2 Nouns 2.3. Countable and uncountable nouns (1) 2.3A Countable and uncountable nouns compared [> LEG 2.14) Study: | 1 fanounis countable: | awe canuse a/an in front of it: | bought a book. (Not “/ bought book.*) bithas a plural and can be used in questions with How many? How many books ...? © we can use a number in front of it: one book, two books. 2 Ifa noun is uncountable: ‘a we do not normally use a/an in front of it: | Bought some bread. (Not “a bread’) b it does not normally have a plural and can be used in questions with How much? How much bread ...? (Not “How many breads?*) | ¢ we cannot normally use a number in front of it. [compare > 2.90] 3. We need to know whether nouns are countable or uncountable in English to be able to use a/an, some, any, much, many, a few, a litle, etc. correctly. Compare: /t was a marvellous experience. (countable = something that happened) We need someone with experience. (uncountable = skill and knowledge) Write: Underline the noun in each sentence and write ‘C’ or 'U' to show whether the noun is countable or uncountable. . 1 This is an excellent painting. C 6 Hope keeps me going. _ 2 I don't like milk. 7 He hasn't a hope. 3. How many photos did he take? _ 8 How much flour did you buy? 4 Add a little more oil. _ 9 Where are my two new shirts? _ 5 His drawings really interest me. _ 10 We've got plenty of coal. _ 2.3B Nouns which can be either countable or uncountable: ‘an egg/egg’ [> LEG 2.16.1, 2.16.2] Study: | 1 Some nouns are countable when they refer to single items, but they are uncountable when 3] | they refer to substances: countable (a single item) uncountable (substance/material) He ate a whole chicken! Would you like some chicken? Ihad a bolled egg for breakfast. There's egg on your tie. 2 Some nouns are uncountable when they refer to a material, but they are countable when they refer to an object made from that material: countable (‘thing’) uncountable (‘material’) | broke a glass this morning. Glass is made from sand and lime. | [picked up a stone. We used stone to build our walls Write: Underline the noun in each sentence and write ‘C’ or ‘U' to show whether the noun is being used as a countable or as an uncountable. 1 Add more onion. 6 Would you like an ice? __ 2 Would you like some fish? _ 7 I need two clean glasses. _ 3 leat two eggs every day. 8 Don't throw stones. _ 4 Too much cake isn't good for you. _ 9 Alot of paper is wasted. __ 5 They've built a new motorway. 10 We bought a new iron yesterday. __ 302.3 Countable and uncountable nouns (1) 2.3C Normally uncountable nouns used as countables (1): ‘a coffee/(some) coffee’ [> LEG 2.16.3] Study: | 1 Words for drinks like coffee are normally uncountable. This means a | —weuseno article: Coffee is important to the economy of Brazil —or we use some/any. Is there any coffee? I'd like some coffee, please. 2 However, when we are ordering coffee, etc., we normally treat it as countable: 'd like a coftee, please. Two coffees, please. One coffee and a glass of milk, please. Write: Use /'d like ..., please to ask for drinks in each situation. 1 You have come down to breakfast. There is a chgice between tea and coffee. I'd dike (agme) tea, please. Ld, Uke (some) cotter, Meade. 2 You are ordering drinks. You want coftee for yourself. Your two friends want tea. 3 You are ordering drinks for three people: beer, lemonade, tomato juice. 4 You are ordering drinks. Two want coffee. Three want tea. One wants milk. 2.3D Normally uncountable nouns used as countables (2): ‘oil/a light oil’ [> LEG 2.16.3] ‘Study: Words like oil and plastic for substances and materials are normally uncountable [> 3.54]: a Oil is produced in the North Sea. We often use a/an with nouns like this when we are describing them with an adjective: The North Seaproduces a light oll which is highly prized in the oil industry. PEPE RS A ny eT Write: Rewrite these sentences using the nouns as countables. 1. The North Sea produces oil. (light) 2 This region produces wine. (excellent)... 3 This factory produces cloth. (traditional) 4 This box is made of wood. (rare)... 54 height ot, 2.3E Context Write: Putin a, some, or“ ooops! sna STinenne WINE iS NOt cheap and *.... good wine can cost a lot of money these days. So spare®.... thought for Mr Sokolin,4......ene New York wine merchant, who recently lost °.. bottle of wine worth £305,000 (or about £50,000 ®.... .. glass). Itwas ?. .. 1784 Chateau Margaux which had once belonged to Thomas Jefferson, the third president of America. Mr Sokolin took the bottle to *. wine tasting and put it on . table The bottle was made of * dark glass and a waiter didn’t notice it. He hit it WIth "onsen tray, Making "2. large hole in it. Most of the wine was lost, but Mr Sokolin was able to taste ". . Of it. He said it was ‘not very 900d’, but the loss of the bottle was described a "4.0... terrible tragedy’ ‘terrible tragedy! agedy! a2.Nouns 2.4 2.4A Study: Write: 2.4B Study: Write 1: Write 2: 32 Countable and uncountable nouns (2) Singular equivalents of uncountable nouns: ‘bread/a loaf’ [> LEG 2.16.6) 1 Aword like bread is uncountable. If we want ‘one item’, we use a different word: I'd like some bread, please. I'd like a loaf (of bread), please. 2 Sometimes we have to say exactly what we want. We cannot say “a clothing’, so we ask for a coat, a shin, etc. In the same way, we cannot say “a luggage’, ‘an accommodation’. We have to say what we want: e.g. a suitcase, a room. Put in any suitable word which means ‘one item’ 1 Are you giving away all this clothing/all these clothes? — No, I'm giving away a ..... @R¢: 2 There's a lot of laughter from next door. | ust heard a very loud ... 3. My luggage is getting old and worn. | really need a new .. 4 There are a lot of people looking for work. I need a 5 I'm looking for accommodation. I'd KE @ sn. myselt for the night Nouns not normally countabi [> LEG 2.14.1-2, 2.17, 2.30, App 4] English: ‘information’ 1 Anumber of nouns, like information, are countable in many languages, but they are uncountable in English. This means we cannot: — use a/an in front of them: I'd like some information, please. (Not ‘an information’) give them a plural: I'd like some information, please. (Not *(some) informations") Other examples: advice, clothing, flu, furniture, hair, homework, housework, jewellery, lightning, luggage, meat, money, news, permission, progress, rubbish, scenery, shopping, soap, spaghetti, thunder, toast, traffic, weather. ‘News is plural in form, but takes a singular verb: The news is bad. (Not “the news are’) Hair (that grows on the head) is singular: My hair is long. (Not “my hairs are") We use hairs only for individual strands of hair: There are three hairs on my nose. Tick the words which normally have plurals in English. 1 advice__ 4 answer__ 7 penny___ 10 money__ 2 diamond ¥ 5 jewellery__ 8 story 11 news__ 3 meat__ 6 carrot 9 scenery __ 12 shirt _ Put in some, any, a, the, a lot of or 1 11d like 42?%€information, please. 11 Can you give me... description of it? 2 The tree was struck by lightning. 12 Id lke......... tomatoes, please. 3 Is there toast, please? 13 Would you like ........ spaghetti? 4 There's nnn Slice Of toast left. 14 There Was ...... tfaffic this morning, 5 What's weather like today? 15 John's gone to bed With «nu lu 6 Can |have......... potatoes, please? 16 Have you made......... progress with Chinese? 7 10d 1. New clothing. 17 twegot permission to park here. 8 I'm tired. I've just done ......... shopping. 18 Our teacher has given US... homework. 9 I've done........ housework. 19 There's rubbish in our garden. 10 Ive just received........ letter from John. 20 I'm going to plant tree in the garden.2.4 Countable and uncountable nouns (2) 2.4C Study: el Write: Partitives: ‘a piece of’, etc. [> LEG 2.18, App 5) 1 We use partitives to refer to: ~ one item: a loat of bread ~a part of a whole: a slice of bread = a collection of items: a packet of biscuits 2 The most common partitives are a piece of and (in everyday speech) a bit of: Can | have a piece of bread/a bit of bread/two pieces of bread, please? 3 There are partitives which go with some words but not with others. So we can say a slice of bread, a slice of cake, a slice of meat (but not “a slice of soap’). Parttives can be ‘containers’ (a tin of soup) or can refer to small amounts (a drop of rain). Match A and B. A B 1 Id like some ice. ...&. Abe. OF Lee. wisp of 2 Have you got any chocolate? acube of... 3 Can | have some bread, please? sermon Splash of 4 We need some paper. a box of. 5 Buy me some soap, please... asipof 6 Buy me some milk, please. . a tube of... 7 We need some jam. a drop of 8 Have you got any matches? a bar of. 9 I've made some tea. alice of 10 Buy some toothpaste. .... apinch of 11 Add a little wate a sheet of 12. Add a little salt, ajar of 13 I've drunk a little tea. a bar of 14 Add a little soda a bottle of 15 I can see a little smoke. a pot of Context Put in a, a lot of (use once only), some, or '- JUNK OR ART? Who became famous for painting *......%......tin of soup? The answer is the American pop artist, Andy Warhol. Andy painted everyday ‘objects and he also liked to collect them in large numbers: i cookie jars, ® sets of cutlery, ¢ vases, § furniture and paintings. Andy died in 1987 and his vast collection was sold. Someone paid $23,100 for two cookie jars which had cost a few dollars each. pieces of furniture were sold for nearly $300,000. The sale raised * ... money for the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, which may now have $100m! So, before you clear out your attic, take another look. What you think is sw Tubbish today, might be *°. treasure tomorrow. That ugly old vase belonging to Grandma may be more valuable than you think! ‘Junk oF art? 33