Thursday, 15 July 2010

Singular, Plural Nouns; count nouns and noncount nouns.

Using Singular Nouns


English nouns can be divided into two categories: count nouns and noncount nouns.
A count noun is singular when there is one of the person, place, or thing it names.

When a noun is singular, use a or an before it.
Use a if it begins with a consonant sound; use an if it begins with a vowel sound.

Use a or an before a singular noun to answer the question "What... ?"

  • What do you do?
    I'm a secretary.
    I'm an actor.

  • What is it?
    It's a banana.
    It's an apple.

  • What do you want?
    I want a house.
    I want an apartment.


Use the number one before a singular noun to answer the question "How many ... ?"

  • How many cars do you have?
    We have one car.

  • How many English classes are there?
    There is one class.


Use "There is . . . " before a singular noun to indicate that it exists.

  • There is an accountant in my family.

  • There is a library on the corner.

  • There is only one bus stop on this street.


Using Plural Nouns


A count noun is plural when there is more than one of the person, place, or thing it names.
To make a singular noun plural:

• Add -s:





  • one tree- three trees

  • one word- four words

  • one sister- two sisters



• Add -es to a few words that end in -o:





  • one echo- two echoes

  • one mosquito- three mosquitoes

  • one tomato- four tomatoes

  • one hero- four heroes

  • one potato- two potatoes

  • one tornado- two tornadoes



• Add -es to nouns that end in -ch, -sh, -ss, and -x:





  • one beach- two beaches

  • one dish- four dishes

  • one dress- two dresses

  • one fax- three faxes



• Add -ies to nouns that end in a consonant followed by -y, after dropping the -y.





  • one city  two cities

  • one country-  four countries

  • one family-  two families

  • one puppy-  six puppies



• Add -ves to nouns that end in -for -fe, after dropping the -for -fer.





  • one calf- two calves

  • one half- two halves

  • one leaf- three leaves

  • one knife- five knives



• Use an irregular form for certain nouns:






    • one child- two children

    • one man- four men

    • one person- three people

    • one tooth- four teeth

    • one mouse- three mice

    • one woman- three women

    • one foot- two feet




• Use the singular form for the plural for certain nouns:





  • one deer- three deer

  • one sheep- four sheep

  • one fish- two fish



Use are there and a plural noun in a question to ask if any exist and how many:

  • Are there any cars in your driveway?

  • How many cars are there?

  • How many houses are there on this street?

  • How many pages are there in this book?


Use there are followed by any number from two on up before a plural noun to tell how many of them exist:

  • There are two cars in the driveway.

  • There are ten houses on this street.

  • There are 208 pages in this book.


Use there are before the word no when it indicates zero. No is followed by a plural noun:

  • There are no cars in the driveway.

  • There are no houses on this street.


Not any can be used instead of no to indicate zero:

  • There are not any cars in the driveway.
    There aren't any cars in the driveway.

  • There are not any houses on this street.
    There aren't any houses on this street.

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