Question

The plural form 'children' from 'child' is an example of which type of inflection?

• A. Regular plural inflection
• B. Irregular plural inflection
• C. Zero inflection
• D. Possessive inflection

Answer 1

Answer:

B. Irregular plural inflection

Understanding Irregular Plural Inflection

• What is Inflection?

  Inflection is a process of word formation in which a word is modified to express different grammatical categories such as tense, mood, voice, aspect, person, number, gender, or case. It involves adding affixes (prefixes or suffixes) to a base word.

• Plural Inflection:

  In English, plural inflection is the process of forming the plural form of a noun. This typically indicates 'more than one' of something.

• Regular Plural Inflection:

  Most English nouns form their plural by adding -s or -es to the singular form. This is known as regular plural inflection.
  
  • Examples: cat → cats, book → books, box → boxes, bus → buses.

• Irregular Plural Inflection:

  Irregular plurals do not follow the standard rules of adding -s or -es. Instead, they change their form in various other ways.
  
  • The plural form 'children' from 'child' is a classic example of an irregular plural inflection. It doesn't simply add -s or -es.

• Types of Irregular Plurals:

  1. Vowel Change (Ablaut): The internal vowel of the word changes.
  • Examples: man → men, foot → feet, goose → geese, tooth → teeth.
  2. Adding '-en' or '-ren': A few nouns form their plural by adding -en or -ren.
  • Examples: ox → oxen, child → children.
  3. No Change: Some nouns have the same form for both singular and plural.
  • Examples: sheep → sheep, deer → deer, fish → fish (though 'fishes' can be used for different species).
  4. Foreign Plurals: Nouns borrowed from other languages (Latin, Greek, etc.) often retain their original plural forms.
  • Examples: criterion → criteria, phenomenon → phenomena, syllabus → syllabi/syllabuses, cactus → cacti/cactuses, analysis → analyses.
  5. F-to-V Change: Nouns ending in -f or -fe change to -ves.
  • Examples: leaf → leaves, wife → wives, wolf → wolves.

• Historical Context (for Competitive Exams):

  Many irregular plurals are remnants of Old English grammar. The '-en' ending, like in 'children' and 'oxen,' was a more common plural marker in Old English than it is today. As English evolved, most nouns adopted the '-s' ending, making the '-en' forms irregular.

• Significance for Competitive Exams:

  Questions on irregular plurals are common in English language sections of competitive exams (e.g., SSC, Banking, UPSC, State PSCs). Candidates are often tested on correctly identifying and using these forms, especially the more tricky foreign plurals or those with vowel changes. Mastering these exceptions demonstrates a strong grasp of English grammar.