Ch 6 · Lesson 10English · Chapter 6 · Lesson 10 · Grammar primer
Advice, information, news: no a, no -s
The uncountable nouns that catch everyone: some advice, not an advice; information, not informations; and the news is good, not are.
The short version
Advice, information and news have no plural
.
Why?Hide
Countability is a fact about the English word, not about the world, which is why sugar and luggage are uncountable while coin is not. Uncountable nouns take a singular verb, never a or an, and never an s. To count one, put a unit in front and join them with of: a piece of advice, two pieces of advice.
The uncountable nouns that catch everyone
These are uncountable in English, and learners often count them.
| Noun | Wrong | Right |
|---|---|---|
| an advice | | |
| informations | | |
| a news | | |
| furnitures | | |
| luggage | two luggages | |
| a work (a job) | | |
| homeworks | | |
| a nice weather | | |
| my hairs are long | | |
| many traffics | |
An uncountable noun takes a singular verb:
..
News and maths end in s but are singular too:
. .
Going further: Countable or uncountable? and the rest of the guide, when you want them. This lesson does not need them.
Practice
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