Grammatical number in English nouns: an empirical and theoretical account

This work aims to provide evidence to validate parts of Hirtle's theory (1982). Apart from the coverage given to it in the grammars, number in English nouns has received relatively little attention, especially in the area of theoretical considerations. Guided by the principles of psychomechanics, Hirtle put forth a fairly elaborate theory of number in English nouns. This book verifies some of his analyses and investigates several problems, some of which are mentioned in his work as subjects for further research. Specific areas are ailment nouns, liquid names, endings in "-ings", binary objects, abstract "-s", and external singulars.