Plural Nouns
Plural Nouns
Spanish pluralizes nouns by adding -s or -es depending on the ending — genuinely close to how English does it, so this is one of the more comfortable topics in the course.
Grammar Comparison
Grammar Comparison
Vowel-ending nouns just add -s — just like most English nouns
libro → libros (book → books), casa → casas (house → houses)
book → books, house → houses
Any Spanish noun ending in a vowel simply adds -s to become plural, the same instinct English already has for the vast majority of nouns. The real difference isn't the ending itself — it's that Spanish also requires the article and any adjective to switch to plural to match, something English articles and adjectives never do (English 'the' and 'red' stay identical whether there's one book or ten).
Consonant-ending nouns add -es — the same reflex as English
profesor → profesores (teacher → teachers), ciudad → ciudades (city → cities)
bus → buses, box → boxes
Spanish nouns ending in a consonant add -es instead of just -s, mainly so the word stays pronounceable — profesors would be awkward to say, profesores flows naturally. English does something similar for its own pronounceability reasons: 'bus' becomes 'buses', not 'buss', and 'box' becomes 'boxes'. The underlying instinct — add an extra vowel before -s when the word would otherwise be hard to say — already exists in English; Spanish just applies it more broadly.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary
| Spanish | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| libro / libros | LEE-broh / LEE-brohs | book / books |
| casa / casas | KAH-sah / KAH-sahs | house / houses |
| profesor / profesores | proh-feh-SOR / proh-feh-SOH-rehs | teacher / teachers |
| ciudad / ciudades | syoo-DAHD / syoo-DAH-dehs | city / cities |
| flor / flores | flor / FLOH-rehs | flower / flowers |
| luz / luces | loos / LOO-sehs | light / lights |