Irregular Plurals
Some everyday nouns change more than their ending in the plural: чалавек → людзі, дзіця → дзеці, вока → вочы, вуха → вушы.
How It Works
1. The main special plurals:
- чалавек (person) → людзі (people), genitive людзей
- дзіця (child) → дзеці (children), genitive дзяцей
- вока (eye) → вочы (eyes), genitive вачэй
- вуха (ear) → вушы (ears), genitive вушэй
2. They are plural in every way. The verb and the adjectives are plural: Дзеці гуляюць, блакітныя вочы. In the singular, дзіця is neuter, and вока and вуха are neuter too.
3. Counting people. With numbers, Belarusian uses forms of чалавек rather than людзі: два чалавекі, пяць чалавек. Without a number, say людзі: шмат людзей.
4. Other nouns to watch. Nouns in -ін for people drop it in the plural: грамадзянін → грамадзяне (citizens). Young animals add -ят-: кацяня → кацяняты; see young-animal nouns.
For the ordinary way to form plurals, see noun plural.
Examples (6)
- У яе блакітныя вочы.
She has blue eyes.
Word by Word: At her light-blue eyes.
- Дзеці гуляюць у двары.
The children are playing in the yard.
Word by Word: Children play in yard.
Дзеці takes a plural verb: гуляюць.
- Тут жывуць добрыя людзі.
Good people live here.
Word by Word: Here live good people.
- Колькі ў вас дзяцей?
How many children do you have?
Word by Word: How-many at you children?
After колькі, дзеці becomes the genitive plural дзяцей.
- На сходзе было пяць чалавек.
Five people were at the meeting.
Word by Word: At meeting was five people.
With a number, use чалавек, not людзей.
- У мяне баляць вушы.
My ears hurt.
Word by Word: At me hurt ears.
Common Mistakes
Making a regular plural of чалавек.
Гэта добрыя чалавекі.Гэта добрыя людзі.The plural of чалавек is людзі. Чалавекі is used only after два, тры, чатыры, абодва and numbers ending in them, such as дваццаць два.
Making a regular plural of вока.
У яго зялёныя вокі.У яго зялёныя вочы.The plural of вока is вочы.
Using a singular verb with дзеці.
Дзеці гуляе ў двары.Дзеці гуляюць у двары.Дзеці is plural, so the verb must be plural: гуляюць.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Irregular plurals follow regular plurals.
Related Patterns
- Genitive Plural Endings
Людзей, дзяцей, вачэй and вушэй are special genitive plurals.
Level 2 - пяць and Up + Genitive PluralFive and Up with the Genitive Plural
Explains пяць чалавек and other counted people.
Level 2 - Young-Animal Nouns with -ят-
Young-animal nouns form another special plural with -ят-.
Level 5 - у мяне баліцьSaying What Hurts
Body-part plurals such as вушы appear when you say what hurts.
Level 2 - два / тры / чатыры + Nominative PluralTwo to Four with the Nominative Plural
Explains the form два чалавекі.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice Irregular Plurals in Bubblegum
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