Page 195 - English Vocabulary in Use (Pre & Intermediate)

94 Partitives

There are many different words used to describe a particular quantity of something. Usually
the word is joined to the noun it describes with ‘of’.
A Containers (e.g. a bag) and contents (e.g. of shopping)
a carton of
_
a box of orange juice a can of 2 a cup 0 f a tube of
chocolates coffee toothpaste
a bag of
er
shopping

a bow] of a glass of a packet of a jug of a bottle of a jar of a vase of
sugar water cigarettes milk wine marmalade flowers

With uncountable nouns

When we use uncountable nouns (e.g. advice), we sometimes want to talk about one of
something. We cannot say as-adviee or one-adviee, but we can use certain words to make
these nouns singular: a sheet of paper (= one piece of paper) or a slice of bread (= one piece
of bread). We can actually use the word piece with many nouns:

a piece of cake a piece of wood
You can use piece with some abstract nouns, e.g. a piece of information, a piece of luck.
The most common partitive is a bit, which is informal and used with many nouns. It usually
means a small amount but can be quite general. It can be used with the examples above,
and more: a bit of butter, a bit of time, etc.

A pair of...
Some nouns have two parts, e.g. trousers (two legs) and shoes (left and right). You can use
a pair of to specify the number, e.g. a pair of skis, two pairs of shoes, three pairs of tights.

Groups of things a gang of youths/
iy kids/teenagers
as

a herd of cows
a group of people a bunch of grapes
Gang has a negative meaning: it suggests a group of young people who may cause trouble.

192 English Vocabulary in Use (pre-intermediate & intermediate)