Uncountable Nouns in English: Rules, Examples and Practice
Uncountable nouns refer to things we usually do not count as separate units, such as water, advice, information and furniture. Learn the rules, explore the noun list and practise with a short quiz.
What are uncountable nouns?
Uncountable nouns name substances, materials, collections or abstract ideas that are not normally counted one by one. They generally take a singular verb and do not use a/an in their uncountable sense.
She gave me some useful advice.
The furniture is beautiful.
There is some bread on the table.
Five important rules for uncountable nouns
| Rule | Example |
|---|---|
| Do not use a/an in the uncountable sense | some information (not |
| Use much, little and a little for amounts | How much time? / a little money |
| Use some, any and a lot of | some equipment / any advice / a lot of traffic |
| Use singular verb agreement | The news is good. |
| Use the for a specific reference | The water in this glass is cold. |
Countable and uncountable nouns: the difference
| Countable | Uncountable |
|---|---|
| a book / two books | some information |
| many chairs | much furniture |
| a few questions | a little time |
| These apples are fresh. | This bread is fresh. |
Some words can be countable or uncountable depending on meaning: hair (hair in general) versus a hair (one strand); chicken (meat) versus a chicken (bird); and paper (material) versus a paper (a document).
How do we count uncountable things?
Use a unit or container: a piece of advice, two pieces of information, three pieces of furniture, a loaf of bread or two bottles of water. The unit is countable, not the uncountable noun itself.
List of common uncountable nouns in English
Explore the original FOCUS noun collection. Some words also have countable uses with a different meaning. Use the search field to find a noun quickly.
- absence
- access
- accommodation
- advice
- age
- agriculture
- anger
- applause
- assistance
- atmosphere
- baggage
- beauty
- behaviour
- bread
- business (=trade)
- capital (=money)
- cardboard
- capacity
- cash
- chaos
- chess
- childhood
- china
- clothing
- coal
- comfort
- concern
- confidence
- cookery
- countryside
- courage
- crockery
- cutlery
- damage
- dancing
- democracy
- depression
- design
- dirt
- duty
- earth
- education
- electricity
- energy
- environment
- equipment
- evidence
- evil
- existence
- experience
- failure
- faith
- fashion
- fear
- finance
- fire
- flesh
- flu
- food
- freedom
- fruit
- fun
- furniture
- garbage
- grass
- ground
- growth
- hair (= all the hairs on the head)
- happiness
- harm
- health
- help
- history
- homework
- hospitality
- housework
- ice
- independence
- industry
- information
- insurance
- intelligence
- jealousy
- jewellery
- joy
- justice
- knowledge
- labour
- laughter
- leisure
- lightning
- loneliness
- love
- luck
- luggage
- machinery
- magic
- marriage
- meat
- mercy
- money
- moonlight
- mud
- music
- nature
- news
- nonsense
- paper
- parking
- patience
- peace
- peel
- permission
- philosophy
- pleasure
- policy
- poetry
- the post (= letters)
- poverty
- power
- pride
- produce
- progress
- protection
- purity
- rain
- reality
- relief
- religion
- research
- respect
- rubbish
- safety
- salt
- sand
- scaffolding
- scenery
- seaside
- security
- sewing
- shopping
- silence
- sleep
- smoking
- snow
- soap
- spaghetti
- spelling
- stream
- strength
- spite
- status
- stuff
- stupidity
- sunshine
- teaching
- technology
- thunder
- timber
- time
- toast (=bread)
- trade
- traffic
- training
- transport
- travel
- trust
- truth
- underwear
- violence
- vocabulary
- wealth
- weather
- work
- writing
When the meaning changes, the grammar may change
Some words in the list are uncountable in one sense but countable in another. These examples show why context matters.
hair
Uncountable: Her hair is long.
Countable: I found a hair in my soup.
paper
Uncountable: We need more paper for the printer.
Countable: She published three papers.
time
Uncountable: We do not have much time.
Countable: I have visited London three times.
experience
Uncountable: Experience is important in this job.
Countable: It was an unforgettable experience.
food
Uncountable: There is plenty of food.
Countable: The market sells many traditional foods.
chicken
Uncountable: We had chicken for dinner.
Countable: There are three chickens in the garden.
glass
Uncountable: The window is made of glass.
Countable: Could I have two glasses of water?
work
Uncountable: I have a lot of work to do.
Countable: The museum displays several works of art.
Uncountable nouns in example sentences
| Example sentence | Grammar point |
|---|---|
| She gave me some useful advice. | Advice has no regular plural. |
| I need more information about the course. | Information is uncountable. |
| We bought some new furniture. | Furniture takes a singular verb. |
| There was very little traffic this morning. | Little expresses a small amount. |
| Could I have a glass of water? | Glass is a countable unit. |
| My homework is nearly finished. | Homework is usually uncountable. |
| The equipment is ready. | Equipment takes singular agreement. |
Uncountable nouns quiz
Choose the correct answer. Practise with 10 randomly selected questions.
Frequently asked questions about uncountable nouns
Is information countable? Does it have a plural?
Information is normally uncountable. Say some information or two pieces of information, not informations.
Is advice countable? How do you say two pieces of advice?
Advice is uncountable. Say a piece of advice or two pieces of advice, not two advices.
Is homework countable?
Homework is usually uncountable. Say a lot of homework or a homework assignment.
Does furniture have a plural form?
Furniture is uncountable. Say some furniture or three pieces of furniture, not furnitures.
Are bread, meat and ice cream countable?
Bread and meat are usually uncountable when referring to food as a substance. Ice cream can be uncountable, but two ice creams can mean two servings.
More practice: Grammar exercises. See also countable nouns.