EXERCISE 5 Fill in the blanks with a noncount noun from the box. advice
snow
freedom
friendship
health
work
corn
honey
1. The Pilgrims wanted to find 2. They had poor
freedom
in America.
during their first winter in America.
3. The American Indians gave the Pilgrims a lot of 4. Squanto taught them to plant
about how to grow food. .
5. The first winter was hard. It was cold, and there was a lot of 6. Learning American agriculture was hard 7. In the beginning, there was
. for the Pilgrims.
between the Pilgrims and the American Indians.
8. Cranberries are very sour, so the Indians added
.
5.5 Nouns That Can Be Both Count and Noncount EXAMPLES
EXPLANATION
(NC) Life in America was difficult. (C) The Pilgrims had difficult lives.
The meaning or use of a noun determines whether it is count (C) or noncount (NC).
(NC) The Pilgrims had a lot of trouble their first winter. (C) The American Indians’ troubles began when the Europeans arrived. (NC) I like to spend time with my family on the holidays. (C) My neighbors invited me for dinner many times. (NC) American Indians had experience with American winters. (C) The first winter for the Pilgrims was a bad experience. We put some fruit in the cranberry sauce. We prepare a lot of food for Thanksgiving.
When we talk about fruit or food in general, these words are noncount nouns.
Oranges and lemons are citrus fruits. American Indians used cranberries as a food and as a dye.
When we are referring to kinds or categories of food or fruit, these words are count nouns.
We ate some pie for dessert. We eat turkey on Thanksgiving.
When a noun refers to a part of the whole, it is a noncount noun.
My friend brought three pies to the Thanksgiving dinner. One turkey is enough for the whole family.
When a noun refers to the whole, it is a count noun.
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