1. Countable & Uncountable Nouns Nouns

2. Countable Nouns We call these nouns countable nouns, because we can count them: one apple two booksthree exams Countable nouns have singular and plural forms.

3. Singular Countable Nouns We use a, an, one before a singular countable noun. a is used before a consonant sound: a cara booka telephone an is used before a vowel sound: an exam an eggan umbrella Or one orangeone pen

4. Plural Countable Nouns We normally form plural nouns by adding –s: SINGULARPLURAL a cupcups a letterletters a carcars an envelopeenvelopes an orangeoranges

5. But we form some plural nouns differently : SINGULARPLURAL -f or -feSome nouns ending in –f or –fe drop the –f and take -ves a loafloaves a wifewives -yNouns ending in a consonant +y, drop the –y and take -ies a familyfamilies a citycities a boyboys (Nouns ending in a vowel+ y take –s) -o, -s, -sh, -ch, -xSome nouns ending in –o, -s, -sh, -ch, -x take -es a tomatotomatoes a busbuses a wishwishes a watchwatches a boxboxes

6. Uncountable Nouns: Uncountable nouns are those which we cannot count. We do not put a, an or one, two, three, etc. before an uncountable noun. We do not add –s or –es to uncountable nouns because uncountable nouns do not have a plural form. Words such as meat, sugar, water, rice, money are uncountable nouns.

7. Some/ Any We use some with plural countable nouns and uncountable nouns in the affirmative. Examples: 1. I bought some apples. 2. I bought some milk. We use any with plural countable nouns and uncountable nouns in the negative and interrogative form. Examples: 1. I didn’t buy any books. 2. I didn’t buy any milk. 3. Are there any eggs in the fridge? 4. Is there any sugar left?

8. A Few/ A Little We use a few with plural countable nouns. Examples: 1. We ate a few eggs. 2. There are a few plates on the table. 3. Sara has a few friends at school. We use a little with uncountable nouns. Examples: 1. The baby is hungry. Please give him a little milk. 2. Is there a lot of bread in the fridge? ~ No, just a little.

9. How many (a few)/ How Much (a little) We use how many …..? with a plural countable noun to ask about numbers: A:How many people did you invite? B: Just a few. A: How many students are there in your class? B: Fifteen We use how much …..? with an uncountable noun to ask about the amount of something: A: How much oil is there in the cupboard? B: Just a little. A: How much work did you do yesterday? B: A lot

10. Exercises: Choose the correct word to fill in each gap: 1. I’m hungry. I would like ….. fruit. a) someb) anyc) a few 2. Bob has ….. books on his desk. a) anyb) a c) a few 3. I don’t put ….. sugar in my coffee. a) manyb) muchc) a few 4. How ….. money do you have in your wallet? a) muchb) manyc) nothing 5. How ….. pencils would you like? ~ I’d like ….., please. a) many/a littleb) many/a fewc) much/a few

11. Useful links: www.learnenglish.de/grammar/noununcount.htm www.englishclub.com/grammar/nouns-un-countable.htm