SEMINAR 5
Nouns
Irregular and Special Plurals
1. Irregular plurals in –ves
The following nouns ending in –f(e) have plurals in –ves: calf, elf, half, knife, leaf, life, loaf, self, sheaf,
shelf, thief, wife, and wolf.
The following nouns can have plurals in either –fs or –ves: dwarf, hoof, scarf, and wharf.
Other words ending in -f(e) are regular, e.g. cliff, handkerchief, or safe.
2. Other irregular plurals
child
foot
goose
louse
man
mouse






children
feet
geese
lice
men
mice
ox
penny
person
tooth
woman





oxen
pence
people
teeth
women
analyses
appendices or appendixes
bacteria
bases
cacti or cactuses
crises
criteria
diagnoses
formulae
fungus
hypothesis
medium
nucleus
oasis
phenomenon
radius
stimulus
vertebra









fungi
hypotheses
media
nuclei
oases
phenomena
radii or radiuses
stimuli
vertebrae
-is  -es
-um  -a
-a 
-ae
3. Foreign plurals
Analysis
Appendix
Bacterium
Basis
Cactus
Crisis
Criterion
Diagnosis
Formula
Thus:









-us  -i
-on  -a
Task 1: Suggest appropriate plural forms.
1. baby
2. loss
3. octopus
4. calf
5. medium
6. key
7. berry
8. wolf
9. goose
10. stimulus
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
phenomenon
way
enemy
church
thesis
memorandum
way
wish
analysis
match
Task 2: Correct mistakes in the sentences below
1. These new criterias make it more difficult for people to migrate.
2. We still don´t have explanations for such phenomenons.
3. The medias, especially television, have a powerful influence.
4. In this dissertation I will test the following three hypothesi.
5. Recent analyses of fish stocks in the Atlantic Ocean in 2008, 2010 and 2012 has shown a dramatic
decline.
6. In 1901, hours of employment were officially limited to a maxima of 12 hours a day.
Task 3: Choose the correct alternative.
1. Physics weren´t /wasn´t my hobby.
2. Police are/is after him.
3. Cattle has/have been the country´s main source of income for many years.
4. The United States are/is investigating the matter.
5. When is/are the steelworks to close down?
6. They usually have toast/toasts for breakfast.
Countable and Uncountable Nouns
Countable nouns:
- may be used after numbers
- may be made plural
- use a singular or a plural verb
- may be used after many, few, fewer
- are never used after much
Uncountable nouns:
- are never used after numbers
- are never plural
- use only singular verbs
- are never used after many, few, fewer
- may be used after much
Singular Countable Nouns:
- may be used after a/an
- never appear without a preceding article, demonstrative, or possessive
Plural Countable Nouns and Uncountable Nouns:
- are never used after a/an
- may appear without a preceding article, demonstrative, or possessive
Common Uncountable Nouns:
Liquids
Gases (including smog and air pollution)
Things that have tiny parts and things that are usually weighed or measured, rather than counted
(wheat, rice, corn, salt, pepper, cinnamon, flour, sugar, sand, dirt, dust, gravel, grass, mold, hair)
Solids that can be cut into smaller pieces (bread, butter, cheese, meat, paper, wood, cotton, gold, silver,
iron, film, glass, chalk, ice)
Natural phenomena (darkness, dew, electricity, fog, gravity, hail, heat, humidity, light, lightening, rain,
sleet, snow, sunshine, thunder, weather, wind)
Diseases (cancer, chicken pox, cholera, flu, heart disease, malaria, measles, rabies, scabies, smallpox)
Groups made up of similar individual items (art, baggage, cash, change, clothing, equipment, food, fruit,
furniture, garbage, grammar, hardware, homework, housework, information, jewelry, junk, knowledge,
luggage, machinery, mail, makeup, merchandise, money, music, news, postage, research, scenery,
slang, traffic, vocabulary, work)
Abstractions (advice, anger, beauty, behavior, communication, confidence, courage, education, energy,
enjoyment, evidence, fun, happiness, health, help, honesty, hospitality, importance, intelligence, justice,
love, luck, patience, peace, poverty, progress, proof, significance, sleep, time, truth, violence, wealth)
Languages (English, Czech, German, French)
Fields of study (chemistry, engineering)
Sports, recreational activities, and activities in general (baseball, chess, swimming)
Task 4: On the basis of the rules for using articles, which combinations of words below are permitted
and which ones aren't? Put an X next to the incorrect combinations.
1. an evidence
2. these news
3. some information
4. a chaos
5. a paper
6. the sociology
7. a few proofs
8. a luggage
9. a progress
10. how many damage?
11. a job
12. few work
13. these knowledge
14. little knowledge
15. how much news?
Task 5: Correct mistakes in the following sentences
1. You need a good advice about choosing a career.
2. They were not able to provide me with many detailed information.
3. A heavy traffic affects our environment.
4. His lawyer produced many important new evidence.
5. We need another information before we can reach a decision.
6. You cannot leave the country without a special permission.
7. There is two good domestic news in the paper today.
8. Tabloids just spread gossips.
9. Have you done a research on it?
10. I am currently looking for a good work.
11. How many work experiences do you have?
12. Television provides a mean by which people discover what is happening in the world.
13. Her researches are definitely making great progresses these days. She has done a lot of original
works recently.
Task 6: Decide whether these sentences need the definite article a(n).
1. He gave us all …… advice on how to apply for the subsidies.
2. I´m sorry, I can´t come. I have …… homework to do.
3. She´s doing …… investigation on teenage slang in English for her university project.
4. Paul´s got a grant? That´s …… interesting news!
Task 7: Translate into English
1. Jak velkou praxi potřebuješ, abys sehnal dobrou práci?
2. Zprávy v televizi dnes neposkytují příliš mnoho spolehlivých informací.
3. Má nějaké znalosti ve svém oboru, ale ne dostatečné.
4. Země BRICu dělají velké ekonomické pokroky.
5. Povodně nadělaly velké škody na majetku.
6. Potřebujeme další nové důkazy.
7. Po válce se tato země ocitla v naprostém chaosu.
8. Všechny peníze jdou do výzkumu.
9. Malé znalosti jsou nebezpečná věc.
10. Čas jsou peníze.
Task 8: Fill in the blank with the form of the noun in parentheses that is appropriate to the grammatical
context of the sentence and the meaning of the passage as a whole.
Diabetes: Beyond the Basics
Because diabetes can cause devastating _________ (damage, damages) to virtually all body ________
(system, systems), people with diabetes should not underrate the seriousness of their disease. Learning
to live with a chronic ________ (illness, illnesses) such as diabetes must be an ongoing process.
The Hospital's Center for Family Life Education is sponsoring a five-part educational series on diabetes.
The series will begin on April 30 and continue through May 29. The _________ (program, programs) will
be held in the second floor classroom of the Education Center from 7-9 p.m.
The diabetes series is free and open to the public and will be of specific _________ (interest, interests)
to people who have diabetes and their families and friends.
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/exercises/2/10/26
Task 9: Discussion/Writing
1. Emergency preparedness professionals say that we should all keep sufficient supplies in our homes
for living for three days without help in case of a natural disaster, such as an earthquake, or a flood, or a
human-caused disaster, such as a chemical spill or a terrorist attack. Working with a partner or a small
group, create a list of necessary supplies for survival. Use numbers and plural endings with countable
nouns; don’t use numbers or plural endings with uncountable nous.
2. Imagine that you are going to prepare a special dinner for friends and that you want to include two or
three of your favorite dishes. Make a shopping list for the things you will need to buy. Use numbers and
plural endings with countable nouns; don’t use them with uncountable nouns.
Most common nouns which are usually uncountable in English, but countable in other
languages:
accommodation
advice
baggage
bread
chess
chewing gum
equipment
furniture
grass
information
knowledge
lightning
luck
luggage
a place to live
a piece of advice
a piece of baggage; a
case/trunk/bag
a piece/loaf/roll of
bread
a game of chess
a piece of chewing gum
a piece of equipment; a
tool etc.
a piece/article of
furniture
a blade of grass
a piece of information
a fact
a flash of lightening
a bit/stroke of luck
a piece of luggage; a
case/trunk/bag
money
news
permission
a note; a coin; a sum
a piece of news
---
poetry
a poem
progress
publicity
research
a step forward
an advertisement
a piece of research
rubbish
a piece of rubbish
spaghetti
thunder
traffic
travel
work
a piece of spaghetti
a clap of thunder
--a journey/trip
a job; a piece of work
Task 10: Complete the blanks.
1. __________ of research
2. __________ of lightening
3. __________ of thunder
4. __________ of chess
5. __________ of furniture
6. __________ of grass
7. __________ of luck
8. __________ of bread
Task 11: Match words that go together.
accommodation
baggage/luggage
equipment
knowledge
money
poetry
progress
publicity
travel
work
a case
a poem
a trip
a coin
a tool
a place to live
a step forward
a fact
a job
an advertisement
Nouns which may be uncountable or countable
Many nouns which are generally uncountable can also be countable in certain contexts.
Some nouns are uncountable when we talk about the substance, material or abstract concept but
countable when we talk about one specific item: chicken/a chicken, light/a light, stone/a stone, hope/a
hope, education/an education, hair/a hair
Some nouns are uncountable when we talk about the material and countable when we refer to a specific
thing have a particular meaning as countable nouns. For example, glass refers to a material. A glass
refers to an item that we drink from which is made of glass. It does not refer to a piece of glass: wood/a
wood, paper/a paper, iron/an iron, cloth/a cloth
Some nouns which are usually uncountable can be countable when we refer to a particular variety:
wine/an excellent wine, cheese/a strong cheese, fruit/a very sweet fruit
In informal English, drinks and some types of food which are normally uncountable can be counted,
particularly when we are making an order in a café or restaurant: tea/three teas, coffee/a coffee,
soup/two soups
Some ing forms can be countable: painting/a good painting, drawing/a few drawings
Task 12: Write “a” before the nouns which are being used as countable nouns.
1.
a) _____Beauty is subjective
b) She’s _____ real beauty.
2.
a) I am fortunate to have had _____ very good education.
b) _____ education does not just take place at school.
3.
a) My eyes are very sensitive to _____ light.
b) Is there _____ light in there?
4.
a) You’ve been _____ great help to me.
b) I’m sorry to ask you but I desperately need _____ help.
5.
a) I don’t usually drink _____ coffee.
b) I’ll have two teas and _____ coffee please.
6.
a) He has _____ great love of music.
b) Sometimes _____ love can be very painful.
7.
a) You’ll get better at the job as you gain _____ experience.
b) I’m so glad I did it? It was _____ wonderful experience.
8.
a) The house is built of _____ stone.
b) This is _____ beautiful stone.
9.
a) _____ death comes to us all one day.
b) There’s been _____ death in the family.
10.
a) _____ fear is a perfectly natural human feeling.
b) He has _____ terrible fear of heights.
11.
a) He was so hungry that he ate _____ whole chicken.
b) I don’t like red meat but I do eat _____ chicken.
12.
a) I think that’s _____ really ugly painting.
b) _____ painting can be a very relaxing activity.
13.
a) I usually eat _____ fruit for breakfast.
b) That’s _____ very unusual fruit. What is it?
14.
a) Has this soup got _____ potato in it?
b) Would you like _____ baked potato?
15.
a) You shouldn’t drink _____ wine on an empty stomach.
b) This is _____ very nice wine.
Nominalization
Nominalization from verbs:
e.g. clarify – clarification, demonstrate – demonstration, fluctuate – fluctuation, innovate – innovation,
legislate – legislation, motivate – motivation, predict – prediction, produce – production, reduce –
reduction, resolve – resolution
Nominalization from adjectives:
e.g. beneficial – benefit, coherent – coherence, enormous – enormity, intelligent – intelligence, logical –
logic, relevant – relevance, secure – security, similar – similarity, stable – stability
Task 13: Complete the second sentence so that it has the same meaning as the first. Use one noun in
each space.
1.
a) It is essential to communicate regularly but briefly with the sales force in the field.
b) Regular but brief ______________ with the sales force in the field is essential.
2.
a) Local authorities preserved a wide area of land from being developed, and this allowed them
to create a park
b) The _______________ of a wide area of land from _______________ allowed local
authorities to create a park.
3.
a) The presenter questioned whether some of the research into prime numbers was relevant.
b) The ______________ of some of the research into prime numbers was questioned by the
presenter.
4.
a) Orton supports Foster, who predicts slow economic growth led by the service sector.
b) Orton supports Foster in his _______________ of slow economic growth led by the service
sector.
5.
a) The political situation must be stable before it is possible for poverty in this part of Africa to
be eliminated.
b) The _______________ of the political situation is a pre-condition for the __________ of
poverty in this part of Africa.
Noun Phrases
Task 14: Rewrite the underlined parts of the sentences, following the instructions in brackets.
1. The 2004 inquiry into the funding of the arts in the regions (use three words) criticized the way
in which grants awarded by government (use two words) had been distributed.
2. Stonebridge (2009) explores the phenomenon of riots that take place in the summer (use two
words) in UK and American cities.
3. New legislation is unlikely to change beliefs that have been held for a long time (use a
compound adjective and a noun) over the place of religion in society.
4. Freedom of the press (use two words) and human rights are often linked, argues Hogg (2010).
5. A documentary that was broadcast recently (use a compound adjective and a noun) suggested
that residents in care homes (use three words) are not always treated with the respect they
deserve.
6. Allegations of bribery (use two words) have been made against several European companies
that trade in oil (use a compound adjective and a noun).
7. Drivers of tankers that carry fuel (use two words) are required to take a test in fire safety (use
three words).
8. Trucks that have broken down (use a compound adjective and a noun) are sometimes
abandoned in this region because of a lack of spare parts.
9. Products made from plastic (use two words) are rarely biodegradable.
10. Reliable statistics for the length of time that people are expected to live (use three words) are
not yet available for the island.
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academic purposes with answers. Oxford: Oxford University Press, c2013. ISBN 978-0-19-432999-6.
SWAN, Michael. Practical English usage. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996, 654 s. ISBN
01-944-2146-5.
THOMSON, A a A MARTINET. A practical English grammar. 4th ed., low priced ed. Oxford: Oxford
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http://owl.english.purdue.edu/exercises/2/10/26