In Marathi, like in English, nouns change form based on whether they refer to one item (singular - एकवचन) or multiple items (plural - बहुवचन). However, Marathi plural formation is more systematic and depends on the noun’s gender. Understanding how to form plurals correctly is essential for proper communication.
मराठीत, इंग्रजीप्रमाणे, एका वस्तूला (एकवचन) किंवा अनेक वस्तूंना (बहुवचन) संबोधल्यानुसार नामाचे रूप बदलते. पण मराठीत बहुवचन बनवण्याची पद्धत अधिक पद्धतशीर आहे आणि ती नामाच्या लिंगावर अवलंबून असते. योग्य संवादासाठी बहुवचन योग्य प्रकारे बनवणे आवश्यक आहे.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
| Number | Marathi | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | एकवचन | ekavacana | One item |
| Plural | बहुवचन | bahuvacana | Multiple items |
For masculine nouns ending in -आ (ā), the plural is formed by changing -आ to -े (e).
| Singular | Transliteration | Plural | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| मुलगा | mulgā | मुले | mulē | boy → boys |
| रस्ता | rastā | रस्ते | rastē | road → roads |
| घोडा | ghoḍā | घोडे | ghoḍē | horse → horses |
| कुत्रा | kutrā | कुत्रे | kutrē | dog → dogs |
| देश | dēśa | देश | dēśa | country → countries |
| फळा | phaḷā | फळे | phaḷē | slate → slates |
| पंखा | paṅkhā | पंखे | paṅkhē | fan → fans |
| खेळ | khēḷa | खेळ | khēḷa | game → games |
Examples in sentences:
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| मुलगा खेळतो. (The boy plays.) | मुले खेळतात. (The boys play.) |
| रस्ता लांब आहे. (The road is long.) | रस्ते लांब आहेत. (The roads are long.) |
| हा घोडा मोठा आहे. (This horse is big.) | हे घोडे मोठे आहेत. (These horses are big.) |
For masculine nouns ending in consonants, -ऐ (ai) or -े (e) is added.
| Singular | Transliteration | Plural | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| माणूस | māṇūs | माणसे | māṇasē | man → men |
| वाघ | vāgha | वाघ | vāgha | tiger → tigers |
| सिंह | siṃha | सिंह | siṃha | lion → lions |
| देव | dēva | देव | dēva | god → gods |
| भाऊ | bhāū | भाऊ | bhāū | brother → brothers |
| वडील | vaḍīla | वडील | vaḍīla | father → fathers |
Note: Many consonant-ending masculine nouns have the same form in singular and plural. The context or verb form indicates the number.
| Ending | Change | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -आ (ā) | -आ → -े | मुलगा → मुले |
| Consonant | Add -े or same form | माणूस → माणसे, वाघ → वाघ |
For feminine nouns ending in -ई (ī), the plural is formed by changing -ई to -या (yā).
| Singular | Transliteration | Plural | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| मुलगी | mulgī | मुली | mulī | girl → girls |
| बाटली | bāṭalī | बाटल्या | bāṭalyā | bottle → bottles |
| खुर्ची | khurcī | खुर्च्या | khurcyā | chair → chairs |
| गाडी | gāḍī | गाड्या | gāḍyā | car → cars |
| काठी | kāṭhī | काठ्या | kāṭhyā | stick → sticks |
| वही | vahī | वह्या | vahyā | notebook → notebooks |
Important Note on Spelling: When -ई changes to -या, the consonant before -ई may undergo a vowel change:
For feminine nouns ending in -आ (ā), the plural is formed by adding -ः (ḥ) or changing to -ा (ā) in some cases, but more commonly by adding -जणे (jaṇē) for people.
| Singular | Transliteration | Plural | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| शाळा | śāḷā | शाळा | śāḷā | school → schools |
| भाषा | bhāṣā | भाषा | bhāṣā | language → languages |
| माळ | māḷa | माळा | māḷā | garland → garlands |
| वाट | vāṭa | वाटा | vāṭā | path → paths |
Note: Some feminine nouns ending in -आ remain the same in plural.
| Singular | Transliteration | Plural | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| गाय | gāy | गाई | gāī | cow → cows |
| म्हैस | mhais | म्हशी | mhaśī | buffalo → buffaloes |
| आई | āī | आई | āī | mother → mothers |
| बहीण | bahīṇ | बहिणी | bahiṇī | sister → sisters |
| सून | sūn | सून | sūn | daughter-in-law → daughters-in-law |
| Ending | Change | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -ई (ī) | -ई → -या or -ई → -ी | मुलगी → मुली, बाटली → बाटल्या |
| -आ (ā) | Same or slight change | शाळा → शाळा |
| Consonant | Add -ी or same | गाय → गाई, आई → आई |
For neuter nouns, the plural is commonly formed by adding -े (e).
| Singular | Transliteration | Plural | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| घर | ghara | घरे | gharē | house → houses |
| पुस्तक | pustaka | पुस्तके | pustakē | book → books |
| फूल | phūla | फुले | phulē | flower → flowers |
| झाड | jhāḍa | झाडे | jhāḍē | tree → trees |
| गाव | gāva | गावे | gāvē | village → villages |
| शहर | śahara | शहरे | śaharē | city → cities |
| नाते | nātē | नाती | nātī | relation → relations |
| Singular | Transliteration | Plural | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| पाणी | pāṇī | पाणी | pāṇī | water (no plural) |
| दूध | dūdha | दूध | dūdha | milk (no plural) |
| तेल | tēla | तेल | tēla | oil (no plural) |
Note: Uncountable nouns in neuter gender typically don’t have separate plural forms.
| Singular | Transliteration | Plural | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| पान | pāna | पाने | pānē | leaf → leaves |
| नाते | nātē | नाती | nātī | relation → relations |
| पिल्लू | pillū | पिल्ले | pillē | chick → chicks |
| Ending | Change | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Consonant | Add -े | घर → घरे |
| -ए (ē) | -ए → -ी | नाते → नाती |
| Uncountable | No change | पाणी → पाणी |
| Gender | Singular Ending | Plural Ending | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Masculine | -आ (ā) | -े (ē) | मुलगा → मुले |
| Masculine | Consonant | -े or same | माणूस → माणसे, वाघ → वाघ |
| Feminine | -ई (ī) | -या (yā) or -ी (ī) | बाटली → बाटल्या, मुलगी → मुली |
| Feminine | -आ (ā) | Same or -ा | शाळा → शाळा |
| Feminine | Consonant | -ी or same | गाय → गाई |
| Neuter | Consonant | -े (ē) | घर → घरे |
| Neuter | -ए (ē) | -ी (ī) | नाते → नाती |
Some nouns have irregular plural forms that don’t follow the standard patterns:
| Singular | Transliteration | Plural | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| पाय | pāya | पाय | pāya | foot → feet (same form) |
| हात | hāta | हात | hāta | hand → hands (same form) |
| डोळा | ḍōḷā | डोळे | ḍōḷē | eye → eyes |
| दात | dāta | दात | dāta | tooth → teeth (same form) |
| कान | kāna | कान | kāna | ear → ears (same form) |
| नाते | nātē | नाती | nātī | relation → relations |
| पाऊल | pāūla | पावले | pāvalē | step → steps |
| शब्द | śabda | शब्द | śabda | word → words (same form) |
Many nouns in Marathi have the same form for both singular and plural. The number is determined by context and verb agreement:
| Word | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| वाघ | vāgha | tiger/tigers |
| सिंह | siṃha | lion/lions |
| हात | hāta | hand/hands |
| पाय | pāya | foot/feet |
| कान | kāna | ear/ears |
| दात | dāta | tooth/teeth |
| शब्द | śabda | word/words |
| फळ | phaḷa | fruit/fruits |
How to identify number:
| Singular Context | Plural Context |
|---|---|
| एक वाघ आहे. (There is one tiger.) | दोन वाघ आहेत. (There are two tigers.) |
| माझा हात दुखतो. (My hand hurts.) | माझे हात दुखतात. (My hands hurt.) |
Demonstrative pronouns also change in plural:
| Singular | Plural | English |
|---|---|---|
| हा (hā) | हे (hē) | this → these (masculine) |
| ही (hī) | या (yā) | this → these (feminine) |
| हे (hē) | ही (hī) | this → these (neuter) |
| तो (tō) | ते (tē) | that → those (masculine) |
| ती (tī) | त्या (tyā) | that → those (feminine) |
| ते (tē) | ती (tī) | that → those (neuter) |
Verbs change form based on the number of the subject:
| Subject | Verb “to be” (असणे) | Verb “to go” (जाणे) |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine Singular | आहे (āhē) | जातो (jātō) |
| Masculine Plural | आहेत (āhēt) | जातात (jātāt) |
| Feminine Singular | आहे (āhē) | जाते (jātē) |
| Feminine Plural | आहेत (āhēt) | जातात (jātāt) |
| Neuter Singular | आहे (āhē) | जाते (jātē) |
| Neuter Plural | आहेत (āhēt) | जातात (jātāt) |
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| मुलगा आहे. (The boy is.) | मुले आहेत. (The boys are.) |
| मुलगी वाचते. (The girl reads.) | मुली वाचतात. (The girls read.) |
| घर मोठे आहे. (The house is big.) | घरे मोठी आहेत. (The houses are big.) |
| शाळा जवळ आहे. (The school is near.) | शाळा जवळ आहेत. (The schools are near.) |
Adjectives also change form based on number:
| Adjective | Masculine Singular | Masculine Plural |
|---|---|---|
| मोठा (big) | मोठा मुलगा | मोठे मुले |
| छान (nice) | छान मुलगा | छान मुले |
| चांगला (good) | चांगला मुलगा | चांगले मुले |
| Adjective | Feminine Singular | Feminine Plural |
|---|---|---|
| मोठा (big) | मोठी मुलगी | मोठ्या मुली |
| छान (nice) | छान मुलगी | छान मुली |
| चांगला (good) | चांगली मुलगी | चांगल्या मुली |
| Adjective | Neuter Singular | Neuter Plural |
|---|---|---|
| मोठा (big) | मोठे घर | मोठी घरे |
| छान (nice) | छान घर | छान घरे |
| चांगला (good) | चांगले घर | चांगली घरे |
Convert the following singular nouns to plural:
| # | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | मुलगा | ? |
| 2 | शाळा | ? |
| 3 | घर | ? |
| 4 | बाटली | ? |
| 5 | पुस्तक | ? |
| 6 | घोडा | ? |
| 7 | गाडी | ? |
| 8 | फूल | ? |
| 9 | रस्ता | ? |
| 10 | खुर्ची | ? |
Answers:
Identify whether the underlined word is singular or plural:
Answers:
Fill in the correct plural form and verb:
Answers:
Match the correct adjective form for plurals:
| Noun (Plural) | Correct Adjective |
|---|---|
| ___ मुले | मोठे / मोठ्या / मोठी |
| ___ मुली | मोठे / मोठ्या / मोठी |
| ___ घरे | मोठे / मोठ्या / मोठी |
| ___ शाळा | मोठे / मोठ्या / मोठी |
| ___ पुस्तके | मोठे / मोठ्या / मोठी |
| ___ गाड्या | मोठे / मोठ्या / मोठी |
Answers:
| Singular | Plural | Pattern |
|---|---|---|
| मुलगा | मुले | -आ → -े |
| रस्ता | रस्ते | -आ → -े |
| घोडा | घोडे | -आ → -े |
| वाघ | वाघ | same form |
| Singular | Plural | Pattern |
|---|---|---|
| मुलगी | मुली | -ई → -ी |
| बाटली | बाटल्या | -ई → -या |
| शाळा | शाळा | same form |
| गाय | गाई | consonant → -ी |
| Singular | Plural | Pattern |
|---|---|---|
| घर | घरे | add -े |
| पुस्तक | पुस्तके | add -े |
| फूल | फुले | add -े |
| नाते | नाती | -ए → -ी |
| Gender | Common Plural Pattern | Key Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | -आ → -े | मुलगा → मुले |
| Feminine | -ई → -या/-ी | बाटली → बाटल्या, मुलगी → मुली |
| Neuter | Add -े | घर → घरे |
Key Points to Remember:
Master plurals by practicing regularly and paying attention to gender patterns!