as dayes, maydens. The same ending is usually employed even for sbs. of the weak declension, where the A.S. suffix was -an. Only a few old weak plurals survive; as oxen, pesen, peas, asshen (rarely asshes), hosen, yën, eyes, foon, foes, toon, toes, been, bees (seldom bees), fleen, fleas. We also find kyn, kine, bretheren, (never brothers), doghtren and doghtres, sustren and sustres. So also children.
Some words, originally neuter, remain unchanged in the plural; as deer, folk, hors, neet, pound, sheep, swyn; sometimes thing (also thinges), yeer (also yeres). So also winter. A few plurals shew mutation; as feet, teeth, men, wommen, gees, mys. Breech is really an old plural; but Chaucer has the double plural breches (I 330). Monthe (B 1674) is an old genitive plural, after the numeral twelf. In wyf, pl. wyves, f becomes v. In ship, pl. shippes, the p is doubled, to shew that the vowel is short.
[§ 77]. Substantives of French origin. Substantives of French origin take a genitive in -es or -s, and remain unchanged in the dat. and accusative. The plural likewise ends in -es or -s. The final -e appears in a large number of words, such as face, grace, &c.; but is sometimes suppressed, even when etymologically correct, as in fors for force, sours for source, beest for beste, host for hoste, princess for princesse[[63]]. In Sir Thopas, plas occurs for place, and gras for grace. Cf. vol. iv. p. xxxii.
In words like nature, fortune, science, the final -e is sounded if the accent is on the second syllable, but is usually dropped if it falls on the first. The same usage prevails with regard to the plural suffix -es. Hence we find the plurals flóur-es, áventúr-es on the one hand, and pílour-s, lázar-s on the other; and pílgrimes is pronounced as pilgrims. So also aúditours, because the accent on ou is only secondary. Epístellès (B 55) is a 'learned' form. Words in -nt usually have the plural in -nts, often written -ntz; as tyraunts or tyrauntz. The A.F. z had the sound of ts. A remarkable plural occurs in orgòn or orgòòn (cf. Lat. organa). Words in s remain unchanged in the gen. sing. and in the pl. Thus Bachus, in Leg. 2376, is a gen. sing.; and caas, in A 323, is plural. The pl. of advocat is advocats, with mute t, which might be written advocaas; and condys (for condyts with mute t) occurs as the pl. of condyt.
[§ 78]. Adjectives. These occur both in the indefinite and in the definite form. The latter is known by its being preceded by the definite article, or a demonstrative or possessive pronoun, in which case it takes a final -e; as the yonge, his halfe, this ilke. Also when used in the vocative case, as O strange god, A 2373.
The indefinite form usually follows the A.S. type, and so depends upon the etymology. Hence we find, on the one hand, blak, good, foul; and, on the other, swēte, grēne, shēne, kēne, where the long e is due to mutation in a jo-stem, and the final -e represents a faint survival of that stem. So also clene (with open long e), dere, drye, blythe; and even softe, swote (without mutation). Other dissyllables are fewe, newe, trewe, riche, sene (visible), narwe (nar·u), stille, thikke, wilde. Moche is due to loss of l in mochel; so, perhaps, lyte for lytel.
Several adjectives, however, occur in Chaucer with a final -e in the indefinite form, contrary to the A.S. usage. Examples: bare, fayre, fresshe, longe, tame. So also badde, meke. In some cases, the final -e may be due to old usage; thus, in B 50, we find Of olde tyme, A.S. of ealdum tīman.
The plural of monosyllabic adjectives ends in -e. The same is the case with some of the pronouns and many of the cardinal numbers. Even monosyllabic past participles, when used adjectivally, may have a plural in -e, as: with yën faste y-shette; B 560[[64]]; eres spradde, T. iv. 1422; bente, T. iv. 40: indeed, we even find this plural form after the word weren, as in weren fledde, T. i. 463; weren whette, T. v. 1760. So too y-mette, B 1115.
But adjectives and participles of more than one syllable usually remain unaltered in the plural.