In this lesson, we will talk about the plural in Portuguese, how to form them, and some irregular forms. followed by examples.
First of all, I like to make it clear that forming the plural in Portuguese doesn’t follow a one single rule, that depends on the endings and there are of course some irregulars, in this guide we will talk about the main forms.
Form 1: Words ending with “r” or “es”: add “es” to the end
Examples:
- Cruz (cross) – cruzes
- Mar (sea) – mares
Form 2: Words ending with “al”, “el”, “ol”, “ul”: replace “l” with “is”.
Examples:
- Canal (channel) – canais
- Pastel (pastry) – pastéis
Exception: mal (bad) – males
Form 3: Words ending with “m”: replace “m” with “n” then add “s” to the end.
Example: Homem (man) – homens
Form 4: Words ending with “ãe” or a vowel: add “s” to the end.
Examples:
- Mesa (table) – mesas
- Mãe (mother) – Mães
- Linda (beautiful) – lindas
Form 5: Words ending with “s”: add “es” to the end.
Examples: País (country) – Países
Some words like “o lápis” (pencil) keep the same form in plural: os lapis
Form 6: Words ending with “ão”: replace “ão” with “ões”.
Examples:
- Coração (heart) – corações
- Leão (lion) – leões
Some exceptions:
- Mão (hand) – mãos
- Cão (dog) – cães
Note: you can practice what you’ve learned here, and learn how to pronounce each of the words in our Memrise course here, don’t know how to use the platform or sign up? we’ve got you covered in this easy-to-follow tutorial here.
Practice what you’ve just learnt and try to form the plural of some nouns that we’ve seen.
Happy learning!