Explanation
Use a singular noun for one thing, and a plural noun for more than one thing. Most plural nouns add "-s" or "-es".
For example, in "I have two books," "I" is the subject, "have" shows possession, "two" shows the number, and "books" is plural because there is more than one book. In Japanese, the noun usually does not change, so learners often forget the final "-s" in English. Some nouns are irregular, like "child" and "children," so you need to learn those separately.
1つなら単数名詞、2つ以上なら複数名詞を使います。複数名詞は、たいてい "-s" や "-es" をつけます。
たとえば "I have two books." では、"I" が主語、"have" が「持っている」という意味、"two" が数、"books" が複数の形です。日本語は名詞の形があまり変わらないので、英語でも語尾の "-s" を忘れやすいです。"child / children" のように不規則な形もあるので、これは別に覚える必要があります。
Examples
- I have one cat. 私は猫を1匹飼っています。
- She has three books. 彼女は本を3冊持っています。
- Do you have any pencils? 鉛筆はありますか。
- These apples are sweet. このりんごは甘いです。
- We don't have any problems. 私たちには問題はありません。
- My children are at school. 私の子どもたちは学校にいます。
Common Mistakes
Japanese learners often forget the plural ending after a number or many.
Wrong: "I have two book."
Right: "I have two books."
Wrong: "There are many student."
Right: "There are many students."
In English, countable nouns usually need plural form when the number is more than one.
日本人学習者は、数や many のあとでも複数の -s を忘れやすいです。
誤り: "I have two book."
正: "I have two books."
誤り: "There are many student."
正: "There are many students."
英語では、数えられる名詞が2つ以上なら、ふつう複数形にします。