why is it tooth and teeth; and foot and feet instead of teeths and feets?

Answer 1

In English, the most common way to pluralise a noun is to use the -s morpheme:

book > books
moon > moons
imagination > imaginations

In Old English, one way to pluralise nouns was to change the vowel within the word, like tooth>teeth and foot>feet. It's very probable that sheep is actually a plural of *shap/shop (I wouldn't know, but something like that).

The reason why oo becomes ee is because before that teeth was pluralised as toothi. This /i/ sound in the end made the vowel within the word change:

tooth: toothi > teeth
foot: footi > feet

This vowel change is also linked to umlauts and explains why we say bring but brought, sing but sang, sneak but snuck (that's very recent!).

Answer 2

In English, there have always been two ways of changing a word's form to tell more about its meaning or use in the sentence: one is by adding to the end (-s, -ed, -ing, etc.) and one is by changing the vowel sounds in the word. The pattern of changing vowel sounds is common in many language, especially in the Germanic family (to which English belongs).

Adding an ending to a word is more common because as a language evolves, it tends to follow the easier, more predictable rules. However, existing words that describe very basic things often maintain the "stranger" patterns in the language.

For example, there are two main ways of making things plural in English: add -s, or change the vowel sound. Obviously, adding -s is much more common, and it's the rule we follow when adding new words to the language (computer > computers). But some of our older words still have the vowel-changing pattern (tooth > teeth, foot > feet, goose > geese). Sometimes we're left to decide: do computers come with "mice" or "mouses"?

Our verbs also show this pattern from the present to the past: buy > bought, draw > draw, see > saw, etc.

Finally, it is possible that one day "feet" could become "feets". That's not very likely at all, though, since we have a stable written language and are actively taught grammar in school. On the other hand, some words have indeed lost their "traditional" change-inside-the-word plurals, at least partly. For example, the older plural of "brother", "brethren", is very rare and is only used in certain contexts. Today we prefer to use "brothers", a form based on the -s pattern.

Answer 3

English words for mundane things come from ye olde Englishe, a thousand or more years ago prior to the Norman invasion. Foot/feet, man/men, etc. are examples of this. The more "modern" and more complex a word is (be it a noun, verb or other part of speech), the more it adheres to the rules of grammar. The most unusual plural spellings tend to be the oldest words.

This is how linguists determine the origins of languages, looking for words that are unique and don't share traits with neighboring tongues.

Answer 4

The same reason we park in a driveway and drive on a parkway.The same reason we support worthless people who have never worked nor contributed to our society in anyway what so ever.The same reason we require a license to drive yet not to breed. Because we live in the United States of America.Where it does not have to make sense as long as the majority want it to be so.

Answer 5

I guess because teeths and feets sound so stupid.... but wouldn't it be tooths and foots? Not that they sound any better!

Answer 6

the same reason that the plural of goose is geese but the plural of moose is moose, and the plural of sheep is sheep. Because the English language is full of rules that are full of exceptions, that I think were put there by our ancestors to annoy us.

Answer 7

you mean tooths and foots?

same reason the chicken crossed the road- nobody really knows.

Answer 8

why is moose the same plural and and singular..its just the way it worked out check ya later ♥

Answer 9

REFER TO YOUR GRAMMAR CLASSES!!!! Obviously you never attended, fell asleep, stared AT OPPOSITE SEX, ETC, during this (most informative) learning asset toward success. SEE YOUR PARENTS FOR THEIR FEELINGS ABOUT YOUR KNOWLEDGE?????

Answer 10

They are irregular plurals like curriculum and curricula !