…the man who employed me.
…the room upstairs.
…the desire to kill.
Adjectives and participles are also sometimes used after the noun, usually in combination with other words.
…the Minister responsible for national security.
…the three cards lying on the table.
See paragraphs 2.272 to 2.302 for more details about information that is added after the noun.
1.10 In particular, prepositional phrases beginning with of are very common, because they can express many different kinds of relationship between the two noun phrases.
…strong feelings of jealousy.
…a picture of a house.
…the rebuilding of the old hospital.
…the daughter of the village cobbler.
…problems of varying complexity.
…the arrival of the police.
For more information about the use of of in the noun phrase see paragraphs 2.277 to 2.283.
linking noun phrases and linking words within them
1.11 If you want to refer separately to more than one person or thing, or you want to describe them in more than one way, you link noun phrases using the conjunctions and, or, or but. Sometimes you use a comma instead of and, or just put one word next to another.
…a table and chair.
…his obligations with regard to Amanda, Robert and Matthew.
…some fruit or cheese afterwards.
…her long black skirt.
See paragraphs 8.171 to 8.201 for more information about the use of conjunctions to link noun phrases and words within noun phrases.
numbers and quantity expressions
1.12 If you want to say how many things you are talking about, or how much of something there is, you use numbers and quantity expressions.
Last year I worked seven days a week fourteen hours a day.
She drinks lots of coffee.
Numbers are dealt with in paragraphs 2.208 to 2.239, and quantity expressions are dealt with in 2.175 to 2.193.
Identifying people and things: nouns
1.13 A noun is used to identify a person or thing. In this chapter six main types of noun are described. They are classified according to whether they have a plural form, whether they need a determiner in front of them, and whether they occur with a singular verb or a plural verb when they are the subject of the verb.
The six types are:
classificaton example comments paragraph countable nouns a bird birds have plural
need determiner 1.15 to 1.22 uncountable nouns happiness
equipment no plural usually no determiner 1.23 to 1.33 singular nouns the moon
a day no plural
need determiner 1.34 to 1.40 plural nouns clothes
scissors no singular 1.41 to 1.46 collective nouns the public
the staff either singular or plural verb 1.47 to 1.51 proper nouns Mary London
The United Nations start with capital letter 1.52 to 1.58
Many nouns have a number of different meanings, and so can be, for example, a countable noun for one meaning, an uncountable noun for another, and a singular noun for another.
There are a few other groups of nouns with special features. These are dealt with in paragraphs 1.59 to 1.92.
capital letters
1.14 Most nouns do not begin with a capital letter, unless they are used to start a sentence. However, the following types of noun are always spelled with a capital letter:
…my sister Elizabeth.
I love reading Shakespeare.
I’ll be in the office on Monday.
I think he’s gone to London.
For more information on proper nouns, see paragraphs 1.52 to 1.58. Proper nouns that are time expressions are dealt with in Chapter 4, and those that are place names in Chapter 6.
Can you think of some typical problems experienced by Germans learning English?
He drives a Porsche.
Put a bit of Sellotape across it.
Things that can be counted: countable nouns
1.15 Many nouns have two forms, the singular form, which is used to refer to one person or thing, and the plural form, which is used to refer to more than one person or thing.
These nouns refer to people or things that can be counted. You can put numbers in front of them.
…book…books.
…day…days.
…three brothers.
…ten minutes.
These nouns make up the largest group of nouns in English. They are called countable nouns.
noun–verb agreement
1.16 When you use the singular form of a countable noun as the subject of a verb, you use a singular verb. When you use the plural form of a countable noun as the subject, you use a plural verb.
A dog likes to eat far more meat than a human being.
Bigger dogs cost more.
use of determiners
1.17 Countable nouns have a determiner in front of them when they are used in the singular.
He got into the car and started the motor.
They left the house to go for a walk after lunch.
When you use the plural form of a countable noun to talk about something in general, you do not use a determiner.
They all live in big houses.
Most classrooms have computers.
However, if you are specifying a particular instance of something, you need to use a determiner.
The houses in our street are all identical. Our computers can give you all the relevant details.
list of countable nouns
1.18 Here is a list of some common countable nouns:
accident
account
actor
address
adult
animal
answer
apartment
article
artist
baby
bag
ball
bank
battle
beach
bed
bell
bill
bird
boat