Countable and

box – boxes
 Use the singular form of the verb with a
singular countable noun.
Uncountable Nouns Examples:

There is a book on the table.

That student is excellent!
 Use the plural form of the verb with a
countable noun in the plural.
Examples:

There are some students in the classroom.

Those houses are very big, aren’t they?
 We can use some and any with countable
nouns.
Examples:

Some people pretend to despise the things they cannot

have.
Please put up your hand if you have any questions.
 We only use many and few with plural
countable nouns.
Examples:

Many students now see university as a stepping

stone to a good job.
The country has relatively few cinemas.
 We can use a lot of and no with plural
countable nouns.
Examples:

There is no friend as faithful as a good book.

Countable and Uncountable Nouns!!! Learn countable The store has a lot of regular customers.
nouns vs uncountable nouns in English with useful
grammar rules, list and example sentences. What are Uncountable Nouns?
 Uncountable nouns are materials, concepts,
Countable and Uncountable nouns vary from language information, etc. which are not individual objects and
to language. In some languages, there are no countable can not be counted.
nouns (e.g., Japanese). In addition, some nouns that are Examples:
uncountable in English may be countable in other
languages (e.g., hair or information). information
water
What are Countable Nouns? understanding
 Countable nouns are individual objects, wood
people, places, etc. which can be counted. (We cheese
use a/an or a number in front of countable nouns).  Uncountable nouns are always singular. Use
Examples: the singular form of the verb with uncountable nouns.
Examples:
an apple
a school There is some water in that pitcher.
1 picture, 2 pictures, 3 pictures That is the equipment we use for the project.
2 men, 4 men, 8 men  Normally we do not use a/an with uncountable
 A countable noun can be both singular or nouns; instead we use expressions such as a glass of
plural. (Normally, we add -s/-es to make a countable water (a water), a piece of music (a music).
noun plural.)  Uncountable nouns can appear without any
Examples: determiner.
Example:
apple – apples
tree – trees Can you hear music?
 We can use some/any/much/little with Countable nouns are individual objects, people, places,
uncountable nouns. etc. which can be counted. (We use a/an or a
Examples: number in front of countable nouns).
Uncountable nouns are materials, concepts,
I’ll put the kettle on and make us some tea. information, etc. which are not individual objects and
Don’t dally along the way! We haven’t got much time. can not be counted.
 We only use much and little with uncountable Nouns that are Count and Noncount
nouns. Some nouns can be used as both countable or
Examples: uncountable, usually with a difference in meaning.
Iron
He doesn’t usually drink much coffee.  iron = material (They tried to change iron into
There is little information about the weather. gold.)
 We can use a lot of and no with uncountable  iron = electrical appliance (I scorched my dress
nouns. with the iron.)
Examples: Glass
 glass = material (Glass can be recycled from old
I have a lot of free time today. bottles.)
It’s hard sailing when there is no wind.  glass = container (Champagne was fizzing in
the glass.)
Time
 time = length of an activity (How much time did it
take you to sing? )
 time = number of instances (Mary had seen the
film many times.)
Paper
 paper = material (This book is made of paper.)
 paper = a report or essay (He wrote a paper on
grammar.)
 paper = a newspaper (I read about it in the paper.)
Light
 light = energy form (I closed my eyes against
the bright light.)
 light = lamps / light bulbs (I switched on
the light in the bedroom.)
Nouns that Can Be Countable or Uncountable
Some nouns can be used as both countable or
Work
 work = an activity (Stop talking and get on with
uncountable, usually with a difference in meaning. your work.)
Examples:  work = a product (This is
the work of Shakespeare.)
Fire Chicken
 fire = element (Most animals are afraid of fire.)
 fire = a burning pile (Firemen put out fires.)  chicken = food (I had chicken for dinner.)
 chicken = kind of animal (They keep chickens in
Memory
the back yard.)
 memory = the ability to remember (I have a very
good visual memory.) Hair
 memory = specific memories of past events (He’s  hair = hair in general (She had thick brown hair.)
trying to block out memories of the accident.)  hair = individual strands of hair (He had a few
grey hairs on his temples.)

Nouns that Can Be 

Room
room = space (Is there enough room for me?)

Countable or  room = place (They had to sit in the

waiting room for an hour.)

Uncountable 
Coffee, Water, Beer, Tea, Soda
coffee, … = drink (I like tea better than coffee.)
 coffee, … = number of drinks (Two strong
Nouns that Can Be Countable or Uncountable! Learn black coffees, please.)
how to identify nouns that can be countable or
uncountable (i.e. advice, information, food, money, Meat
evidence…) with useful list and examples.  meat = food (I gave up eating meat a few months
ago.)
 meat = type of meat (I hate eating red meats like
beef and lamb.)
Fruit
 fruit = food (The fruit was too sour to eat.)
 fruit = kind of fruit (She sells fruits at a market
stall.)
Experience
 experience = knowledge or skill (My lack of
practical experience was a disadvantage.)
 experience = an incident that affects you (It was
her first experience of living alone.)
Fire
 fire = element (Most animals are afraid of fire.)
 fire = a burning pile (Firemen put out fires.)
Memory
 memory = the ability to remember (I have a very
good visual memory.)
 memory = specific memories of past events (He’s
trying to block out memories of the accident.)