Unit 9

Countable and uncountable nouns

PRESENTATION
1  I’ve got an apple and a banana.
2  He has some pens.
3  He doesn’t have any pencils.
4  I have some bread.
5  I don’t have any milk.

FORM
Countable nouns have a singular form and a plural form.
We use:
a/an + singular countable noun
We use some with plural countable nouns in positive sentences.
We use any with plural countable nouns in negative sentences.

Plural
some /any countable noun
+ I have some bananas.
apples.
− I don’t have any
oranges.

Uncountable nouns have only a singular form.

Singular Plural
bread —
milk —

We can use some + uncountable noun in positive sentences.

We can use any + uncountable noun in negative sentences.

some/any uncountable noun

+ I’ve got some bread.
milk.
− I haven’t got any

USE
Countable nouns are things and people that we can count.
I have an apple and two bananas.
There are twelve students in my class.
We use a/an with singular countable nouns.
I have an orange and a banana.
We can use numbers with plural countable nouns to say how many.
I eat five vegetables every day.
We use some with plural countable nouns in positive sentences.
I have some pens.
We use any with plural countable nouns in negative sentences.
I don’t have any pens.
We can’t count uncountable nouns. We don’t use numbers to say how many.
some milk  (NOT  two milks)
Uncountable nouns have no plural form. We don’t add -s.
some bread  (NOT  some breads)

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We don’t use a/an with uncountable nouns.
some milk  (NOT  a milk)
We use some with uncountable nouns in positive sentences.
I have some bread.
We use any with uncountable nouns in negative sentences.
I don’t have any milk.

Quantifiers: much/many/a lot of/lots of

PRESENTATION
1  I have a lot of books on my shelf.
2  They drink lots of water.
3  I don’t have much coffee.
4  We don’t have many tomatoes.
5  “How much rice do you eat?”  “A lot.”
6  “How many potatoes are there?”  “Not many.”
7  “How much money do you have?”  “None.”

FORM
Countable Uncountable
+ I have a lot of/lots of books. a lot of/lots of time.
She eats a lot of/lots of sweets. a lot of/lots of rice.
− I don’t have many pens. much coffee.
She doesn’t eat many apples. much meat.

Countable
How many potatoes are there? A lot. There are a lot of/lots of potatoes.
Not many. There aren’t many potatoes.
None. There aren’t any potatoes.

Uncountable
How much cheese do you eat? A lot. I eat a lot of/lots of cheese.
Not much. I don’t eat much cheese.
None. I don’t eat any cheese.

USE
In positive sentences, we use a lot of/lots of with countable or uncountable nouns to talk
about a big quantity of something.
I drink a lot of milk.
He eats lots of apples.
In negative sentences, we use much with uncountable nouns, and many with countable
nouns.
I don’t have much money. (= I have a small amount.)
We don’t have many books. (= We have a small number.)
We can also use a lot of/lots of in negative sentences with countable or uncountable nouns.
I don’t have a lot of time.
We don’t eat lots of potatoes.
We use How much/How many to ask about quantities of things or people.
How much cake is there?
How many apples would you like?

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We use How many with countable nouns.
How many books does she have?
How many cars are there?
We use How much with uncountable nouns.
How much money do you need?
How much cheese do you eat?
We can answer with a short answer.
“How much money do you have?”  “A little./None.”
“How many stores are there?”  “A few./A lot.”
Or we can answer with a full sentence, using a quantifier + noun.
“How much money do you have?”  “I don’t have any money.”
“How many stores are there?”  “There are a lot of stores.”

Tip
Lots of and a lot of mean the same, but lots of is more informal.
We use None in a short answer, but we use not any in a full sentence.
“How much meat do you eat?”  “None./I don’t eat any meat.”
We often use no in sentences with there is/there are.
“How much money is there?”  “None./There’s no money.”

Would like: requests and offers

PRESENTATION
1  “What would you like to eat?”  “A small salad, please.”
2  “Would you like an apple?”  “Yes, please./No, thanks.”
3 I’d like some juice, please.
4 She’d like a coffee.
5 They’d like spaghetti.
6  “Would you like to watch TV?”  “No, thank you. I’m fine.”
7 She’d like to speak to him.

FORM
‘d like is the same for every subject. We use it before a noun or verb.
Subject + ‘d like + noun/verb.
Subject ‘d like noun/verb
I ‘d like some cake.
You a sandwich.
He five apples.
She the chicken.
It to watch TV.
We
You
They

‘d like is short for would like. We use would like in formal writing.
We would like three tickets, please.
To form questions, we change the order of would and the subject.
Would + subject + like + noun/verb?

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 Questions
Would subject like noun/verb
Would you like an ice cream?
he some rice?
she a ticket?
they a new coat?
to watch TV?

Wh- questions
Question word would subject like verb
What would you like to eat?
he
she
they

USE
We use ‘d like or would like to ask for something. It is a polite way of saying want.
I’d like coffee and Cathy would like tea.
We use Would you like…? to ask other people what they want.
“Would you like an apple?”  “Yes, please./No, thanks.”
We can also use wh- questions with would like to ask other people what they want.
What would you like to eat?
What would you like to do?

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Unit 10
Object pronouns
PRESENTATION
1  He likes her.
2  You love me, and I love you!
3  They are good movies. I want to watch them.
4  She gave me a nice present.
5  I’m studying English with him.
6  They’re staying with us.
7  Listen to me!

FORM
Subject pronoun Object pronoun
I me
you you
he him
she her
it it
we us
you you
they them

Tip
The object pronouns you and it are the same as the subject pronouns you and it.
You love me, and I love you!

USE
We use pronouns in place of nouns. The object pronoun goes after a verb.
He likes her.
They are good movies. I want to watch them.
She gave me a nice present.
The object pronoun also goes after a preposition.
He played a song for us.
I’m studying English with him.
I play football with him.
Listen to me!
We use an object pronoun, not a subject pronoun, after the verb be.
“Who’s there?”  “It’s me—Kate.”
That’s him over there.
For more information on subject pronouns, see Subject pronouns.

Comparative adjectives
PRESENTATION
1  Jack is older than Maya.
2 Sarah’s taller than me.
3  The blue jacket’s nicer than the red jacket.
4  Math is easier than science.
5  Lions are bigger than cats.

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FORM
For short adjectives, we usually form the comparative with -er.

Short comparative adjectives

Add -er, or -r when the adjective ends in -e. tall → taller
long → longer
nice → nicer
When the adjective ends in one vowel + one consonant, big → bigger
double the consonant and add -er. hot → hotter
Change -y to -ier. happy → happier
easy → easier

Short comparative adjectives

Add -er or -r. tall → taller long → longer nice → nicer
Double the consonant and add -er. big → bigger hot → hotter
Change -y to -ier. happy → happier easy → easier

USE
We use comparative adjectives to describe how one thing or person is different from another
thing or person.
We use comparative adjectives with than.
Jack is older than Maya.
Sarah’s taller than me.
My hair is shorter than Kate’s hair.
The blue jacket’s nicer than the red jacket.
Lions are bigger than cats.
Math is easier than physics.
When it is clear what we are talking about, we don’t need to give a phrase with than.
She was sad last year but she’s happier now.

Comparative adjectives: long and irregular forms

PRESENTATION
1  Vacations are more exciting than work.
2  The book’s better than the movie.

FORM
For long adjectives, we form the comparative with more + adjective. We don’t add -er.
beautiful → more beautiful
difficult → more difficult
For adjectives with three or more syllables, we form the comparative with more + adjective.
We don’t add -er.
beautiful → more beautiful
difficult → more difficult
For some adjectives with two syllables, we add -er for the comparative. Others use more +
adjective. And some can do either.
boring → more boring
funny → funnier
simple → more simple OR simpler

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