Hebrew nouns change form in the plural. Masculine nouns usually add -im (ִים) and feminine nouns add -ot (וֹת). Some common nouns have irregular plurals that must be memorized.
The Main Rule
Masculine nouns add -im (ִים) and feminine nouns add -ot (וֹת) to form the plural. The original ending is usually dropped first.
Regular Masculine Plurals
| Singular | Transliteration | Plural | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יֶלֶד | YE-led | יְלָדִים | ye-la-DIM | boy → boys |
| סֵפֶר | SE-fer | סְפָרִים | sfa-RIM | book → books |
| שֻׁלְחָן | shul-KHAN | שֻׁלְחָנוֹת | shul-kha-NOT | table → tables |
| כֶּלֶב | KE-lev | כְּלָבִים | kla-VIM | dog → dogs |
| מוֹרֶה | mo-RE | מוֹרִים | mo-RIM | teacher (m.) → teachers |
Regular Feminine Plurals
| Singular | Transliteration | Plural | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יַלְדָּה | yal-DA | יְלָדוֹת | ye-la-DOT | girl → girls |
| מִטָּה | mi-TA | מִטּוֹת | mi-TOT | bed → beds |
| מַחְבֶּרֶת | makh-BE-ret | מַחְבָּרוֹת | makh-ba-ROT | notebook → notebooks |
| מוֹרָה | mo-RA | מוֹרוֹת | mo-ROT | teacher (f.) → teachers |
| חֲנוּת | kha-NUT | חֲנוּיוֹת | kha-nu-YOT | store → stores |
Exceptions - Irregular Plurals
Some very common nouns have irregular plurals that don't follow the rules:
• אִישׁ (ish, man) → אֲנָשִׁים (ana-SHIM, men)
• אִשָּׁה (i-SHA, woman) → נָשִׁים (na-SHIM, women)
• עִיר (ir, city) → עָרִים (a-RIM, cities)
• בַּיִת (BA-yit, house) → בָּתִּים (ba-TIM, houses)
Dual Form
Body parts that come in pairs and a few time words use the dual suffix -ayim (ַיִם):
• יָד → יָדַיִם (ya-DA-yim, two hands)
• עַיִן → עֵינַיִם (ei-NA-yim, two eyes)
• רֶגֶל → רַגְלַיִם (rag-LA-yim, two feet)
• שָׁבוּעַ → שְׁבוּעַיִם (shvu-A-yim, two weeks)
Watch Out
Some masculine nouns take the feminine plural ending -ot, and vice versa. For example: שֻׁלְחָן (table, m.) → שֻׁלְחָנוֹת (tables, with -ot!). The plural ending does NOT change the noun's gender - שֻׁלְחָנוֹת is still masculine.