Geese, Not Gooses: A Plural From Old English Sound Change
Geese is the plural of goose. The vowel change comes from an ancient sound shift, not from any modern rule.
Geese is the plural of *goose*. The change is a fossil called i-mutation: the old plural ending contained an *i* sound, which pulled the vowel of the stem forward before the ending itself disappeared. The ending vanished and left only the altered vowel behind, which is why English has *foot* and *feet*, *tooth* and *teeth*, *man* and *men*, *mouse* and *mice*. Only about seven such plurals survive.
- Plural of goose. *A flock of geese.*
- Goose — the singular. *A grey goose.*
- Gosling — the young. *Six goslings.*
- Gander — the male. *A gander.*
- I-mutation — the sound change. *The i-mutation plurals.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | goose | One goose. |
| Plural | geese | Ten geese. |
| Male | gander | A gander. |
| Young | gosling | A gosling. |
| Old English | gos | A goose. |
- Geese fly south in autumn.Plural.
- A gaggle on the ground, a skein in flight.Collective nouns.
- Mongooses, not mongeese.Unrelated word.
The surviving i-mutation plurals
- Goose → geese
- Foot → feet, tooth → teeth
- Man → men, woman → women
- Mouse → mice, louse → lice
- Mongoose → mongooses — a different word entirely, from an Indian language
Old English *gos*, plural *ges*, from a Germanic root shared with German *Gans* and Latin *anser*.
Is the plural of mongoose mongeese?
No, mongooses. The word comes from an Indian language and has nothing to do with goose.
Why is it geese and not gooses?
An old plural ending altered the stem vowel before disappearing, leaving only the vowel change behind.