Collins Cobuild English Grammar (10 page)

coal

coffee

cognac

coke

cotton

curry

deodorant

detergent

disinfectant

dye

fabric

fertilizer

fuel

fur

gin

glue

ink

insecticide

iron

jam

jelly

juice

lager

liqueur

lotion

material

meat

medicine

metal

milk

oil

ointment

ore

paint

perfume

pesticide

plastic

poison

preservative

ribbon

salad

sauce

sherry

soap

soil

soup

steel

sugar

tea

vodka

whisky

wine

wood

wool

yarn

yoghurt

nouns that are uncountable and countable

1.32
    There are also some other nouns that can be uncountable nouns when they refer to a thing in general, and countable nouns when they refer to a particular instance of it.

Some nouns are commonly both uncountable nouns and countable nouns. For example,
victory
refers to the idea of winning in general but
a victory
refers to a particular occasion when someone wins.

He worked long and hard and finally led his team to
victory
.
…his
victory
in the Australian Grand Prix.
Many parents were alarmed to find themselves in open
conflict
with the church.
Hundreds of people have died in ethnic
conflicts
.

Some uncountable nouns are rarely or never countable nouns; that is, they do not occur in a plural form, or with a number.

…a collection of fine
furniture
.
We found Alan weeping with
relief
and
joy
.
He saved
money
by refusing to have a telephone.

uncountable nouns ending in
-s

1.33
    Some nouns that end in
-s
and look as if they are plural are in fact uncountable nouns. This means that when they are the subject of a verb, the verb is in the singular.

These nouns refer mainly to subjects of study, activities, games, and diseases.

Physics is
fun.
Politics plays
a large part in village life.
Economics is
the oldest of the social sciences.
Darts is
a very competitive sport.
Measles is
in most cases a relatively harmless disease.

Here are three lists of uncountable nouns ending in
-s
.

These nouns refer to subjects of study and activities:

acoustics

aerobics

aerodynamics

aeronautics

athletics

classics

economics

electronics

genetics

gymnastics

linguistics

logistics

mathematics

mechanics

obstetrics

physics

politics

statistics

thermodynamics

Note that some of these nouns are occasionally used as plural nouns, especially when you are talking about a particular person’s work or activities.

His
politics are
clearly right-wing.

These nouns refer to games:

billiards

bowls

cards

darts

draughts

skittles

tiddlywinks

These nouns refer to diseases:

diabetes

measles

mumps

rabies

rickets

shingles

When there is only one of something: singular nouns

1.34
    There are certain things in the world that are unique. There are other things that you almost always want to talk about one at a time. This means that there are some nouns, or more often some meanings of nouns, for which only a singular form is used.

When a noun is used with such a meaning, it is called a
singular noun
. Singular nouns are always used with a determiner, because they behave like the singular form of a countable noun.

noun–verb agreement

1.35
    When you use a singular noun as the subject of a verb, you use a singular form of the verb.

The
sun was shining
.
The
atmosphere is
very relaxed.

things that are unique

1.36
    Some singular nouns refer to one specific thing and therefore are used with
the
. Some of these nouns, in fact, refer to something of which there is only one in the world.

There were huge cracks in
the ground
.
The moon
had not yet reached my window.
Burning tanks threw great spirals of smoke into
the air
.
He’s always thinking about
the past
and worrying about
the future
.

using the context

1.37
    Other singular nouns can be used to refer to one thing only when it is obvious from the context what you are referring to. For example, if you are in Leeds and say
I work at the university
, you will almost certainly mean Leeds University.

However, in the following examples it is not clear exactly who or what the singular noun refers to, because there is not enough context.

In many countries
the market
is small numerically.
Their company looks good only because
the competition
looks bad.
You’ve all missed
the point
.

Unless it is made clear which goods or products are being talked about, it is not possible for the reader or listener to be sure which group of potential buyers
the market
refers to. Similarly it is not possible to know exactly which company or group of companies
the competition
refers to. In the last example, the speaker is presumably going to state what he or she thinks
the point
is.

used in verb + object idioms

1.38
    There are some activities that you do not usually do more than once at a time. The nouns that refer to them are usually the object of a verb, and are used with the determiner
a
.

In this structure the verb has very little meaning and the noun carries most of the meaning of the whole structure. For more information about these verb + object idioms, see paragraphs
3.32
to
3.45
.

I went and had
a wash
.
Bruno gave it
a try
.

Some singular nouns are used so regularly with a particular verb that they have become fixed phrases and are idiomatic.

I’d like very much for you to
have a voice
in the decision.
Isn’t it time we
made a move
?

singular noun structures

1.39
    There are two special kinds of structure in which a singular noun is used.

A singular noun is sometimes used with the determiner
a
after a linking verb. See paragraphs
3.126
to
3.181
for more information about
linking verbs
.

Decision-making is
an art
.
The quickest way was by using the car. It was
a risk
but he decided it had to be taken.
They were beginning to find Griffiths’ visits rather
a strain
.

A singular noun is sometimes used with the determiner
the
, followed by a prepositional phrase beginning with
of
.

Comedy is
the art of
making people laugh.
Old machines will be replaced by newer ones to reduce
the risk of
breakdown.
He collapsed under
the strain of
a heavy workload.

This group includes nouns used metaphorically; see paragraph
1.64
for more details.

Some singular nouns are always used to refer to one particular quality or thing, but are rarely used alone; that is, they need to be specified in some way by the use of supporting material. They can be used with a number of different determiners.

There was
a note of satisfaction
in his voice.
Bessie covered the last fifty yards at
a tremendous pace
.
Simon allowed
his pace
to slacken.
She was simply incapable of behaving in
a rational and considered manner
.
…
their manner
of rearing their young.