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A, some, any – countable and uncountable nouns

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  • Countable nouns

    Countable nouns are nouns that we can count: car, house, book, etc. We can say one car, two cars, three cars, etc.

    Countable nouns have singular and plural forms: a car/cars, a house/houses, a book/books, etc.

    A/an + singular countable noun

    We CANNOT use a singular countable noun without a determiner like a/an, the, my, your, her, etc.

    • I have car. 
    • I have a car.
    • When I was child. 
    • When I was a child.

    Uncountable nouns

    Uncountable nouns are nouns that we cannot count: money, milk, rain, etc. We cannot say one money, two moneys, etc. So, uncountable nouns do not have a plural form; they only have a singular form: money, milk, rain, etc.

    Do NOT use a/an

    We cannot use a/an + uncountable noun. A/an means ‘one’, and we cannot count uncountable nouns.

    • I need a money.
    • I need money.
    • We need to buy a sugar. 
    • We need to buy sugar.

    Types of words that are uncountable

    Some types of words that are typically uncountable are:

    Food, drinks and liquids: cheese, bread, pasta, coffee, milk, petrol, fuel, etc.

    Materials: iron, wood, metal, paper, plastic, etc.

    Abstract ideas and feelings: information, advice, strength, time, love, excitement, etc.

    Illnesses: diabetes, Alzheimer’s, cancer, etc.

    Languages: English, French, Spanish, etc.

    For the common mistake ‘an information’, see our dictionary entry on information.

    Uncountable in English but not in other languages

    Some nouns are uncountable in English, but they are countable in other languages. Some of them are advice, news (it ends in -s, but it’s a singular word), furniture, luggage, baggage, bread, cheese, toast, etc.

    To understand why we say ‘the news is’, not ‘the news are’, see our dictionary entry on news.

    Nouns that can be countable and uncountable

    Some nouns can be countable and uncountable because they can refer to a unit or to ‘mass’ or ‘material’. Compare:

    • Yesterday I had two coffees. (= two cups of coffee)
    • I love coffee. (= the liquid that we drink)
    • I found one hair in my soup. (one single hair)
    • She has beautiful hair. (= the mass of hair on her head)

    A/an, some, any

    Grammar chart outlining the use of 'a/an', 'some', and 'any' with countable singular, countable plural, and uncountable nouns in positive statements, questions, and negative statements.

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    A/an

    We use a/an + singular countable noun.

    • I have a new car. 
    • She has a brother and a sister.

    We cannot use a/an before a plural noun or an uncountable noun.

    • We need to buy a sugar. 
    • I need to buy sugar.
    • We saw a very beautiful places. 
    • We saw very beautiful places.

    Some/any

    We use some and any before countable plural nouns or uncountable singular nouns.

    • He gave me some coins. 
    • He didn’t give me any coins.
    • He gave me some money.

    Some

    We use some in positive sentences.

    • We cooked some cookies. 

    Any

    We use any in negative sentences and questions.

    • She didn’t send me any messages.
    • Have you got any brothers or sisters?

    For the difference between ‘any student’ and ‘any students’, see our dictionary entry on any.

    ❗ But we use some in questions when we are asking for something, or we are offering something.

    • Can I have some tea? (=I’m asking for some tea.)
    • Would you like some tea? (=I’m offering you some tea.)