chose the same movies as I did. - He chose the same films, and me too.

3. Demonstrative pronoun it corresponds to the Russian pronoun “this”.

– What is it? - What This?
- It's my ring. - This is my ring.

Is it your passport? – This your passport?

Don't miss it! - Do not miss This!

Difference between this and it

Many linguists say that there is little difference between it And this No. You will be understood in any case if you say This is a cat or It is a cat. But there is a difference, albeit a small one.

This is a cat. - It's a cat. (we focus on the word “this”, that is, exactly this, and not that cat)

It is a cat. - It's a cat. (we focus on the word “cat”, that is, not a dog or a guinea pig)

And one last little detail. To avoid repeating the same noun twice, the word is sometimes used instead one. And before that one You must also use a demonstrative pronoun. If the demonstrative pronoun in English is not followed by an adjective, then one (ones) can be omitted.

Would you like to buy this hat or that (one)? – Would you like to buy this hat or that?

And if there is an adjective, then you must save it one or ones in a sentence.

I don't want to buy this hat, I will take that blue one. – I don’t want to buy this hat, I'll take it out that blue Test

Demonstrative pronouns in English

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“this” - it is used in many impersonal sentences, where it is almost always omitted when translated into Russian. It's not so simple with plurals. But first things first.

Functions of the pronoun it

1. As a personal pronoun

   Everything is simple here - the pronoun it replaces an inanimate noun:

   I have an apple. It is green- I have an apple. It's green.
   Give me that laptop. It is on the table- Give me that laptop. It's lying on the table.

2. It as an impersonal pronoun

   Here the pronoun it already has many more functions. Please note that in many cases where it is used as an impersonal pronoun, it is omitted when translated into Russian.

   • Indicates a fact or situation that is known or currently occurring:

     When the factory closes, it will mean 500 people losing their jobs– When a plant closes, it means that 500 people lose their jobs.
     Yes, I was at home on Sunday. What about it?- Yes, I was at home on Sunday. And what?

   • Is the subject of an impersonal verb:

     It is snowing on the mountains– It’s snowing in the mountains.
     It is Sunday today- Today is Sunday.

   • Performs the function of a formal subject:

     It is not easy to defeat him“It’s not easy to defeat him.”
     It is dangerous to play with fire - It's dangerous to play with fire.

   • As part of the construction it is + noun + who/that focuses attention on any part of the sentence:

     It was Susie who painted this picture“Susie painted this picture.”
     It was John who broke the window- John broke the window.

   • Acts as the subject when talking about date, time, distance:

     It's ten past twelve- It's half past twelve.
     It's two miles to the beach- It's two miles from the beach.

   • Used in passive voice:

     It was decided that we should all swim across the lake before breakfast“It was decided that we should all swim on the lake before breakfast.”
     It is accepted that research into cancer has advanced considerably in the last few years– It is believed that cancer research has made significant progress in the last few years.

3. As a demonstrative pronoun.

   In this role, the pronoun it is used in cases where in a conversation I introduce myself or ask about the identity of the interlocutor:

   Who is it?- Who is this?
   Hello, it's Jane- Hello, this is Jane.

The plural pronoun it

The plural pronoun it is not used. In this case, they is used instead. They has three forms: the subject they, the object them and the possessive form their(s). They and its forms are used only as personal pronouns:

They study English– They are learning English.
I gave them my English textbook– I gave them my English textbook.
Their English friend never liked me“Their English friend never loved me.”

Exceptions and features

Exceptions associated with it concern the use of this pronoun with animate objects. There are three cases when it is used with animate objects.

With animals:

Look at this snake: it sleeps- Look at this snake: it is sleeping.
I love my dog. It is almost human- I love my dog. She is almost human.

With babies:

This baby is hungry, it hasn’t been eating for three hours This child is hungry, he hasn’t eaten for three hours.
The baby is crying. It must be hungry- The baby is crying. He must be hungry.

When in a conversation someone introduces himself or asks about the identity of the interlocutor:

Who is it? It's your wife- Who is this? Is it your wife.

The peculiarities of the pronoun it include the confusion that often arises when using the abbreviated form it is – it’s (it) and the possessive pronoun its (his). It is important to remember the difference between them and that these options are not interchangeable. Compare two examples:

It's an apple- This Apple.
Look at this tree. Its apples are warm n – Look at this tree. His apples are green.

Useful video on the topic:

Majority teaching aids offers an analysis of the topic of singular and plural by categories of parts of speech: noun, verb, pronoun. We have prepared for you an unusual excursion into the world of numbers. Today we’ll talk about the most common cases and rules of “multiplication” in general, we’ll look at changes that are similar in appearance, but different in grammatical functions. different parts speech, as well as some exceptions (sometimes it seems that the English language is one complete exception), and we will try to apply all this in the “natural environment”.

Singular in English ( singular/sg) denotes or characterizes one object:

a game
-self
this/that
he loves

Plural (plural/ pl) is used when the number of objects is more than one:

two cups of coffee
-selves
these/ those
they love

Ending -s/ -es

Ending -s- is one of the most common surviving endings in the English language and is an indicator of number. If the word ends in a hissing sound s/ ss/ x/ sh/ ch, it ends -es(this is due to more convenient pronunciation and does not visually lead to a pile-up of hissing words):

to match - it matches
to wash - she washes
a fox - foxes
a dress - dresses

From the above examples you can notice that:

he loves- singular
two cups- plural

The question arises - why?
The thing is that in the examples given above, the ending -s- appears in different parts of speech.
The number category of verbs is active only in the present tense. The exception is to be in temporary form Past Simple (was/were).
Thus at verbs ending -s/ -es indicates the use of the singular.

e.g.
Pl. vs. Sg.
we go - she goes
I spell - he spells(it is worth noting that in the Present Simple the pronoun I makes grammatical connections based on the plural principle with verbs and has a special form to be).
they say - it says

In nouns the opposite principle applies. The ending is an indicator of plurality.

eg.
Sg. vs. Pl.
a ticket - tickets
a bus - buses
a college - colleges

Words ending with -y-

The principle of change/no change -y- valid in English regardless of part of speech. Things to remember:

* if there is a vowel before -y-, in the plural the ending -s- is added to the word, and the letter -y- is retained:

a ray - rays
to buy - she buys

* if there is a consonant before -y-, in the plural the letter -y- changes to -ie-, followed by the plural ending:

to try - he tries
sky-skies

Now let's talk about special cases of number changes that are characteristic only of a certain part of speech.

Singular and plural nouns

In addition to the cases that we considered earlier, there are “special” numerical formations.
1. Change of word form.
There are a number of words that form the plural by changing the root vowels, sometimes the change affects the entire word form. These examples are not numerous. They are often singled out as exceptions. Let's list them:

man - men(and derivatives - fireman - firemen/ policeman - policemen)
woman/ˈwumən/ – women/ˈwɪmɪn/ (and derivatives - policewoman - policewomen)
tooth–teeth
foot – feet
goose – geese
mouse – mice
louse-lice
child – children
ox-oxen

Also in the English language there are a number of nouns that are written and pronounced the same regardless of their number - their forms are absolutely identical:

sheep - sheep/ sheep - sheep
swine – swine/ pig - pigs
deer – deer/ deer - deer
grouse – grouse/ black grouse, partridge - black grouse
series – series/ series - series
species – species/ species - species ( species of butterflies- type of butterfly)
corps/kɔːr/ – corps/ type of army

2. Borrowing
There is a fairly capacious category of borrowed words that have retained changes in the endings of their native language when forming plural forms. Most often these are words of Latin and Greek origin:

Sg. vs. Pl.
-us/ -i(cactus - cacti/ˈkæktaɪ/) - cactus
-on/ -a(phenomenon - phenomena)
-is/ -es(crisis - crises)
-um/ -a(datum-data)
-ex/ -ices (index - indexes)
-a/ -ae(formula - formulae)

In colloquial speech, these words do not constitute a daily minimum, but can occur in any situation.

3. “Numerical preferences”
In English you can find nouns that are used only in the singular or only in the plural. Exceptions again! Most often these are uncountable nouns or concepts that already contain a certain quantity in their meaning.

Singular forever. We would like to draw your attention to the fact that it is recommended to learn and remember these nouns, since they can be found in almost any area of ​​our lives, and the principle by which they formed their attachment to the singular is often quite conventional.

money
hair(in the meaning of “hair” / can have a plural form meaning “hair”, “hair”)
news
information
knowledge
weather
work
advice
bread
furniture
music
progress

Words that have a certain amount of meaning ( dozen- dozen/ score- ten/ head- when counting livestock by head) both numbers are allowed, but with numerals they are used only in the singular:

three dozen roses

Plural prefer paired items (scissors- scissors, pants- trousers, spectacles- glasses, glasses- glasses, etc.), some geographical names (The Netherlands, The Phillipines, The High Lands, etc.)

There are words that cannot be grouped, which you just need to remember:

police
people- people (it is possible to use “ a person” in singular) / a “ people - peoples“What matters is the people - the peoples
clothes
contents
wages
riches- wealth
manners
customs
outskirts
proceeds
goods

Verbs in singular and plural

we can - she can
you must - he must

The verb to be has a special relationship with numerical changes. It has specific shapes for each face - am/ is/ are(present tense) and was/were(in the past time).

we are - he is
they were - it was

Pronouns in singular and plural

In English personal pronouns and their possessive forms have the number category:
Sg. vs. Pl.
I-we
it - they
he-they
she - they
my - our

You always presented in the plural, although the singular form can be found Thou/ðaʊ/, which is used when addressing God.
Most pronouns either completely change the word form or imply a certain number by analogy with the Russian language:

every- each (sg.)
all- all (pl.)

A special case of changes in the plural form occurs in reflexive and demonstrative pronouns.

Reflexive pronouns contain a morpheme in the word -self, which in the plural will take the form -selves:

myself - myself
yourself - yourselves
himself - theirselves

Demonstrative pronouns also acquire new characteristics in sound and spelling:

this - these
that - those

We wish you intensive, entertaining practice and success!

Victoria Tetkina