The Cambridge Guide to Australian English Usage - Noel's ESL ...

plink or plonk
unkindest cut of all”? The double superlative, like the double negative, may be
condemned as tautology, or recognised as a resource for intense expression. If
you’re aiming at hyperbole, pleonasm helps to create it in:
What wasteful superfluous trivia I had rammed into my head as a kid!
As an example of bogus semiotic pseudo-scholarship, this book is priceless.
See further under hyperbole and figures of speech.
plink or plonk See vin blanc.
plough or plow See under gh.
plummeted For the spelling of this word when used as a verb, see t.
pluperfect The past perfect tense is also known as the pluperfect. Compare had
arrived (past perfect) with have arrived (present perfect), and see further under
aspect.
plurals Plural forms of words contrast with singular ones, to show that more than
one item or person is meant. In English the difference is regularly marked on nouns
and pronouns, and to a very limited extent on verbs. (For more about the grammar,
see further under number.) In this entry we concentrate on the plural forms of
nouns and noun compounds, as well as proper names, titles and national groups.
For the plural forms of numbers and letters, see letters as words, and numbers and
number style.
1 Plurals of nouns. The letter s is the standard English plural suffix, used with many
words both ancient and modern. Yet a considerable number of words make their
plural in some other way.
a) Several groups take -es, including:
those ending in an “s”, “z”, “tch”, “dg”, “sh” or “ks” sound such as
kisses, quizzes, batches, ridges, dishes and boxes.
those ending in plain y (as opposed to -ay etc.) where the y changes to i
before adding -es,asincherries. (See further under -y>-i-.)
some of those ending in f (or fe), which changes to v before the -es, asin
loaves and wives. (See further under -f>-v-.)
some of those ending in o, such as echoes. (See further under -o.)
b) A group of very old words adjust their vowels to show the plural, including
man>men and woman>women; foot>feet, goose>geese and tooth>teeth;
louse>lice and mouse>mice. Note the change of consonant as well in the last
pair.
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