What do countable and uncountable mean?

Answer 1

A "countable" noun is one that can have a plural, or term to indicate that there is more than one of the objects or activities. An "uncountable noun" is one that is collective, or does not have a separate form for multiple instances instead of single instances. Many nouns have been colloquially "pluralized" through common use even where they are conceptually uncountable.

Countable nouns that are singular need an article (a, the) or determiner (this, that).

Examples:

Countable -- a name, a boy, a dog, a pencil, a room, an idea, a plan, a person (persons or people), an ocean

Uncountable

-- collectives such as music, art, news, knowledge, furniture, luggage, advice, shipping

-- commodities such as corn, butter, wine (all wines), salt (NaCl)

-- concepts such as perseverance, honesty, truth

-- emotions such as love, hate, happiness

-- also currency, money (currencies are national units, monies means revenue)

Depends on context:

• philosophy -- uncountable as a study, countable as a particular belief
• rock -- uncountable as a material, countable as individual samples or minerals
• study -- uncountable as a concept (studying), countable as learning fields (studies)
• literature -- only countable when used to refer to separate "types of literature"
• good, evil -- as concepts, uncountable; goods are products and evils are various harmful or malevolent influences