Count and Noncount Nouns

Lesson 1 Count and Noncount Nouns

Essential Question

What is the difference between many and much—and why does it matter?

Grammar in the World

a glass of milk and some milk

What Do I Know?

Directions: Choose the correct word to finish each sentence.

Building Blocks

Grammar is a complex system and structure of language. Mizzou Academy Grammar Lab spotlights one skill (or block) at a time. It is also helpful to see how each skill works together with other, related blocks to build the language structure as a whole. You may find the following resource topics helpful as context for this lesson:

Learn About Count and Noncount Nouns

As you may know, there are many ways to classify nouns: they are either proper or common, concrete or abstract, and count or noncount. In writing, it’s most important simply to know what nouns are. That said, we also need to classify nouns so that we know which types of verbs and other modifiers to use with them. This lesson will help you use noun phrases correctly.

Despite the name, count and noncount nouns can’t always be identified by whether or not you can count something. For instance, “money” is a noncount noun, but you can count it! Here’s the rule to remember:

If you can add a number in front of the noun and the phrase makes sense, it is a count noun.

Examples

Here are some examples of count and noncount (sometimes called a mass noun) nouns:

Count Nouns	Noncount (Mass) Nouns
coin, dollar	money
glass, jug, bottle, cup	milk, tea, lemonade, coffee
laugh, tear	happiness, sadness
grain, clump	salt, sand, soil, dirt
drop, ray, boom, flash	rain, sun, thunder, lightning
second, minute, hour	time
class, book, teacher, student	knowledge, intelligence, creativity
note, sound, tune, rhyme, song	music, poetry
car, plane, train, scooter, skateboard	travel, exploration

Important Tip: Recognizing Noncount Nouns

One more way you can recognize noncount nouns is that we don’t usually make them plural by added -s or -es to them. For example, we DON'T say:

We listened to some musics last night.
I got a little sands in my socks at the beach.
Her creativities are so impressive!

We DO add -s or -es to count nouns, though:

We listened to some songs last night.
I got a few grains of sand in my socks.
Her paintings are so impressive!

Modifiers

When using count and noncount nouns in sentences, the words you use to describe them are important. Here are some common ways you can give more information about each type of noun:

Count Nouns	Noncount (Mass) Nouns
a, an, a few/few/fewer, many, some	a little/little/less, much, some, none
I have a coin in my pocket.	I have some money in my pocket.
He would like a cup of coffee.	He would like some coffee.
We shared many laughs on vacation.	We had so much happiness on vacation.
I felt a drop of water on my cheek.	I feel a little rain falling on my cheek.
She has read a lot of books this year.	She has much knowledge about engineering now.
They love to listen to a few happy tunes.	They love to listen to a little music every night.
I know many people in this school.	I have much companionship in my life.
She has a few minutes before she leaves.	She has a little time before she leaves.
I have fewer dogs than my best friend.	I have less work to do than my best friend.

Tip: We usually can’t make noncount nouns plural. If you add -s to a noncount noun, it won’t sound right. For example: “I feel happinesses” or “I have little times left.” This quick check helps you see that happiness and time are noncount nouns.

Exceptions

Sometimes, count and noncount nouns can be tricky because the same noun can be either--depending on the context. It’s important to read the whole phrase carefully to figure out whether they are count or noncount.

Here are some common nouns you will see

Count Nouns

Noncount (Mass) Nouns

meat: the specific object

I have five chickens in my yard.

She devoured 3 apples this morning.

meat/fruit: what we eat

I would love to eat some fried chicken tonight!

She packed some fruit in her lunchbox.

beverages: when we use one word to be short for a cup or glass of coffee/soda

I drank three sodas after school, and I am wide awake!

beverages: the drinks

I would love some hot coffee right now!

art: a specific activity developed through training

He studied the art of communication when he was younger.

art: paintings, sculptures, drawings

He loves to view some art every chance he gets.

beauty: an attractive person

Here comes my niece; she is a beauty!

beauty: the quality of being attractive

We are surrounded by so much beauty in nature!

faith: a particular religion

She practices the Jewish faith.

faith: a strong belief in someone or something

She has much faith in a higher power.