The plural of abstract nouns

Aperisic — Thu, 14 Sep 2006 14:18:10 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) This is the effort of Mister Micawber as well.

The rules given in many textbooks are based not on the general rules but on the frequent omissions. (advice is uncountable, homework as well; sometimes these rules are given only because other languages treat these words as countable)

It can be confusing because you are focused only how not to make errors instead to learn what is the true reason of using a, the or not using them. These rules are very simple and very logical, for example, you do not use a/an with abstract nouns because you usually do not count quality, experience, feelingsâ¦: one happiness, two happiness???, no! two happinesses; unless you really want to say something special about it. (For example: My children are my two happinesses.)

2. The plural of abstract nouns

When the word is derived using, for example, ness (busy+ness = business) to create the plural the strict grammar requires +es. Many abstract nouns of this sort are anyhow rarely used and even more they really do not have plural and some of them are difficult to pronounce - so what you are doing is applying the general grammar rules used to derive the plural form of a noun, regardless of the possible artificiality of your final result. If for any reason you need the plural form you should have

luckiness - luckinesses
pleasantness - pleasantnesses
fearlessness - fearlessnesses
vigorousness - vigorousnesses
willingness - wilingnesses

regardless of how difficult it could be to pronounce. (Of course not all abstract nouns have ending ness. Then, you follow the normal rules for plural: add +s for example, or change +y to +ies or just +s, +fe to +ves etc.)

Thus, you should always use +(e)s for plural. However, it is possible that the plural without +es has the specific and accepted meaning that is exactly what you need or maybe not what you need. Or, it can happen that plural (+es) means something specific you do not need to allude in your text at all. Not only that, adding +es to the abstract noun can have a very jocular or sarcastic tone. So you should think if the plural is good at all. Here is one example:

They don't send money for such secular unholinesses like WATER, FOOD, BLANKETS. No; they only send money for extremist mosques, militias, missionaries, and madrassas [sic].

Here, the writer is very angry that they do not send money for, for them, completely unimportant essentials, but, as if that is only what their religion is/were about, they think only about the armory and the war.

So be careful with abstract nouns in plural. Just to give you more examples where plural and singular of the abstract nouns are important

holiness - the state or quality of being holy
holiness - spiritual or religious leader (usually the Pope or other high bishop or episcope)
holinesses - different states or quality of being holy
holinesses - spiritual or religious leaders (their holinesses)

His Holiness - usually the Pope
Their Holinesses - several spiritual leaders
Their Holiness - again the Pope or other leader, but addressed with higher admiration

If the reason of difficult pronunciation is why you do not like to add +es here is some practice for you:

cholinesterases, comradelinesses, consideratenesses, heartsicknesses, intricatenesses, irasciblenesses, lucrativenesses, mercenarinesses

all perfectly acceptable English words. My throat is hurting hard of just looking at these words. Yet, they are fine.

[sic] - meaning: though not correct this is how it is found in the text

Re: the cases of abstract nouns taking "thes"

Aperisic — Wed, 13 Sep 2006 10:53:40 GMT

I am not trying to defend myself, only to give some more examples where plural and singular of the abstract nouns are important

holiness - the state or quality of being holy
holiness - spiritual or religious leader (usually the Pope or other high bishop or episcope, written as (His) Holiness)
holinesses - different states or quality of being holy
holinesses - spiritual or religious leaders (their holinesses)

His Holiness - usually the Pope
Their Holinesses - several spiritual leaders
Their Holiness - again the Pope or other leader, but addressed with higher admiration

If the reason of difficult pronunciation is why you do not like to add +es here is some practice for you:

cholinesterases, comradelinesses, consideratenesses, heartsicknesses, intricatenesses, irasciblenesses, lucrativenesses, mercenarinesses

all perfectly acceptable English words. My throat is hurting hard of just looking at these words.

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The plural of abstract nouns

Re: the cases of abstract nouns taking "thes"