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Questions tagged [uncountable-nouns]

Questions about uncountable (non-count, mass) nouns

Questions about uncountable nouns, also called mass nouns or non-count nouns.

They cannot be modified by a quantity, for example:

One water. Two waters.

is nonsense. Instead we write:

One litre of water. Two litres of water.

Compare with .

408 questions
23
votes
9 answers

Can "drink" be used as an uncountable noun?

I recently got into an argument with someone who insists that He brought drink to the party is grammatically correct English and points to the phrase "food and drink" as justification. As a native English speaker, I consider that an obvious…
Antimony
  • 349
6
votes
3 answers

When do we use 'revision' as a countable noun?

'Revision' might be countable or uncountable. I am a little bit confused.
lukas
  • 915
6
votes
2 answers

Term for Uncountable Nouns, Mass Nouns which are sometimes countable

While I know how to use the words that I use, I do not know if there is a term to describe words that are uncountable nouns, but at the same time are countable in other circumstances. "Cheese" is one example perhaps. I find researching this does…
Sam
  • 836
5
votes
1 answer

Is the word ''analyse'' a noun or a verb? A countable noun or an uncountable noun?

As we know, the word analysis is a noun, and can be used as both a countable noun and an uncountable noun; the word analyze is a verb. As I have known this word analyse can be used as a verb, but for its another use as a noun, I have a blurry…
Joy Jo
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4
votes
6 answers

Can "listening" be countable?

Can listening be countable? Can I say We will do a listening during today's lesson?
lukas
  • 915
4
votes
1 answer

Can "plane" (aeroplane) be used as a non-count noun?

I'd appreciate it if someone would answer my question concerning the following sentence. Thank you. Many times, planes would crash after they had already started their flight home, most often from damage and mechanical failure. In an interview, V.…
magic-dragon
  • 51
4
votes
2 answers

Can some kind of [uncountable_noun] outnumber another kind of [uncountable_noun]?

While talking about anonymous feedback on Stack Exchange, I wanted to say that there was more anonymous feedback than registered feedback, so I considered saying: Anonymous feedback outnumbers registered feedback This seemed not quite right, so I…
Zanna
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3
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1 answer

Nationality as mass noun

A question on ELL recently aroused a discussion. It's about usage of nationality as mass noun: Like the Chinese, the Italian is a born gambler. "You want to know why the Italian is skinny?" The asker says, in a comment: I was once told that we…
SF.
  • 11,386
2
votes
2 answers

Does the sentence "I recycle a paper" make sense?

Could the following sentence make sense? I recycle a paper. It's from one of the school English exam's answers, and we're arguing about giving the whole point or half point. The teachers have given the whole point to answers such as "I recycle a…
Jiyun Lee
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2
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0 answers

Less versus fewer in time related phrases

Possible Duplicate: “Less” vs. “fewer” I am quite pedantic when using 'less' versus 'fewer' but don't really understand how the situation works when it comes to temporal phrases. For example 'you must complete the task in less than thirty…
Joe Fawcett
  • 591
2
votes
1 answer

Can I say 'three next of kin'?

This headline (today) tells me that the three victims of a tragic road incident were from different families, but maybe not three different families. The boys' next of kin have been informed, the Met Police said. Could it have been worded 'the…
Nigel J
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2
votes
2 answers

Is "functionality" a mass noun in certain contexts? When and why?

Inspired by: "Functionality" rather than "function"? I want to know if "functionality" is the correct word, in the context of: Fast forward and other functionality may not be available... Notes: However according to dictionary.com the plural is…
mfoy_
  • 901
1
vote
3 answers

Usage of uncountable nouns

Which option is correct to use in this sentence and why? I have (much, many, an) orange juice.
Christina
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1
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0 answers

"less of" and "lesser" with uncountable nouns

1. She spends less of her time playing tennis now. - correct example 2. She had less of reason to complain than I. - incorrect example (I know we can make "reason" countable and write "less of a reason") In both 1. and 2. we have the uncountable…
Loviii
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Is “a becoming humility” a correct use?

I found the sentence "She accepted the award with a becoming humility" as an example of the use of the word "becoming" in Merriam Webster Advanced Learner's English Dictionary. Is the use of the indefinite article in that sentence correct? I thought…
momsta
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