An exception to this rule is nouns ending in -íand -ú, both with an accent mark. Make sure you continue reading to find out about these exceptional endings.
How to form the plural of Spanish nouns?
By: Natalia Molina Ceballos Tue May 06 2025
The plural for many Spanish nounsNo definition set for nounsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. is formed by adding -s or -es to the singular form, similar to English. Let’s take a look at the following examples:
casa(house) - casas(houses)
dolor(pain) - dolores(pains)
If you have some experience in language learning, though, you might know there are some exceptions, but don’t worry. We’ll also cover these in this post, like the case of nouns that have two plural forms or those that don’t change form. Keep reading, and you will become an expert in Spanish plural nouns!
Table of Contents
Nouns that form their plural by adding ‘-s’
Some nouns form their plural simply by adding -s. Let’s start from the beginning and explore the various cases:
If a Spanish noun ends in a vowelNo definition set for vowelLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., form the plural by adding -s:
Endings | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
-a, -á | la casa the house | las casas the houses |
la mamá the mother | las mamás the mothers | |
-e, -é | la calle the street | las calles the streets |
el café the café | los cafés the cafés | |
-i | el taxi the taxi | los taxis the taxis |
-o, -ó | el libro the book | los libros the books |
el plató the set | los platós the sets | |
-u | el espíritu the spirit | los espíritus the spirits |
Exception!
Nouns that form their plural by adding ‘-es’
Some nouns form their plural by adding -es. We’ve just seen the cases of the plural of nouns that end in a vowel, but what happens if a noun ends in a consonantNo definition set for consonantLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.? For most of these cases, the plural is formed by adding -es. Let’s take a look at some examples:
Nouns ending in -n, -r, -s, -l, -j, -d, or -y:
EndingsSingularPluralEnding in consonant -n, -r, -s, -l, -j, -d
el corazón
the heart
los corazones
the hearts
el taller
the workshop
los talleres
the workshops
el bus
the bus
los buses
the buses
el árbol
the tree
los árboles
the trees
el reloj
the watch
los relojes
the watches
la pared
the wall
las paredes
the walls
Ending in consonant -y
la ley
the law
las leyes
the laws
el buey
the ox
los bueyes
the oxen
Exception!
Words borrowed from another language and ending in -y have a different way to form their plural. In these cases, drop the -y and add -is. Look:
el jersey → los jerséis
el penalty → los penaltis
Some singular nouns in Spanish end in an accented vowel plus -n or -s. To make the plural, add -es and lose the accent mark:
SingularPluralel avión
the plane
los aviones
the planes
el autobús
the bus
los autobuses
the buses
Some other singular nouns of two or more syllablesNo definition set for syllablesLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. end in -es. For these, an accent mark needs to be added in the plural form:
SingularPluralel examen
the exam
los exámenes
the exams
el joven
the young person
los jóvenes
the youth
For Spanish nouns ending in consonants other than -n, -r, -s, -l, -j, -d, and -y, only add -s to make the plural. Look:
SingularPluralel mamut
the mammoth
los mamuts
the mammoths
el tic
the tic
los tics
the tics
There are a few nouns that end in -z. These require a small change in spelling to make the plural form: drop the -z, add -c and then -es:
SingularPlurallápiz
pencil
lápices
pencils
actriz
actress
actrices
actresses
So far we have learned the main rules to making plural nouns in Spanish. Let’s recap quickly:
add -s for:
singular nouns that end in a vowel (except -í and -ú)
singular nouns that end in consonants other than -n, -r, -s, -l, -j, -d, and -y
add -es for:
singular nouns that end in consonants other than -n, -r, -s, -l, -j, -d, -y, accented vowel + -n or -s, and -en
singular nouns that end in -z
If you’ve read this far, and want to continue, prepare to learn all about special cases next!
What are the special cases of Spanish plural nouns?
There are special cases of Spanish plural nouns, such as nouns that have two plural forms, nouns that don’t change in the plural form, nouns that denote objects which have two symmetrical parts, compound nouns, and several additional cases. Let’s take a closer look.
1. Nouns that have two plural forms in Spanish
In some cases, nouns will have two plural forms. This first exception is easy. Do you remember the nouns ending in stressed -í or -ú that we mentioned previously? Well, for these you can either add -s or -es:
Endings | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
-í | el ají the pepper | los ajís / los ajíes los ajís / los ajíes |
-ú | el bambú the bamboo | los bambús / los bambúes the bamboos |
2. Nouns that don’t change in the plural form
There are also nouns that don’t change in the plural form. Singular Spanish nouns with two or more syllables ending in vowel + -s (no accent mark) will not change in the plural. In these cases, you only need to change the articleNo definition set for articleLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.:
Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
el paraguas the umbrella | los paraguas the umbrellas |
el lunes Monday | los lunes Mondays |
la crisis the crisis | las crisis the crises |
el pasamanos the handrail | los pasamanos the handrails |
el virus the virus | los virus the viruses |
3. Nouns that denote objects which have two symmetrical parts
Some nouns in Spanish denote objects that are made out of two symmetrical parts. This type of noun can be used in either the singular or the plural form. Look at the following pictures and examples:
Singular | Plural | Image |
|---|---|---|
tijera scissors | tijeras scissors |  |
nariz nose | narices nose |  |
tenaza tongs | tenazas tongs |  |
However, in other cases, only the plural form is used to denote an object that has two symmetrical parts:
Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| gafas glasses |
| prismáticos binoculars |
4. Compound nouns
In Spanish, compound nounsNo definition set for compound nounsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. can be written in one or two words. For those made of one word only, always make the second half of the word plural. Look at an example here:
Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
el altoparlante the loudspeaker | los altoparlantes the loudspeakers |
If you have a compound noun made out of two separate words, mark the plural only in the first word. Check out these examples:
Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
año luz light year | años luz light years |
niño prodigio child prodigy | niños prodigio child prodigies |
Final notes about plural nouns in Spanish
Before you leave, let’s take a quick look at three extra cases with Spanish nouns and their plural forms.
Nouns starting with stressed ‘a-’ or ‘ha-’
There’s a group of nouns in Spanish starting with a stressed a- or ha-. These are feminine, but they take the masculine article in the singular form due to phonetic reasons (el agua(water), el hada(fairy)). In the plural form, these nouns take the feminine article.
Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
el agua the water | las aguas the waters |
el hada the fairy | las hadas the fairies |
Do you want to learn more words that follow this pattern? Check out this list of Spanish feminine nouns starting with a stressed a- or ha-.
Need a refresher on how to tell the gender of Spanish nouns? Look no further, we have a post for that!
Uncountable nouns
Uncountable nounsNo definition set for Uncountable nounsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. in Spanish are typically used in singular when you refer to them in general or talk about an indeterminate quantity. When used in plural, they refer to different types or units of the same matter. Look at the following example:
Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
¿Tú tomas leche con frecuencia? Do you drink milk frequently? | Este supermercado vende leches vegetales. This supermarket sells vegetable milk. |
In the example on the left, the noun leche refers to milk in general. In the example on the right, the word leches refers to different types of vegetable milk (soy, almond, etc.).
Plural masculine as default
In some cases, the plural masculine will be used as default. When referring to a plural noun that includes masculine and feminine members (for the case of living beings), Spanish takes the masculine plural:
padre + madre = padres(parents)
hijos + hijas = hijos(children)
rey + reina = reyes(kings)
maestros + maestras = maestros(teachers)
Remember that when using a plural noun in Spanish it needs to agree with the other words that go with it. For instance, articles, adjectives, and nouns in Spanish have to agree in form. This will make your Spanish sound more natural. Happy learning!
Summary
To sum up, making plural nouns in Spanish is pretty straightforward. Based on the noun ending in its singular form, all you need to do is add the right ending. Let’s recap the main points:
If a noun ends in a vowel, simply add -s to form the plural.
If a noun ends in a consonant, add -es for most cases.
If a noun ends in -z, drop the -z and add -ces.
If you’re looking for an exercise to practice, we have created a simple activity where you can use what you’ve just learned. There is also a second exercise on singular and plural nouns in Spanish. Both exercises include an answer key for you to check your work.
Downloadable Resources
Elevate your language-learning journey to new heights with the following downloadable resources.
