Nouns: Plural

01

Plurals with Numbers and Quantifiers

Unlike in English, the plural suffix is generally not used when a noun is preceded by a number or a word indicating quantity (like çok many, az few, or birkaç a few). The noun remains in its singular form.

• beş elma

  five apples (not beş elmalar)

• iki öğrenci

  two students (not iki öğrenciler)

• Çok insan vardı.

  There were many people.

The plural form is used when you are talking about "the apples" or "the students" as a specific, known group, rather than just counting them.

• O elmalar çok lezzetli.

  Those apples are very delicious.

02

Verb Agreement

When a plural noun is the subject of a sentence, the verb is usually in the third-person singular form, especially if the subject is not human.

• Köpekler havlıyor.

  The dogs are barking.

• Arabalar hızlı gidiyor.

  The cars are going fast.

If the subject refers to humans, the verb can be either singular or plural (-lar/-ler). Using the plural verb ending is common and can add a slight emphasis on the group acting together. Both forms are correct.

• Çocuklar parkta oynuyor.

  The children are playing in the park. (Singular verb)

• Çocuklar parkta oynuyorlar.

  The children are playing in the park. (Plural verb)

03

Other Uses of the Plural Suffix

The plural suffix has several other functions beyond simple counting.

Referring to a Family

Adding the plural suffix to a proper name refers to that person's family.

• Ahmetler yarın bize gelecek.

  The Ahmets (Ahmet's family) are coming to our place tomorrow.

Approximation

It can be used with numbers, especially for time and age, to mean "around" or "approximately".

• Saat ikilerde buluşalım.

  Let's meet around two o'clock.

• Kardeşim otuzlarında.

  My brother is in his thirties.

Generalization

The plural form is used to make general statements about a whole class or category of things.

• Kediler sütü sever.

  Cats like milk.