Nouns

 Definition.
 Kinds of nouns.
- Simple nouns.
- Compound nouns.
- Noun phrases.
- Gerund.
- Noun clauses.
- How to make a noun plural.
- Nouns generic, group, pair, singular, and plural.
 Definition
Nouns are words that name people, place, things, and etc, or (a quality and idea).Nouns
can be found anywhere in a sentence and most sentences contain several nouns. One
way to find nouns is to look for the little words a, an, and the (articles). The naming word
that comes after them is probably a noun. Sometimes nouns appear without these
articles but you can usually insert them with changing the meaning of the sentence.
The following table list is a variety of nouns:

Examples of nouns
People carol, children, boys
Place province, lake, hospital
Thing Objects Substance Action Measurement
TV, house, pen Iron, gold, silk Race, dance Kilogram
Animal Cat, locust, wasp, chameleon
Quality Beauty, generosity, kindness
- Ebtissam and her children visited the continent of Africa and saw some savage lions.
- Ebtissam is a noun that names a person.
- Children is a noun that names people.
- Continent is a noun that names a thing.
- Africa is a noun that names a place.
- Lions is a plural noun that names animals.

Kinds of nouns
1. Simple nouns:
simple nouns can be classified into three categories( common nouns – proper nouns –
collective nouns)
A. Common nouns: they can be divided into two parts:
 Countable nouns: they are nouns which can be singular or plural and are
normally used to refer to people, countries, and objects or actions and events
which can be thought of as separate individual things and can be counted (actor,
bird, car)
 Non-countable nouns: they usually refer to a whole group of things that are
made up of different varieties, for example, "furniture" is a non-countable noun,
it describes a whole category of things.
Individual parts The whole
(countable) (non-countable) you cannot make them plural
Chairs
Bed sheets Furniture
Tables

They are not used with a, and an. We also use them to talk about substance, materials,
abstracts ideas, qualities, and states activities.
Examples for non-count nouns:
1. Some common nouns refer to a whole group made up of individual parts
A B C D E F
clothing homework grammar Arabic dirt history
fruit housework slang French corn literature
traffic work vocabulary Chinese hair music

2. Liquids, solids and semi-solids, and gases:

Coffee, tea, milk, water, soup, oil, bread, meat, butter, beef, chicken, fish, ice,
toothpaste, air, pollution, smog, smoke, ink, petrol, shampoo.
3. Things that occur in nature:
Weather, darkness, thunder, rain, light, lightening, snow, sunshine.
 Abstract: is a noun that names a feeling, quality or state rather than an object,
animal, or person.
4. Activities: camping, jogging, shopping, tennis, and training.
5. Abstractions: they are the nouns of things that cannot be touched. They are the
names of meaning. For example, beauty, courage, experience, fun , generosity,
happiness, health, help, honesty, ignorance, knowledge, luck, patience, progress,
time, violence, anger, bravery, education, freedom, love, poverty, safety, research,
evidence.
6. Materials and substance: wool, cotton, glass, iron, paper.

Using units of measure with non-count nouns.

- I had some tea.
- I had two cups of tea.
- I ate some toast.
- I ate a piece of toast.
To mention a specific quantity of a non-count noun, speakers sue units of measure such as
cups of and pieces of a unit of measure describes the container ( a cup of, a bowl of), the
amount ( a pound of, a quart of), or the shape ( a bar of, a sheet of).
 Nouns that can be count and non-count

Nouns As non-count As count

Glass Window are made of glass. I drank a glass of juice.
She wears glasses.
Hair She has beautiful hair. There is a hair on my jacket.
Business She owns business. Business is booming.
Iron Iron is a metal. I pressed my shirt with an iron.
Light I let some light go in my room. Turn off the lights, please.
Paper I need some paper. I wrote a paper.
Time How much time does it take? How many times has he been
there?
Work I have some work to do. That painting is a work of art.
Coffee I had some coffee after dinner. Two coffees, please.
Chicken\Fish I ate some chicken \ fish. Here is a picture of a chicken and a
fish.
Experience I haven't had much experience I had many interesting experiences
with computers. on my trip.

 In addition to some, a speaker might use several, a few, a lot of, etc. with plural
count nouns or a little, a lot of, etc. with non-count nouns.
 To make the nouns above countable or non-countable depends on what they are
used (a single thing, a substance, or general idea)
 We can also use nouns such as piece or drop in phrases which are countable when
we want to talk about separate units or parts of nouns which are non-countable. For
example,
- I could see drops of blood on the floor.
- There was not a piece of fur left in the house.
Others like this include: an act of bravery, a bit of cheese, a bottle of water, a carton
of milk, paper, slices of bread.
 The list you need to know:

Common nouns

count non-count

animate inanimate
(book)

non-
human
human
(boy)
(dog) abstract concrete

lacking plural lacking singular

(shame) (thanks)

lacking
singular lacking plural

inanimate
animate
(goods)

human non-human
(people) (cattle)

KEY WORDS FOR COUNTABLE AND NON-COUNTABLE NOUNS

Countable many – number – few – fewer
Non-countable much – amount – little – less
B. Proper Nouns: are nouns which name a specific person, place or thing. Nouns of a
proper name people, countries, towns, rivers, and seas like: Asma'a, Rawan, Ebtissam,
Majed, Eqbal, the red sea, Yemen, London, Egypt.
Proper nouns have to be written with capital letters.

Proper nouns

animate inanimate

human non-human
(Hana'a) (Fido)

C. Collective nouns: are nouns which name groups of people or things. For example,
family, herd, crowd, army, navy, audience, government, band, bunch.

The position of simple nouns

 Subject : Rakan is a gorgeous guy.
 Object : direct : I like education.
Indirect: I told her a secret.
Of preposition: I am angry with Arwa.
 Direct address: I did see you, Fatima.
 Appositive : my brother, Sadam, is hardworking.

2. Compound nouns:
Compound nouns are two or more nouns functioning as a single unit a compound
noun can be two individual words joined by hyphen or two words combined
together Individual wards \lie detectors Hyphenated words\great uncle

The position of compound nouns

 Subject : Fire fighters have dangerous job.
 Object : direct: I saw some tour guides.
Indirect: I told English students in French stories.
 Direct address: It each many students English students.
 Appositive: Teachers ,hot keepers ,are lazy.
 3. Noun phrases:
before talking about noun phrases, here's a back ground about phrases . a phrase is a
group of words that function in sentence as a single part of speech a phrase
doesn’t have a subject or to make the meaning more precise or to fold in additional
information. a phrase can't stand alone as an independent unit. Noun phrase is a
group of words that together have a particular meaning which is the head word
considered to be a noun.

Noun phrases

simple noun phrase

complex noun phrase
(The tall man is art
full)

containing rlative clause containing gerund

(one thing that i like in you is (the best thing about being abroad
your clean heart) is being tolerant)

Noun phrases and their structure

The structure of a noun phrase in English can be formulaically described as follows:
(pre-determiner) + (central determiner) + (post determiner) + ( pre-modifier / s) + head word +
( post modifier /s ) the brackets here are intended to suggest that the items listed within these
brackets are optional. the only item which is obligatory in the sentence of a noun phrase is the
headword. The three –word classes which operate as pre-modifiers in the structure of a noun
phrase in English are nouns, adjective, and adverbs. the pre modifying role of these three -word
classes may be briefly described as follows:
1. Noun as pre-modifiers:
A noun operating as a pre-modifier in the structure of a noun phrase comes immediately before
the headword
- Frequency count
- Credit card
In many cases a head noun is not pre-modified by a single noun but a noun phrase consisting of
two or more nouns.
- Oxford University Press
- Language disorder studies
The structure of such phrases can be understood in terms of diagrams to be drawn as follows:
- Oxford University Press
As is evident from the following examples, it is possible for a headword to be pre-modified by a
coordinate noun phrase consisting of two or more nouns having the same grammatical status.
- A bread and butter problem
- Cheese and tomato sandwiches
The pre-modifying nouns in a noun phrase can be in the form of a genitive.
- A men's shop
- Women's rights
It is necessary to point out here that genitives operating as pre-modifiers as in these examples
are classifying and not specifying genitives. Classifying genitives operate as pre-modifiers
whereas specifying genitives as central determiners

2. Adjectives as pre-modifiers:
In the structure of a noun phrase, the noun pre-modifier occurs immediately before the
headword. The adjective pre-modifier occurs immediately after the post modifier, and
immediately before the noun pre-modifier.
- Three active student unions
- First reliable frequency count
- Last well-organized university function
3. Adverbs as pre-modifiers:
A noun in English can be pre-modified by an adverb
- The above statement
- The inside story
In many cases the pre-modifying item is not a one-word adverb but an adverbial phrase. For
example, up-to-date information

In certain cases, a complete sentence is downgraded to the status of pre-modifier.

In the preceding examples, it has been shown how nouns, adjectives, and adverbs can be as
pre-modifiers.
- She said this to I do not know how many people.
- They played with I do not know how many people.
- she does not believe in writing such as forget-me-not letter.
In the first two models, the underlined clauses are equivalent to the word "many" and in the
third sentence, the underlined clause is is equal to adjectives like careless and in the fourth
example, the underlined clause is as the same as adjectives like affectionate. These four
sentences can, therefore, be written as follows:
- she said this to many people.
- They played with many people.
- She does not believe in writing such as affectionate letters.
 Post modification in a noun phrase
The post modifying function in the structure of a noun phrase can be realized by anyone of the
following classes of items:
i. Adjectives or adjective phrases
ii. Adverbs
iii. Prepositional phrases
iv. Endocentric noun phrases
v. Non-finite clauses
vi. Finite clauses
Each of these six will now be discussed in some details.

1. Post modifying adjectives and adjective phrases

The appropriate position for an adjective in the structure of a noun phrase is the pre-head
position. However, adjectives do occur in the post head position as well. The contexts in which
they occur in the post-head position are the following:
i. If the headword of a noun phrase is an indefinite pronoun:
- Something spectacular
- Anything new
- Nothing very surprising
- Someone really important
- Anyone longer
ii. There are a number of adjectives which seem to be readily acceptable in the post-
modifying position in the structure. Of a noun phrase. For example, adjectives like alive,
available, concerned, and involved:
- The richest man alive
- The members present
- The person concerned
- The resources available
- The only person responsible
- The finest thing possible
iii. There are number of adjectives which need prepositional phrase in the form of
complemented. Such adjectives are often used in the post-modifying position:
- Laborers a verse to this kind of hard work.
- Boys interested in horse-riding
- Behavior characteristic of lunatics
- A person suitable for this job
iv. There are a number of adjectives which need to be complemented by a non-finite clause
beginning with to such adjectives can be used only as post-modifiers.
- A woman so easy to displease
- A man so easy to please
- Customers willing to pay a higher price
- People prepared to sacrifice their lives
- Too tired to go on a long journey
 v. In certain sentences adjectives are preceded by so and followed by a finite or non-finite
clause. Such adjectives can occur only in post-head position.
- A topic so absent as not to be discussed at all
- A scene so beautiful that cannot be described in words
- A matter so trivial that it had better not be mentioned
- A room so dark as to make us all feel uncomfortable
vi. When an adjective is followed by a clause of comparison, it can occur only in a post-
head position.
- A publisher as good as the Oxford University Press
- An officer more resourceful than I had expected him to be
- A person more talented than anyone else in this institute
vii. Certain fixed phrases operate like idiomatic expression. In such fixed phrases the
adjective can occur only in the post-head position.
- Attorney General
- Advocate General
- Solicitor General
- Court martial
- London proper
- From time immemorial
- The sum total
- God almighty
- Devil incarnate
2. Adverbs as post modifiers:
The post modifying element in the structure of a noun phrase can be an adverbial
phrase.
- That lady there
- The space below
- Five years ago
- This man in here
- The house over there
- The girl outside
3. Prepositional phrases as post modifiers:
The head of a noun phrase may be modified by a prepositional phrases. The following
are some examples:
- A piece of chocolate
- The owner of that house
- The day before yesterday
- The shops in the market
- His objection to my proposal
- The bird on that branch
4. Endocentric noun phrases as post modifiers:
In certain cases, the post modifying element is endocentric noun phrases. This is evident
from the following examples:
- An animal that size
 - A tree this height
- A girl her age
- A car that color
- A rock that shape
The endocentric noun phrases post modifying the headword in such expressions are reduced
form of prepositional phrases. The phrase (an animal that size) is, for example, a reduced form
of (an animal of that size) phrases of this type are typical of informal and colloquial English, but
they seldom occur in formal English
5. Non-finite clauses as post modifiers:
The post modifying element in the structure of a noun phrase can be a non-finite clause.
Such non-finite clauses are of the following three types:
a. Non-finite clauses having an adjectival function. These non-finite clauses are
reduced form of finite relative clauses. In some of these noun phrases the
antecedent function like subject.
- The first man to land on the moon was an American scientist .
- Mine was the first car to arrive at the last destination.
- Today he received a telegram asking him to leave this place
In some other noun phrases of this type, the antecedent operate like the object of transitive
verb.
- These days we have nothing to do for ourselves
- What are the do's and the don'ts to be followed in this connection?
In certain noun phrases of this type, the noun which is post modified by the non-finite clause is
essentially the object of the verb.
- His desire to go to the USA for higher studies remained unfulfilled.
- His wish to be the prime minister of the country is the real motivation for him to do all
this.
There are some other noun phrases in which the relationship between the headword and the
post modifying noun phrase is too complex to be described in terms of clause elements like the
subject or the object.
- She lacks the energy to write such books.
- He does not have the enough courage to face an opponent like you.
- The decision when to leave will be taken next week.
- What you do not have is the ability to explain things.
6. Finite clause as post modifiers:
- A girl who cannot dance says the band cannot play.
- Money is the only thing that matters.
- There is a divinity that shapes our ends. (Shake spear)
- Death is the evil which those who live call life. (Shelley)
- Uneasy lies the head wears a crown. (shake spear)

The position of noun phrases

 Subject: All books are new.
 Object: direct: I saw my brothers there.
 Indirect: I gave my brothers all the books.
Of preposition: I like my quality of writing essays.
 Appositive: She, my sister, is the greatest one in my life.

Gerund
A gerund is a noun in the form of the present participle of a verb.
Its features: - it ends in ing
- it always acts as a noun.

 Compare uses of ing form of the verbs:

- Having special skills make you someone important despite your age.
"Having" is a gerund used as the subject of the sentence.
- They are inserting a lot of programs into the computer.
"inserting" is a present participle used as part of the present progressive tense.
- I heard some shocking news.
"shocking" is a present participle used as adjective.

Gerund are used as the object of certain verbs. For example:

enjoy quit give up consider discuss appreciate
mention finish avoid suggest admit anticipate
mind stop* postpone complete deny dislike
put off delay keep (on) can't stand miss recall
recollect forget* resist risk tolerate recommend

 Compare:
- Stop + infinitive : I stopped to talk to him " I stopped in order to talk to him"
- Stop + gerund: I stopped talking to him " I quit talking to him"
The following are verbs which can be followed either by gerund or by infinitive with no different
meaning:
begin like hate start can't bear
love prefer continue can't stand

A gerund can be a part of a phrase. In that case, the whole packing is called a gerund phrase.
- Playing (gerund)
- Playing football (gerund phrase)

The position of gerunds

 Subject: Studying English is wonderful
 Object: direct : I enjoy helping others
Indirect: I recommended listening carefully to my allies.
Of preposition : I am good at solving problems.
 Appositive: My friend's quality, being kind, is something I like.
PS: gerund cab be used after prepositions, and complement of the verb to be
 Noun clauses
Before talking about noun clauses, here is an explanation about clauses in a brief form.
A clause is a group of words containing a subject and a verb. Clauses are used to enrich
your writing and oral expressions by adding details and making your meaning more
exact. Clauses allow you to combine ideas to show their relationship. A clause is
different from a phrase in its internal structure and its relation to the sentence as whole.
Clauses in English can be studied from the point of view of verbs, structure, and
function. The following section are intended to be a brief discussion of clauses from the
point of view of verbs and function

Classification from the point of view of verbs

From the point of view of verbs, clauses can be divided into the following three types:
1. Finite clauses: a finite clause is one which includes a finite verb that is market for a
tense, and shows number and concord with the subject. For example,
- He helps me to buy books every day. (helps here is a finite verb)
- He goes home every day. (goes here is a finite verb)
is, am, are, was, and were are the finite forms of the verb be modal auxiliary can be
finite verbs as well. The number of finite verbs in a sentence is equal to the number of
finite clauses in that sentence.
- All that glitters is not gold.
- The cow knows the value of her tail only when she has lost it .
There are two finite verbs in each of these sentences and so there are two finite clauses
in each of them. The first clause in the first sentence is " All is not gold", and the second
clause is that glitters. Similarly, the first clause in the second sentence is "The cow
knows the value of its tail" and the second clause in this sentence is " only when she has
lost it"
2. Infinite clauses: a non-finite is one in which there is a non-finite verb but no finite verb.
A non-finite verb is a verb which is not marked for a tense and shows no number and
concord with the subject. For example,
- He helps me to buy books every day.
( buy here is a non-finite verb because it shows no such concord)
To be, been and being are the non-finite verbs of the verb be.
The number of non-finite verbs in a stretch of language is equal the number of non-finite
clauses in it
- I want to get a new car.
- To know him is to like him.
There is only one non-finite verb in the first sentence and so there is only one non-finite clause
in that sentence. This non-finite clause is "to get a new car." There are two non-finite verbs in
the second sentence and so there are two non-finite clauses in that sentence. These two non-
finite clauses are "to know him" and "to like him". There are some more examples of non-finite
clauses.
 - I asked him to ring me up in the morning.
- The workers have decided to continue the strike.
- Yesterday, I heard him singing a lovely song.
- I remembered singing that.
- She enjoys having breakfast in bed.

3. Verbless clauses: a verbless clause is that clause which has no finite or infinite verb. For
example,
- Though defeated in the recent election, he is still happy.
- These mangoes, when ripe, will be sold in no time.
- His house, now empty, has become the hide-out for criminals.
- If necessary, I will be there at ten.
 The relationship between the constituents is describable in terms of the relationship
between elements of clause structure.

Clauses from the point of view of their function

From the point of view of functions, clauses are of two types( main clause and
subordinate clause).
1. Main clause (independent clause) : an independent clause is a complete sentence. It
contains the main subject and verb of a sentence. It can be a statement "she lives in
Tokyo" and also can be a question "where does she live?." It can stand alone in a
sentence because it expresses a complete thought or idea.
PS: main clauses can also be named as coordinating clause.
2. Subordinate clauses (dependent clauses): a dependent clause is not a complete
sentence. It cannot stand alone. It must be connected to an independent clause in order
to form a complete concept or idea about something. It adds information to the main
clause and can not form a complete thought itself.
- It is as a child who can't stand alone without help or assistance from his/her father.
(dependent clause) it is unable to support itself but able to cause a lot of problems if
crossed. It always starts with a word that makes the clause unable to stand alone.

Subordinate clauses in English can be divided into three types:

a) Noun clauses
b) Adjective clauses(relative clauses)
c) Adverb clauses

What is a noun clause?

A noun clause is a dependent clause that functions as a noun and because it functions as a
noun, it can be as a subject, direct object, indirect object, object of a preposition, "it"
complement, and also a verb complement.
Verb + ( connector + subject + verb) + Verb
 Notice that the verb can be before the noun clause or after the noun clause.
Kinds of noun clauses:
1. Subject of the verb what you said is true
 2. Direct object of the verb I know what she has done
3. Indirect object of the verb I will tell who is coming the secret
4. Object of a preposition I am afraid of what you brought
5. "It" complement It is sad that you were there
6. Verb complement I hope (that) you did well

 Notice that in "it" complement (that) is not optional, but in verb complement (that) is
optional.
 Who is coming who is the subject and the connector in this clause.
 Compare:
- Who is at the door? Who is the subject of the question.
- Who are those men? those men is the subject of the question.

That clauses and Wh-clauses

That clause : we can use noun clauses beginning with that clause after verbs, used to report
thoughts and feelings. We also use that clauses report statements in indirect speech
- People used to believe that the earth was flat.
1) In informal situations, we often use noun clauses without that especially after the verbs
know, say, and think
- I know (that) you would finish first.
We must include that or the fact that when we use that- clause as a subject.
- That he said nothing surprised me.
- That the world is round is a fact.
Wh-clauses: we can use noun clause beginning with wh-clause such as ( what, where, how)
after verbs, used to report thoughts and questions. Wh-clauses have the subject before the
verb and no question mark
- I wonder what it means.
- I don't know where he went.
- I am confused about what she is saying.
2) We can use wh-clause but not that clauses after preposition.
- I disagreed with what he said.
- I know about how he did it.
3) We can also begin noun clauses with if and whether after verbs, used to report "not
knowing" or indirect yes/no questions. We use if whether when we are not sure about
the information expressed in noun clauses and that when we are sure.
- I can not remember if/ whether I locked the door.
- Marry did not know if / whether John was married.
- Marry did not know that John was married.
We usually put the noun clauses at the end of sentences when they are objects especially when
they are long and contain a lot of information.
We can use noun clauses in front of a preposition as a connection to information has been
already given or to repeat or rephrase old information before presenting new information.
 - Five days after the earthquake a woman was found alive after the ruin of her house.
That she has survived was described as a miracle. How she did it no one knows.

How to make a noun plural

When we want to make a noun plural, we add s – es to right after the noun itself to refer that it
is more than one
We use (es) when a word ends with ch – sh – s – o – x – z
- a watch watches
- a bush bushes
- a potato potatoes
- a fez fezzes
- a box boxes
if a noun ends with f – fe, we omit them then add -ves
- a wife wives
- a loaf loaves
- a shelf shelves

but there are irregular nouns to this rule. In this case, we just add (s) after f
- a chief chiefs
- a roof roofs
- a grief griefs
- a brief briefs
- a staff staffs
- a proof proofs
when you are dealing with names just add (s). for example,
- Mr. and Mrs. Wolfs are fine today.
If a noun ends in y, we change it into -ies unless it is preceded by a vowel sound. In this case,
we just add (s) immediately without a change
- a city cities
- an essay essays

some nouns have the same form whether they are plural or singular. For example,
- deer deer - fish fish
- moose moose - trout trout
- series series - salmon salmon
- sheep sheep - aircraft aircraft
- species species - Portuguese Portuguese
- swine swine
Like the word Portuguese, the name of other nationalities ending in ese have the same singular
and form. The only plural formed with apostrophes is the plural of numbers, letters highlighted
as words
- How many 3's make 9?
- Be sure to adjust your p's and q's.

IRREGULAR NOUNS
Vowel changes man\ men foot\ feet goose\geese woman\women
tooth\teeth mouse\mice
Add –en Child\children ox\oxen
is –es Analysis\analyses diagnosis\diagnoses axis\axes crisis\crises
hypothesis\hypotheses thesis\theses oasis\oases
Ends in –a Bacterium\bacteria datum\data curriculum\curricula
phenomenon\phenomena criterion\criteria
us -i Alumnus\alumni fungus\fungi cactus\cacti syllabus\syllabi

In compound nouns, make the main word plural

- mother-in-law mothers-in-law
- passer-by passers-by
There are two exceptions:
 If there is no noun in the compound words, add (s) to the end of the compound word
- mix-up mix-ups
- take-off take-offs
 if the compound word ends with (ful) just add (s)
- cupful cupfuls

Nouns: generic, pair, group, plural and singular

 Generic nouns:
We use nouns as generic ones when we make general statements about any example rather
than a particular one.
Generic:
- An orange has lots of vitamin C.
- A phone rules my life.
- Women live more than men.
Particular:
- I just ate the orange you gave me.
- Cindy's new phone is pink.
- I can see about ten women and two men.
 Pair nouns:
We use pair nouns such as scissors or trousers to refer to things made of two matching parts
that we use or wear. We usually use them with the plural verbs. When we put pair nouns after
the phrase a pair of, we use a singular verb and a plural pronoun (them – they)
- These scissors are not very sharp.
- White trousers do not go very well with black shoes.
- A good pair of scissors is hard to find.
- There is a nice pair of trousers on sale, you should get them because they are really.
cheap. In fact, you should buy two pairs!
Others include ( binoculars – dippers – pajamas – shoes – sunglasses – tights)

 Group nouns:
We can use group nouns to talk about a group of people as a single unit, with singular verbs and
pronouns, or as several people, with plural verbs and pronouns.
Group nouns are called collective nouns.
- The public is not really interested in what the government is doing unless it increases
taxes.
- The public are more likely to complain if they have to pay more taxes.
Others include (audience – band – club – committee – family – jury – majority – parliament –
team) in American English, singular verbs are typically used after collective nouns
 We can use some proper nouns as group nouns, with plural verbs, for teams or
organization.
- England are ready to play with France.
- British Rail have announced new plans.
 Plural and singular nouns:
Plural nouns are words with distinct meanings that are not used in singular ( clothes –
congratulations – remains – groceries – outskirts – surroundings – troops)
- He said thanks for looking after belongings.
- Good manners are important.
Plural nouns that end without (s) include ( cattle – clergy – people – police – poultry)
Singular nouns are words that end in (s) and appear as to be plural, but are used with singular
verbs. When we talk about fields of study, activities, and diseases. For example,
- Aerobics is hard work.
- Rabies has become a deadly disease.
Others include (athletics – billiards – cards – diabetes – electronics – measles – physics –
politics)
We also use singular verbs after some phrases with nouns in plural describing amounts
- Five miles is a long walk.
- Twenty pounds is too much.
- Two weeks is not enough time.

KEY WORDS FOR SINGULAR AND PLURAL NOUNS

For singular each every single one a
For plural both two many several various