Language/French/Grammar/Mass-versus-count-nouns

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Mass versus count nouns

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What are count nouns?[edit | edit source]

Definition[edit | edit source]

A count noun can be used with the indefinite article (e.g.: "un livre, des livres") and usually have both singular and plural forms.

Typical count nouns[edit | edit source]

French Translation
une bouteille a bottle
un chien a dog
des bouteilles bottles
une personne a person
des chiens dogs
des personnes people

What's a Mass Noun?[edit | edit source]

Definition[edit | edit source]

A Mass Noun refer to something that cannot be counted (e.g. a substance: "de l'air" or quality: "de la sagesse") and typically has only a singular form (although some mass nouns only have a plural form):

Typical mass nouns[edit | edit source]

French Translation
de l'air air
de l'eau water
du beurre butter
des gens people
du gâteau cake
du sable sand

Mass nouns in French usually go with the article "du", "de l'", "de la" or "des" - in cases where the English has "some" or no article:

  • Je voudrais du pain

I would like some bread

  • II y a du beurre dans le tiroir

There's butter in the drawer

“Les personnes” and “Les gens”[edit | edit source]

“Les personnes” and “Les gens”, both of which mean "people", differ in their uses because personne is a count noun and gens a mass noun. Only personne can be preceded by a number (e.g. cinq), or the quantifiers plusieurs 'several', quelques 'a few', un certain nombre de 'a certain number of:

"personnes" and "gens", which both mean "people", are used differently because "personne" is an count noun while people is a a mass noun. Only "personne" can be preceded by a number (for example "cinq"), or the quantifiers "quelques" (some), "un certain nombre de" (a number of), "plusieurs" (several):

  • Les 6 personnes (NOT gens) qui sont venus nous voir

The 6 people who came to see us

  • Plusieurs personnes (NOT gens) ont étaient sur la plage

Several people were on the beach

Likewise, "gens" is preferred in contexts where “people” are treated as a mass:

  • Les gens (NOT personnes) n'aiment pas rester dans le froid trop longtemps

People don't like to stay in the cold for too long

Note: gens can be preceded by beaucoup de 'many', peu de 'few', tous les 'all the' and la plupart des 'most'. "gens" can be preceded by "beaucoup" (many), "peu de" (few), "la plupart des" (most) and "tous les" (all the).

Mass nouns used countably[edit | edit source]

Some mass nouns can be used countably to refer to specific examples of the substance in question:

French Translation
les vins de France  the wines of Trance
les Eaux et Forêts  the Trench Torestry Commission
les fromages de Normandie  the cheeses of Normandy
un pain  a loaf of bread
un petit pain  a bun

Some count nouns can also be used as mass nouns:

French Translation
Prenez du poulet  Have some chicken
Il met du citron dans tout  He puts lemon in everything


Types of Nouns (all lessons)[edit source]

Other Chapters[edit | edit source]

Table of Contents

Nouns


Determiners


Personal and impersonal pronouns


Adjectives


Adverbs


Numbers, measurements, time and quantifiers


Verb forms


Verb constructions


Verb and participle agreement


Tense


The subjunctive, modal verbs, exclamatives and imperatives


The infinitive


Prepositions


Question formation


Relative clauses


Negation


Conjunctions and other linking constructions

Other Lessons[edit | edit source]

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