Page 78 - Basic English Usage

92 78

Some copula verbs are used to talk about change. The most common
are become, get, grow, go and turn.
It's becoming colder. _ It’s getting colder. (informal)
It’s growing colder. (literary)
The leaves are turning brown. (formal)
The leaves are going brown. (informal — see 146)
Other copula verbs are used to say that things do not change. The most
common are stay, remain and keep.
How does she stay so young?
| hope you will always remain so charming.
Keep calm.

92 countable and uncountable nouns

Countable nouns are the names of separate objects, people, ideas etc
which we can count.
We can use numbers and a/an with countable nouns; they have plurais.
acat three cats anewspaper two newspapers
Uncountable nouns are the names of materials, liquids, and other things
which we do not see as separate objects. We cannot use a/an or
numbers with uncountable nouns; they have no plurals.
water(NOT @water-twe-waters)
wool(NOT @weet-twe-weels)
weather(NOT @weather-twe-weathers)
countable — uncountable

We cannot usually put a/an with an uncountable noun even when there
is an adjective.
My father enjoys very good health. (NOT ... avery geedheatth-)
We're having terrible weather.(NOT ... @tertible-weather-)
He speaks good English. (NOT ... ageed-Engtish-)

Usually it is easy to see if a noun is countable or uncountable. Obviously
house is a countable noun, and airis not. But sometimes things are not
so Clear. For instance, travel and journey have very similar meanings,
but travel is uncountable (it means ‘travelling in general’) and journey is
countable (it means ‘one movement from one place to another’).
Also, different languages see the world in different ways. For example
hairis uncountable in English, but plural countable in many languages;
grapes are plural countable in English, but uncountable in some
Janguages.
Here are some more nouns which are uncountable in English, but
countable in some other languages, together with related singular
countable expressions.