Abstract nouns, such as instinct, belief, etc., can be countable and uncountable. Could native speakers please explain to me when to use one or the other? It is very difficult for non-native speakers to master this grammar.
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5This is a wide question. You might get a better answer if you focus on a particular word that you struggle with, and give example sentences. To get you started, if I choose the word belief, I don't really think of it as countable or uncountable in the first place. For example, (1) The church was founded on four main beliefs. (2) The church has been running a food bank for four years. In those two sentences beliefs and years have exactly the same grammar. Why are you thinking there is a special treatment here?– Peter KirkpatrickCommented Jul 14 at 14:03
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Instinct is uncountable when it refers to the phenomenon in general - the tendency of people and animals to behave in certain ways without having been taught.
He knew the right thing to do by instinct.
It is countable when it refers to a particular instinctive behaviour.
The maternal instinct is very strong in this species.
She had an instinct for survival.
Similarly, belief could refer to religious faith in general, a belief to believing in one particular idea.
answered Jul 14 at 14:11
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Yes, for instance , belief is often used non-count-ly (?) in contexts where a distinction is being drawn between theism and atheism. Commented Jul 14 at 15:38