Countable Nouns

Countable nouns are easy to recognize. They are things that we can count. For example:
"pen". We can count pens. We can have one, two, three or more pens. Here are some
more countable nouns:

dog, cat, animal, man, person

bottle, box, litre
coin, note, dollar
cup, plate, fork
table, chair, suitcase, bag

Countable nouns can be singular or plural:

My dog is playing.
My dogs are hungry.

We can use the indefinite article a/an with countable nouns:

A dog is an animal.

When a countable noun is singular, we must use a word like a/the/my/this with it:

I want an orange. (not I want orange.)

Where is my bottle? (not Where is bottle?)

When a countable noun is plural, we can use it alone:

I like oranges.
Bottles can break.

We can use some and any with countable nouns:

I've got some dollars.

Have you got any pens?

We can use a few and many with countable nouns:

I've got a few dollars.

I haven't got many pens.

"People" is countable. "People" is the plural of "person". We can count people:

There is one person here.
There are three people here.

Uncountable Nouns
Uncountable nouns are substances, concepts etc that we cannot divide into separate
elements. We cannot "count" them. For example, we cannot count "milk". We can count
"bottles of milk" or "litres of milk", but we cannot count "milk" itself. Here are some
more uncountable nouns:

music, art, love, happiness

advice, information, news
furniture, luggage
rice, sugar, butter, water
electricity, gas, power
money, currency

We usually treat uncountable nouns as singular. We use a singular verb. For example:

This news is very important.

Your luggage looks heavy.

We do not usually use the indefinite article a/an with uncountable nouns. We cannot say
"an information" or "a music". But we can say a something of:

a piece of news
a bottle of water
a grain of rice

We can use some and any with uncountable nouns:

I've got some money.

Have you got any rice?

We can use a little and much with uncountable nouns:

I've got a little money.

I haven't got much rice.

Uncountable nouns are also called "mass nouns".

Here are some more examples of countable and uncountable nouns:

Countable Uncountable

dollar money

song music

suitcase luggage

table furniture

battery electricity
bottle wine

report information

tip advice

journey travel

job work

view scenery

When you learn a new word, it's a good idea to learn whether it's countable or
uncountable.

Nouns that can be Countable and Uncountable

Sometimes, the same noun can be countable and uncountable, often with a change of
meaning.

Countable Uncountable

There are two hairs in my coffee! hair I don't have much hair.

Close the curtain. There's too much

There are two lights in our bedroom. light
light!

Shhhhh! I thought I heard a noise.

It's difficult to work when there is too
There are so many different noises in noise
much noise.
the city.

Have you got a paper to read?

I want to draw a picture. Have you got
(newspaper) paper
some paper?
Hand me those student papers.

Our house has seven rooms. room Is there room for me to sit here?

We had a great time at the party.

time Have you got time for a coffee?
How many times have I told you no?

Macbeth is one of Shakespeare's

work I have no money. I need work!
greatest works.

Drinks (coffee, water, orange juice) are usually uncountable. But if we are thinking of a
cup or a glass, we can say (in a restaurant, for example):
Two teas and one coffee please.
 Much, many and a lot.

Much, many, a lot:

"Much", "many", and "a lot of" indicate a large quantity of something, for example "I
have a lot of friends " means I have a large quantity of friends.

Much, many, and a lot are quantifiers.

Study the examples below:

How much money have you got? I haven't got much money.
I have got a lot.
I have got a lot of money.
How many students are in the classroom? There aren't many.
There are a lot.
There are a lot of/lots of students.

In the interrogative forms we use:

much with uncountable nouns. (money, bread, water...)

Example:
How much money/bread/water...is there?
many with countable nouns. (students, desks, windows...)
Example:
How many students/teachers/desks... are there?

(See the lesson on countable and countable nouns )

In the negative forms we use:

much with uncountable nouns. (money, bread, water...)

Example:
I haven't got much money/bread/water...
many with countable nouns. (students, desks, windows...)
Example:
There aren't many students/teachers/desks...

In the affirmative forms:

In spoken English and informal writing we tend to use:

 a lot, a lot of, lots of with countable and uncountable nouns.
Example:
"How many students are there in the classroom?"
"There are a lot."
"How many students are there in the classroom?"
"There are a lot of / lots of students"..

In formal written English:

It is also possible (and preferable) to use many and much rather than a lot of,
lots of and a lot in formal written English.
Example:
There are many students.
Much time was spent on studying.

So if you're speaking or writing to friends (informal), use a lot, a lot of, lots of. But if
you want to be more formal, perhaps it is preferable to use much and many.

Rememeber:

In affirmative sentences with so, as or too, we also use much / many.

Examples:
"Carla has so many friends."
"She has as many friends as Sue."
"Kevin has too much money."

Summary:

Interrogative Negative Affirmative

How many books are there? There aren't many. There are a lot.
There are a lot of books.
There are lots of books.
There are many books (formal)
How much money have you got? I haven't got much. I've got a lot.
I've got a lot of money.
I've got lots of money.
I have got much money (formal

A little or a few, little or few

 A little, a few, very little, very few

The expressions a little and a few mean some or enough.

The expressions (very) little and (very) few mean hardly any or not enough.

A little, a few, (very) little and (very) few are quantifiers

Study the following examples:

Examples Meaning
I've got a little money. I'm going to the cinema. some/enough
I've got a few friends. We meet everyday.
I've got (very) little money. I need to borrow some. hardly any / not enough
I've got (very) few friends. I need to make new friends.

The rules:

Affirmative sentences:

A little, a few, (very) little and (very) few are generally used in affirmative
statements, not negatives or questions.

Countable and uncountable nouns:

1. A little and (very) little are used with uncountable nouns (money, bread,
water...)
2. A few and (very) few are used with countable nouns (friends, tables,
teachers..)

Meaning:

1. A little and a few mean: some or enough.

Example:

"I have got a little money" = I have got some money. It's enough for me
to do what I want.
"I have got a few friends" = I have got some or enough friends.
We meet every day.
 2. (Very) little and (very) few mean; hardly any or not enough.

Examples:

I have got (very) little money = I have got hardly any. I haven't got
enough. I'll borrow some from my friend.
I have got (very) few friends = I have got hardly any. I haven't got
enough. I need to make new friends.

In each sentence, choose the best phrase to complete the gap

from the choices below (a, b, c, or d).

1. The receptionist at the front desk gave me two _______ .a) informations b)
information c) pieces of information d) lots of information
2.My cousin is very beautiful. She has green eyes and ________ .a) long hair b) long
hairs c) a long hair d) a long length of hair
3. _________ have you got in the bank? Is it enough to buy a house?) How many
moneys b) How many money c) How much money d) How much moneys
4. On Saturday, my friend Paul went fishing and he caught ________ .a) three fish b)
three fishes c) three items of fish d) three of fish
5. Can I borrow _______ from you? I've left mine at home and I want to write some
notes.a) paper b) a paper c) a slice of paper d) a piece of paper
6. How many ________ did the teacher give us today? He always gives us a lot to
do.a) homework b) homeworks c) a lot of homework d) pieces of homework
7. Every morning before I come to school, I spend thirty minutes doing _______
.That's how I stay so slim.a) exercise b) an exercise c) some exercises d) some
pieces of exercise
8. Your sister is a great pianist. She played ________ at the party. a) a lovely music b)
some lovely musics c) lovely musics d) a lovely piece of music

Fill in the gaps with some, any or a - an.

1. Im really thirsty. I need ________ water, please.

2. I went to the library, but I couldnt find ________ books about art.
3. Can you give me _________ coffee, please?
4. She sent ________ postcards to her friends, but she didnt make _______ phone
calls when shewas in Britain.
5. Its very sunny but there is only _________ child playing in the street.
6. I bought __________ coffee, but I didnt buy ________ tea or ________ papaya.
7. Have you got __________ chocolate biscuits? Im sorry, there are____________
biscuits left
8. Mary, Im afraid there isnt __________ juice in the fridge but theres __________
pineapple.
9. They ate ____________apples, ___________ mango, but they didnt eat ___________
oranges.
10. A. Would you like ___________ cheese? Its delicious. B. Ok, give
me__________.
11. Is there __________ oil in the kitchen? No, there isnt ___________ but theres
__________ butter.

Fill in the gaps with some or any:

Charles: Alice! Have we got ____________ eggs?
Alice: Yes, there are ____________ in the cupboard.
Charles: Have we got ______________ cheese?
Alice: Yes, theres ____________ in the fridge.
Charles: Can I use ___________ olive oil?
Alice: Yes, of course.
Charles: I need ____________ tomatoes.
Alice: We havent got _____________.
Charles,would you like ___________ help?
Charles: No, thanks, Im OK.

Tom: Lets go for a picnic in the park.

Sarah: OK. Well make _________ sandwiches. What do weneed?
Tom: We havent got ___________ bread. Can you buy ________?
Sarah: Yes, sure. What about butter?
Tom: Weve got __________. Ill buy _________cheese.
Sarah: OK, and is there __________ orange juice in thefridge?
Tom: No, Ill get __________.
Sarah: Good. Do we need ___________ apples or cherries?
Tom: Just ___________ apples.
Sarah: Oh dear! I havent got ___________ money to buy the bread!
Tom: Dont worry. Ill lend you ____________.

Barbara: Is there __________ milk left?

Katherine: Yes, there is ___________ in the bottle on the table.
Barbara: Would you like ___________ milk?
Katherine: No, thank you. I don't think I'll drink _________ tonight.Could I have __________
water, please?
Barbara: Sure. There is ___________ in the fridge
.Katherine: There is ________ Chinese boy in my English class.
Barbara: Thats interesting; could you ask him __________ questionsfor me?
Katherine: No problem.
Barbara: Could ask him ___________ questions about life in China?
Katherine: I would be happy to do that for you.

Complete with much, a lot of, any, some,

When we got to the beach, ___________ people were already there, and we couldn't
find a place to sit down. There werent ____________ empty spaces near the beach,
but they were ______________ empty spaces a long way from the sea. We walked
along the beach for a while, but we didn't have ____________fun because we kept
bumping into people. Finally, we decided to get back in the car and go down the
coast to the next beach. This was _____________ better; there were only
______________ families on the beach, so there was _______________ room to spread
out our things. Because we had eaten so _____________food in the car, all we
wanted to do was lie down, and after ____________ minutes we were all dozing
happily in the sun.

Complete with much or many and a word from the box.

children coffee experience fish fish furniture help house work luggage money news
sugar things time times wine women

1. 'How ____________ __________ are there in the picture?'

'Two. A yellow and a green one.'
2. 'How ____________ __________ have you got on you?'
'One pound twenty.
3. 'How ____________ __________ are there in your choir.'
4. 'How ____________ __________ have you received from your uncle?' 'I haven't heard from him
lately.'
5. 'How ____________ __________ would you like with your rice?'
'Just a little, please.'
6. 'How ____________ __________ has he got?'
'Two. A son and a daughter.
7. I do not have to do _________ ________. I only do the washing up
8. 'How ____________ __________ do they have?' '
Six. But they don't lay eggs.'
9. How ____________ ___________ have we got to finish the project?
10. He does not eat _________ ________. He likes only tuna
.11. The bedroom does not need _________ __________.
12. They have not caught __________ _______ from the river.
13. We don't eat as _________ ________ as they do. We usally have honey instead.
14. We do not need as __________ _________ as last time. We will basically manage
alone.
15. How ___________ ________ have you been to France?
16. I have got so _________ ___________to tell you.
17. I won't take too _________ __________ with me. Only a suitcase and a handbag.
18. She does not have __________ ___________ as a nurse.
19. He had so ____________ _________that he could not sleep.
20. I don't drink much _________ ________. I prefer champagne.