COUNTABLE and UNCOUNTABLE

countable and uncountable

✖There are two kinds of noun in English:

countable (C) and uncountable (U).

✖COUNTABLE = things you can count, e.g.

apples.

✖COUNTABLE nouns can be singular (an

apple) or plural (apples).

ONE APPLE

TWO APPLES FIVE APPLES

countable and uncountable

✖UNCOUNTABLE = things you can’t count,

e.g. butter, meat. NOT two butters, three

meats

✖UNCOUNTABLE nouns are normally

singular.

YES NOMEAT TWO MEATS

SUGAR THREE SUGARS

countable and uncountable

✖Some nouns can be COUNTABLE or

UNCOUNTABLE but the meaning is

different, e.g. an ice cream (C), some ice

cream (U).

an ice cream some ice cream

a hair blond hair

a / an, some / any

✖We use a / an with singular COUNTABLE

nouns; a / an = one.

✖We use some + with plural COUNTABLE

nouns and with UNCOUNTABLE nouns;

some = not an exact number or quantity.

✖We use any in – and ? with plural C nouns

and with U nouns.

Countable Uncountable

+ We need an apple some butter

some apples

- We don’t need a tomato any rice

any tomatoes

? Do we need an orange? any sugar?

any oranges?

WARNING!!!

✖Remember some in questions

✖We use some in questions to ask for and

offer things.

○Can I have some apples, please?

○Would you like some coffee?