GUIDE ENGLISH GRAMMAR BOOK

PAGE 175
17
Nouns and noun phrases
141 Summary
Nouns • 142
Nouns are words like cup, democracy, game, driver, Chicago. They do not have
special endings to show that they are nouns, or to show that they are subject or
object.
Noun phrases • 143
A noun combines with other words in a noun phrase.
the cup our democracy an exciting game
Determiners, quantifiers and modifiers come in a fixed order before the noun.
my three brothers both the clocks a blue van
Countable and uncountable nouns • 144
Countable nouns can be singular or plural.
house(s) telephone(s) problem(s)
Uncountable nouns are neither singular nor plural.
music happiness butter
We cannot use an uncountable noun with a/an. NOT a butter
But we can say a pound of butter.
Some nouns can be either countable or uncountable, depending on the context.
peel an onion/a pizza with onion
The plural of nouns • 145
We use the plural for more than one, and for a negative or unknown quantity.
I've been here three weeks. Have you got any cassettes?
The possessive form • 146
The possessive form of a noun expresses possession and other relations.
Pat's house the twins' parents the company's future
We can sometimes use the pattern the parents of the twins.
Two nouns together • 147
We often use one noun before another.
department store alarm system boat-train businessman
The first noun tells us what kind of store, system, train or man.