Countable Nouns
Countable (count) nouns
Countable nouns are individual objects, people, places, etc. which can be counted.
A countable noun is a type of noun that can be…
A: presented in both the singular form and the plural form.
Example
The singular form: The dog is big.
The plural form: The dogs are big.
Rules of plural nouns
1 When the singular noun ends in: -sh, -ch, -s, -ss, -x, -o we do not form their plural form by adding "-s" but "-es".
Example
brush - brushes
bus - buses
box - boxes
potato - potatoes
2 When the singular noun ends in "y", we change the "y" for "i" and then add "-es" to form the plural form.
Example
nappy - nappies
3 We do not change the "y" for "ies" to form the plural when the singular noun ends in "y" preceded by a vowel (a, e, i, o, u)
Example
day - days
toy - toys
4 There is a group of words whose plurals are irregular (These you need to know).
Example
Man - men
Louse - lice
Woman - women
Mouse - mice
Child - children
Ox - oxen
Tooth - teeth
Goose - geese
Foot - feet
5 Some nouns that in singular end in "-f" or "-fe" form their plural in "-ves".
Example
shelf - shelves
leaf - leaves
※Others do it in the regular way: adding just "-s".
Example
safe - safes
5 Nouns ending in "-ics" can take on both singular and plural forms.
Example
mathematics - mathematics
6 Sheepand deer do not change at all for the plural.
B: Represented by a number, such as two cats, five books.
Example
Represented by a number: There are six dogs in the room.
Rules For Using Countable Nouns
1 We can use the indefinite article a/an with countable nouns:
Example A dog is an animal.
2 When a countable noun is singular, we must use a word like a/the/my/this with it:
Example
I want an orange. (not I want orange.)
Where is my bottle? (not Where is bottle?)
3 When a countable noun is plural, we can use it alone:
Example
I like oranges.
Bottles can break.
4 We can use some and any with countable nouns(not singular):
Example
I've got some dollars.
Have you got any pens?
5 We can use a few and many with countable nouns:(not much, little)
Example
I've got a few dollars.
I haven't got many pens.