Lesson №2

Topic: The noun. Countable – Uncountable nouns. Different meaning

in the plural

Contest:
1. Revision: Parts of Speech. The noun. The plural of nouns.
2. Checking the home assignment (lesson №1).
3. Presentation of a new topic: Parts of Speech. The noun. Countable –
Uncountable nouns (№ 1, p. 16-24). Learn the material that is given below.

COUNTABLE – UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS

 Nouns can be countable (those that can be counted) 1 book, 2 books etc or
uncountable (those that can't be counted) flour. Uncountable nouns take a singular
verb. Information is available at the front desk. They are not used with a/an.
Some, any no, much etc. can be used with them. I need some advice (not: an
advice). But we say: a relief, a pity, a shame, a wonder, a knowledge (of sth), a
help although they are uncountable. What a pity! It's such a shame!
 The most common uncountable nouns are: Mass nouns: (fluids: blood, coffee,
juice, milk, oil, tea, water etc, solids: bread, butter, china, coal, fish (meaning
food), food, fruit, glass, ice, iron, meat, soap, gases: air, oxygen, pollution, smoke,
smog, steam etc, particles: corn, dust, flour, hair, pepper, rice, salt, sand, sugar,
wheat etc.
Subjects of study: chemistry, economics, history, literature, mathematics, physics,
psychology etc.
Languages: Chinese, English, French, German, Greek, Italian, Spanish, Turkish
etc.
Games: baseball, billiards, chess, football, golf, poker, rugby, soccer, tennis etc.
Diseases: cancer, flu, measles, mumps etc.
Natural phenomena: darkness, fog, gravity, hail, heat, humidity, light, lightning,
rain (but: the rains = season of continuous rain in tropical countries), snow,
sunshine, thunder, weather, wind etc.
Some abstract nouns: accommodation, advice, anger, applause, assistance,
behaviour, business, chaos, countryside, courage, damage, dirt, education,
evidence, housework, homework, information, intelligence, knowledge, luck,
music, news, peace, progress, seaside, shopping, traffic, trouble, truth, wealth,
work etc.
Collective nouns: baggage, crockery, cutlery, furniture, jewellery, luggage,
machinery, money, rubbish, stationery etc.
Many uncountable nouns can be made countable by adding a partitive:
a piece of paper/cake/information/advice/furniture; a glass/bottle of water; a jar of
jam; a box/sheet of paper; a packet of tea; a slice/loaf of bread; a pot of yoghurt;
a pot/cup of tea; a kilo/pound of meat; a tube of toothpaste; a bar of
chocolate/soap; a bit/piece of chalk; an ice cube; a lump of sugar; a bag of flour;
a pair of trousers; a game of soccer; a(n) item / piece of news; a drop/can of oil; a
can of Cola; a carton of milk; a block of wood; a flash/bolt of lightning; a
clap/peal of thunder etc.
 Some nouns take only a plural verb. These are objects which consist of two
parts: garments (pyjamas, trousers etc), tools (scissors etc), instruments
(binoculars, compasses, spectacles etc) or nouns such as: arms, ashes, barracks,
clothes, congratulations, earnings, (good) looks, outskirts, people, police,
premises, riches, stairs, surroundings, wages etc.
 Group nouns refer to a group of people. These nouns can take either a singular
or a plural verb depending on whether we see the group as a whole or as
individuals. Such group nouns are: army, audience, class, club, committee,
company, council, crew, crowd, headquarters, family, jury, government, press,
public, staff, team etc. e.g. The team was the best in the country. (= the team as a
group) The team were all given medals. (= each member separately as
individuals)
 With expressions of duration, distance or money meaning "a whole amount" we
use a singular verb. Two weeks isn't long to wait. Ten miles is a long way to ride.
Two hundred thousand pounds is too much to spend on this house.

SOME NOUNS HAVE A DIFFERENT MEANING IN THE PLURAL

Give me a piece of paper please! The police asked to see his papers.
(documents)

The needle of a compass always points You can draw a perfect circle with
North. compasses.

It is a custom to give presents at All plane passengers were searched at

Christmas. customs.

She has a lot of experience in teaching. We had lots of exciting experiences on

our trip.

Would you like a glass of milk? He can't see very well without his glasses.

She has got long, blonde hair. There are two hairs in your milk!

They were shocked at the scale of the She weighed herself on the scales.
disaster.

The bowl is made of wood. The girls got lost in the woods.
He goes to work every day except Sunday. Picasso's works are really fascinating.

There were many people waiting outside. All peoples of the world should be
peaceful. (nations)

Don't go out in the rain without an In some climates the rains come twice a
umbrella. year.

4. Testing of the material. № 2, p. 6, ex. 3-4. Do the following exercises to

improve your skills.

Exercise 6. Fill in: is or are.

1. Your jeans are hanging in the wardrobe.

2. Where…………….my scissors?
3. There………………………a lecture on economics today.
4. The shopping……………..extremely heavy.
5. Where………………..my boxing gloves?
6. This information…………….incorrect!
7. Her hair…………………beautiful.
8. Your socks………………in the drawer.
9. Her furniture…………………….very expensive.
10. His accommodation…………………luxurious.
11. Evidence………………needed before the trial can continue.
12.The news………………….very exciting.
13. Mumps…………a common illness among young children.
14. Where ……………….my glasses?
15. German…………………..difficult to learn.
16. Where………………the kitchen scales? I want to weight some flour.
17. Chess………………..a popular game.
18. Her work……………………very tiring.
19. People………………………..starving in many countries.
20. Happiness…………………………the key to her success.

5. Test.

Home assignment
Learn by heart theoretical material according to the topic, be ready for oral quiz. №
1, p. 16-24, № 2, p. 6-8, ex. 5-7. Do the following exercises to indepth your
knowledge base.

Exercise 7. Write the correct form of the verbs in brackets. Use only the
Present Simple.
 1. Wild geese fly (fly) south for the winter.
2. The press…………………..(be) often unfair to political candidates.
3. Six months………………………..(be) a long time to spend in hospital.
4. Two miles……………………….(be) not long way to walk to school.
5. Economics…………………(be) difficult for people with poor maths skills.
6. American Airlines…………….(be) one of the largest carriers in the USA.
7. The stairs……………………….(be) too steep for me to climb.
8. Two-third of the food produced on the farm…………………….(be) used to
feed people in that region.
9. …………………….(be) the number of students studying French falling?
10. Bus trips to and from New York………….(take) two hours either way.
11. International news……….(rely) on correspondents in every major city.
12. Five pounds……………………….(be) quite a lot of money to lose.
13. In the Philippines, there ……………………….(be) heavy rains each year.
14. Two hours per week………….(be) not enough to learn a foreign language.

Exercise 8. Write the correct form of the verbs in brackets.

I sometimes think that society 1) throws (throw) away things without even
thinking of repairing them. Trousers 2)……………(be) easy to mend or can be
made into shorts which 3) ………(look) nice on most people. Pliers that 4)
………….(be) broken or scissors that 5)……………(be) blunt can be fixed or
sharpened. Clothes 6)..................(be) expensive and household goods always
7)......................(prove) useful so why 8)……………(be) these belongings often
thrown away? Intelligence 9)……………(be) not really needed, just common
sense. Congratulations 10)……………(be) in order for those who 11)…………
(use) their heads in this way. An old pair of jeans which 12)……….(be) used for
gardening, pyjamas which 13)……….. (become) dishcloths and tights which 14)
………….(strain) food, all make our earnings 15)...........................(go) further.

Exercise 9. Underline the correct item. Sometimes both of them are correct.

1. The advice she gave me was/were very helpful.

2. Her earnings are/is very low.
3. The weather are/is very unpredictable in England.
4. Sugar is/are bad for your teeth.
5. Most people go/goes on holiday at least once a year.
6. Physics is/are the study of natural laws.
7. Football are/is a popular sport.
8. All of his clothes was/were on the floor.
9. Her stunning looks is/are the key to her success.
10. Her brother's death was/were traumatic.
11. Athletics is/are challenging.
12. Her love of money was/were almost an obsession.
13. His luggage was/were extremely heavy.
 14. Is/Are the information correct?
15. The old couple is/are moving to the coast.
16. The staff of the hospital is/are very helpful.
17. Billiards is/are played by many people.
18. There is/are a lot of sheep in that field.
19. The company headquarters is/are in London.
20. Darts is/are a popular game in Britain.
21. The news is/are on at 6 o'clock.

Exercise 10. Make the following uncountable nouns plural as in the example:

furniture two Two pieces of tea three

furniture
chalk thre water two
e
rice two butter three
thunder two flour three
paper two lightning two
fruit thre scissors four
e
tennis thre news two
e

Note: a couple of, several, a few, many, a (large, great, good) number of, both
are followed by a countable noun. (Too) much, a little, a great/good deal of, a
large/small amount/quantity of are followed by an uncountable noun. A lot of,
lots of, hardly any, some, no, plenty of are followed by a countable or
uncountable noun.

Exercise 11. Underline the expressions which can be used with the nouns as in
the example:

1. She has bought a couple of, several, too much, a few, a little, lots of dresses.
2. She's got a little, a lot of, hardly any, several, a few experience in
teaching.
3. He drank two, both, some, several, too much glasses of water.
4. She is wearing several, too many, hardly any, too much, no jewellery.
5. The fire is going out - you'll have to fetch a little, several, a couple of, some,
plenty of wood.
6. I've been shopping and I've got no, a few, a little, hardly any, too many
money left.
7. Everyone needs too much, a little, a few, a couple of, a number of friends.
8. Flowers need plenty of, a number of, too many, a great deal of, a lot of
 water.
9. Could you move along to give me a few, some, several, a little, plenty of
space?
10. I'm afraid I can't come for a great deal of, several, a number of, too much, a
little reasons.
11. I can finish it only if you give me plenty of, a number of, too many, some, a
little time.
12. Too much, Plenty of, A few, Hardly any, A little people were standing at the
bus-stop.
13. I like both/a little, plenty of, a couple of, too much your ideas.
14. There are a little, a great deal of, too much, hardly any, not many things I'd
like to say.

Individual work 1
Prepare a report: “Morphological and syntactical characteristics of nouns. Its
classification”. Make up 50 sentences (situation). Use the grammatical material
you know.

Independent work 1
Exercise 1. Point out the nouns and define the class each belongs to.

1. He was professor of physics.

2. In the kitchen Bowen read the telegram aloud.
3. The crowd laughed and moved, pushing every way and everybody.
4. De Witt fished through his pockets, found his eyeglasses, carefully slipped
them out of their case….
5. George suggested meat and fruits pies, cold meat, tomatoes, fruit and green
stuff.
6. The silver-coloured carpet felt wonderfully soft beneath his feet, the
furniture was of a golden wood.
7. The major seemed to be looking out at the sky….
8. “It’s not Sunday, tomorrow,” said Karg.
9. His hair was grey and he was short and fat.
10. A stone caught her heel.
11. There were several small losses: a spoon used for the baby’s feeding, a pair
of scissors.
12. The mysteries of storm and the rain and tide were revealed.
13. Having set the tea, she stood by the table and said slowly: “Tea’s ready,
Father. I’m going to London.”
14. Pursuing his inquiries, Clennam found that the Gowan family were a very
distant ramification of the Bernacles….
15. Don’t forget, Pettinger, Europe is still the heart of the world, and Germany
the heart of Europe.

Exercise 2. Explain the use of the possessive case. Translate into Ukrainian.
 1. Desert’s voice seemed to leap from restraint.
2. I gaze lovingly at the rich brown earth, so lately freed from the frost’s
grasp…..
3. “She kept a chandler’s shop,” pursued Bounderby.
4. In a word, he went out and ate ices at a pastry-cook’s shop in Charing
Cross….
5. This man lives at Rod’s End, and I don’t quite know Rod’s End.
6. George…. promptly stepped into bow’s place……..
7. Presently Rex was on his two mile’s walk to Offendene.
8. Bowen sat on the veranda of Buckmaster’s house.
9. I spent Christmas at my aunt Emily’s.
10. A woman’s love is not worth anything until it has been cleaned of all
romanticism.
11. Her skin was as dry as a child’s with fever.
12. And he lifted his strange lowering eyes to Derek’s.
13. Agnes was at her wit’s-end.
14. For his honor’s sake Tom has got to commit suicide.
15. Philip heard a man’s voice talking quickly, but soothingly, over the phone.

Morphological Composition of Nouns

Nouns
simple derivative compound
room, map, work, fish, reader, blackness, snowball, bluebell,
dog….. childhood, inexperience dining-room, blackbird

Exercise 14. Define the morphological composition of the following nouns.

blackboard hostess walking-stick

forget-me-not water-supply overweight
box railway disillusion
pin bank preoccupation
brotherhood writer brother-in-law
drawing-room housewife sunshine

Literature
Basic
1. Каушанская В.Л. Грамматика английского языка. – Москва: Страт,
2006. – 319 с.
2. Каушанская В.Л. Сборник упражнений по грамматике английского
языка. – Москва: Страт, 2000. – 216 с.
3. Thomson A.J. A Practical English Grammar. – Oxford University press,
2003. – 383 p.
4. Longman New Round-up 5. English Grammar Practice. – Pearson Education.
– England, 2011. – 208 p.
5. Longman New Round-up 6. English Grammar Practice. – Pearson Education.
– England, 2011. – 257 p.

Additional
1. Голіцинський Ю.Б. Граматика. Збірник вправ. – К.: Тандем, 2004. – 400
с.
2. Керножицька О.А. Граматика. – К.: Тандем, 1997. – 253 с.
3. Мансі Є.А. Практикум з граматики англійської мови. – К.: АСК, 1999. –
352 с.
4. Barabash T.A. A Guide to Better Grammar. – M., 1975. – 200 p.
5. Dooley J., Evans V. Grammarway. – Express Publishing, 1999. – 278 p.
6. Thomson A.J., Martinet A.V. A Practical English Grammar: Exercises 1.  –
Oxford University press, 2009. – 181 p.
7. Thomson A.J., Martinet A.V. A Practical English Grammar: Exercises 2.  –
Oxford University press, 2009. – 200 p.