The commoner English nouns ending in _o_ also have the
peculiarity of forming the plural by adding _es_ instead of _s,_ and we
have _potatoes, tomatoes, heroes, echoes, cargoes, embargoes, mottoes_;
but nouns a trifle more foreign form their plurals regularly, as _solos,
zeros, pianos,_ etc. When a vowel precedes the _o,_ the plural is
always formed regularly. The third person singular of the verb _woo_
is _wooes,_ of _do does,_ of _go goes,_ etc., in analogy with the
plurals of the nouns ending in _o_.
6. The following are exceptions to the rule that silent _e_ is retained
in derivatives when the added syllable begins with a consonant:
_judgment, acknowledgment, lodgment, wholly, abridgment, wisdom,_ etc.
7. Some nouns ending in _f_ or _fe_ change those terminations to _ve_
in the plural, as _beef---beeves, leaf---leaves, knife---knives,
loaf---loaves, life---lives, wife---wives, thief---thieves,
wolf---wolves, self---selves, shelf---shelves, calf---calves,
half---halves, elf---elves, sheaf---sheaves_. We have _chief---chiefs_
and _handkerchief---handkerchiefs,_ however, and the same is true of all
nouns ending in _f_ or _fe_ except those given above.
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