How to Make Spanish Nouns Plural
Spanish plurals follow two approachable spelling patterns. Add s after most vowels or es after most consonants, then say the changed words aloud.
Learning objective
Add s or es to form regular plural nouns.
To make many Spanish nouns plural, add s when the singular noun ends in an unstressed vowel: libro becomes libros, and casa becomes casas. Plural means more than one. An unstressed vowel is a vowel that does not carry the word's strongest beat in the example concerned.
Add es to many nouns ending in a consonant: hotel becomes hoteles, and profesor becomes profesores. A consonant is a speech sound represented here by a letter other than a, e, i, o, or u. The added syllable in hoteles or profesores should be pronounced clearly rather than swallowed.
A common spelling adjustment occurs when a noun ends in z: luz, meaning light, becomes luces, meaning lights. The z changes to c before es. This article focuses on the dependable s and es choices, while the z-to-ces spelling is worth recognising because useful words follow it.
Plural nouns also need a matching plural article when an article is present. El libro becomes los libros, and una casa becomes unas casas, some houses. Build the noun first, then check that every accompanying article shows the same singular or plural number.
Examples
libro / libros
book / books
A vowel-ending noun usually adds s.
hotel / hoteles
hotel / hotels
A consonant-ending noun commonly adds es.
profesor / profesores
male teacher / male teachers
Profesora and profesoras are the corresponding feminine forms when relevant.
luz / luces
light / lights
Final z changes to c before the plural es.
Common mistake
- Instead of
- dos hotel
- Try
- dos hoteles
Dos already tells the listener there are two, but Spanish still marks the regular noun as plural. Because hotel ends in a consonant, it takes es. Pronounce the new final syllable so hoteles clearly differs from the singular hotel.
Practice
Try it yourself
Make libro, casa, hotel, profesor, and luz plural. Then place los or las before libros, casas, hoteles, and luces.