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(ordered by seriousness) Top Tip
Get a grammar checker
for your browser ESL Vocabulary Lists Parts of Speech Lists Tests and Games Awkward Plurals Sayings and Proverbs Twitter YouTube
Plural of Loaf
The Quick Answer
The plural of loaf is loaves.The Plural of Loaf
The plural of loaf is loaves.- Only a century ago, a typical Frenchman ate approximately 3 loaves of bread per day.
- A wheat crop will produce an average of 7.5 tonnes of grain per hectare – that's enough to make 11,500 loaves of bread.

Are You Good at Plurals?
Here's a quick test.The Standard Rules for Forming the Plurals
The table below shows the standard rules for forming the plurals of nouns in English.Type | Example of Type | Forming the Plural | Plural |
---|---|---|---|
Most Nouns | ![]() ![]() |
add s | ![]() ![]() |
Noun Ending s, sh, ch, x or z | ![]() ![]() |
add es | ![]() ![]() |
Nouns ending [consonant] o | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
add either s or es (There are no rules for this - you have to know.) |
![]() ![]() ![]() |
Nouns ending [vowel] o | ![]() ![]() |
add s | ![]() ![]() |
Nouns ending [consonant] y | ![]() ![]() |
change the y to an i and add es | ![]() ![]() |
Nouns ending [vowel] y | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
add s | ![]() ![]() |
Nouns ending f or fe | ![]() ![]() |
ves and/or s (There are no rules - you have to know.) |
![]() ![]() |
Exceptions | ![]() ![]() |
some nouns undergo a vowel or letters change | ![]() ![]() |
More exceptions | ![]() ![]() |
some nouns do not change at all | ![]() ![]() |
Why Is There Confusion over the Plural of Loaf?
There is confusion because the rule for forming plurals with nouns ending in f or fe isn't straightforward. Most nouns will drop the f or fe and gain a ves. For example:- Knife becomes knives.
- Leaf becomes leaves.
- Safe becomes safes.
- Chief becomes chiefs.
- Scarf becomes scarfs or scarves.
- Dwarf becomes dwarfs or dwarves.
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