'Roofs' or 'Rooves': What is the Plural of 'Roof'?'

In the middle of writing and can’t figure out the plural form of ‘roof’? We’ve got you covered. We’ll discuss that and how to correctly use it in a sentence, plus more.

The plural form of ‘roof’ is ‘roofs.’ It’s never grammatical to use ‘rooves.’

How to Use Roof Vs. Rooves Correctly

The word ‘roof’ is not one of those tricky words to pluralize in the English language because it’s as easy as adding an ‘s’ like with these words:

• Computer > Computers
• Chair > Chairs
• Window > Windows
• Beach > Beaches
• Peach > Peaches
• Watch > Watches

It doesn’t follow the standard plural rules for words that end in ‘f’ or ‘fe,’ as these words do:

• Knife > Knives
• Wife > Wives
• Life > Lives
• Calf > Calves
• Leaf > Leaves

With words like this, the rule is that with words that end in ‘f’ or ‘fe,’ you drop the ‘f’ or ‘fe’ and add an ‘iv,’ plus the ‘es’ you’d add to most nouns to make them plural.

Standard Pluralization Rules

The standard rule, as we touched on briefly, is to add an ‘s’ or ‘es’ to a word to make it plural. But many words in the English language don’t follow this rule.

For example, some words must be pluralized with an ‘I.’ Take a look at a few examples:

• Octopus > Octopi
• Cactus > Cacti
• Nucleus > Nuclei
• Alumnus > Alumni

Roof Vs. Rooves – Which is Correct?

 Some people might be tempted to pluralize the word ‘roof,’ using ‘rooves’ because of the rule. But that’s actually incorrect.

The Plural of Roof

As stated above, the plural form of the word is ‘roofs,’ not ‘rooves.’ It’s never okay to use ‘rooves.’ However, in another form, it’s okay to use ‘roof’s.’ But we’ll talk more about that in the singular and plural possessive forms section.

How to Use the Singular and Plural Forms in a Sentence

Now that we’ve covered how to pluralize the word and its definition let’s learn how to use both forms properly in a sentence.

Take a look at an example of how to use it in a sentence:

• That roof looks like it needs a fresh coat of paint. (singular)
• We’re getting solar panels on our roof. (singular)
• We have to choose between two roofs. (plural)
• Two of our neighbors have similar roofs. (plural)

Singular and Plural Possessive Forms

To get the singular possessive form of ‘roof,’ you’d use ‘roof’s.’ The plural possessive form of the word is ‘roofs.’

Take a look at examples of how to use the singular possessive form in a sentence:

• The roof’s shingles could use replacing.
• The roof’s not exactly the color it appeared to be in the listing.

Check out examples of how to use the plural possessive form in a sentence:

• All the roofs’ shingles on the block need replacing after Hurricane Ian.
• All our neighbor's roofs’ are the same color; how boring.

Concluding Thoughts on ‘Roofs’

Remember, it’s never okay to use ‘rooves’ to pluralize the word ‘roof.’ ‘Roof’ is the correct plural form of the word.

To pluralize it, remember that it follows rules similar to words like wife, knife, and calf.

If you’re ever struggling with confusing words or plurals, check out our library of confusing words.