Invariable nouns
Invariable nouns cannot change their number, some of them are always singular in meaning, some denote plurality.
Invariable singular nouns
(Singularia Tantum)
Here belong:
Material nouns
Water, milk, snow, bread, gold, oil
Some of them can become countable through a change of meaning (see about uncountable nouns):
Cheeses – kinds of cheese
Beers – portions of beer
abstract nouns
joy, love, friendship, anger, foolishness
Some collective nouns (group 3)
Leafage, linen, machinery, equipment, money, fruit, hair, furniture, luggage, etc
But: a hair – волосок
A fruit – плод, сорт фруктов
Some nouns ending in –s:
news, gallows
some diseases: measles, mumps, rickets, shingles, diabetes
some games: billiards, bowls, dominoes, draughts
But: a billiard table
some proper nouns: the United Nations, the United States, Athens, Brussels, Wales, Naples
Nouns ending in –ics: classics, linguistics, politics, phonetics, mathematics
Phonetics is a science of sounds.
Some of these nouns are sometimes treated as plurals:
His phonetics (sounds) are perfect.
Politics has/have always interested me.
Invariable plural nouns
(Pluralia Tantum)
Here belong:
Names of things that consist of two similar halves:
Glasses, scissors, trousers, spectacles, scales, tongs, shorts, suspenders, tights, pyjamas, pincers, breeches, pants, binoculars, irons
These scissors are sharp.
Note. Being only plural in form these nouns are nevertheless countable. We can say:
A pair of scissors
This pair of scissors is mine.
Two pair(s) of scissors.
2. Concrete nouns with a collective meaning:
Stairs, goods, slums, outskirts, belongings, sweepings, clothes, dregs, greens, lodgings, customs
3. Abstract nouns with a collective meaning:
Tidings, holidays, goings-on, earnings, contents, wages, odds, tropics, doings, remains
4. Some proper nouns: the Netherlands, the East Indies, the West Indies, the Hebrides, the Highlands, the Midlands
Note 1. The nouns a gate, a watch, a sledge, a sleigh are not Pluralia Tantum as are the corresponding Russian words.
Note 2. Pay attention to some words that may cause difficulty:
clothes – одежда (Pl.T.)
a cloth – кусок материи
cloth – материя, ткань
How much cloth will I need to make a pair of trousers?
iron – железо
an iron – утюг
irons – оковы, кандалы (Pl.T.)
work – работа
a work – исследование, произведение, сочинение
a works – завод, механизм (Sing. = Pl.)
damage – вред, ущерб
damages – убытки (Pl.T.)
pain – боль
I have pains in my back.
pains – усилия (Pl.T.)
He takes great pains to solve this problem.
colours – флаг, честь
a quarter – четверть
quarters – квартира (Sing. = Pl.)
content –
1) содержание, суть (противоположное – форма)
I like the style of his writing, but I don’t like the content.
2) содержание вещества
I don’t eat food with a high fat content.
contents – содержимое (Pl.T.)
1) содержимое сумки, бутылки, и т.д., содержание беседы
He drank the contents of the bottle.
The police emptied her bag and examined the contents.
The Prime Minister declined to go into details on the contents of his talks with the Chancellor.
2) содержание (оглавление) книги
Uncountable nouns
They can become countable with a change of meaning. This takes place with
1) abstract nouns
work – a work
war – a war
light – a light
death - a death
thought – a thought
2) material nouns
- denoting sorts, varieties
A tea (a wine, etc) you have never tasted before.
Iron is a metal. Nescafe is a coffee.
- denoting portions
He ordered a salad and two coffees.
- with a stylistic colouring to denote great amounts (the emphatic plural)
the waters of the Pacific
the snows of Kilimanjaro
the sands of the Sahara
the heats of the desert
the colds of the North
- denoting a whole but not its contents
I like roast potatoes with fried onions.
I had a boiled egg for breakfast.
But: You’ve got egg all down your tie.
mashed potato
Fish served with slices of lemon.
A clove of garlic (зубок чеснока);
Garlic is always uncountable.