Anglo-Assamese Grammar for Class 9 and class 10 of SEBA Assamese medium students. The purpose of this post is to help students in understanding grammar in their own language. This post on “Nouns – Countable and Uncountable” will be very helpful to Assamese medium students of SEBA.
NOUNS – Countable and Uncountable | Anglo – Assamese
Many many years ago, there was a merchant named Abul Qasim in Baghdad. He was the richest man in the country. He had large, strongboxes filled with gold. He owned land and house and gardens. But although he was so rich, he spent very little of his money. He ate only dates (খেজুৰ) and drank only water. He had not bought a new pair of shoes for thirty years. When there was a hole in one of his shoes, he took it to a shoe-maker named Ahmed and said, “Hammer a piece of new leather over the old. Do not cut away the old leather. It had once cost money.”
এই passage-টোত ডাঠ আখৰেৰে ছপোৱা word-বোৰলৈ মন কৰা। এইবোৰ হ’ল—
Years, merchant, Abul Qasim, Baghdad, man, country, boxes, gold, land, house, gardens, money, dates, water, shoes, hole, shoe-maker, Ahmed আৰু leather.
এই আটাইবোৰ word noun। ইহঁতৰ প্রত্যেকটো কোনো প্রাণী বা ঠাই বা বস্তুৰ নাম।
কোনো প্ৰাণী বা ঠাই বা বস্তৰ নাম বুজোৱা word-অক noun বোলা হয়।
A noun is a word used as the name of a person, place, or thing.
এতিয়া passage-টোত পোৱা noun-বোৰলৈ পুনৰ মন কৰা। ইয়াত আমি দুবিধ noun পাওঁ—
- (i) Abul Qasim, Baghdad on Ahmed.
- (ii) Years, merchant, man, country, boxes, gold, land, house, gardens, money, dates, water, shoes, hole, shoe-maker, ovist leather.
প্রথমবিত থকা Abul Qasim, Baghdad আৰু Ahmed বিশেষ মানুহ আৰু ঠাইৰ নাম। এনে noun-অক proper noun বোলা হয়।
বিশেষ কোনো প্রাণী, ঠাই আদিৰ নাম বুজোৱা শব্দক Proper noun বোলা হয়।
A proper noun is the name of some particular person, place, etc.
মন কৰা ঃ Proper noun-অৰ প্রথম letter-টো সদায় capital letter হয়। যেনে—
- He lives in Delhi.
- My brother Anil has a dog named Tommy.
- When he was in Agra he used to go to the Tajmahal every Sunday.
এতিয়া দ্বিতীয়বিধৰ noun-বোৰলৈ মন কৰা। ইয়াত man, houses, water আদি কোনো প্রাণী বা বস্তুৰ নাম। এনেবোৰ noun-অক common noun বোলা হয়।
- Once upon a time, there was a man named Haricharan.
ওপৰৰ sentence টোৰ man common noun, কাৰণ man সকলো মানুহৰ নাম। কিন্তু Haricharan proper noun, কাৰণ, ই বিশেষ এজন মানুহৰ নাম বুজাইছে। তেনেদৰে Akbar was a great king. ইয়াত king-টো common noun; কাৰণ king word-টো যিকোনো ৰজাৰ সম্পৰ্কত ব্যৱহাৰ কৰিব পাৰি। কিন্তু Akbar proper noun; কাৰণ ই বিশেষ এজন ৰজাৰ নাম। তেনেদৰে—
- Rita is pretty girl.
- Raju is a clever boy.
- Jorhat is a big town.
- Kolkata is a city.
- The name of this house is ‘Shanti Kutir’.
ওপৰৰ Sentence বোৰৰ—
| Rita | proper noun কিন্তু | girl | common noun |
| Raju | proper noun কিন্তু | boy | common noun |
| Jorhat | proper noun কিন্তু | town | common noun |
| Kolkata | proper noun কিন্তু | city | common noun |
| Shanti Kutir | proper noun কিন্তু | house | common noun |
কোনো প্রাণী বা বস্তুৰ আটাইবোৰকে বুজাবলৈ ব্যৱহাৰ কৰা noun-অক common noun বোলা হয়। A common noun is a name given in common to every person or thing of the same class or kind.
এতিয়া দ্বিতীয়বিধৰ noun বোৰলৈ পুনৰ মন কৰা। এইবোৰ হ’ল—
years, merchant, man, country, boxes, gold, land, houses, gardens, money, dates, water, shoes, hole, shoe-maker wit leather.
এই আটাইবোৰ common noun-যদিও ইহঁতক তলত দিয়া দৰে দুভাগত ভগাব পাৰি ঃ
- (i) years, merchant, man, country, boxes, houses, gardens, dates, shoes, hole আৰু shoe-maker.
- (ii) gold, land, money, water আৰু leather.
প্রথমবিধ noun-ক আমি গণিব পাৰোঁ। যেনে—আমি a (one) year, two years, a hundred years, ক’ব পাৰোঁ। তেনেদৰে আমি a (one) man, three men, a thousand men ক’ব পাৰোঁ। গণিব পৰা এনেবোৰ প্রাণী বা বস্তুক countable noun বোলা হয়।
দ্বিতীয়বিধ noun-অক আমি গণিব নোৱাৰোঁ। আমি * one gold, four golds, আদি বা one water, five waters আদি ক’ব নোৱাৰোঁ। গণিব নোৱাৰা এনেবোৰ বস্তুক uncountable noun বোলা হয়।
মন কৰা ঃ আচৰিত যেন লাগিলেও money (যাক আমি সদায় গণো) uncountable noun- হে; countable নহয়। টকা, ডলাৰ, আদিকহে গণিব পাৰি। noun-অক আমি এতিয়া এনেদৰে ভগাব পাৰোঁ—
এতিয়া countable আৰু uncountable noun-অৰ ব্যৱহাৰলৈ লক্ষ্য কৰা-
(i) Countable noun-অৰ সৈতে a আৰু an ব্যৱহাৰ কৰিব পাৰি। যেনে—
- That is an elephant.
- Give me an orange.
- That is a tree.
- There is a box on the table.
- Uncountable noun-অৰ সৈতে কিন্তু a আৰু an ব্যৱহাৰ নহয়। যেনে—
- Sugar is sweet.
- I want some tea.
- Gold is very expensive now.
- Water is a liquid.
- Milk is a very good food.
(ii) Countable noun-অৰ plural আছে কিন্তু Uncountable noun-অৰ কোনো plural form নাথাকে। যেনে—
- Some boys are playing football. (boys-countable)
- Sugar is usually white. (sugar-uncountable)
- There are some birds on that tree. (birds-countable)
- There is some water in the glass. (water-uncountable)
(iii) Countable noun one, two, ten, hundred আদি সংখ্যাৰ সৈতে ব্যৱহাৰ কৰিব পাৰি। কিন্তু uncountable noun এনেদৰে ব্যৱহাৰ কৰা নহয়। যেনে—
- She has three pens. (pens-countable)
- I have ten marbles. (marbles-countable)
- কিন্তু I have three sugars বা She has ten waters বা He has twenty milks আদি হ’ব
- নোৱাৰে। কাৰণ sugar, water, milk আদি uncountable.
(iv) Few, a few, the few, many, several, a large number of আদি অকল countable noun-অৰ সৈতে ব্যৱহাৰ হয়। Uncountable noun-অৰ সৈতে এইবোৰ ব্যৱহাৰ নহয়। যেনে—
- There are few boys in the class today.
- Are there many apples in that basket?
- There are several lions in the zoo.
আনহাতে little, a little, the little, much, a large quality of আদি অকল uncountable noun-অৰ সৈতেহে ব্যৱহাৰ কৰা হয়। Countable noun-অৰ সতে এইবোৰ ব্যৱহাৰ নহয়। যেনে—
- There is a little milk in that cup.
- We haven’t much sugar in the house today.
- A large quantity of rice was found in that godown (গুদাম) yesterday.
- The shop-keeper gave me only a little kerosene.
Some, any, no, enough, plenty of, a lot of, lots of- আদি countable আৰু uncountable দুয়োবিধৰ noun-অৰ সৈতে ব্যৱহাৰ কৰা হয়। যেনে—
- There are some boys in front the school. (countable)
- There is some sand in that box. (uncountable)
- He hasn’t any pencil. (countable)
- Have you any money? (uncountable)
- They have a lot of books in their house. (countable)
- There is a lot of sugar in that jug. (uncountable)
- There are plenty of mangoes in the market. (countable)
- You have put plenty of butter on your bread. (uncountable)
(v) Uncountable noun গণিব নোৱাৰি। কিন্তু বহু সময়ত এইবোৰ জুখিব পাৰি। one rice, two rice-আদি কৰি আমি rice গণিব নোৱাৰোঁ যদিও a plate of rice, a kilo of rice আদি ক’ব পাৰোঁ। সেইদৰে —
| a loaf of bread a slice of bread a piece of bread | (bread-uncountable) |
| a piece of luck a stroke of luck | (luck-uncountable) |
| a burst of laughter a peal of laughter | (laughter-uncountable) |
| a piece of poetry | (poetry-uncountable) |
| a lump of sugar | (sugar-uncountable) |
| a shower of rain | (rain-uncountable) |
| an ounce of gold | (gold-uncountable) |
| a piece of news an item of news | (news-uncountable) |
| a ball of wool | (wool-uncountable) |
| a piece of advice | (advice-uncountable) |
(vi) আগতে কৈ অহা হৈছে যে uncountable noun-অৰ সৈতে indefinite article (a বা an) ব্যৱহাৰ কৰা নহয়। কিন্তু কেতবোৰ uncountable noun আছে যাৰ সৈতে প্ৰায়েই a বা an ব্যৱহাৰ কৰিব লাগে। যেনে—
- It’s a pity that she failed the examination. (pity-uncountable)
- It’s a shame that he does not look after his parents. (shame-uncountable)
- What a surprise! (surprise-uncountable)
- He has a good knowledge of French. (knowledge-uncountable)
- It’s an honour to have you in our meeting today. (honour-uncountable)
- A love of science is often helpful. (love-uncountable)
- Did you have a good sleep last night. (sleep-uncountable)
- She took a fancy to the dress. (fancy-uncountable)
- He takes an interest in my work. (interest-uncountable)
- She takes a pride in all her children. (pride-uncountable)
- He hadn’t a care in the world. (care-uncountable)
(vii) বহু সময়ত noun-টোৰ ব্যৱহাৰে ঠিক কৰে ই countable নে uncountable, যেনে—
| Countable | Uncountable |
| a cake, many cakes two big cheeses a tall teak (চেগুন গছ) today’s papers many experiences a number of talks various noises three teas, please two coffees, please | some cake a little more cheese a table made of teak (চেগুন গছ) a parcel of brown paper much experience much talk a good deal of noise some tea, a cup of tea some coffee, a cup of coffee |
Note : Three teas/coffees আদি চাহ-কফি বেচা দোকানলৈ গৈ তিনি কাপ চাহ/কফি দিয়া এই অর্থতহে ব্যৱহাৰ কৰিব পাৰি।
‘পানী দুগিলাচ দিয়া’-এই ক্ষেত্ৰত কিন্তু Two waters, please ক’ব নোৱাৰি। তলত আৰু কিছুমান noun-অৰ countable আৰু uncountable হিচাপে ব্যৱহাৰ দেখুওৱা হৈছে।
Improvement :
(a) Uncountable :
- I do not see much improvement in your work.
- There has been very little improvement in his work.
(b) Countable :
- I have noticed numerous improvements in the factory.
- Your written work this week is an improvement on your last week’s work.
Discussion :
(a) Uncountable :
- Their marriage caused much discussion.
- The question is still under discussion.
(b) Countable :
- We had several discussions on the subject.
Character :
(a) Uncountable :
- In order to know a person’s character, we must know what he does and thinks.
- Is he a man of strong or week character?
(b) Countable :
- ‘Hamlet’ is a great character of Shakespeare.
- I know the names of all the characters of this novel.
Difficulty :
(a) Uncountable :
- She found the house without difficulty.
- I did the work without much difficulty.
- Have you any difficulty in understanding Hindi?
(b) Countable :
- French spelling is full of difficulties.
- What are your difficulties?
- He is in difficulties about money,
Work :
(a) Uncountable :
- I have a lot of work to do today.
- Have you any work to do now?
Note : এই অর্থত work কেতিয়াও countable হিচাপে ব্যৱহাৰ নহয়। ‘I have done many works today’ কেতিয়াও নহয়। ‘I have done much work today’ আদিহে হ’ব।
(b) Countable :
- ‘Hamlet’ and ‘Othello’ are two great works of Shakespeare.
- There is a motor-works near our house.
- (motor-works-গাড়ী ভাল কৰা কাৰখানা)
Wood :
(a) uncountable :
This chair is made of wood.
This wood is of very good quality.
(b) Countable :
There is wood near our house.
(ইয়াত wood= হাবি)
Glass:
(a) Uncountable :
That window is made of glass.
(b) Countable :
Pour this milk into those glasses.
Exercise – Related to Noun
1. Find out the nouns in the following sentences and say which of them are countable and which are uncountable:
- (i) We drink tea out of a cup.
- (ii)Cows give us milk.
- (iii) A cat eats meat.
- (iv) We can make a cake with some flour, milk and an egg.
- (v) We fill our pens with ink.
- (vi) A ring is made of gold or silver.
- (vii) Always speak the truth.
- (viii)He is famous for his wisdom.
- (ix)Sugar is sweet.
- (x)We cannot live without food and water.
- (xi) Is there any ice in the house?
- (xii)We all believe in liberty.
- (xiii) He plays cricket.
- (xiv) Air is almost weightless.
- (xv) There are some books on the table.
- (xvi) Butter is not available in that shop now.
- (xvii) Cheese is very expensive now.
- (xviii) The rooms were full of dirt.
- (xix) Your hair has turned grey.
- (xx) He writes poetry.
- (xxi) This is a very good poem.
- (xxii) I want to drink some water. Please give me a glass.
- (xxiii) There is some sand in that box.
- (xxiv) Sunshine is good for us.
- (xxv) Do you have any wool in your shop?
- (xxvi) I want a piece of paper to write a letter on.
- (xxvii) She likes music.
- (xxviii) I like songs.
- (xxix) These chairs are made of wood.
- (xxx) Have you any work to do now?
- (xxxi) The ministers had several discussions on this matter.
- (xxxii) Their departure from the town has caused much discussion.
- (xxxiii) How many characters are there in this play?
- (xxxiv) Did you have any difficulty in finding the box?
- (xxxv) I know nothing about his character.
- (xxxvi) She has broken a tea-cup.
- (xxxvii) I like jam on my bread.
2. Write ten correct sentences from the following table :
| Have you got | several | apples? |
| a few | oranges? | |
| a little | tea? | |
| much | sugar? | |
| many | meat? | |
| any | pencils? | |
| a large number of | pens? | |
| a large quantity of | milk? |