Grammar For IELTS: Noncount Nouns
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In the previous Grammar For IELTS post, we have learnt about Count Nouns and how to use it correctly. Today’s lesson will cover another form of noun – Noncount Nouns
Noncount Nouns
Nouns that cannot be counted are called noncount or mass nouns. They are used with singular verbs.
Noncount nouns are often liquids or gases.
| water | air | oil | oxygen |
Noncount nouns often refer to a whole or a mass made up of small particles or items.
| sugar | salt | white sand |
| new furniture | homework | good news |
| equipment | money | expensive clothing |
Noncount nouns are often weather phenomena, fields of study, raw materials, abstractions, or sports and pastimes.
| rain | economics | gold | happiness | respect | soccer |
| hot weather | psychology | hard coal | luck | satisfaction | cards |
Note: Cards can be a noncount noun meaning a game of cards, or it can be a count noun meaning individual cards.
The following noncount nouns are often mistakenly used as plural count nouns:
- Incorrect: furnitures/ advices/ homeworks/ equipments/ informations.
- Correct: furniture/ advice/ homework/ equipment/ information.
Comparing Noncount and Count Nouns
Noncount nouns are like count nouns in certain ways.
Noncount nouns act like singular and plural count nouns.
1. Like singular and plural count nouns, noncount nouns may have certain determiners in front of them, such as the definite article the or the possessive adjectives my and your.
2. Possessive adjectives have the same forms in front of all three types of nouns: singular count nouns, plural count nouns, and noncount nouns.
3. You can use this and that with singular count nouns and noncount nouns; these and those can appear in front of plural count nouns only.
| Singular Count Nouns | Plural Count Nouns | Noncount Nouns | |||
| Determiner | Example of noun | Determiner | Example of noun | Determiner | Example of noun |
| the | car | the | cars | the | traffic |
| an | apple | – | apples | – | fruit |
| my, your | vegetable | my, your | vegetables | my, your | rice |
| his, her, its | job | his, her, its | jobs | his, her, its | work |
| our, their | job | our, their | jobs | our, their | work |
| this, that | cat | this, that | cats | – | – |
Noncount nouns act like plural count nouns. Like plural count nouns, noncount nouns may be preceded by determiners and certain expressions of quantity, or they may appear alone.
In the chart below, the determiners before plural count nouns and noncount nouns are the same.
| Singular Count Nouns | Plural Count Nouns | Noncount Nouns | |||
| Determiner | Example of noun | Determiner | Example of noun | Determiner | Example of noun |
| a | taxi | – | taxis | – | traffic |
| the | taxi | the | taxis | the | traffic |
| one | taxi | some | taxis | some | traffic |
| – | – | a lot of | taxis | a lot of | traffic |
| – | – | enough | taxis | enough | traffic |
| – | – | plenty of | taxis | plenty of | traffic |
Remember that singular count nouns must have an article or determiner. |
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Exercise: Read each sentence and underline the correct choice(s) in parentheses. The first one has been done for you.
Studying for the Law
Henry is studying at Harvard University; he’s going to become (lawyer / a lawyer). (A law / Law) is a difficult subject. It requires (a concentration / a lot of concentration). (A lawyer / Lawyers) study in law school for three years. After law school, the graduates have to take (a difficult examination / difficult examination). (Some graduates / Some graduate) pass this examination, but others don’t. (A little graduates / A few graduates) take the examination a second or even a third time. (Some people / A people) say that there aren’t (enough good lawyer / enough good lawyers). Others say that there aren’t (many good lawyers / many good lawyer). (Some lawyers / A lawyers) feel satisfied with (a work / their work). (This lawyers / These lawyers) have clearly chosen the right profession. At the end of each day, (satisfaction / satisfactions) with one’s work is extremely important.
Hope this post could help you increase your writing also speaking skills in the IELTS Test. Don’t forget to check out our website (ieltsmaterial.com) to find more tips about the IELTS Test.
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