Lemons or lemons, citizens or citizens, choruses or choruses?
Words ending in -ão can form the plural of three modes: -ões, -ãos or -ães. There is no specific rule to be followed to make this plural, as it can vary between the three and will depend solely on the origin of the word, that is, on its etymology.
Most nouns and adjectives ending in -to the make the plural in –ons. Let's see:
balloon - balloons
button - buttons
Cord - cords
station - stations
lemon – lemons
passion - passions
Vision - Visions
reason - reasons
when the termination -to theI fell under the unstressed syllable -without stress, more weakly pronounced- the plural obeys the basic rule: add "s" at the end:
Blessing - blessings
Organ - Organs
Attic - attics
Note that the words above are paroxytones. But among some oxytones, monosyllables or not, the same happens: hand – hands, ground – floors, grains, brother – brothers, artisan-artisans.
Few words have their plural in –mothers:
German-German
dog – dogs
captain - captains
Catalan – Catalan
charlatan - charlatans
clerk - clerks
guardian - guardians
bread - loaves
sexton - sextons
notary - notary
other words accept more than one way to make the plural, such as the following cases:
- sorrel - sorrels and sorrels
- villager – villagers, villagers and villagers
- dwarf - dwarfs and dwarfs
- elder - elders, elders and elders
- artisan – artisans and artisans
- castellan – castellans and castellans
- surgeon – surgeons and surgeons
- handrail - handrails and handrails
- dean - deans and deans
- hermit – hermits, hermits and hermits
- pheasant - pheasants and pheasants
- guardian - guardians and guardians
- mint – mints and mints
- chorus - choruses and choruses
- ruffian - ruffians and ruffians
- sexton - sextons and sextons
- sultan – sultans, sultans and sultans
- Summer – summers and summers
- villain – villains and villains
- drone – drones and drones
Decorating is not the ideal way to assimilate these plurals, as there are many exceptions and ways of speaking. Therefore, practice is the best way to learn them! Well, it is difficult to forget something that is our habit, which is already part of the routine.
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By Sabrina Vilarinho
Graduated in Letters
Brazil School Team
See more!
Nominal Agreement - Find out more about how names are matched!
Grammar - Brazil School
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
VILARINHO, Sabrina. "The plural of words ending in ão"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/gramatica/o-plural-das-palavras-terminadas-ao.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.
