- •Часть I
- •Скуденкова е. Е., Ковалёва е. В., Архипова е. В.
- •Предисловие
- •The noun
- •Singular and plural forms of nouns
- •The plural of nouns and the verbs to be, to have
- •Uncountable nouns
- •Nouns with different singular and plural meanings
- •Compound nouns and their plurals
- •Nouns with foreign plurals
- •Numbers and their plurals
- •1. Dozen(s), hundred(s), etc.
- •2. “A whole amount”.
- •Revision
- •The category of case
- •The Genitive
- •Introductory there
- •Pronouns
- •Number: Singular (one) or plural (more than one).
- •Personal pronouns
- •Object The receptionist asked XXX to wait.
- •Possessive adjectives and possessive absolute pronouns
- •Reflexive pronouns, emphatic pronouns
- •Demonstratives (this – these / that – those)
- •Other pronouns
- •We normally use the following question words to ask about:
- •Subject/Object Questions
- •Quantifiers
- •Adjectives
- •Order of Adjectives
- •Taking a break
- •The comparison of Adjectives Most one-syllable adjectives form their comparatives with the help of -er and -est which are added to their basic forms.
- •Adverbs
- •Like – As
- •The comparison of adverbs
- •Kinds of adverbs
- •1. Adverbs of manner. Position of adverbs of manner.
- •2. Adverbs of place. Position of adverbs of place.
- •3. Adverbs of time. Position of adverbs of time.
- •4. Adverbials of duration.
- •5. Adverbs of frequency.
- •Intensifiers
- •Adverbs with two forms and differences in meaning
- •Relative Adverbs. Relative Pronouns
- •Prepositions in Relative Clauses
- •Focus adverbs
- •Inversion after adverbs
- •Inversion after adverbs of place like here, there.
- •Inversions after adverbials of place.
- •Inversion after negative adverbs, etc.
- •Revision
- •Linking Words
- •The numeral
- •Literature
- •Contents
Nouns with different singular and plural meanings
Some nouns have different meanings in the singular and in the plural forms: Air/airs, ash/ashes, colour/colours, content/contents, custom/customs, damage/damages, draught/draughts, drawer/drawers, force/forces, fund/funds, glass/glasses, lodging/lodgings, look/looks, manner/manners, minute/minutes, moral/morals, pain/pains, quarter/quarters, scale/scales, saving/savings, spectacle/spectacles, step/steps, wage/wages, wit/wits, work/works.
Glasses are made of glass.
Sometimes the meanings are far apart (air/airs), sometimes they are quite close (fund/funds). The countable nouns in the above list have their own plurals: old customs, six minutes, three steps.
Exercise 13. Use the words given below instead of blanks:
1. Mr. Smith was found guilty of causing … to Mr. Brown’s property and was ordered to pay … . 2. May I have a … at your daughter? – Oh, no, not now. The accident has spoilt her good … . 3. a) How much do you pay for board and …? b) Come round to my … and we’ll have a party. 4. a) I didn’t like this man’s … (=attitude). b) George has very good … . 5. a) A … is a short official note or memorandum. b) The official records of meeting are called the … . 6. We can make a considerable … (=economy) by selling the car. Then we can use our … to buy a new flat. 7. a) In some countries, a minimum … is fixed by law. b) Mr. Black takes all his … home to his wife. 8. a) We were all enchanted by his … . b) The ladies were frightened out of their … .
Minute/minutes; wit/wits; damage/damages; saving/savings; look/looks; wage/wages; lodging/lodgings; manner/manners.
Compound nouns and their plurals
1. The tendency is to put a plural ending (-s, -es, etc.):
a) on the second noun in noun + noun combinations: boyfriends, boy-scouts, girlfriends, bookshops, maid-servants, matchboxes, tooth-brushes, etc. and in gerund + noun combinations: fryingpans;
b) on the noun in compounds formed by a noun + preposition, or an adverb, or an adjective: onlookers, lookers-on, in-laws, passers-by, courts-martial, attorneys-general;
c) on the last word when no noun is present: breakdowns, drop-outs, forget-me-nots, go-betweens, grown-ups, pick-ups, stand-bys, etc.
2. In compounds originating from a prepositional noun phrase where the preposition is a linking element only the first noun takes the plural form: coats-of-mail, commanders-in-chief, editors-in-chief, man-of-war/men-of-war, mothers-in-law: Their mothers-in-law are of the same age.
3. In compounds with a conjunction as a linking element the plural is taken by the second noun: gin-and-tonics.
4. When the first element is man or woman, then both elements change: men students, women students, men-servants, women-doctors, but note compounds with lady: lady friends. Other compounds with man and woman form the plurals only in the second word: man-eaters, manholes, woman-haters.
Exercise 14. Translate the sentences from Russian into English:
1. Том, приходи к нам вечером со своей подругой, наши подруги тоже придут. 2. Дети считают, что взрослые не могут их понять. 3. Бесполезно улыбаться ему, он и его друзья – известные женоненавистники. 4. Большинство мужчин считают, что женщины-водители представляют опасность на дороге. 5. У тебя уже есть пять пуловеров. Зачем ты покупаешь ещё один? 6. Полицейские играли в футбол с пожарными. Победила дружба. 7. Эти полки слишком старые. Давай купим два книжных шкафа. 8. Полли с удивлением посмотрела на Тома, держащего в руках четыре будильника. 9. Одноклассники не любили её за то, что она всегда имела своё мнение. 10. На столах лежали тетради, учебники и пеналы. 11. Вы должны менять зубные щётки каждые три месяца. 12. Кет расставила ловушки для мышей по всему дому. Первой в ловушку попала её мама. 13. Очень редко встретишь в поликлинике мужчину-врача, чаще встречаются женщины-врачи.