Placeholder Image

Subtitles section Play video

  • Welcome to part 2 of this online tutorial on the use of count and non-count nouns.

  • In this segment you are going to learn more about the ways to quantify non-count nouns

  • using unit expressions, and different categories that determine the

  • non-countabilityof certain nouns. We will also be looking into those non-count

  • nouns ormassnouns which can also be counted because of its reference to a classification

  • or type And finally see a few uses of the idiomatic

  • forms of countingnon-countnouns.

  • Almost all of us have been to the grocery store checkout and have seen signs like these

  • wanting to skirt the longer lines! Although we must realize that cultural use

  • changes grammar throughout history, how many of us have stopped to think whether this is

  • corrector not. Items are countable things.

  • We have also seen some of the rules regarding quantifiers and determiners before thecountable

  • anduncountablenouns. Typically, we would sayfewer items

  • andless water” (an uncountable noun) This only shows that EVERYONE has some confusion

  • about these categories!

  • As we saw incount and non-count nouns (part 1)” there is a fundamental difference

  • betweencountablethings andun-countablethings.

  • Wateris very different in nature than “a cuporcups.”

  • Pour some water in a bucket and tell me how many there are

  • There is onebut one what? Pour some in a paper cup and there is also

  • onebut much smaller! So we count these kinds of things by the measure

  • or amount that we have of it.

  • This leads us to those unit expressions that precede the non-count nouns that help us to

  • measurethe amount we are talking about. Here are some examples contrasting the reference

  • to thematerialitself, or a “specific amountof the material:

  • I ate some cheese. I had two slices of cheese.

  • The teacher gets chalk on his clothes every time he uses the board!

  • He needs another piece of chalk to put his example on the board.

  • I like the quality of the paper they used in this book!

  • Could you lend me a sheet of paper to do this assignment?

  • As you can see, thequantifierin front of the non-count item helps us to see a specific

  • number or quantity of the item being discussed.

  • Here is a more lengthy list of units of measure that we commonly use. Though there are more,

  • to be sure! (Pause the video here for reference if necessary…)

  • Foods can be counted by their shapes or containers

  • Liquids are usually counted by their containerbut sometimes by their shapes as indrop or

  • puddle of water.”

  • Containers, shapes and measures frequently apply to other items

  • the same is true for items in stationary as well

  • Here is a another way to categorize list of units of measure that we commonly use. Though

  • there are more, to be sure! First in containers

  • (Pause the video here for reference if necessary…) All of these would be followed by the connector

  • ofand then by the non-count item described

  • Measurements follow the same rule

  • And here are some others

  • As mentioned earlier, we want to look more deeply into the different categories that

  • make up this group of non-count nouns. (You will commonly hear many refer to these as

  • non-count, uncountable,

  • ormassnounsbut they are all essentially talking about

  • the same thingnouns that cannot be counted in English without quantifiers preceding them.

  • Many non-count nouns are usually referring to whole groups made up of similar items

  • Fluids

  • Solids

  • Gases

  • Particles

  • Languages

  • Fields of study

  • Recreation

  • Activities

  • Occupations

  • Natural phenomena

  • And abstractions

  • When we are talking about non-count nouns that can play both sides of the fence, one

  • of the meanings refers to differenttypesof the item.

  • For example, we all know thatmilkis a liquid that needs to be counted in a bottle,

  • carton, glass, or cup, etcHowever, when you travel to another country

  • and sense a taste difference, you might refer to each country’s milk as a different type.

  • Thus, you could say, “The milks of the world vary in their tastes because of the different

  • ways the animals are raised.”

  • If we think of the meaning of a noun as a continuum from being specific to being general and abstract,

  • we can see how it can move from being a count noun to a non-count noun.

  • Consider, for example, the noun experiences. When I say

  • Adverse childhood experiences unfortunately contribute to the makeup of one’s adulthood.

  • I'm referring to specific, countable moments in a child’s life.

  • When I say, Acquiring a position of leadership requires

  • experience. I'm using the word in an abstract way; it

  • is not something you can count; it's more like an idea, a general thing that people

  • need to have in order to apply for this type of job.

  • If I write The talks are taking place in the Student

  • Union. these talks are countable events or lectures.

  • If I say I hate it when a meeting is nothing but talk.

  • the word talk is now uncountable; I'm referring to the general, abstract idea of idle chatter.

  • Evils refers to specific sinspride, envy, sloth, and everyone's favorite, gluttonywhereas

  • evil refers to a general notion of being bad or ungodly.

  • One more example: "I love the works of Beethoven" means that I like his symphonies, his string

  • quartets, his concerti and sonatas, his choral piecesall very countable things, works.

  • "I hate work" means that I find the very idea of labor, in a general way, quite unappealing.

  • Notice that the plural form means something quite different from the singular form of

  • this word; they're obviously related, but they're different.

  • What is the relationship between plastic and plastics,

  • wood and woods, ice and [Italian] ices,

  • hair and hairs?

  • There are as well idiomatic expressions that are peculiar to some words.

  • For example, normally when you are referring to butter you would quantify it in the United

  • States with the packages or forms it is found in such as

  • bars, tubs,

  • pounds and so on.

  • In restaurants, it is normally served in wrapped slices or in

  • little packets and it is common to hear the customer mention to the waiter or waitress,

  • Could we have some more butters at our table?”

  • The same is true for coffees (meaningcups”), …or smokes (Britishmeaning cigarettes),

  • In this video we have looked at counting theuncountable thingswith

  • unit expressions We have briefly looked at

  • typesof non-count items such asthe coffees of the world.”

  • We have seen that there are Individual instances of non-count things that

  • can be treated as countable items And we have looked at a few of the

  • Idiomatic expressions of nouns that are typically uncountable, yet referring to countable things.

  • In all cases you would do best to consult a reference book such as a dictionary to familiarize

  • yourself with questionable words! Happy counting….or not!

Welcome to part 2 of this online tutorial on the use of count and non-count nouns.

Subtitles and vocabulary

Click the word to look it up Click the word to find further inforamtion about it