Myrtonos 195 Report post Posted February 10 In fact, some mass nouns in English can be given plurals too, with the same sort of meaning change, we can say that crude oil consists of multiple oils. We can say that copper, aluminium, tin and iron are different metals. But not all mass nouns in English can meaningfully be given a plural if you think about it. Although we do have the expression 'the woods' we must say 'a piece of wood'. And although we have the expression 'hot coals' we must say 'a piece of coal'. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nesf 9,252 Report post Posted February 11 17 hours ago, Myrtonos said: In fact, some mass nouns in English can be given plurals too, with the same sort of meaning change, we can say that crude oil consists of multiple oils. We can say that copper, aluminium, tin and iron are different metals. But not all mass nouns in English can meaningfully be given a plural if you think about it. Although we do have the expression 'the woods' we must say 'a piece of wood'. And although we have the expression 'hot coals' we must say 'a piece of coal'. Indeed. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
