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Countable nounsare words that can be counted; they can be singular or plural. Examples are:

  • one apple, two apples
  • one balloon, a dozen balloons
  • one child, two children
  • one door, four doors
  • one alligator, two alligators

Non-count (mass) nouns are things that can't be counted; they are words for substances, concepts, and some gerunds. Examples are:

  • rice
  • sugar
  • tea
  • furniture
  • aluminum
  • electricity
  • information
  • news
  • advice
  • knowledge

Plural forms for substances are reserved for 'kinds of' or 'types of' such as 'a dish of two rices' means two types of rice used, basmatti and wild; a selection of teas, for example black tea, green tea, oolong, and jasmine.

Multiples of mass nouns are expressed as:

  • cups of rice, bowls of rice
  • teaspoons of sugar, pounds of sugar
  • tins of tea, glasses of tea
  • pieces of furniture, suites of furniture
  • tons of aluminum, rolls of aluminum
  • volts of electricity, currents of electricity
  • some information, pieces of information
  • bits of news, a lot of news
  • a little advice, some of advice
  • little knowledge, a great deal of knowledge
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Q: What does countable nouns mean?
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