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some small questions
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| 20. |
23 May 2007 Wed 05:34 pm |
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| 21. |
23 May 2007 Wed 05:50 pm |
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Quoting libralady: There is no such word or words in English as "countable" or "uncountable". |
Huh? It's in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary though.. 
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| 22. |
23 May 2007 Wed 07:05 pm |
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Quote: [/If you mean countables and uncountables; Turkish doesn't have a similar countancy as English. They are thought differently in either languages.
Example: Money, water etc is uncountable. They don't take plural -s. But they can have -ler/lar in Turkish.
QUOTE]
In the English language "money" and "water" can take the plural form of adding 's' when you use the 'to be' word 'are' instead of 'is' Nearly all words that are used as a noun can take the plural form.
the money is there in the box...
the monies are there in the box...
the water is receding...
the waters are receding... 
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| 23. |
23 May 2007 Wed 07:15 pm |
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Quoting libralady:
There is no such word or words in English as "countable" or "uncountable". We would say "It can be counted or it cannot be counted". |
I knew that my Oxford dictionary failed as always!!! 
Well, in fact, in Turkey, we are living with this English class:
"In English, some words are uncountable, such as 'money' or 'bread'. So you cannot make them plural."
I am not a native English speaker, but that is exactly what we are still taught. I don't know who is wrong.
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| 24. |
23 May 2007 Wed 07:53 pm |
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| 25. |
23 May 2007 Wed 08:16 pm |
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It is still possible to make nouns such as money, bread, water, rain, into plural form. I suppose when you break down my examples you will understand how or why
only because we dont need to count ...unless it is specified 'exactly how much money is in the box? Or how many streams of water from various sources?
What is the volume of the water?
the money is there in the box... the 'money' is pictured in your mind, an uncountable amount
the monies are there in the box...here, the 'monies' from different sources of an uncountable amount are in the box.
the water is receding... one stream of water of an uncountable volume of water molecules
the waters are receding... the various streams of water of an unknown volume of water from unknown resources are receding.
the bread is on the table...an unknown amount of bread is on the table.
the breads are on the table...an unknown amount of varying types of bread are on the table.
if you can make 'sky' plural to skies...
of course you can make almost any noun to a plural.
It changes the meaning of the noun from a simple plural to a varying plural
money (unknown amount of coin, paper, etc)
monies (unknown amount of sources of coins, etc)
water (unknown volume of water)
waters (unknown amount of streams, rivers, resources of an unknown volume of water)
bread (unknown amount of bread)
breads (unknown amount of types of an unknown amount of bread)
these are a few examples
I would try to put 'luck' or 'thank' to plural in a sentence but that might make my brain explode!
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| 26. |
23 May 2007 Wed 08:20 pm |
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| 27. |
23 May 2007 Wed 09:58 pm |
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i guess most of it it is not what i expect it, but thank you anyway, remmeber, do always make simple become complicated.
but i have one more question. about efendim
in turkish , always ,,,,,efendim, does that the same when you said to the female and male.
again, that is simple, just a little explanation can make me clear. thank you very much!
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| 28. |
23 May 2007 Wed 10:01 pm |
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Quoting caliptrix: Quoting libralady:
There is no such word or words in English as "countable" or "uncountable". We would say "It can be counted or it cannot be counted". |
I knew that my Oxford dictionary failed as always!!!
Well, in fact, in Turkey, we are living with this English class:
"In English, some words are uncountable, such as 'money' or 'bread'. So you cannot make them plural."
I am not a native English speaker, but that is exactly what we are still taught. I don't know who is wrong. |
Ah Ha, the tables turn!
I completely believe that your class teaches what you describe, but at least in the USA its very common place to say. " I have access to various monies" meaning "funding sources", or if you have say a buffet table with "different breads". But maybe for somebody starting to speak English it is not such a bad rule.
Caliptrix:
Why are you taking an English Class? You write English very well?
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| 29. |
23 May 2007 Wed 10:17 pm |
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| 30. |
23 May 2007 Wed 10:32 pm |
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Well it is a long time since I had an English lesson, and I stand corrected,  I have checked my BIG dictionary tonight and low and behold there they are. But I can truely say, we would never use countable or uncountable when referring things you can or cannot count in a conversation.
Monies is also used in the UK but normally to do with something legal when referring to money. For example when selling or buying a house, or money exchanging hands in a divorce settlement. It is a term that solicitors use.
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