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Tricky spots
Some nouns are countable in other languages but uncountable in English. They must follow the
rules for uncountable nouns. The most common ones are:
accommodation, advice, baggage, behavior, bread, furniture, information, luggage, news,
progress, traffic, travel, trouble, weather, work
Examples
Be careful with the noun hair which is normally uncountable in English, so it is not used in the
plural. It can be countable only when referring to individual hairs.
Examples
Some nouns in English are countable – we can use them in singular and plural forms. Some are
uncountable – they only have one form.
We often use a/an with singular countable nouns and some with plurals. We can also
use some with uncountable nouns.
OK, so for things you can count, like one pen, two pens … Why did you say a pen, not one pen?
We often use a/an before singular countable nouns. Before words that start with a vowel sound,
we use an, and before words that start with a consonant sound, we use a.
It sounds as if you're saying one (not two). If you're offering someone a drink, you'd say Would you
like a drink?
But someone who works in a café might say, So that's one coffee and two lemonades.
So it's usually a or an for singular countable nouns and a number or some for plurals. How many
is some?
A dictionary will tell you. Usually dictionaries use symbols [C] for countable and [U] for
uncountable.
Just a minute. You said cake was uncountable. What about I made a cake this morning?
We use some quantifiers only with countable nouns. We use some other quantifiers only with
uncountable nouns. And we use some with countable or uncountable nouns.
The table below shows quantifiers that can indicate quantity from 0% to 100%. Notice which ones
can be used with countable, uncountable or both:
countable uncountable
100 all
%
every
most
many much
some
any
0% no
Like all determiners, quantifiers come at the beginning of a noun phrase, so they come in front of
any adjective(s).
There are other quantifiers such as enough and several that cannot easily be shown on a scale:
There are several eggs in the fridge but you'd better buy some more.
some, any, no
Some is an unspecified quantity. It could be big or small, we don't know. Normally it is "medium".
Any is also an unspecified quantity. It refers to "one, some or all". So it's a quantity from 1 to
infinity (∞).
- I don't I don't have $1 and I don't have $10 and I don't have
have any money. $1,000,000. I have $0.
He needs some stamps.
Does he need any stamps?
He doesn't need any stamps.
The determiner no is always used in a positive sentence. Do not use it in a negative sentence.
I have no money.