Nouns

Count and Non-Count Nouns

Count Nouns

Quizzes
Singular And Plural Nouns Exercise -1
Singular And Plural Exercise -2
Count And Non Count Nouns Exercise-3
Count And Non Count Nouns Exercise-6

Count and Non-Count Nouns

Nouns play a significant role in the TOEFL exam as they are an important part of vocabulary and comprehension skills. Nouns represent objects, places, people, ideas, and more.

In English, nouns can be categorized into different types:

1- Common Nouns: Common nouns refer to general or non-specific people, places, or things. For example, “book,” “city,” or “person.”

2- Proper Nouns: Proper nouns are specific names of people, places, or things, and they are usually capitalized. For example, “John,” “London,” or “Eiffel Tower.”

3- Countable Nouns: Countable nouns refer to things that can be counted as separate units. They have both singular and plural forms. For example, “book” (singular) and “books” (plural).

4- Uncountable Nouns: Uncountable nouns are substances, concepts, or ideas that cannot be counted as separate units. They do not have a plural form. For example, “water” (uncountable) or “information” (uncountable).

5- Collective Nouns: Collective nouns refer to groups of people or things. They can take a singular or plural verb depending on the context. For example, “team” (singular) or “group” (singular) and “teams” (plural) or “groups” (plural).

6- Abstract Nouns: Abstract nouns represent ideas, concepts, or qualities that cannot be perceived through the senses. For example, “love,” “happiness,” or “knowledge.”
When preparing for the TOEFL exam, it is essential to expand your noun vocabulary and understand their usage in different contexts. This will help you comprehend reading passages, answer questions accurately, and effectively express your ideas in the speaking and writing sections of the exam.

Irregular Plurals
1- Words with Two Acceptable Plural Forms

Singular Plurals
antenna antennae antennas
apparatus apparatus apparatuses
appendix appendices appendixes
beau beaux beaus
cactus cacti cactuses
cargo cargoes cargos
criterion criteria criterions
curriculum curricula curriculumus
formula formulae formulas
fungus fungi funguses
index indices indexes
medium media mediums
memorandum memoranda memorandums
radius radii radiuses
sanatorium sanatoriums sanatoria
scarf scarfs scarves
tornado tornadoes tornados
vertebra vertebrae vertebras
volcano volcanoes volcanos
wharf wharfs wharves
zero zeroes zeros

2) Common Irregular Plurals

Singular Plural Singular Plural
addendum addenda mosquito mosquitoes
alga algae nucleus nuclei
alumna alumnae oasis oases
alumnus alumni ox oxen
analysis analyses parenthesis parentheses
axis axes phenomenon phenomena
basis bases potato potatoes
bacterium bacteria psychosis psychoses
child children quiz quizzes
crisis crises self selves
datum data series series
deer deer sheep sheep
elf elves stimulus stimuli
foot feet terminus termines
goose geese thief thieves
hero heroes thesis theses
hypothesis hypotheses tomato tomatoes
leaf leaves tooth teeth
live lives wife wife
loaf loaves wolf wolves
louse lice woman women
mouse mice yourself yourselves

Count and Non- Count Nouns

Exercise-5.

Identify the types of nouns underlined in the sentences below Count (C) – Non – Count (N).

1. Ethan can operate his -camera- with only one hand
2. Whipped -butter- contains fewer calories per serving than ordinary butter.
3. Randy installed a dashboard -fan- that runs on the power from his car’s cigarette lighter.
4. His -childhood- was ordinary, if a little lonely.
5. The -jacket- is long enough to wear as a dress.
6. -Fish- and chicken are good for people with high cholesterol.
7. I didn’t have much -luggage- – just two small bags.
8. Some people who have every -pillow- fluffed and in its proper place in their rooms never make an effort to organize their closets.
9. For her class Juanita created a gigantic collage that included old shoes, -silverware-, and clippings from newspapers.
10. Interesting baskets can be made of straw, -bark- or roots.
11. Osteoporosis is the abnormal -loss- of bone.
12. Vera’s -salsa- was delicious and contained very few calories
13. Customers are not in the mood to accept major changes in styles of -clothing.-
14. Shorter campaigns make voters more interested in -politics.-
15. After a long, lonely winter, the ugly -duckling- emerged as a beautiful swan.
16. -Clutter- can make a room seem smaller.

Answers :

1- Ethan can operate his -camera- with only one hand. – Type: C (Count)
2- Whipped -butter- contains fewer calories per serving than ordinary butter. – Type: N (Non-Count)
3- Randy installed a dashboard -fan- that runs on the power from his car’s cigarette lighter. – Type: C (Count)
4- His -childhood- was ordinary, if a little lonely. – Type: N (Non-Count)
T5- he -jacket- is long enough to wear as a dress. – Type: C (Count)
6- Fish- and chicken are good for people with high cholesterol. – Type: N (Non-Count)
7- I didn’t have much -luggage- – just two small bags. – Type: N (Non-Count)
8- Some people who have every -pillow- fluffed and in its proper place in their rooms never make an effort to organize their closets. – Type: C (Count)
9- For her class Juanita created a gigantic collage that included old shoes, -silverware-, and clippings from newspapers. – Type: N (Non-Count)
10- Interesting baskets can be made of straw, -bark- or roots. – Type: N (Non-Count)
11- Osteoporosis is the abnormal -loss- of bone. – Type: C (Count)
12- Vera’s -salsa- was delicious and contained very few calories. – Type: N (Non-Count)
13- Customers are not in the mood to accept major changes in styles of -clothing.- – Type: N (Non-Count)
14- Shorter campaigns make voters more interested in -politics.- – Type: N (Non-Count)
15- After a long, lonely winter, the ugly -duckling- emerged as a beautiful swan. – Type: C (Count)
16- Clutter- can make a room seem smaller. – Type: N (Non-Count)

Exercise-1
Give the plurals of these nouns.

1. sand
2. decision
3. furniture
4. ages
5. accountancy
6. electricity
7. architecture
8. soap

Answers :

1- sand – sands
2- decision – decisions
3- furniture – no change (furniture is an uncountable noun)
4- ages – no change (ages is already plural)
5-accountancy – no change (accountancy is an uncountable noun)
6- electricity – no change (electricity is an uncountable noun)
7- architecture – no change (architecture is an uncountable noun)
8- soap – soaps

Exercise-2
Identify the incorrect noun form.

1. She was extremely fond of cat, especially Siamese and Burmese ones.
2. When making those cookies, you should use two cups of butters.
3. Electricities is expensive these days.
4. The populations of that town is very diverse.
5. She was concerned about delivery of her furnitures.
6. The interviewer was not empressed with Maria’s honesties on her application.
7. The American court system is known for its concept of blind justices.
8. The recipe calles for one part of flour to two part of sugar.
9. The city museum houses examples of works by artist of many different schools of painting.
10. Drinking two glasses of milks every day will satisfy your need for calcium.

Answers :

1.cats 2.butter 3.electricity 4.population 5.furniture
6.honesty 7.justice 8.parts of sugar 9.artists 10.milk

1- She was extremely fond of cat, especially Siamese and Burmese ones.

– Incorrect: cat

– Correct: cats

2- When making those cookies, you should use two cups of butters.

– Incorrect: butters

– Correct: butter

3- Electricities is expensive these days.

– Incorrect: Electricities

– Correct: Electricity

4- The populations of that town is very diverse.

– Incorrect: populations

– Correct: population

5- She was concerned about delivery of her furnitures.

– Incorrect: furnitures

– Correct: furniture

6- The interviewer was not empressed with Maria’s honesties on her application.

– Incorrect: honesties

– Correct: honesty

7- The American court system is known for its concept of blind justices.

– Incorrect: justices

– Correct: justice

8- The recipe calles for one part of flour to two part of sugar.

– Incorrect: part

– Correct: parts

9- The city museum houses examples of works by artist of many different schools of painting.

– Incorrect: artist

– Correct: artists

10- Drinking two glasses of milks every day will satisfy your need for calcium.

– Incorrect: milks

– Correct: milk

Exercise-3

Most of these sentences have a mistake in them. Write True (T) or False (F).

1. I believe it’s very difficult to find a cheap accommodation in London.
2. We’re looking for a place to rent.
3. We’re late because they’re re-surfacing the motorway and the traffics are terrible.
4. He was asked to leave the college because of a bad behavior at the end of the term party.
5. I’m going to call my brother to wish him good luck for his driving test.
6. I think it’s a pity Rebecca had her hairs cut short because she looked much more attractive before
7. It’s not a bad room, but the furnitures take up too much space.
8. As an old friend, may I give you an advice?
9. If we don’t have up-to-date information, how can we make sensible decisions?
10. Fortunately, the check-up was less unpleasant experience than I had expected.
11. The happiness means different things to different people.
12. Bread are expensive in the grocery store on the corner.
13. Dr. Brydley will receive special honor at the graduation.
14. My neighbor dislikes a noise.
15. George had good luck when he first came to State University.
16. There was a very interesting news on the radio this morning about the earthquake in Italy.

Answers :

1. F,  I believe it’s very difficult to find cheap accommodation in London.  
2. T   
3. F, We’re late because they’re resurfacing the motorway and the traffic is terrible.  
4. F,  He was asked to leave the college because of bad behavior at the end of the term.  
5. T  
6. F, I think it’s a pity Rebecca had her hair cut short because she looked much more attractive before.  
7. F, It’s not a bad room, but the furniture takes up too much space.  
8. F, As an old friend, may I give you some advice?  
9. T  
10. F, a less unpleasant experience  
11. F, happiness  
12. F, is expensive  
13. T  
14. F, noise  
15. T  
16. F, very interesting news / some  

Count and Non- Count Nouns

Count and Non- Count Nouns

Count nouns

Can be counted as one or more.
– Pen, computer, bottle, spoon, desk, cup, television, chair, shoe, finger, flower, camera, stick, balloon, book, table, comb, etc.
Take an s to form the plural.
– Pens, computers, bottles, spoons, desks, cups, televisions, chairs, shoes, fingers, flowers, cameras, sticks, balloons, books, tables, combs, etc.
Work with expressions such as (a few, few, many, some, every, each, these, and the number of).
– A few pens, a few computers, many bottles, some spoons, every desk, each cup, these televisions, the number of chairs, a few shoes, a few fingers, many flowers, some cameras, every stick, each balloon, these books, the number of tables, many combs, etc.
Work with appropriate articles (a, an, or the).
– A pen, the computer, a bottle, the spoon, a desk, the cup, a television, the chair, a shoe, the finger, a flower, the camera, a stick, the balloon, a book, the table, a comb, etc.
Do NOT work with much (for example, you would never say much pens or much computers).
Nouns

Non-count nouns

Cannot be counted. They usually express a group or a type.
– Water, wood, ice, air, oxygen, English, Spanish, traffic, furniture, milk, wine, sugar, rice, meat, flour, soccer, sunshine, etc.
Generally cannot be pluralized.
Work both with and without an article (a, an, or the), depending on the context of the sentence.
– Sugar is sweet.
– The sunshine is beautiful.
– I drink milk.
– He eats rice.
– We watch soccer together.
– The wood is burning.
Work with expressions such as (some, any, enough, this, that, and much).
– We ate some rice and milk.
– I hope to see some sunshine today.
– This meat is good.
– She does not speak much Spanish.
– Do you see any traffic on the road?
– That wine is very old.
Do NOT work with expressions such as (these, those, every, each, either, or neither).

Choose all of the non-count nouns in the following list:
wine, student, pen, water, wind, milk, computer, furniture, cup, rice, box, watch, potato, wood

Answers:
wine, water, wind, milk, furniture, rice, wood

Nouns

Count and Non- Count Nouns

Do you think English grammar is confusing? Ever wonder why can we say “a dollar” but we can’t say “a money”? Why can we say “houses”, but not “furnitures”? In this class, you will learn the grammar rules about countable and uncountable nouns in English, including when to use “a” or “an”, when to add an “s” at the end of a noun to make it plural, and when you should NOT add an “s”. You will also learn about the difference between “much” and “many”…
Common mistakes in the use of nouns In this lesson, we will take a look at some common mistakes in the use of nouns.
Incorrect: There is no place on this bus.
Correct: There is no room on this bus
Incorrect: I am learning a new poetry.
Correct: I am learning a new poem.
Poetry means poems collectively.
Incorrect: He is leaving his service.
Correct: He is leaving his job.
Incorrect: All of my relations are poor.
Correct: All of my relatives are poor.
Incorrect: The clock has struck five hours.
Correct: The clock has struck five.
Incorrect: The boarding is full.
Correct: The boarding house is full.
Incorrect: I saw two females in the store.
Correct: I saw two women in the store.
Incorrect: He enquired about your state of health.
Correct: He enquired about the state of your health.
Incorrect: My English is very weak.
Correct: I am very weak in English.
Incorrect: The weather of Chennai does not suit me.
Correct: The climate of Chennai does not suit me.
Incorrect: Why are you standing in the center of the street?
Correct: Why are you standing in the middle of the street?
Incorrect: I visit them once in a week.
Correct: I visit them once a week.
Incorrect: Her hairs are grey.
Correct: Her hair is grey.
Incorrect: I bought two dozens pencils.
Correct: I bought two dozen pencils.
Incorrect: He took insult at this.
Correct: He took offence at this.
Incorrect: He put your sign here.
Correct: He put your signature here
 

Abstract nouns
An abstract noun is the name of a quality, action or state. Abstract nouns refer to ideas that we cannot see or touch.
Examples are given below.
Quality – goodness, kindness, beauty, intelligence, generosity, cleverness, obedience, honesty, brightness, wisdom, bravery, courage, hardness, softness
Action – laughter, theft, movement, judgment
State – childhood, boyhood, manhood, youth, slavery, sickness, poverty, death, sleep
The names of the arts and science are also abstract nouns. Examples are: physics, chemistry, grammar, music
Abstract nouns can be formed from adjectives, verbs and common nouns.

From adjectives
Kindness from kind
Bravery from brave
Illness from ill
Honesty from honest

From verbs
Obedience from obey
Growth from grow
Pleasure from please

From common nouns
Childhood from child
Slavery from slave

Exercise

Form abstract nouns from the following adjectives.

Long … Strong … Wide … Young … Humble …
Decent … Cruel … Bitter … Prudent … Dark …
Wise … Good … Vacant … Sweet … Human …
Free … Proud … Brave … Novel … Poor …
Just … Vain … Sane … Ignorant …  
Answers
Long – length Strong – strength Wide – width Young – youth Humble – humility
Decent – decency Cruel – cruelty Bitter – bitterness Prudent – prudence Dark – darkness
Wise – wisdom Good – goodness Vacant – vacancy Sweet – sweetness Human – humanity
Free – freedom Proud – pride Brave – bravery Novel – novelty Poor – poverty
Just – justice Vain – vanity Sane – sanity Ignorant – ignorance  

Count and Non- Count Nouns

ILLOGICAL PARTICIPIAL MODIFIERS (DANGLING PARTICIPLES) fromizmir.com

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