What are the rules for adding s es and ies to a singular word?

Here's a breakdown of the rules for adding "s", "es", and "ies" to singular words to make them plural:

General Rule:

* Most nouns: Add "s" to make them plural.

* Examples: book > books, cat > cats, chair > chairs, flower > flowers

Exceptions:

* Nouns ending in "s, x, ch, sh, or z": Add "es".

* Examples: bus > buses, box > boxes, church > churches, wish > wishes, buzz > buzzes

* Nouns ending in "y" preceded by a consonant: Change the "y" to "i" and add "es".

* Examples: baby > babies, city > cities, story > stories, fly > flies

* Nouns ending in "y" preceded by a vowel: Add "s".

* Examples: boy > boys, toy > toys, monkey > monkeys, day > days

* Nouns ending in "f" or "fe": Change the "f" or "fe" to "ves".

* Examples: leaf > leaves, knife > knives, wolf > wolves, wife > wives

Special Cases:

* Irregular plurals: Some words have unique plural forms that don't follow any rules. These need to be memorized.

* Examples: child > children, man > men, woman > women, tooth > teeth, foot > feet

* Compound nouns: For compound nouns, add "s" to the main word:

* Examples: toothbrush > toothbrushes, mother-in-law > mothers-in-law

Important Notes:

* Proper nouns: The rules for pluralizing proper nouns can be inconsistent. Consult a dictionary for specific cases.

* Acronyms: Add "s" to the end of an acronym.

* Examples: NASA > NASAs, VIP > VIPs

Let me know if you have any other questions!