Compound nouns rules in English

 

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In English, to form compound names, two or more names are associated, which can be juxtaposed, joined or simply separated by a dash:

• a bookshop 
• a bread knife 
• a beach towel 
• a horse-race 
• the city-centre 

There are also other constructions possible, but they are rarer: with a gerund (ing) + noun, a particle + noun, or a noun + particle:

• a checkout 
• winbdsurfing 

It’ss always the last element that bears the mark of the plural (with some exceptions). It is then necessary to add an -s to the last element:

• a bus driver 
• the bus drivers 
• a toothbrush 
• two toothbrushes 

There are a few exceptions:

• a sports car 
• a savings account 
• a clothes shop 
• a customs officer 

USE

It is always the last noun that is the most important. The one or those which precede it play the role of adjective: they describe the last word.

• a flower garden 
• a garden flower 

A compound noun is used when the relationship between the two nouns is recognized as constant. The meaning of the relationship between nouns is diverse: place, use, material, cause, etc…

• the town centre 
• a stone bridge 

Be careful! We use noun + of + noun, and not a compound noun, to talk about a quantity of something.

• a piece of cheese 
• a slice of ham 
• a box of matches 
• a spoonful of honey 
• a group of tourists 

Be careful to distinguish the container and content:

• a glass of wine 
• a wine glass 
• a tea cup 
• a cup of tea 

Some compound nouns have a particle at the end:

• a take-off 
• a close-up 
• a passer-by 
• a grown-up 
• a breakdown
• a handout 
• a breakthrough 

The plural is formed by adding an -s to the particle:

• breakdowns 
• grown-ups 

The particle can sometimes be at the beginning of the compound noun (in these cases the plural is formed by adding -s to the last word):

• an outbreak 
• an oucast 
• an overdose 
• an income

Compound nouns are widely used in newspaper headlines and technical language. They sometimes have more than two elements:

• An evening dress rental service 

 

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So and Such in English

 

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So and such can be used in several different ways in English sentences.

SO and SUCH in exclamations

Both words can add emphasis to your sentences, to make the meaning stronger. In the exclamations, we use the formula so + adjective and such + adjective + noun (singular or plural):

• It’s such a nice day! (noun)
• It’s so beautiful outside…  (adjective)
• He’s such a generous man.  (noun)
• He’s so generous. (adjective)

The meaning is similar to words like ‘very’ or ‘really’:

• The music is very loud! = The music is so loud!
• She’s in a very bad mood today. = She’s in such a bad mood today.

Let’s take a closer look at So and Such:

SO

As an adverb, so is similar to such and expresses an exclamation. It is often associated with an adjective, a quantifier (= a quantity word like many, much…), or a verb, and has different meanings according to the context:

• I’m so glad to see you. 
• I’m not so sure. 
• We had so much work! 
• You mustn’t worry so. 

So is also used to express the consequence:

• I fel tired so I went to bed. 

We use so to express similarity:

• I’m tired – So am I. 
• Sam likes soccer. – So do I. 
• Kevin lives in Germany. → So does Tina. 

So allows you to refer to previous statements or events:

• I think so. 
• Who says so? 
• So… ? 
• So what’s the problem? 
• So we can’t go after all. 

So helps to avoid repetitions:

• We arrived early and so did he. 
• Tonny speaks Spanish and so does his friend. 

So can refer to a size, a length, an unspecified quantity:

• The table is about so high. 
• They pay us so much a week. 

So can also refer to a way of doing things:

• Hold the pen (like) so. 
• The helmet is so constructed as to absorb most of the impact. 

Finally, so can be used with quantifiers: much, many, little, few, often, rarely… This makes it possible to know a quantity, an amount of something:

• Sarah earns so much money! 
• You have had so much to drink! 
• There was so little damage after the storm.
• I’m surprised that so few students turned up today. 

The constructions So… that and such … that are used to express purpose and consequence:

So + adjective + that 

• The hotel was so comfortable that we decided to stay another night.
• Give me some money so (that) I can buy some eggs. 
• I took a taxi so that I could get there on time. 
• His handwriting is so bad (that) it’s illegible. 

The expression so as to, more formal, also expresses the purpose:

• We came back early so as to avoid the bad weather. 

SUCH

We use Such in front of names that can be counted in the singular, and in front of nouns that can be counted in the plural and uncountables nouns.

Such (a/an) expresses an exclamation or admiration and is used differently according to the context:

• It’s such a surprise to see you here. 
• Such situations are common. 
• He’s changed his mind again. Oh well, such is life. 

Idioms with Such

Such … as can be used to make a comparison :

• I’ve never seen such a fast car as yours. 

We use such as to present one or a list of examples of what we mention (it is mainly used in writing):

• How can you forget a movie such as ‘Star Wars’?
• I love action video games, such as Assassin’s Creed, GTA or Resident Evil. 
• There are many ways to do it. – Such as? 

We use as such with a negative to indicate that a word or expression is not a very accurate description of the real situation. It can also be used after a noun to indicate that this thing is being considered alone, separately from other things or factors:

• He’s not an expert as such, but … 
• You’re a member of the staff and as such you can get coffe for free. 

Such and such is used to refer to a particular type of person or similar thing, regardless. Such and such is placed in front of the nouns:

• Then she said the band was coming to Glasgow on such and such a date. 
• If you do such and such a job, you will become rich. 

The constructions So… that and such … that are used to express the purpose and consequence: Such + adjective + noun + that (that is optional):

• It’s such a good film (that) I’m going to see it again. 
• Paul has such a big house (that) I got lost on the way to the kitchen. 

©Englishfornoobs.com

Countable and uncountable nouns in English

 

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There are two categories of nouns in English: countable nouns and uncountable nouns in English. They must be distinguished because their use is different.

Countable nouns

Countable nouns refer to distinct elements, things that we can count. In front of a countable noun, we can use a number, the indefinite articles a/an, the defined article the, some (in the plural), or a possessive or demonstrative adjective. They can be used either in the singular or plural, usually with a final -s:

• a car → two cars
• an orange → three oranges
• one girl → two girls
• a friend → four friends

These names can be counted, so they are countable.

However, there are spelling irregularities as well as exceptions and invariable words (which do not change to the plural) – for more details see the lesson on plurals.

• man → men
• woman → women
• baby → babies
• tooth → teeth
• child → children
• kiss → kisses
• knife → knives
• mouse → mice
• tomato → tomatoes
• sheep → sheep
• deer → deer
• aircraft → aircraft

Uncountable nouns

The uncountable nouns represent global things, which cannot be counted. They may not be preceded by a number or a year. They require a verb in the singular. Often, uncountable nouns do not have a plural.

• I hate milk. 

Milk cannot be counted, so it is an uncountable noun. You can’t say: I hate the milk

The uncountable nouns are generally:

• Materials, substances or food too small or too fluid to be counted one by one (liquid, powder, gas): coffee, flour, butter, blood, gold, cheese, bread, honey, air, milk, rice, sugar, tea, water, soap, jam, paint
• Human feelings or qualities: beauty, fear, anger, love
• Abstract concepts, ideas or qualities: information, knowledge, luck, safety, money, evidence, weather, advice, transport
• Nouns formed from verbs or adjectives: reading, youth 
• colours: red, yellow, etc…
• The names of sports and games: football, billiards, chess, darts…

⚠️ These nouns are invariable and always followed by a verb in the singular:

• Her hair is black. 

How to quantify uncountable nouns

To indicate a quantity of elements, or to isolate a unit from a set represented by an uncountable noun, it is sometimes necessary to use expressions or measures that make it possible to count them more or less precisely (also called “enumerator”): some, a lot of, a bit of, a cup of, a bag of, a handful of, a pinch of…

• a bag of flour 
• a bowl of soup 
• a cup of tea 
• a game of tennis 
• a glimmer of hope 
• a handful of almonds 
• a kilo of rice 
• a loaf of bread 
• a lump of sugar 
• a means of transport 
• a piece of advice 
• a piece of cake 
• a piece of fruit 
• a piece of furniture 
• a pinch of salt 
• a sheet of paper 
• a slice of bread 
• a spoonful of jam 
• some advice 

⚠️ Some singular uncountable nouns are not used with a enumerator. It may be that:

• Some nouns formed from verbs: advertising, skating…
• Some disease names: AIDS, flu, measles…
• Abstract values: business, happiness, justice, poverty, unemployment, weather…
• Names in -ics: athletics, economics, electronics, mathematics, mechanics, physics, politics…

⚠️ The article ‘a’ is sometimes found in front of some uncountable nouns, in some expressions in particular:

• I’m in a hurry 
• What a relief! 
• What a shame! 

An uncountable singular can be replaced by a countable noun, which can be completely different:

Uncountable nouns	Countable nouns
accomodation	a room, a flat
advertising	an advertisement
fishing	a good catch
homework	an exercise
progress	a breakthrough
travel	a trip, a journey
work	a job

Compare:

• He’s looking for work (in general)
• He’s looking for a job (something specific)

⚠️ The word hair is normally uncountable in English, so it is used in the singular. It can also become countable only when it refers to one hair:

• She has long blond hair. 
• I washed my hair yesterday. 
• I found a hair in my soup! 

Plural uncountable nouns 

Some uncountable names are always in the plural:: clothes, contents, customs, goods, looks, morals, oats, stairs, jeans, pyjamas, shorts, trousers, tights, binoculars, glasses, pliers, scales, scissors…

They always match with a plural verb!

• Where are the binoculars? 
• Those stairs don’t look very safe.

If you want to talk about one or more specific objects, you must use a enumerator:

• two flights of stairs 
• I need three pair of jeans 
• a pair of scissors 

Plural uncountable nouns with a collective meaning

Nouns like clergy, police, poultry, cattle… have a collective meaning: contrary to their appearance, they are true plurals and they always require a verb in the plural, with the personal pronoun they:

• Cattle are fed with grass 
• The police are coming 

Category change

Some countable nouns can be used as uncountable nouns: they change their meaning and function:

• Give me a glass of wine.  (the container)
• Look out for broken glass.  (the material)
• I’ve got two chickens in my garden. (birds)
• I’ve had chicken for lunch. (meat)

 

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