Count Noun

Count Nouns

Look around your bedroom and name some things you or your parents have had to purchase: your bed, dresser, socks, books, etc. All of these things are count nouns, nouns that you can count. You can count the number of books on your bookshelf or shoes in your closet. You can count the walls around your bedroom and the blankets on your bed.

In this lesson, we'll look more closely at count nouns and view some more examples to help us understand what they are.

What Are Count Nouns?

The simple rule to defining a count noun is this: If you can make a noun plural, which means that we have more than one of something (typically by adding the ending '-s' or '-es'), or if you can add a number in front of the noun, you have a count noun. Let's look at some examples:

Katya ate five doughnuts.

In this sentence, we were able to add a number in front of the noun, doughnut, and made it plural by adding an 's.' Thus, doughnut is a count noun.

There are fifty candles on her cake.

Because we are able to put a number in front of candles and are able to make candle plural, it is a count noun.

The opposite of a count noun is a non-count noun or a group noun. Non-count nouns cannot be counted - you cannot add a number in front of them, and they cannot be made plural. Water, excitement, anger, and weather are all non-count nouns. You can't have two excitements or three angers. You also can't use the word weathers.

• Book, dog, chair, banana are all examples of count nouns. (You can count them and make each of them plural.)
• Information, happiness, music, wool, and air are all non-count nouns. (You can't count them or make them plural.)

Words Used to Describe Quantity

There are certain words to describe quantity that can be used with count nouns and others that can be used with non-count nouns. While some of the non-count quantity words can also be used with count nouns, the opposite is not true. Count noun quantity words cannot be used by non-count nouns.

With count nouns, you use words like ''every,'' ''each,'' ''a few,'' ''several'' or ''many.''

With non-count nouns, you use words like ''much,'' '' some,'' ''enough'' or ''any.''

Let's look at some examples:

• Count noun - Every player scored a goal.
• Count noun - Live each day to the fullest.

In these two examples, although actual numbers were not used and the nouns were not made plural, we can make the nouns, player and day, plural and can add numbers in front of them. We can say 'three players' and 'two days.' Thus, they are count nouns.

• Non-count noun - There is so much damage.
• Non-count noun - There is some dust on the furniture.

In these two examples, we cannot make the nouns plural or add numbers in front of them. You cannot say 'five damages,' or 'six dusts.' Thus, they are non-count nouns.

• Count noun - I will take any books that you have.
• Non-count noun - Do not get any dirt on the floor.

Any is an example of a non-count noun quantity word that can also be used with count nouns.