Search results for 'tag:Countable nouns tag:Abstract nouns' matching tags 'Countable nouns' and 'Abstract nouns'

Re: Use of a plural

CalifJim — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 00:27:08 GMT

Anonymous
a plural version of a noun that could be either countable or uncountable.

There's no such thing as an uncountable noun in the plural. Plurality is one of the marks of countability. Once the noun is in the plural you know you are dealing with a countable noun.

Anonymous
that a person desires to use it is a good enough reason to use it or them?

Not just desire. Very accomplished writers with a fine ear for the language are able to gauge when it is useful to present an apparent uncountable in the plural -- especially when it's a matter of abstract nouns. The majority of us merely competent writers don't typically invent such novel turns of phrase.

Re: creams and detergents

Goodman — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 16:19:09 GMT

Mr. Miclawer,

I wasnât going to expand this pluralization discussion on âcreamsâ and âwinesâ.
But it really bothered the heck out of me for two reasons.
1) I really wanted to find out if I was really blowing hot air on this subject
because of my misunderstanding of this topic, and 2) if there is another side of the usage
I am not aware of.
This is perhaps not relevant to the discussion but to establish my point, I think it needs
to be said. Mrs. Milton whom I learned English from was an excellent English teacher who
also had taught for 5 years at the Beijing University, which is a top University in China, by
invitation of the Government. Many of her students had landed positions working for the
Chinese Government and the U.N. as translators and interpreters. I was very blessed to be
among her students. Most of my English foundation was learned from her. And I was really
surprised to see your examples pluralizing âcreamâ and âwineâ. By your earlier examples, which I
compared with the information found on the WEB, I must ask this question. Am I to understand
that itâs completely grammatical to say in a restaurant âmay I have 2 waters and soups?â. I know
we hear that all the time but if we are discussing the whether a particular usage is grammatically
correct, running into this type of scenario is inevitable. Here are some âsupportsâ you had
asked for which may not may not be validated to your satisfaction. No doubt, you are the
English authority and perhaps possess âsuperiorityâ over many frequented this forum and I donât
mean to sound like challenging your examples, let alone to waste anymore of your time.
Nonetheless, as a serious learner, Iâd owe the real answers to myself and the learners if I just
accepted your answers as given. I may be wrong with my search result and you are correct.
And If so, here is my âadvanced apologyâ.

Nouns only countable nouns can be either singular or plural. ... He had some ice cream on
his face. He had an ice cream. mass. countable ...
www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/dick/tta/wc/nouns.htm - 21k - Cached - Similar pages

http://ajaja.paradoxinc.org/Basic/Grammar/CountAndNoncount.ht

Liquids: beer, milk, coffee, blood, cream, juice, honey, gasoline, oil, shampoo, soup, tea, water, wine.

Solids and semi-solids: Bread, butter, cheese, ice, ice cream, lettuce, toast, meat, beef, chicken, fish, ham, lamb, pork, chalk, 
copper, cotton, glass, gold, iron, , soap, tin, toothpaste, wood, wool,

http://leo.stcloudstate.edu/grammar/countnon.html

A Revision of the RulesThe exceptions require that the rule for pluralizing be revised: count nouns and nouns used 
in a count sense can be pluralized; noncount nouns and nouns used in a noncount sense cannot.

	Pluralizes with -s	Does not Pluralize
Count Noun	X
Count Use	X
Noncount Noun		X
Noncount Use		X

http://au.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080425090142AAom2ui

Answers (4)

If coffee is an uncountable noun, cream certainly is by common sense. Thus the rule applies.

Â· Answerer 1

Many nouns can be used as countables or uncountables. It depends on whether you are thinking of a substance or
a single serving or object made of the substance. So:

Beer is fattening (uncountable - the substance)
Don't drink more than three beers a day. (Countable - servings)

I love chocolate (uncountable - the substance)
Get me a box of chocolates (countable - individual pieces)

A vase made of blown glass (uncountable - the substance)
A glass of wine (A single piece / artifact)

Coffee gives me indigestion (the substance - uncountable)
I need at least three coffees to wake up on a morning (countable - individual servings)

2 months ago

http://www3.law.cuny.edu/wc/students/multilingual/articles.html

Uncountable nouns often refer to drinks and food, other general substances, or concepts (meat, tea, steel, information, justice):

Examples of Uncountable Nouns in English:

Food and Drink: bacon, beef, beer, bread, butter, cabbage, candy, cauliflower, chicken, chocolate, coffee, corn,
cream, fish, fruit, juice, lettuce, meat, milk, oil, pasta, rice, salt, spinach, sugar, tea, water, whiskey, wine, yogurt.
General Substances: air,cement, clay, coal, copper, dirt, dust, foam, gasoline, gold, ice, leather, paper, petroleum,
plastic, rain, rubber, silver, soap, steel, wood, wool.
Abstract nouns: abandonment, access, adultery, advice, alimony, anger, anguish, arson, authentication, beauty, capacity,
conduct, confidence, courage, deprivation, desperation, discretion, employment, empowerment, evidence, extortion, fortune,
fun, happiness, health, honesty, housing, information, insurance, intelligence, intent, knowledge, land, love, malice, negligence,
poverty, privacy, real estate, sadness, satisfaction, strength, truth, wealth.
Others: biology, clothing, darkness, equipment, furniture, gossip, homework, jewelry, luggage, machinery, mail, money, music,
news, poetry, pollution, research, scenery, traffic, transportation, violence, weather, weight, work.

Some uncountable nouns (except for concepts) can be turned into countable nouns by preposing a phrase to them
(two bottles of wine, a bar of soap, a piece of information, an act of violence, a burst of anger, a piece of evidence).

e.g. The defendant's lawyer is sure the judge will accept new evidence in this case.

vs. The defendant's lawyer is sure the judge will accept three new pieces of evidence in this case.

Some uncountable nouns can be used in the plural, but their meaning changes:

experience / experiences: e.g., He had to rely on experience / I lived unforgettable experiences

Re: Heart and Hearts

Avangi — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 13:38:49 GMT

To the extent that you can hold a heart in your hand, it differs from the mind and the soul (assuming that mind does not equal brain). So you wish to talk about "heart" in the abstract. The soul seems to be an intangible concept by definition. The mind means different things to philosophers, psychologists, and biologists.

If it's not too sensitive an issue, think about the "strategy" of "winning the hearts and minds of the Iraqui people." These are definitely abstract nouns. We're speaking of the heart and the mind of an individual person - one heart and one mind. I think that's a countable noun. If you "win over" three people, that's three hearts and three minds. It's still abstract.

The heart of the American people is singular, and very abstract, and surely has a different meaning than "winning the heart of my girlfriend." Is it uncountable? Personally, I don't think so. "One" is a number. It's possible to "win the heart of the American people."

Do you have a reference saying that abstract nouns are uncountable? I don't think "intangible" = "uncountable." Ideas are intangible. I came up with four new ideas today. I think that "abstract" and "concrete" are both members of the common noun classification. Asphalt and concrete are examples of uncountable nouns.

Regards, - A.

Re: Heart and Hearts

Darcy — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 04:43:36 GMT

Thanks for your reply

I think both heart and mind are abstract nouns. I wonder why they can be plural nouns and countable ones.

It is said that if asbtract nouns are added -s ending; changed into countable nouns, abstract nouns changes to a common noun and their meaning is changed.. I wonder if this applies to the example sentence I posted at first

cf> <abstract noun>: a noun that denotes an idea, emotion, feeling, quality or other abstract or intangible concept

<common noun>: a noun that refers to any of a class of people or things, e.g. "singer" and "place," as distinct from a proper noun, e.g. "Lennon" or "Washington." Common nouns can be preceded by words that modify their meaning, e.g. "some" and "any."

Re: Can Willingness noun be a countable noun? Why?

Philip — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 15:31:37 GMT

Jgipuzkoa wrote:

Hello.

Can Willingness noun be a countable noun? Why?

JesÃºs MarÃa.

In general, 'ness' is a suffix that makes an adjective an abstract noun. These, then, cannot be countable. You will hear, however, "we thank you all for the many kindnesses you have shown during our time of grief". This isn't correct, in my opinion, [it should be 'acts of kindness'] but it's somewhat common.

Re: having something uncountable

CalifJim — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 09:09:45 GMT

Should I just accept the fact some uncountable nouns, especially those that have abstract meanings, do not go well or don't ~~not~~ fit with a verb showing possession such as 'have'?

Yes, you probably should accept that. It's probably a lot easier to memorize idioms with have plus a noun than to establish some sort of rule about which types of uncountable nouns go with have and which don't.

have pity on someone
have mercy on someone
have trouble doing something
have difficulty doing something
have heartburn
have indigestion
have patience
have confidence in someone
have influence over/with someone
have power over someone

It seems one can't 'have' most of the emotions. These you mostly 'experience' or 'feel', not 'have'.

*have anger
*have fear
*have happiness
*have sadness
*have joy
*have grief

Nor many other abstract nouns. Often the correct expression involves 'be' rather than 'have'.

*have coldness (be cold)
*have willingness (be willing)
*have fame (be famous)
*have virtue (be virtuous)
*have caution (be cautious)
*have pride (be proud)
*have greed (be greedy)

CJ

Re: Articles (a, an)

Yoong Liat — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 18:25:21 GMT

Hoa Thai wrote:
First, thank you for your reply. Now if you can help me a bit further, I would appreciate very much.

If advice is an uncountable abstract noun, then advices must be wrong, right? (Yesterday, my father gave me his advice. Today, my mother gives me hers. I don't like their ~~two~~ advice at all! 'Advice' is uncountable, so 'two advices' is wrong.)

Now, how could opinion be countable? I certainly cannot physically sense it...opinion and advice are not synonymous but they are both thought related, I think. So why are they different? [ opinion (singular), opinions (plural) Your opinion is what you think about someone or something based on your personal judgement. Advice (uncountable) You give someone advice when you suggest what they should do in a certain situation.

I hope the definitions I've extracted from the dictionary will enable you to see the difference between 'advice' and 'opinion'.]

Regarding satisfaction, here is an online sentence that goes with a:
"Even in those jurisdictions, however, a gift may still be treated as a satisfaction of legacy if such an intention is expressed in a written document made ..."
So the sentence is grammatically incorrect, right? But, doesn't treated as satisfaction of legacy sound unpleasant to you? ( I missed out the fact that 'satisfaction' can be a countable noun. So 'satisfaction' can be countable or uncountable depending on context.) Her success gave her parents a lot of satisfaction. (uncountable noun). A satisfaction is something that gives a feeling of pleasure or contentment ... the immense satisfactions (countable noun) of parenthood.

Shouldn't there be a source, from which we, ESL learners, can learn abstract nouns' nuances?

Thanks
Hoa Thai

Re: Articles (a, an)

Yoong Liat — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 16:25:38 GMT

Hoa Thai wrote:
I was told that a or an should not be used to mark noncount nouns, sush as water, gold, etc.. That is simple until I encounter abstract nouns! For instance, give me an advice is incorrect since advice is an abstract noun. However, an online search shows that both give me advice and give me an advice are used by many people. Moreover, opinion is also an abstract noun; but many people would prefer give me an opinion over give me opinion. A satisfaction is another abstract noun that seems to violate the rule, but is often used (again, the count from online search data shows that). So does the rule have many exceptions? If so, how would an ESL learner like me be able to make the distinction? Please help. Thanks and Best Regards - Hoa Thai

give me an advice is incorrect. (advice is an uncountable noun)

give me an opinion is correct. (opinion is a countable noun.)

A satisfaction is incorrect. (satisfaction is an uncountable noun)

Re: Beauty and the beast... why "the" before "beast" only?

CalifJim — Sat, 06 Oct 2007 02:30:18 GMT

Beauty is ambiguous. It's both a proper noun, and thus the name of a person, and an abstract noun referring to the property of being beautiful. The most usual meaning of the beauty is the beautiful woman.

the beast is that particular beast that the story is about, not just any beast, i.e., not just a beast. Beast is capitalized because it's part of a title.

So you could have "The Beauty and the Beast", but not "Beauty and Beast", because beast is a countable noun in the singular. Such nouns must have a determiner.

You could also have "A Beauty and a Beast", but then you can ask "Which beautiful woman? Which beast?", and you'd have to read the story to find out, of course.

The difference is not a large one, and the choice of "Beauty and the Beast" is pretty much arbitrary.

CJ

Re: Uncountable noun becoming countable?

Inchoateknowledge — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 08:07:50 GMT

Hello Believer,

Abstract nouns in the plural indicate an instance of the phenomena concerned:

Whoever planted the bomb showed a total disregard for the safety of the public.

I have experienced many injustices,

intensification of the phenomenon

Search results for 'tag:Countable nouns tag:Abstract nouns' matching tags 'Countable nouns' and 'Abstract nouns'

Re: Use of a plural

Re: creams and detergents

Mr. Miclawer,

Nouns only countable nouns can be either singular or plural. ... He had some ice cream on his face. He had an ice cream. mass. countable ...www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/dick/tta/wc/nouns.htm - 21k - Cached - Similar pages

http://au.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080425090142AAom2ui

Answers (4)

Re: Heart and Hearts

Re: Heart and Hearts

Re: Can Willingness noun be a countable noun? Why?

Re: having something uncountable

Re: Articles (a, an)

Re: Articles (a, an)

Re: Beauty and the beast... why "the" before "beast" only?

Re: Uncountable noun becoming countable?

Nouns only countable nouns can be either singular or plural. ... He had some ice cream on
his face. He had an ice cream. mass. countable ...
www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/dick/tta/wc/nouns.htm - 21k - Cached - Similar pages