Questions tagged [countable-nouns]
The countable-nouns tag has no usage guidance.
1
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1answer
21 views
'Morning'-->countable or uncountable?
1)There is written in the Macmillan dictionary that the word 'morning' can be both: countable or uncountable.
Could you give me an example sentence where 'morning' is uncountable?
2) Is 'morning' ...
3
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2answers
23 views
How much shrimps?
if i want to ask about the amount of shrimps that a person eats (kilograms) per year, should i ask
How many shrimps do you eat? - > I eat 1 kilo
a year.
Or maybe I should ask
How much ...
2
votes
3answers
17 views
“as much as” or “as many as” forty degrees?
"the temperature can vary by as much as forty degrees"
this sentence confused me, following as much as, there is plural word (forty degrees) but it was used with "as much as". Because there is a ...
1
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1answer
54 views
“Such plea” “such waiver”: ungrammatical legal jargon?
I have encountered the noun phrase "such plea" in a lot of legal texts. Examples:
In federal courts, such plea may be accepted as long as there is evidence that the defendant is actually guilty. ...
0
votes
1answer
26 views
uncountable noun used with countable noun
The controller controls power supplied to the PCs.
Does the sentence above imply that each PC will be supplied with an equal amount of power? If so, does the following make sense when each PC may be ...
0
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2answers
38 views
Is *flood* used as *a flood*?
I wonder if the word flood can be used as a flood. I think the word like water cannot be used as a water because it is a collective noun.
In my dictionary, it writes both countable and uncountable. ...
1
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2answers
25 views
Is “bit of oil” countable or uncountable?
If it is countable why do we say
a little bit of oil
and can I say the following?
a little quantity of seeds
0
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3answers
49 views
Is 'potential' countable noun?
I've konwn that 'potential' is uncountable noun so far. But i saw one vedio named Vox channel which said
"In any human endeavor, There is a potential for error"
In that sentence, potential is ...
0
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1answer
20 views
Can 'singer' be used as an uncount noun?
Singer Mizuki Nana and her sister took viewers by surprise with
their voracious eating of roasted duck.
Macmillan learner's dictionary says 'singer' is a count noun. Might I trouble you to tell me ...
2
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1answer
28 views
Neutral accent or a neutral accent (countable or not)
In the context of the sentence below, which should be applied so it's grammatical.
The only thing that is good about our country (as a single noun) is our spoken English, we've got neutral accent.
...
1
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2answers
54 views
Using 'shame', 'pity', and 'honor' as countable and uncountable nouns
Sometimes "a" is used with shame/pity/honor, sometimes it's not. What's the difference? How to understand when it should be used.
Have pity! Please have a pity on the helpless.
Shame on you! ...
1
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2answers
77 views
Is business countable or uncountable?
Walt thought I was crazy. In 20 months, he had gone from being head of a small $7.5 million (sales) medical development business to
manager of the chemical and metallurgical division, one of GE’s
...
1
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2answers
40 views
use of Indefinite Article
I have doubt about use of article in below sentence.
A cake is necessary when you have party.
Does sentence uses correct article?
0
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1answer
29 views
Should I use 'isn't there' to show no food that I have been craving for? [closed]
"When the food you are craving for isn't there, the last choice you have is Maggi."
Is my grammar correct? Or can you change my sentence so it will be better than mine? Thanks!
0
votes
1answer
22 views
a … quantity of + plural countable nouns
I learned that "a ... quantity of ..." is typically followed by uncountable nouns.
I'd like to know whether there are restrictions on it when it is followed by plural nouns.
For example:
a large ...
0
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2answers
45 views
“Different influences”?
Then trade would have different influence on wages and employment.
This is a line I am writing. I know that "influence" is both a count and noncount noun and that it is used mostly uncountably to ...
0
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2answers
28 views
“Through critical engagement with philosophical texts” or “Through a critical engagement with philosophical texts”
Through (a) critical engagement with philosophical texts, I examine the phenomena and provide an in-depth analysis.
This is a line I am writing. The noun "engagement" seems tricky. Scrolling down ...
0
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2answers
113 views
“Comment on their character” or “comment on their characters”?
I would like to say a few words to comment on their character(s).
I am wondering if "character" in the sense of qualities of personality is a count noun and can be pluralized. Macmillan and Cambridge ...
0
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1answer
51 views
Is “There were hundreds of students, not much of whom were girls” correct?
Is the sentence " "There were hundreds of students, not much of whom were girls" correct? Can we use much instead of many in these structure.
1
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2answers
21 views
as much / many as
I'd like to know whether many or much should be used in the following:
a. A whale could weigh as much / many as two tons.
b. The company bought as much / many as two tons of cotton.
I'd ...
0
votes
1answer
70 views
Shouldn't it be “government or other institutions”?
I encountered a line in a dictionary in print:
designed to overthrow government: intended or likely to undermine or overthrow a government or other institution
I find the usage of institution in ...
4
votes
2answers
118 views
If it's “double” why is it singular?
A double number is two identical numbers, e.g. 007 (double O seven)
A double chin is someone who appears to have two chins
A double feature is a program showing two feature-length movies
A double D is ...
0
votes
1answer
113 views
“porn is widespread” or “porn are widespread”
Which one is grammatically correct?
porn is widespread.
porn are widespread.
I have found examples of both on the web, does it mean the sentences are correct and both have the same meaning?
2
votes
2answers
65 views
Is “profit” a special case?
Company profits are down from last year's figures.
(Copied from Cambridge dictionary.)
1) Why don't we use a possessive s?
2) Why do we use plural profits?
3) Why don't we use “the”? When you ...
3
votes
2answers
63 views
One/Two onion rings?
When making an order, is it correct to say the following? If so, Why? If not what is the correct way?
Can I get one onion rings?
In case you want two servings,
Can I get two onion rings?
5
votes
2answers
384 views
Is “prose” ever a count noun?
He writes a crystalline prose (source)
I find this countable usage of "prose" from the Oxford Dictionaries very unusual. I have never seen "prose" used countably. In contrast, several dictionaries ...
1
vote
1answer
57 views
Is the word “news” always singular?
Using Google Translate, I have this translation from Russian to English:
каковы спортивные новости?
what are the sports news?
I know, that the word "news" is uncountable, so it is ...
1
vote
1answer
101 views
countable and uncountable at the same time. What does that mean?
In Cambridge online dictionary there are nouns which can be countable or uncountable at the same time. Example https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/society?q=Societies
1)
What does ...
2
votes
1answer
711 views
“past experience” or “past experiences”?
I need to learn from past experiences.
It seems to me it makes sense to say "past experiences", since here experience refers an event that happened in the past. However, I do see a lot of occurrences ...
0
votes
1answer
54 views
Is “release” countable when used to mean “to let go” or “to make available”?
Is "release" a count noun or mass noun in the meaning of "let someone or something out of a place"? I see conflicting information from different dictionaries, even within the same dictionary.
...
1
vote
1answer
189 views
When is “dress” a mass noun?
I find the singular/uncountable usage of "dress" strange in this sentence.
Expansive skirts on fashionable dress of the period proved the perfect blank canvas to showcase chintzes lush with ...
3
votes
1answer
36 views
The countability of “memoir” and “stocktaking” in this sentence
I find two nouns in this sentence from a Time article very strange.
The Atlantic columns are enriched with personal memoir, and a stocktaking, as Coates takes the reader through his own life and ...
1
vote
2answers
141 views
“The farthest reach” or “the farthest reaches”?
I heard on TV (an American science program, forgot the name of the program):
We will venture out into the farthest reaches of the cosmos.
It makes me wonder if/when the noun "reach" is a count ...
1
vote
1answer
702 views
Parent and parents which one is appropriate in following context? [closed]
A: Sons of the same parent are called brothers.
B: Sons of the same parents are called brothers.
Which one is correct?
4
votes
3answers
501 views
How to ‘guess’ if a noun is countable or uncountable?
Not all the time I have access to dictionaries. In school, I learned that abstract nouns are not countable; however, English is an ever-evolving language and nothing can be so certain here including ...
3
votes
2answers
56 views
‘A fried rice’, ‘ fried rice’, or ‘ a bowl of fried rice’
I came across this sentence in an English book:
A fried rice is 2,500 dong.
I know that rice is a mass noun so it cannot be counted, and if ‘fried rice’ refers to the name of a dish, it is correct ...
4
votes
4answers
224 views
Using “fashion” countably vs. uncountably: “in (a) timely/similar/dramatic fashion”
I have always thought fashion is countable when used to signify a particular manner (e.g., I will get that done in a timely fashion), but I just encountered these sentences in the Oxford Dictionaries (...
2
votes
2answers
242 views
“paint”: mass noun vs count noun
Jackson Pollock dropped paints on canvas seemingly at random. (Source)
I have always thought the noun "paint" is uncountable when referring to color/colored liquid/solid pigment. But the above ...
0
votes
1answer
99 views
How do we come to know a noun in a sentence is a countable or uncountable noun?
Road is countable and uncountable noun. (see Cambridge)
ex. The traffic on the road was quite bad.
Definite article [the] is placed before road.
As per the rule the can be placed before countable ...
0
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3answers
219 views
Consultation: “uncountable noun” or “countable noun”
I have a question related to usage of the word consultation. Can you please tell me if I should use singular or plural form of the word in the following context?
Consultations require a personal ...
2
votes
1answer
50 views
Conscience - when is it countable noun?
The dictionary says ‘conscience’ can be both countable and uncountable noun. Then when it should be written with article ‘a’?
“The best equipment ... is a conscience, common sense and health. ... ...
1
vote
1answer
74 views
Much problem/much problems?
Let's say you are describing your future house's space.
Spaciousness is key so I would not have much problem/problems moving around places in the house.
I know that ''problem'' is countable noun, ...
2
votes
2answers
85 views
In the sentence of concern, should I use the plural form of the noun?
If you like a song, and you think it's catchy, could you say this?
Songs don't get much catchier than this.
My concern is the plural songs, when people say things similar to
Life can't/doesn't ...
9
votes
3answers
1k views
Why some countable nouns treated as uncountable?
since the inception of the iPod we have seen numerous audio formats
come to market yet only a select few of them have been adopted on a
mass scale.
(Source: What is the best audio format? - ...
3
votes
2answers
163 views
Isn't “fog” uncountable when referring to a weather phenomenon?
I came across an example sentence on Merriam Webster:
a climate marked by heavy fogs
Isn't fog a noncount noun when used to refer to weather, according to the Cambridge Dictionary. The ODO and the ...
2
votes
1answer
295 views
Why can “core” be a plural form of “core”?
According to WordHippo:
The noun core can be countable or uncountable.
In more general, commonly used, contexts, the plural form will also be
core.
However, in more specific contexts, ...
4
votes
2answers
67 views
Should there be an article before “cell phone”?
From an online article:
Many drivers tool around town or take long drives with cell phone in hand, one eye on the road but their mind clearly someplace else.
Since "cell phone" is of course ...
0
votes
1answer
28 views
The countability of “champion”
I saw two sentences on Google and on the Oxford Dictionaries, under the definition of "cap":
"he capped a memorable season by becoming champion" (Google, which should be getting its content from ...
0
votes
1answer
615 views
One of a group of things: “One of my cousin called me” or “One of my cousins called me”
Why is it incorrect to say,
"One of my cousin called me."
instead of
"One of my cousins called me."
1
vote
1answer
62 views
Shouldn't it be “sagas and song”?
I find this sentence from a book odd:
Their flimsy settlements consequently were soon abandoned, and their discovery was forgotten, except in Scandinavian saga and song.
According to both the ...
