Portuguese words ending in -l — whether nouns or adjectives — form their plural in a way that looks strange at first but follows a very tidy logic once you see it. The short version of the rule is: drop the -l and add -is. The trick is what happens to the vowel in front of the -l, and that depends entirely on which vowel it is and where the stress falls. Learning this small family of patterns unlocks hundreds of everyday words, from animal to hotel to fácil.
The underlying logic
Historically, final -l in Portuguese was a weak consonant that tended to vocalise or drop. When another syllable is added in the plural, the -l disappears and the tail of the word re-shapes itself around the vowel that remains. The result is always an -is ending in modern European Portuguese, but the quality of the vowel immediately before it differs:
| Singular ending | Plural ending | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -al | -ais | animal → animais |
| -el (stressed) | -éis | papel → papéis |
| -el (unstressed) | -eis | amável → amáveis, nível → níveis |
| -ol | -óis | espanhol → espanhóis |
| -ul | -uis | azul → azuis |
| -il (stressed) | -is | funil → funis |
| -il (unstressed) | -eis | fácil → fáceis, réptil → répteis |
Words ending in -al → -ais
This is the most common subgroup and the one you will use every day. Drop the -l, add -is, and you are done. No accent is written because the stress falls on the final -ais, which is where Portuguese naturally stresses words ending in -s preceded by a diphthong.
Adoro ver os animais selvagens no documentário.
I love watching the wild animals in the documentary.
Os jornais de hoje trazem todos a mesma notícia.
Today's newspapers are all carrying the same story.
Os hospitais da região estão sobrelotados.
The hospitals in the region are overcrowded.
Other everyday examples: casal → casais (couples), canal → canais, final → finais, carnaval → carnavais, natal → natais, local → locais, manual → manuais, capital → capitais.
The noun mal ("evil, harm") follows exactly this pattern: mal → males. The spelling males (rather than mais) exists because mal historically had a different final vowel; modern Portuguese preserves this one form as a fossil. Do not confuse it with the adverb mais ("more"), which is unrelated.
Words ending in -el → -éis or -eis
Here the two subpatterns depend on where the stress falls in the singular.
Stressed -el (most nouns): words like papel, hotel, anel, pastel, coronel. The stress is on the final syllable. In the plural, that stress needs to be marked with an acute accent on the é, because it moves into a new syllable structure: pa-pel → pa-péis.
Deixei os papéis importantes em cima da mesa.
I left the important papers on top of the table.
Os hotéis à beira-mar estão todos cheios em agosto.
The seaside hotels are all full in August.
Trouxe uns pastéis de nata para a reunião.
I brought some pastéis de nata for the meeting.
Other common words: anel → anéis (rings), pincel → pincéis (brushes), cordel → cordéis (strings), laurel → lauréis (laurels), coronel → coronéis (colonels). Words in -el stressed on an earlier syllable (like nível → níveis, túnel → túneis) belong to the unstressed--el group below.
Unstressed -el (mostly adjectives ending in -ável and -ível): these are paroxytones, meaning the stress falls on the penultimate syllable. The plural keeps the stress in the same place, so the accent sits on the vowel that was already stressed, and the final syllable becomes unstressed -eis.
Os amáveis funcionários da biblioteca ajudaram-nos logo.
The kind library staff helped us right away.
Alguns problemas são evitáveis, outros não.
Some problems are avoidable, others aren't.
More examples: possível → possíveis, terrível → terríveis, agradável → agradáveis, responsável → responsáveis, nível → níveis. (The parallel pattern for adjectives in -il such as útil → úteis is covered below.)
Words ending in -ol → -óis
Always add the acute accent on the ó — this is the single most common spelling slip at A2 level.
Muitos espanhóis passam férias no Algarve.
Many Spaniards spend their holidays in the Algarve.
Os faróis desta estrada são antiquíssimos.
The lighthouses on this road are very old.
Encontrámos caracóis no jardim depois da chuva.
We found snails in the garden after the rain.
Other examples: anzol → anzóis (fish hooks), lençol → lençóis (bedsheets), rouxinol → rouxinóis (nightingales), álcool → álcoois (alcohols — note the double -oo).
Words ending in -ul → -uis
A small group. The stress stays where it was; no accent is needed because -uis already behaves like a stressed diphthong in final position.
Os olhos dela são azuis como o mar.
Her eyes are blue like the sea.
Os pássaros com penas azuis são raros na região.
Birds with blue feathers are rare in the region.
The noun sul ("south") is a singularia tantum — you will essentially only ever see it in the singular. The literary word paul ("marshland") pluralises as pauis, but you will almost never meet it outside of poetry.
Words ending in -il → -is or -eis
This is the pair that trips learners up. The rule depends on stress:
Stressed -il (oxytones): most -il nouns are stressed on the final syllable. Their plural is -is with no accent, because the -is ending already marks the stress.
Os funis de cozinha são imprescindíveis para fazer compotas.
Kitchen funnels are essential for making jams.
Os barris de vinho ficam na cave há décadas.
The wine barrels have been in the cellar for decades.
Other examples: civil → civis, barril → barris (barrels), ardil → ardis (tricks, stratagems), canil → canis (kennels).
Unstressed -il (paroxytones): a very small group, mostly scientific or learned vocabulary. Their plural is -eis, with the accent kept on the syllable that was already stressed.
No jardim zoológico, os répteis vivem num recinto aquecido.
At the zoo, the reptiles live in a heated enclosure.
Other examples: fóssil → fósseis, míssil → mísseis, têxtil → têxteis, útil → úteis (useful), frágil → frágeis (fragile), ágil → ágeis (agile), difícil → difíceis (difficult).
Adjectives follow the same rules
The patterns above apply equally to adjectives, because in Portuguese adjectives and nouns share the same plural machinery. This is a huge return on your investment:
Os comboios são pontuais e muito confortáveis.
The trains are punctual and very comfortable.
Esses comentários foram completamente desleais.
Those remarks were completely disloyal.
Summary table with spot-checks
| Singular | Meaning | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| animal | animal | animais |
| papel | paper | papéis |
| hotel | hotel | hotéis |
| amável | kind | amáveis |
| espanhol | Spanish / Spaniard | espanhóis |
| azul | blue | azuis |
| funil | funnel | funis |
| fóssil | fossil | fósseis |
| mal | evil, harm | males |
How this differs from English
English speakers often expect plurals to be formed by simply adding -s, as in hotels or animals. Portuguese looks like it is doing something elaborate, but the logic is actually stable: the -l always disappears, and the vowel quality of the ending tells you what accent (if any) is needed. Once you internalise those five endings, you will never need to think twice.
Common mistakes
❌ Os hoteis à beira-mar estão cheios.
Incorrect — missing the acute accent on the stressed é.
✅ Os hotéis à beira-mar estão cheios.
The seaside hotels are full.
❌ Os animales são protegidos pela lei.
Incorrect — Spanish-style plural does not exist in Portuguese.
✅ Os animais são protegidos pela lei.
Animals are protected by law.
❌ Os papels estão em cima da secretária.
Incorrect — Portuguese does not keep -l before -s.
✅ Os papéis estão em cima da secretária.
The papers are on top of the desk.
❌ As cobras são reptís perigosos.
Incorrect — réptil is unstressed -il, so the plural is -eis, not -is.
✅ As cobras são répteis perigosos.
Snakes are dangerous reptiles.
❌ Os espanhois adoram o Algarve.
Incorrect — missing the accent on ó.
✅ Os espanhóis adoram o Algarve.
Spaniards love the Algarve.
Key takeaways
- Drop -l, add -is. The vowel before the -l tells you what accent (if any) to write.
- -al → -ais, -ol → -óis, -ul → -uis have no surprises.
- -el splits into stressed (papel → papéis) and unstressed (amável → amáveis).
- -il splits into stressed (funil → funis) and unstressed (fóssil → fósseis).
- The noun mal has the fossilised plural males. Learn it as a one-off.
Related Topics
- Regular Plural FormationA1 — How to make Portuguese plurals for the common cases — vowel endings take *-s*, consonant endings take *-es*, diphthongs take *-s*, and a few small families follow their own path.
- Plurals of Words Ending in -ãoA2 — The three possible plural patterns for Portuguese nouns ending in -ão: -ões, -ães, and -ãos — which words take which, and why.
- Plurals of Words Ending in -mA2 — How Portuguese nouns ending in -m form their plural by replacing the -m with -ns, and why the underlying logic is a nasal vowel, not a consonant.
- Irregular PluralsA2 — Portuguese nouns with unexpected plurals — invariable forms, Greek and Latin borrowings, pluralia tantum, and other exceptions to the main rules.