| Singular & plural nouns
(Explanatory notes) |
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| 1. |
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Explanation: Incorrect
pluralization of uncountable nouns
A number of nouns in English are uncountable
- they have no plural form (-s). e.g.
rain, oil, water, news, persuasion, beauty.
1 The 'Hong Kong Dot Com' website contains many
useful informations about Hong
Kong.
2 The Chek Lap Kok airport uses state of the art
landing equipments.
3 Teachers should be useful in giving students
advices about oral
presentations.
4 Some educationalists are now beginning to think
that Hong Kong students get too much homeworks.
5 The main point of a Ph.D. is to carry out
original researches.
Whether or not a noun is uncountable is
determined by its meaning: an uncountable noun
represents something which tends to be viewed as
a whole or as a single entity, rather than as one
of a number of items which can be counted as
individual units. Singular verb forms are used
with uncountable nouns.
The indefinite articles a, an and numbers
are not normally used with uncountable nouns,
e.g.
My grammar checker gave me a (û ) useful feedback.
Please give me an (û
) information about how to access the library on
the web. (The plural form some could,
however, be used here - I need some
information about…..)
There are several ways to express quantity for
uncountable nouns, e.g.
I read an (û )
interesting news this morning. an interesting
item of news
Could I borrow a (û
) paper to make notes? a sheet/a piece of
paper
Teachers should be able to give students a (û ) useful advices
about oral presentations. some useful advice
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| 2. |
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Explanation: Countable
nouns which have different singular and plural
usage
Some nouns can only be used in a singular or
plural form depending on the collocate :
1 He has a bad heart
concition. (always singular)
2. The plane was delayed due to bad weather
conditions. (always plural) |
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| 3. |
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Explanation: Incorrect
pluralization of uncountable nouns
A number of nouns in English are uncountable
- they have no plural form (-s). e.g.
rain, oil, water, news, persuasion, beauty.
1 The 'Hong Kong Dot Com' website contains many
useful informations about Hong
Kong.
2 The Chek Lap Kok airport uses state of the art
landing equipments.
3 Teachers should be useful in giving students
advices about oral
presentations.
4 Some educationalists are now beginning to think
that Hong Kong students get too much homeworks.
5 The main point of a Ph.D. is to carry out
original researches.
Whether or not a noun is uncountable is
determined by its meaning: an uncountable noun
represents something which tends to be viewed as
a whole or as a single entity, rather than as one
of a number of items which can be counted as
individual units. Singular verb forms are used
with uncountable nouns.
The indefinite articles a, an and numbers
are not normally used with uncountable nouns,
e.g.
My grammar checker gave me a (û ) useful feedback.
Please give me an (û
) information about how to access the library on
the web. (The plural form some could,
however, be used here - I need some
information about…..)
There are several ways to express quantity for
uncountable nouns, e.g.
I read an (û )
interesting news this morning. an interesting
item of news
Could I borrow a (û
) paper to make notes? a sheet/a piece of
paper
Teachers should be able to give students a (û ) useful advices
about oral presentations. some useful advice
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| 4. |
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Explanation:
Don't use ‘Count’ determiners and
adjectives directly in front of uncountable nouns
‘Count’ determiners and adjectives - many,
few, several, etc. - are not used with
uncountable nouns, e.g.
The KCR needs many (û
) equipment to make sure it runs safely. a lot
of
Fewer (û ) traffic
would mean fewer (û
) pollution. less
Be careful when using the following uncountable
nouns since they seem to cause particular
problems for students. accommodation; equipment;
luggage; health; research; news; advice;
homework; rubbish; baggage; information;
technology; behaviour; knowledge; traffic |
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| 5. |
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Explanation: Plural
nouns not ending in -s
There are a number of plural nouns which cause
problems because they do not end in –s.
Examples of these are media, data, bacteria,
staff, public and people. Remember to
use a plural verb form with such words, and not
to add –s. |
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| 6. |
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Explanation:
Incorrect pluralization of
uncountable nouns
A number of nouns in English are uncountable
- they have no plural form (-s). e.g.
rain, oil, water, news, persuasion, beauty.
The KCR needs many (û
) equipment to make sure it runs safely. a lot
of
Be careful when using the following uncountable
nouns since they seem to cause particular
problems for students. accommodation; equipment;
luggage; health; research; news; advice;
homework; rubbish; baggage; information;
technology; behaviour; knowledge; traffic |
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| 7. |
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Explanation: Incorrect
pluralization of uncountable nouns
A number of nouns in English are uncountable
- they have no plural form (-s). e.g.
rain, oil, water, news, persuasion, beauty.
1 The 'Hong Kong Dot Com' website contains many
useful informations about Hong
Kong.
2 The Chek Lap Kok airport uses state of the art
landing equipments.
3 Teachers should be useful in giving students
advices about oral
presentations.
4 Some educationalists are now beginning to think
that Hong Kong students get too much homeworks.
5 The main point of a Ph.D. is to carry out
original researches.
Whether or not a noun is uncountable is
determined by its meaning: an uncountable noun
represents something which tends to be viewed as
a whole or as a single entity, rather than as one
of a number of items which can be counted as
individual units. Singular verb forms are used
with uncountable nouns.
The indefinite articles a, an and numbers
are not normally used with uncountable nouns,
e.g.
My grammar checker gave me a (û ) useful feedback.
Please give me an (û
) information about how to access the library on
the web. (The plural form some could,
however, be used here - I need some
information about…..)
There are several ways to express quantity for
uncountable nouns, e.g.
I read an (û )
interesting news this morning. an interesting
item of news
Could I borrow a (û
) paper to make notes? a sheet/a piece of
paper
Teachers should be able to give students a (û ) useful advices
about oral presentations. some useful advice
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| 8. |
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Explanation: Making
Generalizations
If you are talking generally, use the plural
form with countable nouns
It would also be possible to use the indefinite
article:
On the net, students can send an assignment,
watch a video clip or access a
school library. There are large
differences in levels of computer literacies (û ) among university
graduates. literacy
The IT sector continues to complain that good
qualities (û )
local graduates cannot be found in Hong Kong.
quality
If you have feedbacks (û
) on this site please fill in the form provided.
feedback
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| 9. |
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Explanation: Incorrect
singular use of plural nouns
Some noun phrases can only be used in a
plural form:
1 Good communication skill are
invaluable in the service industries. skills
2 It is now generally agreed
that environmental condition is
deteriorating in Hong Kong.
conditions…are
3 Some people don't care much about
their immediate surrounding
as long as property prices keep increasing.
surroundings
4 Teachers' earning
is quite low compared to
business people. earnings are
5 Some companies are now moving their
headquarter out of Hong
Kong to Shenzen. headquarters |
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| 10. |
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Explanation: Nouns -
used only in the plural form
A number of nouns in English are used only in the
plural form (and with plural verb forms).
Examples of these are goods, groceries, jeans,
trousers and scissors. Other nouns
are normally used in plural form in certain
structures, e.g.
Working conditions are slowly improving in a
number of Chinese industries.
The course helped me to improve my communication
skills.
Living standards are not rising as quickly in
rural areas.
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