Countable and uncountable nouns

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Countable nouns, uncountable nouns, English, some, many, English grammar

Résumé du document

It's important to distinguish between countable and uncountable nouns in English because their usage is different in regards to both determiners and verbs.

Countable nouns are for things we can count using numbers. They have a singular and a plural form. The singular form can use the determiner "a" or "an". If you want to ask about the quantity of a countable noun, you ask "How many?" combined with the plural countable noun.

Extraits

[...] Measure 1 cup of water, 300g of flour, and 1 teaspoon of salt. How much rice do you want? Tricky spots Some nouns are countable in other languages but uncountable in English. They must follow the rules for uncountable nouns. The most common ones are: accommodation, advice, baggage, behavior, bread, furniture, information, luggage, news, progress, traffic, travel, trouble, weather, work Examples I would like to give you some advice. How much bread should I bring? I didn't make much progress today. [...]

[...] For example:- Tables, chairs, cupboards etc. are grouped under the mass noun furniture. Plates, saucers, cups and bowls are grouped under the mass noun crockery. Knives, forks, spoons etc. are grouped under the collective noun cutlery. When you are travelling suitcases, bags etc. are grouped under the mass noun luggage / baggage. Making uncountable nouns countable You can make most uncountable noun countable by putting a countable expression in front of the noun. For example:- A piece of information. 2 glasses of water. [...]

[...] It can be countable only when referring to individual hairs. Examples She has long blond hair. The child's hair was curly. I washed my hair yesterday. My father is getting a few grey hairs now. (refers to individual hairs) I found a hair in my soup (refers to a single strand of hair) A noun can be countable or uncountable. Countable nouns can be "counted", they have a singular and plural form . For example: A book, two books, three books . [...]

[...] If you want to ask about the quantity of a countable noun, you ask "How many?" combined with the plural countable noun. Examples She has three dogs. I own a house. I would like two books please. How many friends do you have? Uncountable nouns Uncountable nouns are for the things that we cannot count with numbers. They may be the names for abstract ideas or qualities or for physical objects that are too small or too amorphous to be counted (liquids, powders, gases, etc.). Uncountable nouns are used with a singular verb. They usually do not have a plural form. [...]

[...] (Countable) A window made of glass. (Uncountable) glasses - I wear glasses. (Always plural) Some supposedly uncountable nouns can behave like countable nouns if we think of them as being in containers, or one of several types. This is because 'containers' and 'types' can be counted. Believe it or not each of these sentences is correct:- Doctors recommend limiting consumption to two coffees a day. (Here coffees refers to the number of cups of coffee) You could write; "Doctors recommend limiting consumption to two cups of coffee a day." The coffees I prefer are Arabica and Brazilian. [...]