- Reading fairy tales allows children to have better imagination.
- Reading fairy tales allows children to have a better imagination.
According to OD, imagination can be both countable and uncountable.
Does this mean I can use either form of the word, or does it mean it depends on the context?
If the latter is the case, in which contexts do we use imagination in its singular form, and, plural form?
better imagination is not great in the OP's sentence.
The comparative use of better: He has a better imagination than I do.
Mass nouns (uncountable) can be used in the singular to refer to more than a single person.
Generally, we don't use imagination with an s, though one could.
For example:
Reading stories helps children develop their imagination. By reading the story and looking at the pictures, their little brains will receive many excellent ideas, and they will be able to predict what is going on in the story and what will going to happen next or come up with their own endings.
The dictionary says countable but it is most often used in the singular.
We usually speak of a person's imagination in a countable way, as a quality which everyone possesses. We say "He has a vivid imagination" in the same way as we say "He has a good memory", meaning 'the ability to imagine/remember things'.
This is the correct example: Reading fairy tales allows children to have a better imagination.
This is because "imagination' is both an uncountable (mass noun) and a count noun. Mass nouns or uncountable nouns do not have plural forms.
With count nouns - use a/an/the.
With uncountable nouns - use 'the' or no article.
