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An adverb can modify a verb, an adjective, another adverb, a phrase, or a clause. An adverb indicates manner, time, place, cause, or degree and answers questions such as “how,” “when,” “where,” “how much”.

While some adverbs can be identified by their characteristic “ly” suffix, most of them must be identified by untangling the grammatical relationships within the sentence or clause as a whole. Unlike an adjective, an adverb can be found in various places within the sentence.

In the following examples, each of the underlined words is an adverb:

The seamstress quickly made the mourning clothes.

In this sentence, the adverb “quickly” modifies the verb “made” and indicates in what manner (or how fast) the clothing was constructed.

The midwives waited patiently through a long labour.

Similarly in this sentence, the adverb “patiently” modifies the verb “waited” and describes the manner in which the midwives waited.

The boldly spoken words would return to haunt the rebel.

In this sentence the adverb “boldly” modifies the adjective “spoken.”

We urged him to dial the number more expeditiously.

Here the adverb “more” modifies the adverb “expeditiously.”

Unfortunately, the bank closed at three today.

In this example, the adverb “unfortunately” modifies the entire sentence.
Conjunctive Adverbs

You can use a conjunctive adverb to join two clauses together. Some of the most common conjunctive adverbs are “also,” “consequently,” “finally,” “furthermore,” “hence,” “however,” “incidentally,” “indeed,” “instead,” “likewise,” “meanwhile,” “nevertheless,” “next,” “nonetheless,” “otherwise,” “still,” “then,” “therefore,” and “thus.” A conjunctive adverb is not strong enough to join two independent clauses without the aid of a semicolon.

The highlighted words in the following sentences are conjunctive adverbs:

The government has cut university budgets; consequently, class sizes have been increased.
He did not have all the ingredients the recipe called for; therefore, he decided to make something else.
The report recommended several changes to the ways the corporation accounted for donations; furthermore, it suggested that a new auditor be appointed immediately.
The crowd waited patiently for three hours; finally, the doors to the stadium were opened.
Batman and Robin fruitlessly searched the building; indeed, the Joker had escaped through a secret door in the basement.

Abdominal exercises help prevent back pain; proper posture is also important.
The auditors made six recommendations; however, only one has been adopted so far.

• Do not use a semicolon to link a dependent clause or a phrase to an independent clause.

[WRONG] Although gaining and maintaining a high level of physical fitness takes a good deal of time; the effort pays off in the long run.
[RIGHT] Although gaining and maintaining a high level of physical fitness takes a good deal of time, the effort pays off in the long run.

Generally, you should not place a semicolon before a co-ordinating conjunction that links two independent clauses. The only exception to this guideline is if the two independent clauses are very long and already contain a number of commas.

[WRONG] The economy has been sluggish for four years now; but some signs of improvement are finally beginning to show.
[RIGHT] The economy has been sluggish for four years now, but some signs of improvement are finally beginning to show.

It may be useful to remember that, for the most part, you should use a semicolon only where you could also use a period.

There is one exception to this guideline. When punctuating a list or series of elements in which one or more of the elements contains an internal comma, you should use semicolons instead of commas to separate the elements from one another:

Henry’s mother believes three things: that every situation, no matter how grim, will be happily resolved; that no one knows more about human nature than she; and that Henry, who is thirty-five years old, will never be able to do his own laundry.

For instance, the use of a comma before the “and” in a series is usually optional, and many writers choose to eliminate it, provided there is no danger of misreading:

We bought scarves, mittens and sweaters before leaving for Iceland. (comma unnecessary before “and”)
We ate apples, plums, and strawberry and kiwi compote. (comma needed before “and” for clarity)

Comma Usage

1. Use a comma before a co-ordinating conjunction that joins independent clauses (unless the independent clauses are very short):

I wrapped the fresh fish in three layers of newspaper, but my van still smelled like trout for the next week. (commas with two independent clauses)
She invited him to her party and he accepted. (comma unnecessary with short clauses)

2. Use a comma after an introductory adverb clause and, often, after an introductory phrase (unless the phrase is very short):

After the hospital had completed its fund-raising campaign, an anonymous donor contributed an additional $10,000. (after introductory adverb clause)
From the east wall to the west, her cottage measures twenty feet. (after introductory prepositional phrase)
In the bottom drawer you will find some pink spandex tights. (no comma with short, closely related phrase)

3. Use a comma to separate items in a series:

Playing in a band can be exciting, but many people do not realize the hardships involved: constant rehearsals, playing until 2 a.m., handling drunken audience members, and transporting heavy equipment to and from gigs. (the comma preceding “and” is optional unless needed to prevent misreading)

4. Use commas to set off non-restrictive elements and other parenthetical elements. A non-restrictive modifier is a phrase or clause that does not restrict or limit the meaning of the word it is modifying. It is, in a sense, interrupting material that adds extra information to a sentence. Even though removing the non-restrictive element would result in some loss of meaning, the sentence would still make sense without it. You should usually set off non-restrictive elements with commas:

The people of Haiti, who for decades have lived with grinding poverty and mind-numbing violence, are unfamiliar with the workings of a true democracy.

A restrictive modifier is a phrase or clause that limits the meaning of what it modifies and is essential to the basic idea expressed in the sentence. You should not set off restrictive elements with commas:

Those residents of Ottawa who do not hold secure, well-paying jobs must resent the common portrayal of the city as a land of opportunity.

Note that you can use two other punctuation marks to set off non-restrictive elements or other parenthetical information: parentheses and dashes. Enclosing parenthetical information in parentheses reduces the importance of that information:

Mr. Grundy’s driving record (with one small exception) was exemplary.

5. Placing parenthetical information between dashes has the opposite effect: it emphasises the material:

Mr. Grundy’s driving record — with one exception — was exemplary.

Nevertheless, you should usually set off parenthetical information with commas.

Superfluous Commas

Equally important in understanding how to use commas effectively is knowing when not to use them. While this decision is sometimes a matter of personal taste, there are certain instances when you should definitely avoid a comma.

• Do not use a comma to separate the subject from its predicate:

[WRONG] Registering for our fitness programs before September 15, will save you thirty percent of the membership cost.
[RIGHT] Registering for our fitness programs before September 15 will save you thirty percent of the membership cost.

• Do not use a comma to separate a verb from its object or its subject complement, or a preposition from its object:

[WRONG] I hope to mail to you before Christmas, a current snapshot of my dog Benji.
She travelled around the world with, a small backpack, a bedroll, a pup tent and a camera.
[RIGHT] I hope to mail to you before Christmas a current snapshot of my dog Benji.
[RIGHT] She travelled around the world with a small backpack, a bedroll, a pup tent and a camera.

• Do not misuse a comma after a co-ordinating conjunction:

[WRONG] Sleet fell heavily on the tin roof but, the family was used to the noise and paid it no attention.
[RIGHT] Sleet fell heavily on the tin roof, but the family was used to the noise and paid it no attention.

• Do not use commas to set off words and short phrases (especially introductory ones) that are not parenthetical or that are very slightly so:

[WRONG] After dinner, we will play badminton.
[RIGHT] After dinner we will play badminton.

• Do not use commas to set off restrictive elements:

[WRONG] The fingers, on his left hand, are bigger than those on his right.
[RIGHT] The fingers on his left hand are bigger than those on his right.

* Do not use a comma before the first item or after the last item of a series:

[WRONG] The treasure chest contained, three wigs, some costume jewellery and five thousand dollars in Monopoly money.
[WRONG] You should practice your punches, kicks and foot sweeps, if you want to improve in the martial arts.
[RIGHT] The treasure chest contained three wigs, some costume jewellery and five thousand dollars in Monopoly money.
[RIGHT] You should practice your punches, kicks and foot sweeps if you want to improve in the martial arts.

Every complete sentence contains two parts: a subject and a predicate. The subject is what (or whom) the sentence is about, while the predicate tells something about the subject. In the following sentences, the predicate is enclosed in braces ({}), while the subject is underlined.

Judy {runs}.
Judy and her dog {run on the beach every morning}.

To determine the subject of a sentence, first isolate the verb and then make a question by placing “who?” or “what?” before it — the answer is the subject.

The audience littered the theatre floor with torn wrappings and spilled popcorn.

The verb in the above sentence is “littered.” Who or what littered? The audience did. “The audience” is the subject of the sentence. The predicate (which always includes the verb) goes on to relate something about the subject: what about the audience? It “littered the theatre floor with torn wrappings and spilled popcorn.”
Unusual Sentences

Imperative sentences (sentences that give a command or an order) differ from conventional sentences in that their subject, which is always “you,” is understood rather than expressed.

Stand on your head. (“You” is understood before “stand.”)

Be careful with sentences that begin with “there” plus a form of the verb “to be.” In such sentences, “there” is not the subject; it merely signals that the true subject will soon follow.

There were three stray kittens cowering under our porch steps this morning.

If you ask who? or what? before the verb (“were cowering”), the answer is “three stray kittens,” the correct subject.
Simple Subject and Simple Predicate

Every subject is built around one noun or pronoun (or more) that, when stripped of all the words that modify it, is known as the simple subject. Consider the following example:

A piece of pepperoni pizza would satisfy his hunger.

The subject is built around the noun “piece,” with the other words of the subject — “a” and “of pepperoni pizza” — modifying the noun. “Piece” is the simple subject.

Likewise, a predicate has at its centre a simple predicate, which is always the verb or verbs that link up with the subject. In the example we just considered, the simple predicate is “would satisfy” — in other words, the verb of the sentence.

A sentence may have a compound subject — a simple subject consisting of more than one noun or pronoun — as in these examples:

Team pennants, rock posters and family photographs covered the boy’s bedroom walls.
Her uncle and she walked slowly through the Inuit art gallery and admired the powerful sculptures exhibited there.

The second sentence above features a compound predicate, a predicate that includes more than one verb pertaining to the same subject (in this case, “walked” and “admired”).

An interjection is a word added to a sentence to convey emotion. It is not grammatically related to any other part of the sentence.

You usually follow an interjection with an exclamation mark. Interjections are uncommon in formal academic prose, except in direct quotations.

The underlined words in the following sentences are interjections:

Ouch, that hurt!
Oh no, I forgot that the exam was today.
Hey! Put that down!
I heard one guy say to another guy, “He has a new car, eh?”
I don’t know about you but, good lord, I think taxes are too high!

You can use a conjunction to link words, phrases, and clauses, as in the following example:

I ate the pizza and the pasta.
Call the movers when you are ready.

Co-ordinating Conjunctions

You use a co-ordinating conjunction (“and,” “but,” “or,” “nor,” “for,” “so,” or “yet”) to join individual words, phrases, and independent clauses. Note that you can also use the conjunctions “but” and “for” as prepositions.

In the following sentences, each of the highlighted words is a co-ordinating conjunction:

Lilacs and violets are usually purple.

In this example, the co-ordinating conjunction “and” links two nouns.

This movie is particularly interesting to feminist film theorists, for the screenplay was written by Mae West.

In this example, the co-ordinating conjunction “for” is used to link two independent clauses.

Daniel’s uncle claimed that he spent most of his youth dancing on rooftops and swallowing goldfish.

Here the co-ordinating conjunction “and” links two participle phrases (“dancing on rooftops” and “swallowing goldfish”) which act as adverbs describing the verb “spends.”

Subordinating Conjunctions

A subordinating conjunction introduces a dependent clause and indicates the nature of the relationship among the independent clause(s) and the dependent clause(s).

The most common subordinating conjunctions are “after,” “although,” “as,” “because,” “before,” “how,” “if,” “once,” “since,” “than,” “that,” “though,” “till,” “until,” “when,” “where,” “whether,” and “while.”

Each of the highlighted words in the following sentences is a subordinating conjunction:

After she had learned to drive, Alice felt more independent.

The subordinating conjunction “after” introduces the dependent clause “After she had learned to drive.”

If the paperwork arrives on time, your cheque will be mailed on Tuesday.

Similarly, the subordinating conjunction “if” introduces the dependent clause “If the paperwork arrives on time.”

Gerald had to begin his thesis over again when his computer crashed.

The subordinating conjunction “when” introduces the dependent clause “when his computer crashed.”

Midwifery advocates argue that home births are safer because the mother and baby are exposed to fewer people and fewer germs.

In this sentence, the dependent clause “because the mother and baby are exposed to fewer people and fewer germs” is introduced by the subordinating conjunction “because.”

Correlative Conjunctions

Correlative conjunctions always appear in pairs — you use them to link equivalent sentence elements. The most common correlative conjunctions are “both…and,” “either…or,” “neither…nor,”, “not only…but also,” “so…as,” and “whether…or.” (Technically correlative conjunctions consist simply of a co-ordinating conjunction linked to an adjective or adverb.)

The highlighted words in the following sentences are correlative conjunctions:

Both my grandfather and my father worked in the steel plant.

In this sentence, the correlative conjunction “both…and” is used to link the two noun phrases that act as the compound subject of the sentence: “my grandfather” and “my father”.

Bring either a Jello salad or a potato scallop.

Here the correlative conjunction “either…or” links two noun phrases: “a Jello salad” and “a potato scallop.”

Corinne is trying to decide whether to go to medical school or to go to law school.

Similarly, the correlative conjunction “whether … or” links the two infinitive phrases “to go to medical school” and “to go to law school.”

The explosion destroyed not only the school but also the neighbouring pub.

In this example the correlative conjunction “not only … but also” links the two noun phrases (“the school” and “neighbouring pub”) which act as direct objects.

Note: some words which appear as conjunctions can also appear as prepositions or as adverbs.

A preposition links nouns, pronouns and phrases to other words in a sentence. The word or phrase that the preposition introduces is called the object of the preposition.

A preposition usually indicates the temporal, spatial or logical relationship of its object to the rest of the sentence as in the following examples:

The book is on the table.
The book is beneath the table.
The book is leaning against the table.
The book is beside the table.
She held the book over the table.
She read the book during class.

In each of the preceding sentences, a preposition locates the noun “book” in space or in time.

A prepositional phrase is made up of the preposition, its object and any associated adjectives or adverbs. A prepositional phrase can function as a noun, an adjective, or an adverb. The most common prepositions are “about,” “above,” “across,” “after,” “against,” “along,” “among,” “around,” “at,” “before,” “behind,” “below,” “beneath,” “beside,” “between,” “beyond,” “but,” “by,” “despite,” “down,” “during,” “except,” “for,” “from,” “in,” “inside,” “into,” “like,” “near,” “of,” “off,” “on,” “onto,” “out,” “outside,” “over,” “past,” “since,” “through,” “throughout,” “till,” “to,” “toward,” “under,” “underneath,” “until,” “up,” “upon,” “with,” “within,” and “without.”

Each of the highlighted words in the following sentences is a preposition:

The children climbed the mountain without fear.

In this sentence, the preposition “without” introduces the noun “fear.” The prepositional phrase “without fear” functions as an adverb describing how the children climbed.

There was rejoicing throughout the land when the government was defeated.

Here, the preposition “throughout” introduces the noun phrase “the land.” The prepositional phrase acts as an adverb describing the location of the rejoicing.

The spider crawled slowly along the banister.

The preposition “along” introduces the noun phrase “the banister” and the prepositional phrase “along the banister” acts as an adverb, describing where the spider crawled.

The dog is hiding under the porch because it knows it will be punished for chewing up a new pair of shoes.

Here the preposition “under” introduces the prepositional phrase “under the porch,” which acts as an adverb modifying the compound verb “is hiding.”

The screenwriter searched for the manuscript he was certain was somewhere in his office.

Similarly in this sentence, the preposition “in” introduces a prepositional phrase “in his office,” which acts as an adverb describing the location of the missing papers.

The verb is perhaps the most important part of the sentence. A verb or compound verb asserts something about the subject of the sentence and express actions, events, or states of being. The verb or compound verb is the critical element of the predicate of a sentence.

In each of the following sentences, the verb or compound verb is underlined:

Dracula bites his victims on the neck.

The verb “bites” describes the action Dracula takes.

In early October, Giselle will plant twenty tulip bulbs.

Here the compound verb “will plant” describes an action that will take place in the future.

My first teacher was Miss Crawford, but I remember the janitor Mr. Weatherbee more vividly.

In this sentence, the verb “was” (the simple past tense of “is”) identifies a particular person and the verb “remembered” describes a mental action.

Karl Creelman bicycled around the world in 1899, but his diaries and his bicycle were destroyed.

In this sentence, the compound verb “were destroyed” describes an action which took place in the past.

A noun is a word used to name a person, animal, place, thing, and abstract idea. Nouns are usually the first words which small children learn.

The highlighted words in the following sentences are all nouns:
Late last year our neighbours bought a goat.
Portia White was an opera singer.
The bus inspector looked at all the passengers’ passes.
According to Plutarch, the library at Alexandria was destroyed in 48 B.C.
Philosophy is of little comfort to the starving.

A noun can function in a sentence as a subject, a direct object, an indirect object, a subject complement, an object complement, an appositive, an adjective or an adverb.

Noun Gender

Many common nouns, like “engineer” or “teacher,” can refer to men or women. Once, many English nouns would change form depending on their gender — for example, a man was called an “author” while a woman was called an “authoress” — but this use of gender-specific nouns is very rare today. Those that are still used occasionally tend to refer to occupational categories, as in the following sentences.

David Garrick was a very prominent eighteenth-century actor.
Sarah Siddons was at the height of her career as an actress in the 1780s.
The manager was trying to write a want ad, but he couldn’t decide whether he was advertising for a “waiter” or a “waitress”

Noun Plurals

Most nouns change their form to indicate number by adding “-s” or “-es”, as illustrated in the following pairs of sentences:

When Matthew was small he rarely told the truth if he thought he was going to be punished.
Many people do not believe that truths are self-evident.

As they walked through the silent house, they were startled by an unexpected echo.
I like to shout into the quarry and listen to the echoes that return.

He tripped over a box left carelessly in the hallway.
Since we are moving, we will need many boxes.

There are other nouns which form the plural by changing the last letter before adding “s”. Some words ending in “f” form the plural by deleting “f” and adding “ves,” and words ending in “y” form the plural by deleting the “y” and adding “ies,” as in the following pairs of sentences:

The harbour at Marble Mountain has one wharf.
There are several wharves in Halifax Harbour.

Warsaw is their favourite city because it reminds them of their courtship.
The vacation my grandparents won includes trips to twelve European cities.

The children circled around the headmaster and shouted, “Are you a mouse or a man?”
The audience was shocked when all five men admitted that they were afraid of mice.

Other nouns form the plural irregularly. If English is your first language, you probably know most of these already: when in doubt, consult a good dictionary.

Possessive Nouns

In the possessive case, a noun or pronoun changes its form to show that it owns or is closely related to something else. Usually, nouns become possessive by adding a combination of an apostrophe and the letter “s.”

You can form the possessive case of a singular noun that does not end in “s” by adding an apostrophe and “s,” as in the following sentences:

The red suitcase is Cassandra’s.
The only luggage that was lost was the prime minister’s.
The exhausted recruits were woken before dawn by the drill sergeant’s screams.
The miner’s face was covered in coal dust.

You can form the possessive case of a singular noun that ends in “s” by adding an apostrophe alone or by adding an apostrophe and “s,” as in the following examples:

The bus’s seats are very uncomfortable.
The bus’ seats are very uncomfortable.

The film crew accidentally crushed the platypus’s eggs.
The film crew accidentally crushed the platypus’ eggs.

Felicia Hemans’s poetry was once more popular than Lord Byron’s.
Felicia Hemans’ poetry was once more popular than Lord Byron’s.

You can form the possessive case of a plural noun that does not end in “s” by adding an apostrophe and a “s,” as in the following examples:

The children’s mittens were scattered on the floor of the porch.
The sheep’s pen was mucked out every day.
Since we have a complex appeal process, a jury’s verdict is not always final.
The men’s hockey team will be playing as soon as the women’s team is finished.
The hunter followed the moose’s trail all morning but lost it in the afternoon.

You can form the possessive case of a plural noun that does end in “s” by adding an apostrophe:

The concert was interrupted by the dogs’ barking, the ducks’ quacking, and the babies’ squalling.
The janitors’ room is downstairs and to the left.
My uncle spent many hours trying to locate the squirrels’ nest.
The archivist quickly finished repairing the diaries’ bindings.
Religion is usually the subject of the roommates’ many late night debates.

Using Possessive Nouns

When you read the following sentences, you will notice that a noun in the possessive case frequently functions as an adjective modifying another noun:

The miner’s face was covered in coal dust.

Here the possessive noun “miner’s” is used to modify the noun “face” and together with the article “the,” they make up the noun phrase that is the sentence’s subject.

The concert was interrupted by the dogs’ barking, the ducks’ quacking, and the babies’ squalling.

In this sentence, each possessive noun modifies a gerund. The possessive noun “dogs”‘ modifies “barking,” “ducks”‘ modifies “quacking,” and “babies”‘ modifies “squalling.”

The film crew accidentally crushed the platypus’s eggs.

In this example the possessive noun “platypus’s” modifies the noun “eggs” and the noun phrase “the platypus’s eggs” is the direct object of the verb “crushed.”

My uncle spent many hours trying to locate the squirrels’ nest.

In this sentence the possessive noun “squirrels”‘ is used to modify the noun “nest” and the noun phrase “the squirrels’ nest” is the object of the infinitive phrase “to locate.”

Types Of Nouns

There are many different types of nouns. As you know, you capitalise some nouns, such as “Canada” or “Louise,” and do not capitalise others, such as “badger” or “tree” (unless they appear at the beginning of a sentence). In fact, grammarians have developed a whole series of noun types, including the proper noun, the common noun, the concrete noun, the abstract noun, the countable noun (also called the count noun), the non-countable noun (also called the mass noun), and the collective noun. You should note that a noun will belong to more than one type: it will be proper or common, abstract or concrete, and countable or non-countable or collective.

If you are interested in the details of these different types, you can read about them in the following sections.
Proper Nouns

You always write a proper noun with a capital letter, since the noun represents the name of a specific person, place, or thing. The names of days of the week, months, historical documents, institutions, organisations, religions, their holy texts and their adherents are proper nouns. A proper noun is the opposite of a common noun

In each of the following sentences, the proper nouns are highlighted:

The Marroons were transported from Jamaica and forced to build the fortifications in Halifax.
Many people dread Monday mornings.
Beltane is celebrated on the first of May.
Abraham appears in the Talmud and in the Koran.
Last year, I had a Baptist, a Buddhist, and a Gardnerian Witch as roommates.

Common Nouns

A common noun is a noun referring to a person, place, or thing in a general sense — usually, you should write it with a capital letter only when it begins a sentence. A common noun is the opposite of a proper noun.

In each of the following sentences, the common nouns are highlighted:

According to the sign, the nearest town is 60 miles away.
All the gardens in the neighbourhood were invaded by beetles this summer.
I don’t understand why some people insist on having six different kinds of mustard in their cupboards.
The road crew was startled by the sight of three large moose crossing the road.
Many child-care workers are underpaid.

Sometimes you will make proper nouns out of common nouns, as in the following examples:

The tenants in the Garnet Apartments are appealing the large and sudden increase in their rent.
The meals in the Bouncing Bean Restaurant are less expensive than meals in ordinary restaurants.
Many witches refer to the Renaissance as the Burning Times.
The Diary of Anne Frank is often a child’s first introduction to the history of the Holocaust.

Concrete Nouns

A concrete noun is a noun which names anything (or anyone) that you can perceive through your physical senses: touch, sight, taste, hearing, or smell. A concrete noun is the opposite of a abstract noun.

The highlighted words in the following sentences are all concrete nouns:

The judge handed the files to the clerk.
Whenever they take the dog to the beach, it spends hours chasing waves.
The real estate agent urged the couple to buy the second house because it had new shingles.
As the car drove past the park, the thump of a disco tune overwhelmed the string quartet’s rendition of a minuet.
The book binder replaced the flimsy paper cover with a sturdy, cloth-covered board.

Abstract Nouns

An abstract noun is a noun which names anything which you can not perceive through your five physical senses, and is the opposite of a concrete noun. The highlighted words in the following sentences are all abstract nouns:

Buying the fire extinguisher was an afterthought.
Tillie is amused by people who are nostalgic about childhood.
Justice often seems to slip out of our grasp.
Some scientists believe that schizophrenia is transmitted genetically.

Countable Nouns

A countable noun (or count noun) is a noun with both a singular and a plural form, and it names anything (or anyone) that you can count. You can make a countable noun plural and attach it to a plural verb in a sentence. Countable nouns are the opposite of non-countable nouns and collective nouns.

In each of the following sentences, the highlighted words are countable nouns:

We painted the table red and the chairs blue.
Since he inherited his aunt’s library, Jerome spends every weekend indexing his books.
Miriam found six silver dollars in the toe of a sock.
The oak tree lost three branches in the hurricane.
Over the course of twenty-seven years, Martha Ballad delivered just over eight hundred babies.

Non-Countable Nouns

A non-countable noun (or mass noun) is a noun which does not have a plural form, and which refers to something that you could (or would) not usually count. A non-countable noun always takes a singular verb in a sentence. Non-countable nouns are similar to collective nouns, and are the opposite of countable nouns.

The highlighted words in the following sentences are non-countable nouns:

Joseph Priestly discovered oxygen.

The word “oxygen” cannot normally be made plural.

Oxygen is essential to human life.

Since “oxygen” is a non-countable noun, it takes the singular verb “is” rather than the plural verb “are.”

We decided to sell the furniture rather than take it with us when we moved.

You cannot make the noun “furniture” plural.

The furniture is heaped in the middle of the room.

Since “furniture” is a non-countable noun, it takes a singular verb, “is heaped.”

The crew spread the gravel over the roadbed.

You cannot make the non-countable noun “gravel” plural.

Gravel is more expensive than I thought.

Since “gravel” is a non-countable noun, it takes the singular verb form “is.”

Collective Nouns

A collective noun is a noun naming a group of things, animals, or persons. You could count the individual members of the group, but you usually think of the group as a whole is generally as one unit. You need to be able to recognise collective nouns in order to maintain subject-verb agreement. A collective noun is similar to a non-countable noun, and is roughly the opposite of a countable noun.

In each of the following sentences, the highlighted word is a collective noun:

The flock of geese spends most of its time in the pasture.

The collective noun “flock” takes the singular verb “spends.”

The jury is dining on take-out chicken tonight.

In this example the collective noun “jury” is the subject of the singular compound verb “is dining.”

The steering committee meets every Wednesday afternoon.

Here the collective noun “committee” takes a singular verb, “meets.”

The class was startled by the bursting light bulb.

In this sentence the word “class” is a collective noun and takes the singular compound verb “was startled.”