THE NOUN PHRASE
The
noun phrase is a group of words that ends with a noun. It can contain
determiners (the, a, this, etc.), adjectives, adverbs, and nouns. It CANNOT
begin with preposition. Remember that both subjects and g
COUNT AND NON-COUNT NOUNS
Count nouns
is refer to things that can be divided up into smaller units which are separate and distinct from
another , they usually refer to what can individually be seen or heard
Table Finger
Chair bottle
Word award
Remark candidate
Non-count nouns refer to things
that cannot be counted because they are regerd as wholeswhich cannotbe dividen
into part . they are refer to abstractions and occasionally have a collective
meaning :
Anger education
Warmth Progress
leisure weather
Some determiners can be used only with
count or non-count nouns, while others can be used with either. Memorize the
words in the following chart.
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WITH COUNT NOUNS
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WITH NON-COUNT NOUNS
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a(n), the, some, any
this, that, these, those
none, one, two, three, …
many
a lot of
a {(large)} number of
{(great)}
(a) Few
fewer . . . than
more . . . than
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the, some, any
this, that
none
much (usually in negatives or
questions)
a lot of
a large amount of
(a) little
less . . . than
more . . . than
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It is very important to know if a noun
is count or non-count. Be sure that you know the plurals of irregular count
nouns. The following list contains some irregular count nouns that you should
know.
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person-people child-children tooth-teeth
foot-feet mouse-mice man-men
woman-women
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The following list contains some
non-count nouns that you should know.
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sand soap physics mathematics
news mumps air politics
measles information meat home work
food economics advertising* money
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*NOTE: Although advertising is a non-count noun, advertiser ent is a count noun. If you wish to speak of one
particular advertisement, you must use this word.
A AND AN
Use "A" before all words
that begin with consonant sounds. In English,
nearly all words that begin with consonants will be preceded by the article
"A.
For
example: a pet, a door, a green onion, a cat, a hysterical joke.
Understand that there are some exceptions to this rule. Some words may
be spelled beginning with vowels but be pronounced with initial consonant
sounds. Words that begin in h, y, u, and eu or
"e" are common words that can cause confusion.
- Use "A" when u makes the same sound as the y in you: a union, a unicorn, a used napkin, a usability study.
- Use "A" when o makes the same sound as w in won: a one-legged man.
- Use "A" when eu or "e" makes the same sound as y: a European trip, a ewe lamb
- Do not use "A" when the h is silent.
An is used before words that begin with
a vowel sound. A is used before words that begin with a vowel sound. As the article, "A" meaning is one.
a
book A
lady A
tiger A
leaf
Some words can be confusing because the
spelling does not indicate the pronunciation.
A
house (begins
with a consonant sound)
An
hour (begins
with a vowel sound)
A
university (begins with a
consonant sound)
An
umbrella (begins with a
vowel sound)
Read words aloud if you're unsure.
Sometimes, the way the word looks on the page is not enough to tell you which
article to use. Read the word aloud in the way it sounds appropriate to you,
and then base your article use on that
The following words begin with a
consonant sound and thus must always be preceded by a.
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Eruopean eulogy euphemism eucalyptus
house home heavy half
uniform university universal union
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Using an and a does not depend on the spelling of the word it comes before, it depends on the pronunciation of the word. In most cases though, an is used before words that begin with vowels (a, e, i, o u.):
an apple
an elephant
an igloo
an oven
an umbrella
Understand that there are also some exceptions to this rule. Some words may
be spelled beginning with consonants but be pronounced with initial vowel
sounds. Words that begin in h are the most common causes of confusion,
but there are some other letters that can pose a challenge, too.
- Use "An" before a silent h: an hour, an honorable peace, an honest error.
- Use "An" before words that are spelled with consonants but pronounced with vowel sounds: an MBA.
The following words begin with a vomel
sound and thus must always be
preceded by an.
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hour
heir herbal honor
uncle
umbrella unnatural understanding
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The initial sound of the word that
immediately follows the indefinite article will determine whether it should be a or an.
an
umbrella a white umbrella
an
hour a whole hour
THE
The is
used to indicate something that we already know about or something that is
common knowledge.
The
boy in the corner is my friend. (The speaker and the listener know which
boy.)
The
earth is round. (There is only one earth.)
With non-count nouns, one uses the
article the if speaking in specific
terms, but uses no article if speaking in general.
Sugar
is sweet. (general-allsugar)
The
sugar on the table is form Cuba. (specific-the sugar that is on the table)
Normally, plural count nouns, when they
mean everyting within a certain class, are not preceded by the.
Oranges
are green until they ripen (all
oranges)
Athletes
should follow a well-balanced diet. (all
athletes)
Normally a proper noun is not preceded
by an article unless there are several people or things with the same name and
the speaker is specifying one of them.
There
are three susan parkers in the telephone directory.
The
susan parker that I know lives on first avenue.
Normally words such as breakfast, lunch,
dinner, school, church, home, college, and work do not use any article unless
to restrict the meaning.
We
ate breakfast at eight o’clock this morning.
We
went to school yesterday.
Use the following generalizations as a
guide for the use of the article the.
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USE THE WITH
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DON’T THE WITH
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oceans,
rivers, seas, gulfs, plural lakes
the Red sea, the Atlantic Ocean, the
Persian Gulf, the Great Lakes
mountains
the Rocky Mountains, the Andes
earth,
moon
the earth, the moon
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singular
lakes
Lake Geneva, Lake Eric
mounis
Mount Vesuvius, Mount McKinley
Planets,
constellations
Venus, Mars, Earth, Orion
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