Either Countable or Uncountable

Strange as it may seem, there are nouns that can be either countable or uncountable! In many cases, depending on whether these words are being used as a countable or an uncountable noun, their meanings change!

In the pairs of sentences below, you’ll see how the meaning of a few words change. In the first sentence, the word in bold is countable, and in the second, it’s uncountable. See if you can understand the meaning of the words in their context.

The Middle Ages were a dark period in European history.
He hasn’t reached the retirement age yet.

These English exercises are very difficult.
Yoga is great exercise for the mind and spirit.

I found a few brown hairs on my pillow, but both my husband and I are blonde!
My children had lice in their hair, so we had to use special shampoo.

We have to buy more lights for the Christmas tree this year.
Open the curtain so more light comes in.

When are you going to throw out those old stacks of newspapers?
Do you have any paper you can lend me?

We can use these rocks to build a wall.
My favorite type of music is Rock!

How many rooms are there in the house?
I have absolutely no room in my wardrobe for more clothes!

Fill in all the spaces on this form, please.
Do you think we’ll find other life forms in outer space?

You’re really good at giving inspirational speeches!
It’s okay to use slang in informal speech.

How many times have you seen that movie?
We’ve been waiting for it to rain for a very long time.

Her latest works of art are really quite impressive!
I take the train to work everyday. I have too much work and not enough time.

Here are a couple of curious cases:

Please, put these wine glasses on the table. (countable)
I accidentally stepped on my glasses and now I can’t read anything! (uncountable)
The thief broke the window and there was glass all over the floor.  (uncountable)

It’s getting cold, we’d better throw some more wood on the fire. (uncountable)
It’s easy to get lost in the woods if you’re not careful. (uncountable)

Well, there you have them my friends. As you can see, there is often a fine line between the countable and uncountable. So choose your words carefully!