UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS OFTEN CONFUSED

 

10 uncountable nouns / Nombres incontables que solemos confundir :

1. advice 2. news 3.information 4. equipment 5. luggage

6. experience 7. progress 8. traffic 9. trouble 10.accommodation

 

 

 

Before uncountable nouns we often use some or any:

• I need some advice.
• We don’t have any news.
• He doesn’t have much experience.

We can also use a lot of, a little, very little and much:

• There is a lot of information.
• They only have a little equipment.
• They don’t have much luggage.

It is possible to make the following nouns countable by saying:

• a piece of advice
• two pieces of news
• three pieces of information
• four pieces of equipment
• five pieces of luggage.

The nouns experience, progress, traffic, trouble and accommodation cannot be made countable in the above way.
 
N.B. Experience also exists as a countable noun, as in this sentence: ‘We had a lot of good experiences on our trip’.

What is a plural NOUN?

Plural nouns are nouns which are always plural and have no singular form. They are often things which have two parts joined together, e.g. trousers (trousers have two legs), or scissors.
Some plural nouns refer to a group (of people or things). An example of this is police.
Plural nouns always take a plural form of the verb, so we say:

• My trousers are wet.
• The goods were stolen.
• The police are here.

Sometimes we use some with a plural noun. In other cases we can say a pair of. Here are 10 plural nouns and examples of how we use them.

10 plural nouns

• scissors
• some scissors,
• a pair of scissors

• trousers
• some trousers,
• a pair of trousers

• clothes
• some clothes

• headphones
• some headphones,
• a pair of headphones

• refreshments
• some refreshments

• sunglasses
• some sunglasses,
• a pair of sunglasses

• goods
• some goods

• outskirts
• on the outskirts

• headquarters
• at headquarters
• at our headquarters

• surroundings
• in nice surroundings

ACTIVITY 1:

What is the correct plural of the word?

1. How many (person) study English as a second language?
2. Five (woman) opened a computer service company.
3. Even (child) enjoy learning on the Internet.
4. Most basketball players are 6 (foot) tall or more.
5. Which breed of (sheep) produces the finest wool?
6. My (tooth) are sensitive to the cold.
7. At daylight savings time, we have to change our (watch) .
8. The boys went fishing and caught 10 (fish) .
9. There are 10 (man) in the Maintenance Department.
10. The (wife) keep their (knife) on the (shelf) .
11. (Goose) are water birds.
12. (Piano) are difficult to move .
13. There are some (policeman) in my house!
14. I've lost my (luggage) .

 

ACTIVITY 2:

Write down the correct form of the plural:

1. city - .
2. house - .
3. boy - .
4. family - .
5. life - .
6. photo - .
7. phone - .
8. sandwich - .
9. nurse - .
10. elf - .
11. phenomenon - .
12. criterion - .
13. village - .
14. toy - .

LOOK FOR THE KEYS IN THE COMMENTS OF THIS POST.
Las soluciones en los comentarios de esta entrada.

Singular nouns that refer to group of people agreement : The Government has or have?

The government have (or has?)

In English, we often use singular nouns that refer to groups of people (eg government, committee, team) as if they were plural. (This is less true in US English. )
This is because we often think of the group as people, doing things that people do (eating, wanting, feeling etc).
In such cases, we use:

- plural verb


- plural pronoun (they)


- who (not which)

Here are some examples:

- The committee want sandwiches for lunch. They aren't very hungry.


- My family, who don't see me often, have asked me home.


- The team hope to win next time.
 
Here are some examples of words and expressions that can be considered singular or plural:


choir, class, club, committee, company, family, government, jury, school, staff, team, union


the BBC, board of directors, the Conservative Party, Manchester United, the Ministry of Health

But when we consider the group as an impersonal unit, we use singular verbs and pronouns:

- The new company is the result of a merger.


- The average family consists of four people.


- The committee, which was formed in 1983, has ceased to exist.

Noun Classification

Noun Classification

Common Nouns

A common noun is a noun referring to a person, place or thing. You should not write it with an initial capital letter unless it is the first word of a sentence. A common noun is the opposite of a proper noun.

Examples of common nouns: cat, couch, man, car, glass, water, floor.

Examples of how to use common nouns:

The cat is sleeping on a couch.
A man is driving a car.
A glass of water fell on the floor.

Countable Nouns

In English, just like in all languages, nouns can either be countable or uncountable. In this article, I'm going to take a look at countable nouns.

When talking about countable nouns we can use both singular and plural verbs.

Where is my car? (singular verb)
Where are my cars? (plural verb)
We can also use numbers when talking about countable nouns:

He is very rich. He has two cars. (A car is a countable noun. That's why we can say two cars.)

Uncountable Nouns
In English, just like in all languages, nouns can either be countable or uncountable. In this article, I'm going to take a look at uncountable nouns.

When talking about uncountable nouns we can only use singular verbs. Also, the noun itself is never plural.

Water here is cheap.
The money is the only thing that matters to him.
Never use plural verbs when talking about uncountable nouns:

Waters here are cheap.
Never use numbers when talking about uncountable nouns:

I want two waters. (Water is uncountable so we can only say "I want two bottles of water")
Water is a good examples of an uncountable noun. But how do I know if a noun is countable or not? The best way is just to memorise the most tricky ones! Click here to see a list of uncountable nouns.


Proper Nouns

A proper noun is a noun which represents the name of specific person, place, thing or organization. Proper nouns are the opposite of common nouns. Proper nouns always start with a capital letter.

Examples:

1. We met in May. (Names of the month)

2. Yesterday was Friday. (Days of the week)

3.They went to the City Hall building. (Names of places)

4. The Times is my favourite newspaper. (Name of books, magazines, newspapers, etc.)

5. President Clinton visited our country last month. (Titles of people)

6. I think Brazil will be the next Football World Champion! (Names of countries as well as nationalities)

Concrete Nouns
A concrete noun is a noun which we use to name things that we can perceive through our five senses: smell, sight, hearing, taste or touch. Concrete nouns are the opposite of abstract nouns.

Examples:

The horses were restless.
We are waiting for the bus.
He boasted that he lives in a big mansion with a swimming pool.

Abstract Nouns
An abstract noun is a noun which we use to name things that we can not perceive through our five senses: smell, sight, hear, taste or touch. Abstract nouns are the opposite of concrete nouns.

Examples:

Sadly, freedom is not something everyone in the World enjoys.
He gained our sympathy.
I think this footballer lacks the necessary skill to become a professional.
These people need hope!