Translate This Page
Teacher: You missed school yesterday, didn’t you?
Pupil: Not very much!
The same form in singular and plural.
Examples
Singular |
Plural |
|
sheep |
sheep |
|
fish |
fish |
|
species |
species |
|
aircraft |
aircraft |
Some nouns have a plural form but take
a singular verb.
Examples
- News: The news is on at 6.30 p.m.
- Athletics: Athletics is good for young people.
- Linguistics: Linguistics is the study of language.
- Darts: Darts is a popular game in England.
- Billiards: Billiards is played all over the world.
Some nouns have a plural form and take
a plural verb.
Examples
- Trousers My trousers are too tight.
- Jeans Her jeans are black.
- Glasses Those glasses are his.
- Her eye-glasses are nice.
- My shoes are fashionable
- These pyjamas are old fashion.
others include:
savings, thanks, steps, stair, customs,
congratulations, tropics, wages, spectacles,
outskirts, goods, wits
COUNTABLE AND
UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS
Countable nouns are for things we can count
Examples
dog, horse, man, shop, idea., turkey, pie, drink,
firework, present, electronic
set,sppon,fork,kitchen,bedroom,air condition,
sandwich,canned food.
They usually have a singular and plural form.
Examples
two dogs, ten horses, a man, six men,
the shops, a few ideas.
Uncountable nouns are for the things that we
cannot count
Examples
Tea, sugar, water, air, rice.
They are often the names for abstract ideas or
qualities.
Examples
Knowledge, beauty, Jewelery, anger, fear,
love,fun, laughter,entertainment.
They are used with a singular verb.
They usually do not have a plural form.
We cannot say sugars, angers, knowledges.
Examples of common uncountable
nouns:
- money, furniture, happiness, sadness,
- research, evidence,
- safety, beauty, knowledge.
We cannot use a/an with these nouns. To express a
quantity of one of these nouns, use a word or
expression like:
some, a lot of, a piece of, a bit of,
a great deal of...
Examples
- There has been a lot of research into the causes of this disease.
- He gave me a great deal of advice before my interview.
- They've got a lot of furniture.
- Can you give me some information about uncountable nouns?
Some nouns are countable in other languages but
uncountable in English.
Some of the most common of these are:
|
accommodation advice baggage behaviour bread furniture information luggage |
news progress traffic travel trouble weather work |
BE CAREFUL with the noun 'hair' which is normally
uncountable in English:
- She has long blonde hair
It can also be countable when referring to individual hairs:
- My father's getting a few grey hairs
Compound Nouns:
Formation
Words can be combined to form compound nouns.
These are very common, and new combinations are
invented almost daily. They normally have two parts
. The second part identifies the object or person in
question (man, friend, tank, table, room). The first
part tells us what kind of object or person it is, or
what its purpose is (police, boy, water, dining,
bed):
| What type / what purpose |
What or who |
| police | man |
| boy | friend |
| water | tank |
| dining | table |
| bed Chair |
room Carpet |
1. as one word.
Example: policeman, boyfriend
2. as two words joined with a hyphen.
Example: dining-table
3. as two separate words.
Example: fish tank.
Compound nouns often have a meaning that is
different from the two separate words.
Stress is important in pronunciation, as it
distinguishes between a compound noun (e.g.
greenhouse) and an adjective with a noun (e.g.
green house).
In compound nouns, the stress usually falls on the
first syllable:
a 'greenhouse = place where we grow plants
(compound noun)
a green 'house = house painted green (adjective
and noun)
a 'bluebird = type of bird (compound noun)
a blue 'bird = any bird with blue feathers (adjective
and noun)
* Many common compound nouns are formed from
phrasal verbs (verb + adverb or adverb + verb).
Examples
Breakdown, outbreak, outcome, cutback, drive-
in, drop-out, feedback, flyover, hold-up,
hangover, outlay, outlet, inlet, makeup, output,
set-back, stand-in, takeaway, walkover.
NATIONALITIES
We use the + nationality adjective ending in -ese or
-ish with a plural verb, to refer to all people of that
nationality:
COUNTRY |
ADJECTIVE |
NOUN |
|
Africa |
African |
an African |
|
America |
American |
an American |
|
Argentina |
Argentinian |
an Argentinian |
|
Austria |
Austrian |
an Austrian |
|
Autralia |
Australian |
an Australian |
|
Bangladesh |
Bangladesh(i) |
a Bangladeshi |
|
Belgium |
Belgian |
a Belgian |
|
Brazil |
Brazilian |
a Brazilian |
|
Britain |
British |
a Briton/Britisher |
|
Cambodia |
Cambodian |
a Cambodian |
|
Chile |
Chilean |
a Chilean |
|
China |
Chinese |
a Chinese |
|
Colombia |
Colombian |
a Colombian |
|
Croatia |
Croatian |
a Croat |
|
the Czech Republic |
Czech |
a Czech |
|
Denmark |
Danish |
a Dane |
|
England |
English |
an Englishman |
|
Finland |
Finnish |
a Finn |
|
France |
French |
a Frenchman |
|
Germany |
German |
a German |
|
Greece |
Greek |
a Greek |
|
Holland |
Dutch |
a Dutchman |
|
Hungary |
Hungarian |
a Hungarian |
|
Iceland |
Icelandic |
an Icelander |
|
India |
Indian |
an Indian |
|
Indonesia |
Indonesian |
an Indonesian |
|
Iran |
Iranian |
an Iranian |
|
Iraq |
Iraqi |
an Iraqi |
|
Ireland |
Irish |
an Irishman |
|
Israel |
Israeli |
an Israeli |
|
Jamaica |
Jamaican |
a Jamaican |
|
Japan |
Japanese |
a Japanese |
|
Mexico |
Mexican |
a Mexican |
|
Morocco |
Moroccan |
a Moroccan |
|
Norway |
Norwegian |
a Norwegian |
|
Peru |
Peruvian |
a Peruvian |
|
the Philippines |
Philippine |
a Filipino |
|
Poland |
Polish |
a Pole |
|
Portugal |
Portuguese |
a Portuguese |
|
Rumania |
Rumanian |
a Rumanian |
|
Russia |
Russian |
a Russian |
|
Scotland |
Scottish |
a Scot |
|
Serbia |
Serbian |
a Serb |
|
the Slovak Republic |
Slovak |
a Slovak |
|
Sweden |
Swedish |
a Swede |
|
Switzerland |
Swiss |
a Swiss |
|
Thailand |
Thai |
a Thai |
|
The USA |
American |
an American |
|
Tunisia |
Tunisian |
a Tunisian |
|
Turkey |
Turkish |
a Turk |
|
Vietnam |
Vietnamese |
a Vietnamese |
|
|
||
|
Yugoslavia |
Yugoslav |
a Yugoslav |
