The 9 English Parts of Speech

These are the words that you use to make a sentence. There are 9 word
classes, and the most important is the Verb!

2. Nouns
It's not easy to describe a noun. In simple terms, nouns are "things" (and
verbs are "actions"). Likefood. Food (n) is something you eat (v).
Or happiness. Happiness (n) is something you want (v). Orhuman being.
A human being (n) is something you are (v).
These pages explain more about the grammar of nouns and offer example
sentences, quizzes and songs.

What is a Noun?
noun (noun): a word (except a pronoun) that identifies a person, place or
thing, or names one of them (proper noun)
The simple definition is: a person, place or thing. Here are some
examples:

person: man, woman, teacher, John, Mary

place: home, office, town, countryside, America

thing: table, car, banana, money, music, love, dog, monkey

Note that any of the above can also be referred to by a pronoun. And note
that names like John or America are called "proper nouns".
The problem with the simple definition above is that it does not explain why
"love" is a noun but can also be a verb.
Another (more complicated) way of recognizing a noun is by its:
1. ending
2. position

3. function

2.1. Noun ending

There are certain word endings that show that a word is a noun, for
example:

-ity nationality

-ment appointment

-ness happiness

-ation relation

-hood childhood

But this is not true for the word endings of all nouns. For example, the
noun "spoonful" ends in -ful, but the adjective "careful" also ends in -ful.
2.2. Position in sentence

We can often recognise a noun by its position in the sentence.

Nouns often come after a determiner (a determiner is a word like a, an,
the, this, my, such):

a relief

an afternoon

the doctor

this word

my house

such stupidity

Nouns often come after one or more adjectives:

a great relief

a peaceful afternoon

the tall, Indian doctor

this difficult word

my brown and white house

such crass stupidity

2.3. Function in a sentence

Nouns have certain functions (jobs) in a sentence, for example:

subject of verb: Doctors work hard.

object of verb: He likes coffee.

subject and object of verb: Teachers teach students.

But the subject or object of a sentence is not always a noun. It could be a

pronoun or a phrase. In the sentence "My doctor works hard", the noun is
"doctor" but the subject is "My doctor".

Types of Nouns
Nouns are an important part of speech in English, probably second only to
verbs. It is difficult to say much without using a noun.
There are several different types of English nouns. It is often useful to
recognize what type a noun is because different types sometimes have
different rules. This helps you to use them correctly.
Common Nouns and Proper Nouns
Common Nouns
Most nouns are common nouns. Common nouns refer to people, places and
things in general like chairor dog. Any noun that is not a name is a common
noun.

Examples: teacher, car, music, danger, receipt

Have you seen my dog?

The books are on your desk.

...the pursuit of happiness.

Proper Nouns
Names of people, places or organizations are proper nouns. Your name is a
proper noun. London is a proper noun. United Nations is a proper noun.

Rule: Proper nouns always start with a capital letter.

Examples: Jane, Thailand, Sunday, James Bond, Einstein, Superman, Game
of Thrones, Shakespeare

Let me introduce you to Mary.

The capital of Italy is Rome.

He is the chairman of the British Broadcasting Corporation.

I was born in November.

Note: Adjectives that we make from proper nouns also usually start with a
capital letter, for exampleShakespearian, Orwellian.
Concrete Nouns and Abstract Nouns
Concrete Nouns
Concrete nouns are physical things that you can touch.

Examples: man, rice, head, car, furniture, mobile phone

How many stars are there in the universe?

Have you met James Bond?

Pour the water down the drain.

Abstract Nouns
Abstract nouns are the opposite of concrete nouns. They are things that
you cannot touch. Abstract nouns are ideas, concepts and feelings.

Examples: happiness, courage, danger, truth

He has great strength.

Who killed President Kennedy is a real mystery.

Sometimes it takes courage to tell the truth.

Their lives were full of sadness.

Countable Nouns and Uncountable Nouns

Countable Nouns
(also called count nouns)

You can count countable nouns. Countable nouns have singular and plural
forms.
Examples: ball, boy, cat, person

I have only five dollars.

The Earth was formed 4.6 billion years ago.

There are lots of people but we don't have a car.

Uncountable Nouns
(also called mass nouns)

You cannot count uncountable nouns. You need to use "measure words" to
quantify them.
Rule: We never use uncountable nouns with the indefinite article (a/an).
Uncountable nouns are always singular.
Examples: water, happiness, cheese

Have you got some money?

Air-conditioners use a lot of electricity.

Do you have any work for me to do?

Many Asians eat rice.

Collective Nouns

A collective noun denotes a group of individuals.

Examples: class (group of students), pride (group of lions), crew (group of
sailors)
Rule: Collective nouns can be treated as singular or plural. More about this
at rules of subject-verb agreement with collective nouns.

His family live in different countries.

An average family consists of four people.

The new company is the result of a merger.

The board of directors will meet tomorrow.

Compound Nouns

A compound noun is a noun that is made with two or more words. Most
compound nouns are [noun + noun] or [adjective + noun]. Each compound
noun acts as a single unit and can be modified by adjectives and other
nouns.
Compound nouns have three different forms:
1. open or spaced - space between words (bus stop)
2. hyphenated - hyphen between words (mother-in-law)
3. closed or solid - no space or hyphen between words (football)
Examples: cat food, blackboard, breakfast, full moon, washing machine,
software

Can we use the swimming pool?

They stop work at sunset.

Don't forget that check-out is at 12 noon.

Note that all nouns are more than one type. For example, common
nouns can be concrete nouns or abstract nouns. (The common
noun danger is an abstract noun.)
And the same noun can change its type according to meaning. For
example, the noun light can beuncountable (light in general)
or countable (lamp).

Noun Countability
The major division of English nouns is into "countable" and "uncountable".

Countable Nouns
Countable nouns are easy to recognize. They are things that we can count.
For example: "pen". We can count pens. We can have one, two, three or
more pens. Here are some more countable nouns:

dog, cat, animal, man, person

bottle, box, litre

coin, note, dollar

cup, plate, fork

table, chair, suitcase, bag

Countable nouns can be singular or plural:

My dog is playing.

My dogs are hungry.

We can use the indefinite article a/an with countable nouns:

A dog is an animal.

When a countable noun is singular, we must use a word

like a/the/my/this with it:

I want an orange. (not I want orange.)

Where is my bottle? (not Where is bottle?)

When a countable noun is plural, we can use it alone:

I like oranges.

Bottles can break.

We can use some and any with countable nouns:

I've got some dollars.

Have you got any pens?

We can use a few and many with countable nouns:

I've got a few dollars.

I haven't got many pens.

"People" is countable. "People" is the plural of "person". We can count

people:
There is one person here.
There are three people here.

Uncountable Nouns
Uncountable nouns are substances, concepts etc that we cannot divide into
separate elements. We cannot "count" them. For example, we cannot count
"milk". We can count "bottles of milk" or "litres of milk", but we cannot
count "milk" itself. Here are some more uncountable nouns:

music, art, love, happiness

advice, information, news

furniture, luggage

rice, sugar, butter, water

electricity, gas, power

money, currency

We usually treat uncountable nouns as singular. We use a singular verb. For

example:

This news is very important.

Your luggage looks heavy.

We do not usually use the indefinite article a/an with uncountable nouns.
We cannot say "an information" or "a music". But we can say a
"something" of:

a piece of news

a bottle of water

a grain of rice

We can use some and any with uncountable nouns:

I've got some money.

Have you got any rice?

We can use a little and much with uncountable nouns:

I've got a little money.

I haven't got much rice.

Uncountable nouns are also called "mass nouns".

Here are some more examples of countable and uncountable nouns:

Countable

Uncountable

dollar

money

song

music

suitcase

luggage

table

furniture

Countable

Uncountable

battery

electricity

bottle

wine

report

information

tip

advice

journey

travel

job

work

view

scenery

When you learn a new word, it's a good idea to learn whether it's countable
or uncountable.

Nouns that can be Countable and

Uncountable
Sometimes, the same noun can be countable and uncountable, often with a
change of meaning.

Countable

Uncountable

There are two hairs in my

coffee!

hair

I don't have much hair.

There are two lights in our

bedroom.

ligh
t

Close the curtain. There's too

much light!

Shhhhh! I thought I heard a

noise.
There are so many different
noises in the city.

noi
se

It's difficult to work when there is

so much noise.

Have you got a paper to read?

(newspaper)
Hand me those student papers.

pap
er

I want to draw a picture. Have you

got some paper?

Our house has seven rooms.

roo
m

Is there room for me to sit here?

We had a great time at the

party.
How many times have I told you
no?

tim
e

Have you got time for a cup of

coffee?

Macbeth is one of Shakespeare's

greatest works.

wor
k

I have no money. I need work!

Drinks (coffee, water, orange juice) are usually uncountable. But if we are
thinking of a cup or a glass, we can say (in a restaurant, for example):
Two teas and one coffee please.
See also this list of nouns that are count and noncount, with example
sentences, notes and quizzes

Partitive Structure with

Uncountable Nouns
To count or quantify an uncountable noun we use a unit of measurement a measure word. For example, we cannot usually say two breads
because bread is uncountable. So, if we want to specify a quantity of
bread we use a measure word such as loaf or slice in a structure like
two loaves of bread or two slices of bread. We call this structure
a partitive structure.

partitive
structure:

quantity

measure word

of

uncountable noun

examples:

two

cups

of

coffee

several

games

of

tennis

drop

of

water

We can use the same uncountable noun in different partitive expressions

with different meanings. For example, a loaf of bread and a slice of
bread are partitive expressions with different meanings. Aloaf of bread is
what we call a whole unit of bread that we buy from a baker. A slice of
bread is what we call a smaller unit of bread after it has been cut from a
loaf.

Here are some more examples:

Don't forget to buy a bag of rice when you go shopping.

Can I have one cup of coffee and two cups of tea.

The police found some items of clothing scattered around the floor.

I need a truck that will take at least three pieces of furniture.

You'd think a tablespoon of honey would be more than enough.

The word "partitive" indicates that only "part" of a whole is being referred
to. The partitive structure using a measure word is common with
uncountable nouns, but it can also be used with countable nouns, for
example: a series of accidents, two boxes of matches, a can of worms.

Measure Words with Uncountable

Nouns
This list shows some common measure words
like "a bar of" or "a piece of" that we use to "measure" uncountable
nouns.

a bag of flour | rice | gold dust

a bar of chocolate | gold | soap

a bottle of Coke | milk | water | wine

a bowl of cereal | rice | soup

a box of cereal | paper

a can of cream | meat | tuna

a carton of ice-cream | orange juice | milk

a cup of hot chocolate | coffee | tea

a drop of blood | oil | water

a glass of beer | juice | water | wine

a grain of rice | sand | truth

an item of clothing | expenditure | news

a jar of honey | jam | peanut butter

a piece of advice | furniture | paper

a roll of paper | tape | toilet paper | Scotch tape

a slice of bread | cheese | meat | toast

a spoonful of sugar | syrup | whisky

a tablespoon of butter | honey | ketchup

a teaspoon of cinnamon | medicine | salt

a tube of glue | lipstick | toothpaste

Measure words are common with uncountable nouns, but some of them can
also be used withcountable nouns, for example: two boxes of matches, a
can of worms
Test your understanding with these fun measure words quizzes

Partitive Expressions with

Uncountable Nouns
This is a list of one hundred partitive expressions containing a partitive +
uncountable noun, each with an example sentence. The expressions are in
alphabetical order based on the uncountable noun.
See also: the grammar of partitives and uncountable nouns

partitive expression

example sentence

a torrent of abuse

The manager was so angry that he let loose a

torrent of abuse at his workers.

a piece of advice

Can I offer you a piece of advice about investing

your savings?

a fit of anger

Harry slapped his girlfriend in a fit of anger.

a work of art

Everyone says her gardens a work of art, its so

beautiful.

partitive expression

example sentence

a rasher of bacon

How many rashers of bacon would you like with

your breakfast?

a glass of beer

If you drink more than two glasses of beer, you

shouldnt drive a car.

a drop of blood

There were two or three drops of blood on the

carpet.

a spot of bother

Im in a spot of bother because I cant find my

car keys, and Im already late.

a loaf of bread

How much does a loaf of bread cost in Japan?

a pat of butter

Could I have three pats of butter and some jam,

please?

a game of chess

We played three games of chess, and Bobby

won all of them.

a bar of chocolate

If youre a good boy, Ill give you a bar of

chocolate.

an item of clothing

Put any items of clothing you no longer need

partitive expression

example sentence

into this box.

a lump of coal

The kids found some lumps of coal beside the

railway tracks, and took them home.

a cup of coffee

The first thing I do when I get to work is have a

cup of coffee.

an ear of corn

Ears of corn are usually steamed or boiled and

then served with butter.

a scrap of difference

Writing letters to corrupt politicians wont make

a scrap of difference to the way they behave.

a speck of dust

They have no kids, and you won't find a speck

of dust in their home.

a scrap of evidence

There wasnt a scrap of evidence to prove hed

done it, but he was still sent to jail for life.

an item of
expenditure

You must have a receipt for every item of

expenditure you want to claim.

an article of faith

Freedom of expression is an article of faith

partitive expression

example sentence

among truly democratic people.

a morsel of food

There wasnt a morsel of food left in the house,

so we had to go out for dinner.

a breath of fresh air

The room was crowded and I felt faint so I went

outside for a breath of fresh air.

a piece of fruit

Everyone should eat at least three pieces of

fruit a day.

a bit of fun

After working hard all day, we felt like having a

bit of fun.

a piece of furniture

We need a piece of furniture that will look good

in that empty corner.

a clove of garlic

Take two cloves of garlic, crush them, and then

add them to the soup.

a pane of glass

You have to be very careful when transporting

panes of glass.

a blade of grass

The ant walked all the way up the blade of

partitive expression

example sentence

grass, and then all the way down again.

a pang of guilt

When I saw my brother being punished for what

Id done, I felt a pang of guilt.

a lock of hair

He kept a lock of her hair in a small tin box with

his other most precious possessions.

a jar of honey

She stuck her fingers into the jar of honey, and

then slowly licked them clean.

a glimmer of hope

The president gave us a glimmer of hope when

he promised to look into the issue.

a sense of humour

He lacks a sense of humour, and his laughter

never sounds real.

a pang of hunger

I felt a pang of hunger, and knew it must be

getting close to lunchtime.

a block of ice

How long do you think itd take for this block of

ice to melt?

a scoop of ice cream

You dont really need three scoops of ice cream

partitive expression

example sentence

on your apple pie, do you?

a piece of information

There was an important piece of information

missing from the report.

a plea of innocence

He maintained his plea of innocence, even

though everyone said he was guilty.

a touch of irony

There was often a touch of irony in his voice

when he spoke.

a jar of jam

If you leave a jar of jam open on the bench, the

ants will find it.

a glass of juice

Id like a glass of juice, but only if the juice is

freshly squeezed.

an act of kindness

A simple act of kindness to a stranger is a

wonderful thing.

a piece of land

My grandfather bought this piece of land over a

hundred years ago.

a peal of laughter

We heard peals of laughter coming from her

partitive expression

example sentence

bedroom.

a ray of light

As dawn broke, rays of light rose from behind

the mountains.

a flash of lightning

The sky was lit up by flashes of lightning.

a work of literature

Poems, plays, novels and short stories are all

works of literature.

a stroke of luck

Was finding her there a stroke of luck, or did he

know shed be there?

a piece of luggage

You can carry one small piece of luggage onto

the plane.

a case of measles

Was it really a case of measles, or another

disease that looked like measles?

a slice of meat

Put one slice of meat into every sandwich, with

some lettuce and tomato.

a dose of medicine

I was given a dose of medicine that tasted like

liquid chalk.

a bottle of milk

Every morning the milkman would leave two

bottles of milk on our doorstep.

a litre of milk

How many litres of milk do we need?

Note that most of the above partitive expressions collocate strongly.

Countable/Uncountable Gapfill Games
Countable/Uncountable Sorting Games

Nouns that are Count and

Noncount
Select a word for more information.

About these nouns

accommodation
uncountable: a place to live in or stay at
countable: an agreement between opposing people or organisations
aid
uncountable: money or help given to those who need it
countable: something that helps you to do something
air
uncountable: the mixture of gases surrounding the earth
countable: (old-fashioned) a tune or a melody
art
uncountable: paintings, sculpture, drawings, etc.
countable: an activity that needs special training or knowledge
ballet
uncountable: a style of dancing that tells a story
countable: a particular work of classical dance
beauty
uncountable: the quality that makes someone or something beautiful
countable: a beautiful woman, or an excellent thing
beer
uncountable: an alcoholic drink made with malt and hops
countable: a glass of beer

blood
uncountable: the red liquid inside our bodies
countable: (old-fashioned) a rich man who likes to show off
bread
uncountable: a common food that's made from wheat or other grains
countable: a particular variety or type of bread
business
uncountable: the activity of making, buying or selling things for money
countable: a particular company or other commercial organisation
cheese
uncountable: a solid dairy food
countable: a particular kind or variety of cheese
cinema
uncountable: the making and marketing of films and movies
countable: a place in which films are shown on a big screen ("movie theater"
is more common in American English)
coffee
uncountable: a drink made with ground, roasted seeds
countable: one cup of coffee
currency
uncountable: the banknotes and coins used in a country
countable: the monetary unit of a particular country
danger
uncountable: the possibility of something very bad happening
countable: a person or thing that can harm or kill
delight
uncountable: a feeling of great happiness
countable: something or someone that makes us happy
depression
uncountable: a feeling of great sadness that can require medical treatment to
cure
countable: a period of little economic activity when many people lose their
jobs

dessert
uncountable: sweet food eaten at the end of a meal
countable: a particular type or category of dessert
distribution
uncountable: the transportation and delivery of goods to shops and buyers
countable: the geographic range of a species, a language, a disease, etc.
employment
uncountable: the giving of work to someone, or the state of having work
countable: an exchange of labour for payment, usually under contract
enjoyment
uncountable: the pleasure you get from something
countable: an activity or experience that gives pleasure
entertainment
uncountable: films, concerts, sports, TV shows, etc. that an audience can
enjoy
countable: a particular performance or activity that people enjoy
failure
uncountable: lack of success in doing something
countable: a person or thing that is not successful
faith
uncountable: strong belief in someone or something
countable: a particular religion
food
uncountable: things that people or animals eat
countable: a particular type or category of food
freedom
uncountable: the state of being free to do what you want
countable: the right to do what you want to do
fruit
uncountable: food that contains seeds, like apples, oranges, pears, etc.
countable: a particular kind or category of fruit
fuel
uncountable: something that's burned for heat or power, like wood, oil, gas,
etc.
countable: a particular kind of fuel

gas
uncountable: any substance like air that's neither solid nor liquid
countable: a particular type of gas
glass
uncountable: the material used to make windows, bottles, fishbowls, etc.
countable: a drinking vessel made of glass
gold
uncountable: a valuable metal that's used to make jewellery
countable: a gold medal, or a colour that's similar to gold
gossip
uncountable: stories about other people's private lives, often untrue or
exaggerated
countable: a person who likes telling and hearing gossip
grammar
uncountable: the rules of a language
countable: a book that describes the rules of a language
grass
uncountable: a common plant that's eaten by horses, cows, sheep, etc.
countable: any particular type of grass
ground
uncountable: the surface of the Earth
countable: an area of land used for a particular purpose
hair
uncountable: the mass of fibres on your head
countable: a single strand of hair
heat
uncountable: the quality of being hot
countable: a qualifying race or game at the start of a competition
height
uncountable: how high something is, or how tall someone is
countable: a high place or position
ice cream
uncountable: a sweet frozen food made from milk
countable: a small amount of ice cream on a stick, in a cone, or in a small
container

injustice
uncountable: unfair treatment or mistaken legal judgement
countable: a particular action, judgement or situation that's unfair
intelligence
uncountable: the ability to understand and think about complex ideas
countable: a particular type or class of intelligence
iron
uncountable: a strong, hard metal
countable: a household appliance for smoothing out wrinkles in clothes
irony
uncountable: humour in which someone says the opposite of what they really
mean
countable: an event or situation that involves a contradiction of some sort
jam
uncountable: sweet food that's made from fruit and usually spread on bread
or toast
countable: many vehicles stuck together in traffic, or a difficult situation
jealousy
uncountable: unhappiness felt when you think someone you like wants
somebody else, or when someone else has something you want
countable: an action or comment that shows jealousy
joy
uncountable: a feeling of great happiness
countable: something that makes you feel very happy
juice
uncountable: liquid that's squeezed from fruit or vegetables
countable: one glass of juice, or a particular kind of juice
kindness
uncountable: the quality of being kind to people or animals
countable: a kind act
land
uncountable: the earth's surface, or part of this surface
countable: a country or region

love
uncountable: a strong affection for someone
countable: a person, thing or activity that you love
marble
uncountable: a type of stone often used in buildings
countable: a small glass ball used for playing games
meat
uncountable: animal or bird flesh eaten as food
countable: a particular type of meat
metal
uncountable: a solid material that can be mined, like iron, tin, gold, etc.
countable: a particular kind or category of metal
nature
uncountable: all living things and the habitats that sustain them
countable: the basic character of a person or an animal, or a basic feature of
something
noise
uncountable: loud or unpleasant sound
countable: a particular sound
oil
uncountable: a thick liquid, such as the dark liquid from underground that's
used to make fuel, or a thick liquid that's used for cooking food
countable: a particular type of oil
paper
uncountable: a material that's used for writing on, printing on, or wrapping
things in
countable: a newspaper
passion
uncountable: very strong feeling or emotion
countable: a very strong interest in something or someone
power
uncountable: the ability to control people, places or things
countable: a country with a lot of political, economic or military power

pride
uncountable: positive emotion felt when you or someone you know achieves
something special
countable: a group of lions
production
uncountable: the process of making or growing things
countable: a film, play, television or radio programme
pronunciation
uncountable: the sounds made when speaking a language or saying a word
countable: a particular way of pronouncing a word or a language
quality
uncountable: the standard of something, or how good it is
countable: a particular feature of someone or something
quantity
uncountable: the amount of something
countable: a particular amount of something or number of things
room
uncountable: the space needed for something
countable: a space inside a building with walls, a floor and a ceiling
salad
uncountable: raw vegetables like lettuce, tomato, cucumber, etc. mixed
together
countable: one serving of salad, or a particular type of salad
satire
uncountable: humour used to criticize someone or something
countable: a movie, book, play, etc. that uses satirical humour
silence
uncountable: total quiet, or no sound at all
countable: a period of time when nobody's speaking
sleep
uncountable: a natural state of rest
countable: a particular period of sleep
smoke
uncountable: clouds that rise from fires, chimneys, etc.
countable: a cigarette, or the act of smoking

soil
uncountable: the top layer of earth in which plants can grow
countable: a particular type or category of soil
sorrow
uncountable: a feeling of great sadness
countable: an event that causes great sadness
space
uncountable: empty area, or the unused part of something
countable: a particular area that has nothing in it
speed
uncountable: how fast something or someone moves
countable: a particular speed
spelling
uncountable: the ordering of letters to form a word
countable: a particular way of spelling a word
sport
uncountable: physical activities in which players compete individually or in
teams
countable: a particular kind of sport
strength
uncountable: physical power, or how strong someone or something is
countable: an important ability or feature
success
uncountable: the achievement of a goal
countable: a successful person, event or result
sugar
uncountable: sweet crystals added to drinks like tea and coffee
countable: one teaspoon of sugar, or a particular type of sugar
tea
uncountable: a drink made by adding boiling water to dried plant parts
countable: one cup of tea, or a particular type of tea
time
uncountable: duration as measured by clocks
countable: a particular occasion or time when something happened

toast
uncountable: sliced bread that's been heated and browned in a toaster
countable: the act of drinking to someone's happiness or success
trade
uncountable: the buying and selling of goods and services
countable: a type of skilled work, or a particular type of business
trust
uncountable: the belief that someone or something is honest or won't cheat
you
countable: a legal arrangement or organization that manages someone's
money or property
understanding
uncountable: comprehension of the facts about something, or comprehension
of someone's situation or feelings
countable: an informal agreement
usage
uncountable: the way that words are used in spoken or written language
countable: a particular meaning or usage of a word
vision
uncountable: the sense of sight, or the ability to see
countable: an idea of what the future could be like
weight
uncountable: how heavy someone or something is
countable: a heavy object that's used to build muscle mass and strength
whisky
uncountable: a strong alcoholic drink
countable: one glass of whisky
width
uncountable: how wide something is
countable: a measured piece of cloth, or the width of a swimming pool
wine
uncountable: an alcoholic drink made from grapes, or a similar drink made
from rice, elderberries, etc.
countable: a glass of wine, or a particular type of wine

wood
uncountable: the hard material in trees
countable: a particular type of wood
work
uncountable: a job done for money, or any productive activity
countable: something created by a writer, painter, musician, or other artist
youth
uncountable: the time in someone's life when they're young
countable: a young man
Nouns that can be countable and uncountable

Some nouns can be both countable and uncountable, usually with different
meanings for each. These pages list the most common ones, together with
example sentences and quick quiz to check understanding.
NOUN VOCABULARY:
https://www.englishclub.com/vocabulary/nouns.htm

2.4 Proper Nouns

Your name is a proper noun. A proper noun is the special word that we
use for a person, place or organization, like John, Marie, London, France or
Sony. A name is a noun, but a very special noun - a proper noun. English
proper nouns have special rules.

common noun

proper noun

man, boy

John

woman, girl

Mary

country, town

England, London

common noun

proper noun

company

Ford, Sony

shop, restaurant

Maceys, McDonalds

month, day of the week

January, Sunday

book, film

War and Peace, Titanic

2.5 Proper Nouns without THE

We do not use "the" with names of people. For example:

first names

Bill (not the Bill)

Hilary

surnames

Clinton

Gates

full names

Hilary Gates

We do not normally use "the" with names of companies. For example:

Renault, Ford, Sony, EnglishClub (not the EnglishClub)

General Motors, Air France, British Airways

Warner Brothers, Brown & Son Ltd

If the full (registered) name of a company starts with "The", then we use
"The" if we use the full name, for example:

The Post Publishing Public Co., Ltd

In this case, "The" is part of the company's name and must be capitalised,
like all names.
We do not normally use "the" for shops, banks, hotels etc named after a
founder or other person (with -'s or -s). For example:

shops

Harrods, Marks & Spencer, Maceys

banks

Barclays Bank

hotels, restaurants

Steve's Hotel, Joe's Cafe, McDonalds

churches, cathedrals

St John's Church, St Peter's Cathedral

We do not normally use "the" with names of places. For example:

towns

Washington (not The Washington), Paris, Tokyo

states, regions

Texas, Kent, Eastern Europe

countries

England, Italy, Brazil

continents

Asia, Europe, North America

islands

Corsica

mountains

Everest

Exception! If a country name includes "States","Kingdom", "Republic" etc,

we use "the":

states

the United States, the US, the United States of America, the
USA

kingdo
m

the United Kingdom, the UK

republic

the French Republic

We do not use "the" with "President/Doctor/Mr etc + Name":

the president, the king

President Bush (not the President Bush)

the captain, the

detective

Captain Kirk, Detective Colombo

the doctor, the

professor

Doctor Well, Dr Well, Professor Dolittle

my uncle, your aunt

Uncle Jack, Aunt Jill

Mr Gates (not the Mr Gates), Mrs Clinton, Miss

Black

Look at these example sentences:

I wanted to speak to the doctor.

I wanted to speak to Doctor Brown.

Who was the president before President Kennedy?

We do not use "the" with "Lake/Mount + Name":

the lake

Lake Victoria

the mount

Mount Everest

Look at this example sentence:

We live beside Lake Victoria. We have a fantastic view across the

lake.

We do not normally use "the" for roads, streets, squares, parks etc:

streets etc

Oxford Street, Trenholme Road, Fifth Avenue

squares etc

Trafalgar Square, Oundle Place, Piccadilly Circus

parks etc

Central Park, Kew Gardens

Many big, important buildings have names made of two words (for
example, Kennedy Airport). If the first word is the name of a person or
place, we do not normally use "the":

people

Kennedy Airport, Alexander Palace, St Paul's Cathedral

places

Heathrow Airport, Waterloo Station, Edinburgh Castle

2.6. Proper Nouns with THE

We normally use "the" for country names that include "States","Kingdom",
"Republic" etc:

States

the United States of America/the USA

Kingdom

the United Kingdom/the UK

Republic

the French Republic

We normally use "the" for names of canals, rivers, seas and oceans:

canals

the Suez Canal

rivers

the River Nile, the Nile

seas

the Mediterranean Sea, the Mediterranean

oceans

the Pacific Ocean, the Pacific

We normally use "the" for plural names of people and places:

people (families, for example)

the Clintons

countries

the Philippines, the United States

island groups

the Virgin Islands, the British Isles

mountain ranges

the Himalayas, the Alps

Look at these sentences:

I saw the Clintons today. It was Bill's birthday.

Trinidad is the largest island in the West Indies.

Mount Everest is in the Himalayas.

We normally use "the" with the following sorts of names:

hotels, restaurants

the Ritz Hotel, the Peking Restaurant

banks

the National Westminster Bank

cinemas, theatres

the Royal Theatre, the ABC Cinema

museums

the British Museum, the National Gallery

buildings

the White House, the Crystal Palace

newspapers

the Daily Telegraph, the Sunday Post

organisations

the United Nations, the BBC, the European Union

We normally use "the" for names made with "of":

the Tower of London

the Gulf of Siam

the Tropic of Cancer

the London School of Economics

the Bank of France

the Statue of Liberty

https://www.englishclub.com/grammar/nouns-proper-quiz.htm

2.7. Possessive
When we want to show that something belongs to somebody or something,
we usually add an apostrophe + s ('s) to a singular noun and an
apostrophe (') to a plural noun, for example:

the boy's ball (one boy)

the boys' ball (two or more boys)

Notice that the number of balls does not matter. The structure is influenced
by the possessor and not the possessed.

one ball

one boy

more than one ball

more than one boy

one ball

more than one ball

the boy's ball

the boy's balls

the boys' ball

the boys' balls

The structure can be used for a whole phrase:

the man next door's mother (the mother of the man next door)

the Queen of England's poodles (the poodles of the Queen of

England)

Although we can use of to show possession, it is more usual to use

possessive 's. The following phrases have the same meaning, but #2 is
more usual and natural:
1. the boyfriend of my sister
2. my sister's boyfriend
Proper Nouns (Names)
We very often use possessive 's with names:

This is Mary's car.

Where is Ram's telephone?

Who took Anthony's pen?

I like Tara's hair.

When a name ends in s, we usually treat it like any other singular noun,
and add 's:

This is Charles's chair.

But it is possible (especially with older, classical names) to just add the
apostrophe ':

Who was Jesus' father?

Irregular Plurals
Some nouns have irregular plural forms without s (man men). To show
possession, we usually add's to the plural form of these nouns:

singular noun

plural noun

my child's dog

my children's dog

the man's work

the men's work

the mouse's cage

the mice's cage

a person's clothes

people's clothes

2.8. Noun as Adjective

As you know, a noun is a person, place or thing, and an adjective is a word
that describes a noun:

adjective

noun

clever

teacher

small

office

adjective

noun

black

horse

Sometimes we use a noun to describe another noun. In that case, the first
noun "acts as" an adjective.

noun as
adjective

noun

history

teacher

ticket

office

race

horse

The "noun as adjective" always comes first

If you remember this, it will help you to understand what is being talked
about:

a race horse is a horse that runs in races

a horse race is a race for horses

a boat race is a race for boats

a love story is a story about love

a war story is a story about war

a tennis ball is a ball for playing tennis

tennis shoes are shoes for playing tennis

a computer exhibition is an exhibition of computers

a bicycle shop is a shop that sells bicycles

The "noun as adjective" is singular

Just like a real adjective, the "noun as adjective" is invariable. It is usually

in the singular form.

Right

Wrong

boat race

boat races

NOT boats race, boats races

toothbrush

toothbrushes

NOT teethbrush, teethbrushes

shoe-lace

shoe-laces

NOT shoes-lace, shoes-laces

cigarette
packet

cigarette
packets

NOT cigarettes packet, cigarettes

packets

In other words, if there is a plural it is on the real noun only.

A few nouns look plural but we usually treat them as singular (for example
news, billiards, athletics). When we use these nouns "as adjectives" they
are unchanged:

a news reporter, three news reporters

one billiards table, four billiards tables

an athletics trainer, fifty athletics trainers

Exceptions: When we use certain nouns "as adjectives" (clothes, sports,

customs, accounts, arms), we use them in the plural form:

clothes shop, clothes shops

sports club, sports clubs

customs duty, customs duties

accounts department, accounts departments

arms production

How do we write the "noun as adjective"?

We write the "noun as adjective" and the real noun in several different
ways:

two separate words (car door)

two hyphenated words (book-case)

one word (bathroom)

There are no easy rules for this. We even write some combinations in two
or all three different ways: (head master, head-master, headmaster)
How do we say the "noun as adjective"?

For pronunciation, we usually stress the first word:

shoe shop

boat-race

bathroom

Can we have more than one "noun as adjective"?

Yes. Just like adjectives, we often use more than one "noun as adjective"
together. Look at these examples:
car production costs: we are talking about the costs of producing cars

noun as
adjective

noun as
adjective

noun

costs

car

production

costs

production

costs

England football team coach: we are talking about the coach who trains
the team that plays football for England

noun as
adjective

noun as
adjective

noun as
adjective

noun

coach

team

coach

football

team

coach

England

football

team

coach

England

football

team

coaches

Note: in England football team coach can you see a "hidden" "noun as
adjective"? Look at the word "football" (foot-ball). These two nouns
(foot+ball) have developed into a single noun (football). This is one way
that words evolve. Many word combinations that use a "noun as adjective"
are regarded as nouns in their own right, with their own dictionary

definition. But not all dictionaries agree with each other. For example, some
dictionaries list "tennis ball" as a noun and other dictionaries do not.
government road accident research centre: we are talking about a
centre that researches into accidents on the road for the government

noun as
adjective

noun as
adjective

noun as
adjective

noun as
adjective

noun

centre

government

research

centre

accident

research

centre

road

accident

research

centre

road

accident

research

centre

Newspapers often use many nouns together in headlines to save space.

Look at this example:

BIRD HEALTH RESEARCH

CENTRE MURDER MYSTERY
To understand headlines like these, try reading them backwards. The above
headline is about a MYSTERY concerning a MURDER in a CENTRE for
RESEARCH into the HEALTH of BIRDS.

Note, too, that we can still use a real adjective to qualify a "noun as
adjective" structure:

empty coffee jar

honest car salesman

delicious dog food

rising car production costs

famous England football team coach

2.9 Compound Nouns

A compound noun is a noun that is made with two or more words. A
compound noun is usually [noun + noun] or [adjective + noun], but there
are other combinations (see below). It is important to understand and
recognize compound nouns. Each compound noun acts as a single unit and
can be modified by adjectives and other nouns.
There are three forms for compound nouns:
1. open or spaced - space between words (tennis shoe)
2. hyphenated - hyphen between words (six-pack)
3. closed or solid - no space or hyphen between words (bedroom)
Here are some examples of compound nouns:

noun

+ noun

bus stop

Is this the bus stop for the

number 12 bus?

fire-fly

In the tropics you can see fire-

flies at night.

adjectiv
e

verb(ing)

noun

+ noun

+ noun

+ verb(-ing)

football

Shall we play football today?

full moon

I always feel crazy at full

moon.

blackboard

Clean the blackboard please.

software

I can't install this software on

my PC.

breakfast

We always eat breakfast at

8am.

washing
machine

Put the clothes in the

red washing machine.

swimming
pool

What a beautiful swimming

pool!

sunrise

I like to get up at sunrise.

haircut

You need a haircut.

train-

His hobby is train-spotting.

spotting

verb

+ preposition

check-out

Please remember that checkout is at 12 noon.

noun

+ preposition
al phrase

mother-inlaw

My mother-in-law lives with

us.

preposi
tion

+ noun

underworl
d

Do you think the police accept

money from the underworld?

noun

+ adjective

truckful

We need 10 truckfuls of bricks.

Pronunciation

Compound nouns tend to have more stress on the first word. In the phrase
"pink ball", both words are equally stressed (as you know, adjectives and
nouns are always stressed). In the compound noun "golf ball", the first
word is stressed more (even though both words are nouns, and nouns are
always stressed). Since "golf ball" is a compound noun we consider it as a
single noun and so it has a single main stress - on the first word. Stress is
important in compound nouns. For example, it helps us know if somebody
said "a GREEN HOUSE" (a house which is painted green) or "a
GREENhouse" (a building made of glass for growing plants inside).
British/American differences

Different varieties of English, and even different writers, may use the open,
hyphenated or closed form for the same compound noun. It is partly a
matter of style. There are no definite rules. For example we can find:

container ship

container-ship

containership

If you are not sure which form to use, please check in a good dictionary

Plural Forms of Compound Nouns

In general we make the plural of a compound noun by adding -s to the
"base word" (the most "significant" word). Look at these examples:

singular

plural

a tennis shoe

three tennis shoes

one assistant headmaster

five assistant headmasters

the sergeant major

some sergeants major

singular

plural

a mother-in-law

two mothers-in-law

an assistant secretary of state

three assistant secretaries of state

my toothbrush

our toothbrushes

a woman-doctor

four women-doctors

a doctor of philosophy

two doctors of philosophy

a passerby, a passer-by

two passersby, two passers-by

Note that there is some variation with words like spoonful or truckful. The
old style was to say spoonsful or trucksful for the plural. Today it is more
usual to say spoonfuls or truckfuls. Both the old style (spoonsful) and the
new style (spoonfuls) are normally acceptable, but you should be consistent
in your choice. Here are some examples:

old style plural (very

formal)

new style plural

teaspoonful

3 teaspoonsful of sugar

3 teaspoonfuls of sugar

truckful

5 trucksful of sand

5 truckfuls of sand

old style plural (very

formal)

new style plural

bucketful

2 bucketsful of water

2 bucketfuls of water

cupful

4 cupsful of rice

4 cupfuls of rice

Some compound nouns have no obvious base word and you may need to
consult a dictionary to find the plural:

higher-ups

also-rans

go-betweens

has-beens

good-for-nothings

grown-ups

Note that with compound nouns made of [noun + noun] the first noun is
like an adjective and therefore does not usually take an -s. A tree that has
apples has many apples, but we say an apple tree, notapples
tree; matchbox not matchesbox; toothbrush not teethbrush.
With compound nouns made of [noun + noun] the second noun takes an -s
for plural. The first noun acts like an adjective and as you know, adjectives
in English are invariable. Look at these examples:

long plural form becomes

plural compound noun

[noun + noun]

100 trees with apples

100 apple trees

1,000 cables for telephones

1,000 telephone cables

20 boxes for tools

20 tool boxes

10 stops for buses

10 bus stops

4,000 wheels for cars

4,000 car wheels

https://www.englishclub.com/grammar/nouns-compound-quiz.htm