Countables and Uncountables + Key
Countables and Uncountables + Key
Countables and Uncountables + Key
B You can use a/an with singular countable We do not use a/an with uncountable nouns.
nouns: We do not say ‘a sand’, ‘a music’, ‘a rice’.
a beach a student an umbrella
But you can often use a … of. For example:
a bowl / a packet / a grain of rice
You cannot use singular countable nouns alone You can use uncountable nouns alone
(without a/the/my etc.): (without the/my/some etc.):
Do you want a banana? I eat rice every day.
(not want banana) There’s blood on your shirt.
There’s been an accident. Can you hear music?
(not There’s been accident)
You can use plural countable nouns alone:
I like bananas. (= bananas in general)
Accidents can be prevented.
C You can use some and any with plural You can use some and any with uncountable
countable nouns: nouns:
We sang some songs. We listened to some music.
Did you buy any apples? Did you buy any apple juice?
We use many and few with plural countable We use much and little with uncountable
nouns: nouns:
We didn’t take many pictures. We didn’t do much shopping.
I have a few things to do. I have a little work to do.
Countable and uncountable 2 ➜ Unit 70 children / the children ➜ Unit 75 some and any ➜ Unit 85
138 many/much/few/little ➜ Unit 87
Unit
Exercises 69
69.1 Some of these sentences need a/an. Correct the sentences where necessary.
1 Joe goes everywhere by bike. He doesn’t have car. He doesn’t have a car.
2 Helen was listening to music when I arrived. OK
3 We went to very nice restaurant last weekend.
4 I brush my teeth with toothpaste.
5 I use toothbrush to brush my teeth.
6 Can you tell me if there’s bank near here?
7 My brother works for insurance company.
8 I don’t like violence.
9 When we were in Rome, we stayed in big hotel.
10 If you have problem, I’ll try and help you.
11 I like your suggestion. It’s interesting idea.
12 Can you smell paint?
13 I like volleyball. It’s good game.
14 Lisa doesn’t usually wear jewellery.
15 Jane was wearing beautiful necklace.
16 Does this city have airport?
69.2 Complete the sentences using the following words. Use a/an where necessary.
accident biscuit blood coat decision electricity
ice interview key moment music question
Sometimes the word needs to be plural (-s), and sometimes you need to use a/an.
1 I had a camera with me, but I didn’t take any pictures .
2 There are seven in a week.
3 A vegetarian is a person who doesn’t eat .
4 Outside the cinema there was of people waiting to see the film.
5 I’m not good at telling .
6 Last night I went out with some of mine.
7 There were very few in town today. The streets were almost empty.
8 I’m going out for a walk. I need some fresh .
9 Paul always wants things quickly. He doesn’t have much .
10 I think it’s going to rain. Do you have I could borrow?
11 How many can you speak?
12 Our flat is very small. We don’t have much .
139
Unit
70 Countable and uncountable 2
A Many nouns are sometimes countable, and sometimes uncountable. Usually there is a difference in meaning.
Compare:
Countable Uncountable
Did you hear a noise just now? I can’t work here. There’s too much
(= a specific noise) noise. (= noise in general)
I bought a paper to read. I need some paper to write on.
(= a newspaper) (= material for writing on)
There’s a hair in my soup! You’ve got very long hair. (not hairs)
(= one single hair) (= all the hair on your head)
This is a nice room. You can’t sit here. There isn’t room.
(= a room in a house) (= space)
I had some interesting experiences I was offered the job because I had a
while I was travelling. lot of experience. (not experiences)
(= things that happened to me) (= experience of that type of job)
Enjoy your trip. Have a great time! I can’t wait. I don’t have time.
Countable Uncountable
I’m looking for a job. I’m looking for work. (not a work)
What a beautiful view! What beautiful scenery!
It’s a nice day today. It’s nice weather today.
We had a lot of bags. We had a lot of baggage/luggage.
These chairs are mine. This furniture is mine.
That’s a good suggestion. That’s good advice.
There were a lot of cars. There was a lot of traffic.
70.3 Complete the sentences using the following words. Use the plural (-s) where necessary.
advice chair damage experience experience
furniture hair luggage permission progress
1 We didn’t have much luggage – just two small bags.
2 We have no , not even a bed or a table.
3 There is room for everybody to sit down. There are plenty of .
4 Who is that woman with short ? Do you know her?
5 Carla’s English is better than it was. She’s made good .
6 If you want to take pictures here, you need to ask for .
7 I didn’t know what I should do, so I asked Chris for .
8 I don’t think Dan should get the job. He doesn’t have enough .
9 Kate has done many interesting things. She could write a book about her .
10 The caused by the storm will cost a lot to repair.
70.4 What do you say in these situations? Use the word in brackets in your sentence.
1 Your friends have just arrived at the station. You can’t see any cases or bags. You ask:
(luggage) Do you have any luggage ?
2 You go to a tourist office. You want to know about places to visit in the town.
(information) I’d like .
3 You are a student. You want your teacher to advise you about which courses to do. You say:
(advice) Can you give ?
4 You applied for a job and you’ve just heard that you were successful. You call Tom and say:
(good news) Hi, Tom. I . I got the job!
5 You are at the top of a mountain. You can see a very long way. It’s beautiful. You say:
(view) It , isn’t it?
6 You look out of the window. The weather is horrible: cold, wet and windy. You say:
(weather) What !
141
Unit
71 Countable nouns with a/an and some
A Countable nouns can be singular or plural:
a dog a child the evening this party an umbrella
dogs some children the evenings these parties two umbrellas
Before singular countable nouns you can use a/an:
Bye! Have a nice evening.
Do you need an umbrella?
You cannot use singular countable nouns alone (without a/the/my etc.):
She never wears a hat. (not wears hat)
Be careful of the dog.
What a beautiful day!
Did you hurt your leg?
B We use a/an … to say what kind of thing something is, or what kind of person somebody is:
That’s a nice table.
In the plural we use the noun alone (not some …):
Those are nice chairs. (not some nice chairs)
Compare singular and plural:
We say that somebody has a long nose / a nice face / blue eyes / long fingers etc. :
C You can use some with plural countable nouns. We use some in two ways.
(1) some = a number (of) / a few (of) / a pair (of):
I’ve seen some good movies recently. (not I’ve seen good movies)
Some friends of mine are coming to stay at the weekend.
I need some new sunglasses. (= a new pair of sunglasses)
Often you can say the same thing with or without some. For example:
I need (some) new clothes.
The room was empty apart from a table and (some) chairs.
Do not use some when you are talking about things in general (see Unit 75):
I love bananas. (not some bananas)
My aunt is a writer. She writes books. (not some books)
(2) some = some but not all:
Some children learn very quickly. (but not all children)
Tomorrow there will be rain in some places, but most of the country will be dry.
142 Countable and uncountable ➜ Units 69–70 a/an and the ➜ Unit 72 some and any ➜ Unit 85
Unit
Exercises 71
71.1 What are these things? Choose from the box and write a sentence.
1 an eagle It’s a bird.
2 a pigeon, a duck and a penguin They’re birds. bird(s)
flower(s)
3 carrots and onions
game(s)
4 a tulip
insect(s)
5 Earth, Mars and Jupiter language(s)
6 chess planet(s)
7 a hammer, a saw and a screwdriver river(s)
8 the Nile, the Rhine and the Mekong tool(s)
9 a mosquito vegetable(s)
10 Hindi, Arabic and Swahili
71.2 Read about what these people do. What are their jobs? Choose from:
chef interpreter journalist nurse plumber surgeon tour guide waiter
1 Sarah looks after patients in hospital. She’s a nurse.
2 Gary works in a restaurant. He brings the food to the tables. He
3 Jane writes articles for a newspaper.
4 Kevin works in a hospital. He operates on people.
5 Jonathan cooks in a restaurant.
6 Dave installs and repairs water pipes.
7 Anna shows visitors round her city and tells them about it.
8 Lisa translates what people are saying from one language into another, so that they can understand
each other.
71.4 Put in a/an or some where necessary. If no word is necessary, leave the space empty.
1 I’ve seen some good movies recently.
2 Are you feeling all right? Do you have a headache?
3 I know lots of people. Most of them are − students.
4 When I was child, I used to be very shy.
5 birds, for example the penguin, cannot fly.
6 Would you like to be actor?
7 Questions, questions, questions! You’re always asking questions!
8 I didn’t expect to see you. What surprise!
9 Do you like staying in hotels?
10 Tomorrow is a holiday. shops will be open, but most of them will be closed.
11 Those are nice shoes. Where did you get them?
12 You need visa to visit countries, but not all of them.
13 Kate is teacher. Her parents were teachers too.
14 I don’t believe him. He’s liar. He’s always telling lies.
143
Key to Exercises
350
Key to Exercises
351