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Countable and Noncountable Nouns
Most nouns in English are countable. Countable nouns (C) refer to things that it is possible to enumerate: one book, two hats, three elephants, four lions, and so on. Normally countable nouns have both singular and plural forms. However, some (such as people, trousers, pajamas, scissors, and binoculars), have only a plural form, and a few (like series and means) are always singular. A small number (such as deer, sheep, and fish) use the same form for both singular and plural. Noncountable nouns (= NC, or uncountable), on the other hand, cannot normally be counted. For this reason noncountable nouns seldom use an indefinite article and almost never have a plural form. However, exceptions like those described in the final section below do exist.
- Types of Noncountable Nouns
- Abstractions
- Mass Nouns
- Material
- Generic
- Double-Duty Words
- Special Circumstances
As the following table illustrates, the two largest categories of noncountable nouns are abstractions and mass nouns. Abstractions are the names of non-concrete things, that is, things of the mind or emotions, or, in general, things which cannot be touched. This category also includes sports and games, diseases, and the names of school subjects, professions, or occupations.
Mass nouns refer to concrete things, that is, things that it is possible to touch. This category is often separated into two subcategories: material nouns and generic nouns. The first of these, material nouns, contains three main types of noncountables: 1. concrete objects that are difficult or impossible to separate into parts or that are hard to hold without a container, such as liquids, semi-liquids, and gasses; 2. things that can be converted relatively easily from one state into another--from solid to liquid to gas and back again; 3. things that are composed of many similar, almost indistinguishable particles. Generic nouns, on the other hand, are the names of groups or categories of unlike items which can be talked about together because they are alike in at least one important respect. The individual items within each group (such as the knives, forks, and spoons within the category of silverware) are generally countable. Exceptions do exist: a few names of categories (vegetable) are countable, while a few items within some categories (broccoli, celery, lettuce) are noncountable.
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NONCOUNTABLE NOUNS |
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Abstractions: |
Mass Nouns: |
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Material |
Generic |
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love hate sympathy compassion enjoyment relaxation fun speed slowness intelligence soccer tennis swimming bridge engineering mathematics Spanish carpentry |
mutton beef bread ***** oil milk mud oxygen water steam ice ice cream copper ***** rice wheat grass hair flour sand |
furniture silverware luggage fruit meat
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Some noncountable nouns may also have one or more countable definitions in addition to the noncountable one. Such nouns are called double-duty words. One example of such a word is glass. You might, for instance, put on your glasses (C--plural only) to look through the dirty glass (NC) in the window of your house to see if it is your friend who is drinking a glass (C--singular) of coke on the porch across the street. "Business," for instance, means "commerce in general," while "a business" designates the store, factory, or other location where the commerce is conducted. "A chicken" is a bird running around in a farmyard or a whole bird bought at the market, while "chicken" is the meat of "a chicken," meat possibly cut into serving portions ready to be fried for dinner. To distinguish between countable and noncountable usages in something that you are reading, note whether an indefinite article is used before a simple-form noun or whether the plural is employed. If either an indefinite article or a plural is present, then the countable meaning is the one intended.
Many nouns that have both countable and noncountable definitions come from verbs, and frequently such words end with the suffixes -ment, -ion, and -ary. The noncountable sense of words like observation, hesitation, and operation refers to the act itself, whereas the countable definition designates the concrete product or result of the act:
Observation is important if scientists are going to get accurate results. vs. Bill made a nasty observation about his brother's snoring.
Operation of a printing press requires training. vs. Bill had an operation to remove his tonsils last week.
Other circumstances in which a noun that is normally noncountable can have a countable sense are the following:
1. When what is being referred to is thought of as being in a container, then in informal English it can become countable and be placed in the plural or be preceded by a or an.
He ordered a coffee and two teas from the counter attendant at the lunch stand.
He told her to give him several sugars also. (sugars = paper packets of sugar)
2. When "a kind of," "the kind of," or "some" is meant, a or an may be used before a simple-form noun, or the word may be made plural and have the meaning of "kinds of."
The cook fixed a meat and a fruit for lunch.
Many grains are grown in the United States.
3. When abstract nouns are modified by an adjective, an adjective phrase, or an adjective clause, a is sometimes added. In many of these sentences the indefinite article suggests the meaning of "a kind of."
The lion snarled with a terrible, fear-inspiring ferocity.