"A bicycle", "3 bicycles". The word "bicycle" is a countable noun because we can count them and we can form the plural by adding "-s" at the end of the word. However, "water" is an uncountable noun. Continue the lesson below.
Nouns in English can be either countable or uncountable.
Countable nouns are those nouns that can be counted.
Examples:
| one [a] pencil |
| two cats |
| three houses |
Uncountable nouns are those nouns which cannot be counted because they cannot be defined individually, but rather are part of a whole. As such, they are treated as singular (you can not make them plural by adding “-s”).
However, once we delimit these nouns by placing a countable expression in front of the noun, they become countable.
Examples:
| a gram of salt |
| a piece of wood |
| two cups of tea |
| three glasses of wine |
1. Countable nouns have a plural form (regular or irregular):
Examples:
| egg → eggs |
| bicycle → bicycles |
| dress → dresses |
Uncountable nouns do not have a plural form:
| rice |
| milk |
2. You can use “a” or “an” with countable nouns in singular:
Examples:
| an apple |
| a house |
We cannot use “a” or “an” with uncountable nouns:
3. Numbers can be used in front of countable nouns:
Examples:
| three apples |
| five houses |
Numbers cannot be used in front of uncountable nouns:
