Karl J Sherlock
Associate Professor, English
Email: karl.sherlock@gcccd.edu
Phone: 619-644-7871
A common noun is, simply, any noun that is not a formal name or title. Common nouns fall into two general categories: count nouns and mass nouns.
Count Nouns
As the name implies, count nouns are countable by a specific number, whether definite or indefinite:
Mass Nouns
Mass nouns are also called "non-count nouns." They should NOT be confused with Collective Nouns. Rather, they refer to nouns that can only be measured in general amounts, never in specific numbers. Abstract nouns are a ready example:
None of these can be counted specifically: one would not usually say, "Two happinesses," for instance. However, plenty of non-abstract (concrete) nouns are also uncountable. Some examples:
As with abstract nouns, none of these would ever be enumerated; you wouldn't say, for instance, "two peanut butters." However, each can be paired with a countable unit of measurement. Those units of measurement are count nouns:
Karl J Sherlock
Associate Professor, English
Email: karl.sherlock@gcccd.edu
Phone: 619-644-7871
8800 Grossmont College Drive
El Cajon, California 92020
619-644-7000
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