Kelas : 4 EA 15
Npm : 12209431
Dosen : Noni Marlianingsih
http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/nouns-un-countable.htm
Countable Nouns
Countable
nouns are easy to recognize. They are things that we can count. For example:
"pen". We can count pens. We can have one, two, three or more pens.
Here are some more countable nouns:
- dog, cat, animal, man, person
- bottle, box, litre
- coin, note, dollar
- cup, plate, fork
- table, chair, suitcase, bag
Countable
nouns can be singular or plural:
- My dog is playing.
- My dogs are hungry.
We can use
the indefinite article a/an with countable nouns:
- A dog is an animal.
When a
countable noun is singular, we must use a word like a/the/my/this with
it:
- I want an orange. (not I want orange.)
- Where is my bottle? (not Where is bottle?)
When a
countable noun is plural, we can use it alone:
- I like oranges.
- Bottles can break.
We can use
some and any with countable nouns:
- I've got some dollars.
- Have you got any pens?
We can use
a few and many with countable nouns:
- I've got a few dollars.
- I haven't got many pens.
Uncountable Nouns
Uncountable
nouns are substances, concepts etc that we cannot divide into separate
elements. We cannot "count" them. For example, we cannot count
"milk". We can count "bottles of milk" or "litres of
milk", but we cannot count "milk" itself. Here are some more
uncountable nouns:
- music, art, love, happiness
- advice, information, news
- furniture, luggage
- rice, sugar, butter, water
- electricity, gas, power
- money, currency
We usually
treat uncountable nouns as singular. We use a singular verb. For example:
- This news is very important.
- Your luggage looks heavy.
We do not
usually use the indefinite article a/an with uncountable nouns. We
cannot say "an information" or "a music". But we can say a
something of:
- a piece of news
- a bottle of water
- a grain of rice
We can use
some and any with uncountable nouns:
- I've got some money.
- Have you got any rice?
We can use
a little and much with uncountable nouns:
- I've got a little money.
- I haven't got much rice.
Uncountable nouns are also called
"mass nouns".
Here are
some more examples of countable and uncountable nouns:
Countable
|
Uncountable
|
Dollar
|
Money
|
Song
|
Music
|
Suitcase
|
Luggage
|
Table
|
Furniture
|
Battery
|
Electricity
|
Bottle
|
Wine
|
Report
|
information
|
Tip
|
Advice
|
Journey
|
Travel
|
Job
|
Work
|
View
|
Scenery
|
When you
learn a new word, it's a good idea to learn whether it's countable or
uncountable.
Nouns that can be Countable and
Uncountable
Sometimes,
the same noun can be countable and uncountable, often with a change of
meaning.
Countable
|
Uncountable
|
|
There are two hairs in my coffee!
|
hair
|
I don't have much hair.
|
There are two lights in our
bedroom.
|
light
|
Close the curtain. There's too
much light!
|
Shhhhh! I thought I heard a noise.
There are so many different noises in the city. |
noise
|
It's difficult to work when there
is so much noise.
|
Have you got a paper to read?
(newspaper)
Hand me those student papers. |
paper
|
I want to draw a picture. Have you
got some paper?
|
Our house has seven rooms.
|
room
|
Is there room for me to sit here?
|
We had a great time at the party.
How many times have I told you no? |
time
|
Have you got time for a cup of
coffee?
|
Macbeth is one of Shakespeare's greatest
works.
|
work
|
I have no money. I need work!
|
Partitive Structure with Uncountable
Nouns
To count
or quantify an uncountable noun we use a unit of measurement - a measure
word. For example, we cannot usually say “two breads” because “bread” is
uncountable. So, if we want to specify a quantity of bread we use a measure
word such as “loaf” or “slice” in a structure like “two loaves of bread” or
“two slices of bread”. We call this structure a partitive structure.
p
a r t i t i v e s t r u c t u r e
|
|||
quantity
|
measure
word
(partitive, countable noun) |
"of"
|
uncountable
noun
|
two cups of coffee
several games of tennis a drop of water |
We can use
the same uncountable noun in different partitive expressions with different
meanings. For example, a loaf of bread and a slice of bread are
partitive expressions with different meanings. A loaf of bread is what
we call a whole unit of bread that we buy from a baker. A slice of bread
is what we call a smaller unit of bread after it has been cut from a
loaf.
Here are
some more examples:
- Don't forget to buy a bag of rice when you go shopping.
- Can I have one cup of coffee and two cups of tea.
- The police found some items of clothing scattered around the floor.
- I need a truck that will take at least three pieces of furniture.
- You'd think a tablespoon of honey would be more than enough.
TCerita rakyat from West
Java
Prabu Tapa Agung had led a
kingdom in West Java for a long time. He was getting old and therefore wanted
to choose a successor. But unfortunately, he had no son. He thought of choosing
one of his daughters, Purbararang and Purbasari. But it wasn’t an easy choice.
They were both very pretty and smart. The only difference was their
temperament. Purbararang was rude and dishonest, while Purbasari was kind and
caring. With those considerations, Prabu Tapa Agung finally chose Purbasari to
be his successor.
Purbararang
didn’t agree with her father’s decision. “It’s supposed to be me, Father. I’m
the eldest daughter!” Purbararang said. Prabu Tapa Agung smiled. “Purbararang,
to be a queen takes more than age. There are many other qualities that one must
possess,” explained Prabu Tapa Agung wisely. “What does Purbasari have that I
don’t?” Purbararang pouted. “You’ll find out when Purbasari has replaced me,”
Prabu Tapa Agung answered.
After
the discussion, Purbararang went back to her room. “Is there something wrong?”
asked Indrajaya. Indrajaya is Purbararang’s future husband. “I’m upset! Father
chose Purbasari as his successor and not me! I have to do something!”
Purbararang said. Driven mad by her anger, she came to a witch and asked her to
send rash all over Purbasari’s body. Before going to bed, Purbasari started to
feel itch all over her body. She tried applying powder to her body, but it’s no
use. Instead, the itching grew even worse. She didn’t want to scratch it, but
she just couldn’t help it. In the next morning, there were scratch mark all
over Purbasari’s body. “What happened to you?” asked Purbararang, pretending to
be concerned. “I don’t know, sis. Last night, my body suddenly felt very itchy.
I scratched and scratched, and this is what happened,” Purbasari answered.
Purbararang shook her head. “You must have done something really awful. You’ve
been punished by the gods!”
That
day, the whole kingdom was scandalized. “What have you done, Purbasari?”
demanded Prabu Tapa Agung. Purbasari shook her head. “I didn’t do anything that
would upset the gods, Father,” she answered. “Then how can you explain what
happened to your body?” Prabu Tapa Agung asked again. “If you don’t confess,
I’ll banish you to the woods.” Purbasari took a deep breath. “Like I said
before, I didn’t do anything wrong. And I’d rather be thrown into the woods
than to confess to a deed I didn’t commit.”
After
a short discussion with his advisor, Prabu Tapa Agung ordered Purbasari to be
moved to the woods. Purbasari was very sad, but she couldn’t do anything to
defy her father’s order. She was accompanied to the woods by a messenger. He
built a simple hut for Purbasari. After the messenger left, suddenly a black
monkey came to Purbasari’s hut. He carried a bunch of bananas. From behind him,
some animals looked on. “Are the bananas for me?’ Purbasari asked. The black
monkey nodded, as if he understood what Purbasari said. Purbasari took the
bananas with pleasure. She also said thanks. The other animals that were
looking on also seemed to smile. “Are you willing to be my friend?” Purbasari
asked them. All the animals nodded happily. Although she was living by herself
in the woods, Purbasari never lacked of supplies. Everyday, there were always
animals bringing her fruits and fish to eat.
A long
time had passed since Purbasari was banished to the woods, but her body still
itched. At some places, her skin was even ulcerating. What am I supposed to
do?” Purbasari sighed. The monkey who was sitting next to her stayed still,
there were tears in his eyes. He hoped Purbasari would remain patient and
strong.
One
night, on a full moon, the monkey took Purbasari to a valley. There is a pond
with hot spring water. The monkey suddenly spoke, “The water of this pond will
heal your skin,” he said. Purbasari was surprised, ”You can talk? Who are you?”
she asked. “You’ll find out, in time,” the monkey said. Purbasari didn’t want
to force the monkey. She then walked to the pond. She bathed there. After a few
hours, Purbasari walked out of the pond. She was shocked to see her face
reflected on the clear pond water. Her face was beautiful again, with smooth
and clean skin. Purbasari observed her entire body. There were no traces of any
skin ailments. “I’m cured! I’m cured!” Purbasari shouted in joy. She quickly
offered thanks to the gods and also to the monkey.
The
news of Purbasari’s condition quickly spread to the kingdom, irritating
Purbararang. She then accompanied by Indrajaya go to the woods to see
Purbasari. Purbasari asked if she would be allowed to go home. Purbararang said
she would let Purbasari return to the palace if Purbasari’s hair were longer
than hers. Purbararang then let her hair down. It was so long, it almost
touched the ground. But it turned out that Purbasari’s hair was twice longer
than Purbararang’s hair.
“Fine,
so your hair is longer than mine.” Purbararang admitted. “But there is one more
condition you must fulfill, do you have a future husband who is handsomer than
mine?” said Purbararang as she walked toward Indrajaya. Purbasari felt
miserable. She didn’t have a future husband yet. So, without much thought, she
pulled the black monkey beside her.
Purbararang
and Indrajaya burst out, but their laughter didn’t last long. The monkey
meditates and suddenly transformed into a very handsome young man, a lot more
handsome than Indrajaya. “I’m a prince from a kingdom far away. I was cursed to
be a monkey because of a mistake I committed. I could regain my true form only
if there’s a girl who would be willing to be my wife,” said the young man.
Finally,
Purbararang gave up. She accepted Purbasari as the queen, and also confessed
everything she had done. “Please forgive me. Please don’t punish me,”
Purbararang said, asking for forgiveness. Instead of being angry, Purbasari
smiled. “I forgive you, sis,” she said. Soon after, Purbasari become queen.
Beside her was the handsome prince, the former monkey known as Lutung Kasarung.
http://feradesliaahyar.wordpress.com/2013/02/11/10-cerita-rakyat-dalam-bahasa-inggris/