• Countable Nouns Definition

  Countable nouns (also known as count nouns) are nouns that can be considered as

  individual, separable items, which means that we are able to count them with numbers—we can have one, two, five, 15, 100, and so on. We can also use them with the indefinite articles a and an (which signify a single person or thing) or in their plural forms.
  Countable nouns contrast with uncountable nouns (also known as non-count or mass nouns), which cannot be separated and counted as individual units or elements. Uncountable nouns cannot take an indefinite article, nor can they be made plural.

  Concrete vs. Abstract Countable Nouns

  Both concrete and abstract nouns can be countable. Concrete nouns name people, places, or things that are tangible—they can be seen or touched. Abstract nouns, on the other hand, name intangible things, such as ideas, concepts, feelings, or attributes.

  Concrete countable nouns

  Concrete nouns are a bit easier to understand as being countable—after all, they are things that we can see and feel, and so we can usually count them. Consider the following, for example:

• cup

• ambulance

• phone

• person

• eel

• computer

• doctor

Each of these can be considered as an individual item or unit, which means that we are able to count them:

Singular	Plural
a cup	two cups

an ambulance	several ambulances
a phone	10 phones
a person	many people
an eel	three eels
a computer	a few computers
a doctor	some doctors

Abstract countable nouns

Even though abstract nouns are not tangible, many of them can still be counted as separable units. Like concrete nouns, they can take a or an or can be made plural.

Consider these abstract nouns:

• conversation

• emergency

• reading

• aspiration

• emotion

• belief

Now let’s see how they can be counted:

Singular	Plural
a conversation	two conversations
an emergency	several emergencies
a reading	10 readings
an aspiration	many aspirations
an emotion	hundreds of emotions
a belief	certain beliefs

Grammar with countable nouns

When we use countable nouns, certain elements in a sentence will change depending on whether the noun is singular or plural.

Third-person singular vs. third-person

plural pronouns

If a countable noun is being represented by a third-person pronoun, we must take care to use the correct singular or plural form.

Singular

When a noun is singular and names a person (or, sometimes, a pet) whose gender is known,* then we use the third-person singular he, him, or his (masculine) or she, her, or hers (feminine). For example:

• “The man left early, so I didn’t get a chance to talk to him.” (Man is singular, so it takes the third-person singular pronoun him.)
• “The president has many things that she wants to accomplish in office.” (President is singular, so it takes the third-person singular pronoun she.)
• “We taught our dog to know which bed is his.” (Dog is singular, so it takes the third-person singular pronoun his.)
  If the noun names a singular place, thing, or non-domestic animal, then we must use the third- person neuter pronoun it:
• “I hate this computer because it is so slow!”
• “The cow lowed softly as it ate.”
• “Some people dislike this town, but I’ve always loved it.”

  Plural

  When a noun is plural, we use the same third-person pronouns for people, places, animals, and things: they, them, and theirs*. For example:
• “The parade floats are spectacular! I love watching them go down the street.”
• “Bill and Samantha told me they were coming over later.”
• “Make sure the children know which bags are theirs.”

  *Usage Note: “Singular they”

  English does not have a way of identifying a single person with a pronoun if his or her gender is not known, so sometimes the third-person plural forms (they, them, etc.) are used as a gender-neutral alternative to the third-person feminine/masculine forms. This is sometimes called “singular they.”
  For example:
• “You shouldn’t judge someone until you know what they are really like.”
• “If anyone needs extra help with their studies, they should feel free to see me after class.”
  While it is still considered incorrect by some writers and writing guides, especially in American English, “singular they” is gradually becoming accepted as the norm, especially in
  instances with indefinite pronouns that sound plural but are grammatically singular (like
  anyone in the example above).

  Subject-Verb Agreement

  Because countable nouns can be either singular or plural, it is very important to use the correct subject-verb agreement when they are functioning as the subject of a clause.
  Subject-verb agreement refers to using certain conjugations of verbs for singular subjects and using other conjugations for plural subjects. This happens most noticeably with the verb to be, which becomes is or was with singular subject nouns and are or were with plural subjects.
  For example:
• “My brother is back from college.” (singular present simple tense)
• “The company was in financial trouble.” (singular past simple tense)
• “Many people are getting frustrated with the government.” (plural present simple tense)
• “The computers were rather old.” (plural past simple tense)
  For any other verb, we only need to make a change if it is in the present simple tense. For most verbs, this is accomplished by adding an “-s” to the end if it is singular and leaving it in its base form if it is plural. For example:
• “My father runs his own business.” (singular)
• “But his sons run it when he’s away.” (plural)
• “The dog wags his tail when he is happy.” (singular)
• “Dogs sometimes wag their tails when they’re angry or scared.” (plural)
  The verbs have and do also only conjugate for singular subjects in the present simple tense, but they have irregular forms for this: has and does. For example:
• “The apple has a mark on it.” (singular)
• “All the apples have marks on them.” (plural)
• “The teacher does not think it’s a good idea.” (singular)
• “The other teachers do not mind, though.” (plural)
  Finally, the modal auxiliary verbs will, would, shall, should, can, could, might, and must do not conjugate for singular vs. plural subjects—they always remain the same. For instance:
• “This phone can also surf the Internet!” (singular)
• “Most phones can do that now.” (plural)
• “The president will arrive in Malta next week.” (singular)
• “The other diplomats will arrive shortly after that.” (plural)

  Quiz

  1.   Which of the following cannot be used with countable nouns?

  a)   Indefinite articles

  b)   Definite articles

  c)   Third-person singular pronouns

  d)   Plural forms

  e)   All of the above

  f)   None of the above

  
  

  2.   True or False: Countable nouns are always concrete nouns.

  a)   True

  b)   False

  
  

  3.   How do most verbs conjugate when they have a singular subject?

  a)   By adding “-d” to the end

  b)   By adding “-s” to the end

  c)   They remain in their base form

  d)   They take an auxiliary verb

  
  

  4.   Which of the following third-person pronouns is used for plural nouns?

  a)   he

  b)   she
  
  
  c)   it
  d)   they
  
  
  5.   Which of the following third-person pronouns is used for non-gendered singular nouns?
  a)   he
  b)   she
  c)   it
  d)   they