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The classification of words and the article attached (+abstract plural)

Aperisic — Thu, 14 Sep 2006 14:08:17 GMT

People have found this text useful so I am repeating it here in this entirety with error fixed (there are several posts combined in it)

Before I give you more detailed explanation I have to tell you that in dictionaries you can frequently find the type of the word: countable, uncountable, mass, abstractâ¦ However what is more important is to understand that the context is equally important. You can turn many words into abstract if you want to express an idea, quality or experience, and you can as well make from an uncountable word a countable one if you want to speak about one particular appearanceâ¦ So before you decide what is the type of the word you have to know

what is the most frequent context in which the word is found
what are the contexts you can use the word
whether and how each context changes the meaning of the word
which context is maybe awkward for the particular word

Once you know the context you can decide about the article attached. So here you have all contexts that one word can be found in. Do not forget that it is possible that you can change the context even when your dictionary says that a word is, for example, strictly countable.

A ball can mean one instance of ball, a more or less round gadget of different materials for playing games, but ball can mean the experience of playing games with a ball.

A ball is usually round. - one ball
Ball, however I've loved it, is what hurts my knees. - the experience of playing different games with a ball

However, this is the advanced level of understanding and for some time you should be very strict and use words how they are given in the dictionary. But, in order to truly understand some exceptions in literature you have to have the following view better.

1. The possible contexts of a word

count nouns one ball-two balls-some balls

they have plural
in singular you have to use a/an or the
in plural you use the to define a particular instance, and without the to define a type

uncount nouns homework-fun-knowledge-privacy-furniture

they have singular but it is used, by the rule, without a/an
they do not have plural
you do not count them using one, two... but you can measure them using some, a piece ofâ¦

mass nouns coffee-beer-cheese

in singular they can mean substance and in that case they are uncount so you do not use a but if you use the you mean a particular kind of that substance
in singular you can use a but in that case you talk about a regular portion or a type, a is actually a substitute for one (I want a coffee = I want one coffee = I want one cup of coffee)
in plural they mean several regular portions or types (several different cheeses = several different type of cheeses, two coffees = two cups of coffee)

singular nouns sun-strain-past-future

they are always singular and they always need a determiner (the sun, a strain, the past)
some normal nouns may have a special meaning when they are used as a singular noun (a note of urgency = a tone of haste)

plural nouns glasses-spectacles-clothes-conditions

they have only plural and you do not usually count them, but there are exceptions (two goods is not common, two scissors is ok)
you can use only the for known occurrences, for other the rules are similar to an uncount noun, unless you can count them (a/one scissors but even then you better say some scissors, a pair of scissors)
some normal words may have a different meaning when used as a plural noun (conditions - the factors that affect something)

collective nouns army-crew-government

they behave as a count noun but they can use singular or plural verb form, which depends on how you observe a group - as one item or a collection of several items

proper nouns names

they have the or do not have the based on the special rules or simply a custom

compound nouns

they are the nouns made of several words
apart from that they can belong to any other group mentioned here
they have special rules of creating the plural

abstract nouns intelligence-joy-relief

abstract nouns are usually uncountable and they behave as one
if you count them or use plural, you are referring to particular instance(s)

We choose our joys and sorrows long before we experience them. (joys - the things that make us joyful)

concrete nouns the nouns that are referring to physical objects

they can be in any group said above except abstract

As you can see the rules are strict, but there are exceptions. We say that uncountable nouns you cannot count, they do not use a and have no plural. However, if the word belongs to an abstract group expressing idea, feeling or experience, it may still be counted and have the plural when you mean about the particular occurrence(s). Not all abstract words are capable to switch to plural.

Some words can be observed as uncountable (hair) and behave as one, but if you use a they change the meaning. hair - strands growing on head or body, a hair - single strand growing on head or body (or found in a soup ) However, you can see that a is used to restrict the occurrence to certain physics dimension. Not all uncountable words are capable to use a and to be counted. If they do they almost without an exception change the meaning, though sometimes the change is not very serious.

water is uncountable so the rules says no plural, but then you deprive yourself from some important possible usages or understanding

waters -

a type of mineral waters
all rivers that flow into a large river or cover certain region
drops
place(s) to practice water sports
the places covered with water on the Earth
an area, realm (it can leads us to unknown waters)
the water natural beauties like waterfall, cascades...
a spa
the water near the shore of region or country
a type of water coming from many different sources - toxic waters

a water -

a river or lake or any closed area covered with water
a small amount of water that was examined for purity
a drop

So uncountable water is very capable to switch to a countable case with, of course, change of the meaning. Thus, the entire previous detailed classification is frequently relative. (However, when you use words in their regular and natural and most common context you use the strict rules: furniture in my house, not furnitures in my house, unless you have all together Louis XV, Louis XVI and Louis XVII furniture in your house [furnitures - types of furniture] to show off around. The furnitures we have are: commercial use furniture, counter system furniture, job station furniture, retail counter furniture)

I hope you start getting a picture. However, before you go into this area more thoroughly, it is highly recommendable to follow the standard usage especially if you have kind of exam.

The most frequent case is that each word has many different meanings. Each meaning can belong to a completely different group of words. A good dictionary gives the classification not by the word, but by each meaning of the word.

Sometimes you have to guess the classification, which is normally not so difficult.

Re: the cases of abstract nouns taking "thes"

Aperisic — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 11:58:34 GMT

Before I give you more detailed explanation I have to tell you that in dictionaries you can frequently find the type of the word: countable, uncountable, mass, abstractâ¦ However what is more important is to understand that the context is equally important. You can turn many words into abstract if you want to express an idea, quality or experience, and you can as well make from a uncountable word a countable one if you want to speak about one particular appearanceâ¦ So before you decide what is the type of the word you have to know

what is the most frequent context in which the word is found
what are the contexts you can use the word
whether and how each context changes the meaning of the word
which context is maybe awkward for the particular word

A ball can mean one instance of ball, a more or less round gadget of different materials for playing games, but ball can mean the experience of playing games with a ball.

A ball is usually round. - one ball
Ball, however I've loved it, is what hurts my knees. - the experience of playing different games with a ball

The possible contexts of a word

count nouns one ball-two balls-some balls

they have plural
in singular you have to use a/an or the
in plural you use the to define a particular instance, and without the to define a type

uncount nouns homework-fun-knowledge-privacy-furniture

they have singular but it is used, by the rule, without a/an
they do not have plural
you do not count them using one, two... but you can measure them using some, a piece ofâ¦

mass nouns coffee-beer-cheese

in singular they can mean a substance and in that case they are uncount so you do not use a but if you use the you mean a particular kind of that substance
in singular you can use a but in that case you talk about a regular portion or a type, a is actually a substitute for one (I want a coffee = I want one coffee = I want one cup of coffee)
in plural they mean several regular portions or types (several different cheeses = several different type of cheeses, two coffees = two cups of coffee)

singular nouns sun-strain-past-future

they are always singular and they always need a determiner (the sun, a strain, the past)
some normal nouns may have a special meaning when they are used as a singular noun (a note of urgency = a tone of haste)

plural nouns glasses-spectacles-clothes-conditions

they have only plural and you do not usually count them, but there are exceptions (two goods is not common, two scissors is ok)
you can use only the for known occurrences, for other the rules are similar to an uncount noun, unless you can count them (a/one scissors but even then you better say some scissors, a pair of scissors)
some normal words may have a different meaning when used as a plural noun (conditions - the factors that affect something)

collective nouns army-crew-government

they behave as a count noun but they can use singular or plural verb form, which depends on how you observe a group - as one item or a collection of several items

proper nouns names

they have the or do not have the based on the special rules or simply a custom

compound nouns

they are the nouns made of several words
apart from that they can belong to any other group mentioned here
they have special rules of creating the plural

abstract nouns intelligence-joy-relief

abstract nouns are usually uncountable and they behave as one
if you count them or use plural, you are referring to a particular instance(s)

We choose our joys and sorrows long before we experience them. (joys - the things that make us joyful)

concrete nouns the nouns that are referring to physical objects

they can be in any group said above except abstract

Some words can be observed as uncountable (hair) and behave as one, but if you use a they change the meaning. hair - strands growing on head or body, a hair - single strand growing on head or body (or found in a soup) However, you can see that a is used to restrict the occurrence to certain physics dimension. Not all uncountable words are capable to use a and to be counted. If they do they almost without an exception change the meaning, though sometimes the change is not very serious.

water is uncountable so the rules says no plural, but then you deprive yourself from some important possible usages or understanding

waters -

type(s) of mineral waters
all rivers that flow into a large river or cover certain region
drops
place(s) to practice water sports
the places covered with water on the Earth
an area, realm (it can lead us to unknown waters)
the water natural beauties like waterfall, cascades...
a spa
the water near the shore of region or country
a type of water coming from many different sources - toxic waters

a water -

a river or lake or any closed area covered with water
a small amount of water that was examined for purity
a drop

I hope you start getting the picture. However, before you go into this area more thoroughly, it is highly recommendable to follow the standard usage especially if you have kind of exam.

Now, back to your question.

The abstract nouns are usually regarded as uncountable, thus if you use the you mean of one particular occurrence.

That medicine is very good. The relief was immediate. (the relief: in my case, when I used it ...)

Re: Relative clause separation

paco2004 — Wed, 17 Nov 2004 17:12:54 GMT

Nona and Matthew

Your replies are very helpful. The literature said that grammarians call this kind of clause's rightward movement as extraposition. When the subject determiner is 'a', we can move the restrictive relative clause but when it is 'the' we can't. I didn't still grasp the reason but anyway what Matthew felt proves it is true. Thank you.

paco

Re: Your being?

miriam — Sat, 26 Jun 2004 05:30:05 GMT

Dave,
First of all, and even when everyone is surely aware of this, I must insist that even when I believe my knowledge of the English grammar is good, I'm not a grammarian or a linguist. It would be completely absurd for me to try and analyse a language that is not even my own in depth when I lack many of the necessary tools for doing so. So, I can only offer my opinions and comments based on the literature I've read on the subject throughout the years.
I think this "disclaimer" is necessary because I wouldn't claim to have half the knowledge that grammarians possess.

Anyway, I've read the thread and I'd rather agree with Pem's analysis than with the one provided in that new grammar book. I truly fail to see a very logical reasoning in the analysis made in the book. Let me tell you why.

"The traditional reason for analyzing 'being' as a gerund in [2] is that it appears to be the object of the possessive adjective 'your'. In a normal noun phrase, a possessive determiner cannot be omitted."
Is that truly the reason for considering 'being' as a gerund? Or is it, rather, the other way around? Since the gerund in English has "nominal force", it can function in a way similar to a noun, and that's why it can take a determiner.
I think you've showed my point yourself when you spoke of a "normal" nominal phrase. The gerund, in English, is not a noun. It indeed acts as a noun, but it has limitations. The gerund is a "verbal" or "non-finite" form of a verb, that is, it cannot function as a main verb. So, even when the gerund acts as a noun in English, it is still a verb form, and this has important implications.
We see gerundive constructions as nominal clauses (or phrases, depending on the author). However, when we analyse a gerundive construction internally, we still bear in mind that the gerund is originally a verb form, and its modifiers within the construction will reflect that as well as its function as a noun. This used to sound complicated to me when I first studied it, and I still think it is not one of the easiest concepts in English grammar to grasp.

I think it is important to say here that there are four degrees of nominalisation in the case of the gerund.
1. In "The office you're looking for is in that building over there", "building" is an example of a completely nominalised gerund. It has all the characteristics of a noun.

2. We can also have a gerund as premodifier of a noun, as in "walking stick" (= a stick for walking).

3. The third degree is called "fact-action" nominalisation by some authors; the fact is emphasised here. The usual structure of a gerundive construction of this type is:
definite article
possessive adj. + (adjective) + gerund + of + nominal phrase
genitive

"The quick building of the school surprised him." 'Building' here is not exactly the same as the 'building' in the first example.
"His quick solving of the problem is a sign of intelligence."
"I like my daughter's reading of poetry."

4. "Way-gerundive" nominalisation. The way in which an action is performed is stressed in this case, and the usual trsucture is:
zero article
possessive adj. + gerund + nominal phrase + adverbial (usually of manner)
genitive
"Building the school quickly was a good decision on the part of the authorities."
"His solving problems quickly is a sign of intelligence."
"I like my daughter's reading poetry."

I believe the above explanation makes it moreclear to see why we cannot treat a gerund completely as a verb or as a noun. Again, if we focus on the form of the word, it has a verbal element. If, on the other hand, we focus on its function and meaning, it has nominal force. My point here is that it would not be wise to expect the gerund to have all the properties of either a verb or a noun, but it has characteristics of both at the same time.

I also do not see a problem with the sentence "I can't stand being here". You used a to-infinitival clause to replace "being", and that is ok since the infinitive in English is similar, in one of its functions, to the nominalised gerund.
"I don't like to be here." = "I don't like being here."
But, at the same time, the following sentence is both grammatically correct and meaningful: "I hate to box but I like boxing."

There is something you said about this comparison of the infinitive and the gerund that I do not understand:
"We interpret the above [I can't stand being here] to mean 'I can't stand MY being here". The significant point here is that the presence or absence of the possessive is not like that in noun phrase structure. It is more like the presence or absence of a subject in a to-infinitival:
I can't stand to be here.
To be here is awful.
The issue is resolved by reanalyzing the possessive adjective in 'I can't stand his being here' as a clause subject."

What exactly do you mean by a "clause subject", please? And why is a possessive adjective a clause subject?
Also, in which of the two examples above, in your opinion, does the to-infinitival clause (not the sentence) have a subject? I cannot find a subject in either.

I'll respond to your second post in a while. I'm taking a short break now