Forming the Plural
To talk about multiple objects, you need the nominative plural form. In Russian, plural endings depend on the noun's gender and its last letter.
Masculine and Feminine Nouns: -ы and -и
Most masculine nouns ending in a hard consonant and feminine nouns ending in -а form their plural with -ы. For masculine nouns, simply add -ы. For feminine nouns, replace the -а with -ы.
| Where are the bananas and candies? | Где бананы и конфеты? |
However, Russian has a strict spelling rule: after the letters к, г, х, ш, ж, ч, and щ, you can never write -ы. You must use -и instead.
For example, чашка (cup) and тарелка (plate) have a к before the -а, so their plurals are чашки and тарелки.
| On the table are plates and cups. | На столе тарелки и чашки. |
You also use -и for nouns that end in a soft sign (-ь), such as вещь (thing).
| Here are the things. | Здесь вещи. |
(Notice that овощ—vegetable—ends in щ, so it also takes -и due to the spelling rule!)
| She is buying fruits and vegetables. | Она покупает фрукты и овощи. |
Neuter Nouns: -а and -я
Neuter nouns follow a different pattern. If a neuter noun ends in -о, its plural ending changes to -а.
| These are eggs, and those are bananas. | Это яйца, а там бананы. |
| The eggs are here, and the dishes are there. | Яйца здесь, а блюда там. |
If the neuter noun ends in -е, such as здание (building), the ending changes to -я (здания).
| There are parks and buildings there. | Там парки и здания. |
