Count and Non-Count Nouns

Common Noun and Proper Noun

Common noun: I want to be a writer.Proper noun: Agatha Christie wrote many books.

Common noun: Let’s go to the city.Proper noun: Let’s go to San Francisco.

Common noun: My teacher starts work before sunup.Proper noun: Mr. Bell seems to understand what students need.

Common noun: I think that’s a planet, not a star.Proper noun: I can see Jupiter tonight.

Common noun: He’s always hanging out with his girlfriend.Proper noun: He never goes anywhere without Sarah.

Common noun: There are a lot of important documents in the archives.Proper noun: There are many important documents at The Library of Congress.

Countable nouns

Some nouns refer to things which, in English, are treated as separate items which can be counted. These are called countable nouns. Countable nouns can be singular or plural. They can be used with a/an and with numbers and many other determiners (e.g. these, a few).

Here are some examples:o a laptop, three laptopso my book, my two bookso These shoes look old now.o I’ll take a few magazines with

me for the flight.

UNCOUNTABLE NOUNSOr mass nouns

In English grammar, some things are seen as a whole or mass. These are called uncountable nouns, because they cannot be separated or counted.

Another way to identify them is when you need a physical quantity and not only a number.

Ideas and experiences Materials and substances Weather words Names for groups or collections of

things Accommodation, baggage,

homework, knowledge, money, permission, research, traffic, travel.

These nouns are not used with a/an or numbers and are not used in the plural.

o We had terrible weather last week.

o Not: We had a terrible weather last week.

WARNING!Some nouns which are

uncountable in English are countable in other languages.

Nouns with Count and Non-Count Meanings

Sometimes a word that means one thing as a noncount noun has a slightly different meaning if it also has a countable version. Remember, then, that the classifications count and noncount are not absolute.

Light (non-count noun) Lights (count noun)

The political arguments took the nation to a situation of political instability.

The author's argument was unsupported and stereotypical.

On his last trip to Disney World, Joe rode Space Mountain twenty-seven times.

Time dragged as Simon sat through watched another boring chick flick with his girlfriend Roseanne.

If we conceive the meaning of a noun as a continuum from being specific to being general and abstract, we can see how it can move from being a count noun to a non count noun. 

Evils (count noun) Evil (non-count noun)

I had many horrifying experiences as a pilot.

This position requires experience.

The talks will take place in Degnan Hall.

I hate it when a meeting is nothing but talk.

I love the works of Shakespeare.

I hate work.

Notice that the plural form means something quite different from the singular form of this word; they're obviously related, but they're different. 

Wood / Woods

Ice / [Italian] ices

Hair / Hairs

A special case is the use of the count distinction for the purpose of classification.  Several types of French wines are grown in the

French Riviera.

I prefer Sumatran coffees to Colombian.

We use a variety of different batters in our bakery.

Some nouns cannot be made countable or plural, we cannot have :

FurnituresInformationsKnowledgesSoftnessesChaoses

Non-Count Nouns Made Countable

Non-count nouns (like coffee) can not be used with "a, an" articles. To convert them into an accounting unit it’s necessary to use another additional word, for example a cup of coffee.

Quiz

1. He used the computer to find more information.

2. She unfolded the towel on the sand.

3. There was too much furniture in the room.

4. A student sat down in her seat.5. The radio was playing a beautiful

song.6. The teacher gave the students

some advice.7. Steven had to hang a picture on

the wall. 8. Sarah played the music for the

class.

Countable

Countable

Countable

Countable

Uncountable

Uncountable

Uncountable

Uncountable