Unit 1

Nouns and Pronouns
[1.1] How to study this unit?
[1.2] Nouns and pronouns
[1.3] Gender and number
[1.4] Countable and uncountable nouns
[1.5] Genitive case
[1.6] Pronouns
[1.7] Bibliographical references
1
UNIT
Scheme
UNIT 1 – Scheme
Nouns and Nominal Group Pronouns
Elements of the Charachteristics Personal and

Types of Reciprocal
nominal group of the noun reflexive
nouns
Gender
2
Determiner
Interrogative Demonstrative
Number Expressing
Pre-modifier quantity
Indefinite Relative
Genitive
Head case
Countable Uncountable
Post-modifier
Nouns with
countable and
uncountable
uses
© Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

English Grammar
Pay attention to…
1.1. How to study this unit?
In order to study this unit you should read the following:
Hewings, M. (2005). Advanced Grammar in Use. Cambridge: Cambridge University

Press. (p. 80, p. 82, p. 84.). Available at the virtual campus under the art. 32.4 of the
Spanish Intellectual Property Law.
Payne, T.E. (2011). Understanding English Grammar. A Linguistic Introduction.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (pp. 114-121). Available at the virtual campus
under the art. 32.4 of the Spanish Intellectual Property Law.
In this unit we will study different aspects of the English nouns and pronouns:
» Firstly, we will describe the elements of the nominal group.
» Secondly, we will analyse the gender and number of the noun and the difference
between countable and uncountable nouns.
» And finally we will discuss the genitive case and the types of pronouns.
1.2. Nouns and pronouns
This chapter deals with the characteristics and elements of the nominal group,
defined by Angela Downing and Phillip Locke as the group that “refer[s] semantically to
those aspects of our experience that we perceive as entities” (2006, p. 401). The chapter
also examines the main types of nouns and pronouns in English.
Entity Examples
Persons student, voter, guest…
Objects film, wall, lemon…
Places bakery, airport, farm…
Institutions hospital, prison, college…
Actions reading, jumping, smiling…
Abstractions ability, consideration, thought…
Qualities beauty, elegance, humility…
Emotions anxiety, happiness, love…
Phenomena rain, failure, breeze…
Table 1. Classes of entities the nominal group refers to. Adapted from Downing and Locke (2006)
UNIT 1 – Pay attention to… 3 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

English Grammar
The main element of the nominal group (NG) is the head. The nominal group can also
contain in pre-head position a determiner and/or pre-modifier, and in post-head
position —the post-modifier.
The head of the group is the central element; the determiner, the pre-modifier and
the post-modifier are optional.
The Nominal Group

(NG)
Determiner Pre-modifier Head Post-modifier
Figure 1. The nominal group.
The head
The head is usually a noun or a pronoun. The examples analysed below only contain
the main element —the head.
People are reading The Guardian these days.
People (noun) is the nominal group and the head of the nominal group.
It contains interesting facts.
It (pronoun) comprises the nominal group. It is also the head of the nominal group.
Although in rare cases, an adjective can also be the head in a nominal group.
The unemployed have difficulty in making ends meet.
The unemployed is the nominal group in this case. The (article) is the determiner and
unemployed (adjective) is the head.

English Grammar
The determiner
The function of the determiner is to particularise the referent noun in several ways:
» Articles: a bird, an apple, the bird, the apple

» Demonstratives: this library, that story, these libraries, those stories
» Distributives: (each, every, all…) each event, every student…
» Possessives: your exam, his camera…
» Wh- words: which exam?
» Quantifiers: (three, ten, some, many, etc.) three magazines.
The pre-modifier
The pre-modifier is placed in pre-head position. When there is a determiner in the

nominal group, the determiner precedes the pre-modifier. Pre-modifiers are usually
adjectives and participles. Here are some examples:
A mysterious island
A (determiner); mysterious (adjective) is the pre-modifier; island (noun) is the head.
A delightful trip
A (determiner); delightful (adjective) is the pre-modifier; trip (noun) is the head.
Pre-modifiers can also be nouns.
Birthday greetings
Birthday (noun) is the pre-modifier; whereas the noun greetings is the head.
The post-modifier
The post-modifier is placed after the head and, like the determiner and the pre-
modifier, is an optional element in the nominal group. It can be comprised by different
items like finite and non-finite clauses, or prepositional groups.

English Grammar
Find a few examples below:
The shop that his father has in the garage sells books.
In the NG —The shop that his father has in the garage— we can see that the is the
determiner; shop is the head of the NG; and that his father has in the garage is a
relative clause that acts as a post-modifier.
The book that you gave me is very interesting.
The book that you gave me is the NG. Here we have: The (determiner); book (head of
the NG) / that you gave me (again a relative clause that acts as a post-modifier).
His shift in the restaurant has come to an end.
His shift in the restaurant (NG): His (determiner); shift (head of the NG); in the
restaurant (this time we have a prepositional group used as a post-modifier).
Determiner Pre-modifier Head Post-modifier

1 glimpses of her personality
2 China’s most charismatic politician
3 the story of that seaside town
4 a party balloon for the kids
5 this expensively dressed woman that I met at the party
Table 2. The structure of the nominal group.
1.3. Gender and number
Gender
Unlike languages such as French, German or Italian that have grammatical gender,
English is known to have natural gender.
In English we distinguish the following genders: feminine, masculine, common

(dual, i.e. masculine or feminine), and neuter.

English Grammar
If we take into account the morphological form of the personal pronouns, we will see
that gender is marked by inflection only in the third person singular —he, she, it. The
first person singular and plural —I, we— the second person singular and plural —you—
and the third person plural —they— are unmarked for gender.
When it comes to nouns, gender can be marked in English in several ways (separate
forms; adding suffixes; some have a common gender, some are compound nouns).
Present-day English tends to use gender-neutral language, e.g. chairperson, instead of
chairman, spokesperson, instead of spokesman, police officer, instead of policeman,
whenever possible.
» By separate forms for masculine, feminine, and common gender. Some

examples are:
o Masculine: boy, man, bull.
o Feminine: girl, woman, cow.
o Common: child, student, pupil, friend, chicken.
o Neuter: table, picture, house.
Masculine Feminine
sir madam
son daughter
father mother
bachelor maid
brother sister
nephew niece
uncle aunt
Table 3. Different words for masculine and feminine gender.
Masculine Feminine
stallion mare
boar sow
fox vixen
cock hen
ram ewe
Table 4. Masculine and feminine words for higher animals.

English Grammar
» By adding derivational suffixes: In most cases the word for female gender is
derived from the word that indicates male gender. Widow (female) - widower (male)
is an exception.
o -ess: actor>actress; waiter>waitress; tiger>tigress; host>hostess; heir>heiress
o -ine: hero>heroine
o -rix: aviator>aviatrix
o -ette: suffragist>suffragette
» Common gender:
o -er: teacher, baker, doctor.
o -ist: chemist, artist.
o -ian: librarian, comedian.
» Compound nouns: policeman>policewoman; postman>postwoman
Cars, ships, trains are considered feminine in some contexts, especially when their crew
refers to them.
Number
» The most common way of forming the plural of a noun is by adding -s to the
singular: result>results; coat>coats; house>houses.
» When nouns end in -s, -ss, -sh, -ch, or -x their plural is formed by adding -es:
address>addresses; brush>brushes; complex>complexes; peach>peaches;
bus>buses.
» Most nouns ending in -o form their plurals by adding -es: tomato>tomatoes;

echo>echoes; hero>heroes.
Some words of foreign origin, abbreviated words, or words that have a vowel
before the final -o only add -s to make a plural form: kimono>kimonos;
piano>pianos; photo>photos; kilo>kilos; zoo>zoos.
Some of the common nouns ending in -o can be spelled with either -s or -es in
plural: banjos or banjoes, cargos or cargoes, flamingos or flamingoes, frescos or
frescoes, ghettos or ghettoes, halos or haloes, mangos or mangoes, mementos or
mementoes, mottos or mottoes, tornados or tornadoes, volcanos or volcanoes.

English Grammar
» Nouns ending in -y following a vowel form their plural by adding -s: boy>boys;
toy>toys; day>days.
Nouns ending in consonant + -y make their plural form by changing y into i

and then adding -es: city>cities; activity>activities; lorry>lorries.
» Other forms of making plurals include:

o nouns like half, wife, self; -f changes into -ves: halves, wives, selves.
o irregular plural like: man>men; tooth>teeth.
o certain words like pants, pyjamas, and scissors are always plural.
o collective words can take a singular or a plural verb, depending on the decision of
the speaker to put the emphasis on the group as whole or the word meaning a
number of individuals, e.g. class, family, audience, team.
For further information about singular and plural forms of the noun and the agreement
between subject and verb see section 1.1.
1.4. Countable and uncountable nouns
In English, a referent can be perceived in two ways: as a countable or uncountable

entity. Countable and uncountable nouns are often called count and mass nouns,
respectively.
Countable nouns Uncountable nouns

river, building, flower, novel, box, bridge… snow, bread, baggage…
Have a plural form. They are preceded by a zero determiner.
rivers, buildings, flowers, novels, boxes, If baggage is left behind by passengers, the train
bridges. station charges €2.74 per item per 12 hours.
They can be modified by determiners They are often preceded by some, any,
that indicate plurality. little, a little, no, etc.
those rivers, these buildings

Get some bread and butter.
a few flowers, many novels,
Remove the crusts and slice thin.
several boxes, three bridges…

English Grammar
In singular they are preceded by a

They can also be preceded by an
determiner that can be the indefinite
expression formed by a noun + of.
article a or an.
A bit of ham
a room
A pinch of salt
a skill
A piece of paper
a problem
A ray of sunshine
an orange
A drop of water
an apple
A spoonful of sugar
Table 5. Countable and uncountable nouns.
Nouns with countable and uncountable uses
Some nouns can be interpreted as either countable or uncountable depending on the

context. Here is an example with the noun coffee.
Would you like some coffee?
The noun coffee is uncountable and refers to the substance, to the drink in general.
Two coffees, please, and three delicious chocolate cakes.
The noun coffee is interpreted as a cup of coffee.
The following example of the different meanings of the word paper, as defined in the
Cambridge Dictionary online, illustrates the way in which a word can be interpreted as
countable or uncountable depending on the context. [C] stands for countable, [U]
stands for uncountable and A, B, and C correspond to the levels described in the
Common European Framework for Languages (CEFL).
paper
A1 [U] thin, flat material made from crushed wood or cloth, used for writing, printing, or
drawing on.
A2 [C] (UK) a set of printed questions for an exam.
B1 [C] (US) (UK) essay a short piece of writing on a particular subject, especially one done by
students as part of the work for a course.
B1 [C] a newspaper.
papers [plural] official documents, especially ones that show who you are.
C2 [C] a piece of writing on a particular subject written by an expert and usually published in a
book or journal, or read aloud to other people.

English Grammar
Expressing quantity
As shown in the table below, countable and uncountable nouns are preceded by
different quantifiers, although some quantifiers can be used with both types of noun.
With both countable and

With countable nouns only With uncountable nouns only
uncountable nouns
Some
Any
Many
Much More
A few
A little Most
Few
Little All
Fewer
Less No
Several
A great deal of Enough
A large number of
Plenty of
A lot of/Lots of
With singular countable nouns only With plural countable nouns only
Each
Both
Every
Table 6. Use of quantifiers with countable and uncountable nouns.
Most quantifiers can be used with of + the/my… + noun, but no and every cannot.
Some of my friends don’t like pizza.
No of my friends like football.
Much and many are usually used in negative sentences and in questions.
Skies are clear and there is not much wind in Leeds right now.
Plenty of, a lot of, lots of are usually found in affirmative sentences.
You can find plenty of history books and magazines in the bookstore.

English Grammar
1.5. Genitive case
Form: we add apostrophe or apostrophe + s to the noun.
» Add ’s to a singular noun: the teacher’s notebooks.

» Add apostrophe to a plural noun ending in -s: the teachers’ notebooks.
» Add ’s to irregular plurals: children - the children’s notebooks.
» Add ’s or only (’) to proper nouns ending in -s: Thomas’s house or Thomas’ house.
» When a group of words functions as a unit, ’s is added to the last word: the president
of India’s palace.
Huddleston and Geoffrey draw our attention to the fact that “the term ‘possessive’ is
often used instead of ‘genitive’”, but that “it is important to see that the semantic
relation between the genitive NP and the following head is by no means limited to that
of possession” (2005, p. 109).
Use: these are the different uses of the genitive case:
» When it refers to a person or animal: my mother’s hat.

» With words and expressions of time: a month’s trip.
» Place of business: at the dentist’s.
» Natural phenomena: the sun’s rays.
If expressions including genitive determinatives are paraphrased, we would notice that

the relation between the noun head and the determinative is not always that of
possession.
Peter’s project - Peter designed a project: Subjective.

Today’s TV program - the program is broadcast today: Temporal.
London’s most famous places - these places are located in London: Locative.
1.6. Pronouns
According to Huddleston and Geoffrey, “pronouns form a subclass of nouns

distinguished syntactically from common nouns and proper nouns by their inability to

English Grammar
take determiners as dependent” (2005, p. 100). Although they often substitute a NG, it
would be wrong to limit their use just to this one function.
Nominative Accusative Genitive Reflexive pronouns

I me my/mine myself
you you your/yours yourself
he him his/his himself
she her her/hers herself
it it its/its itself
we us our/ours ourselves
you you your/yours yourselves
they them their/theirs themselves
Table 7. Personal and reflexive pronouns in Standard English.
» Reflexive pronouns can be used as complement.
He cut himself while he was sharpening the kitchen knife.
» They can also be used for emphasis.
Susan designed the project herself.
Reciprocal pronouns
Reciprocal pronouns, like each other and one another, are different from reflexive
pronouns in that the former have genitive forms. One another is usually used with
more than two people.
Peter and Ana enjoyed each other’s company.
Interrogative pronouns
English distinguishes between two main types of question: yes/no questions and wh-
questions. The interrogative pronoun indicates the information that is required in the
question.
What did he find near the river?

English Grammar
Who is used for animate beings. It has an accusative form whom and a genitive form
whose. Although whom is the standard accusative form, who is more common
nowadays and whom is used mainly in formal contexts.
Whom did she choose for this part?
Whom functions as direct object.
If the pronoun is the subject of the clause, we will use who.
Who broke the window?
If the pronoun functions as direct object, we will use whom, especially if it is preceded
by a preposition.
To whom is this email addressed?
When who is used with a preposition, the preposition is placed at the end of the clause.
Who did you go to the cinema with?
Demonstrative pronouns
There are four demonstrative pronouns: this, these, that, and those.
The referent of a demonstrative pronoun is identified as near or far from the speaker,
literally or figuratively.
This summer is going to be different.

English Grammar
Indefinite pronouns
Indefinite pronouns include words such as:
somebody, someone, something

anybody, anyone, anything
everybody, everyone, everything
nobody, no-one, nothing
They refer to an indefinite person or thing and their antecedents in the discourse are
usually vague or unknown.
Does anyone speak English?
Relative pronouns
Relative pronouns introduce relative clauses. Their use depends on the type of relative
clause: defining or non-defining. Some grammarians refer to these types of relative
clause as restrictive and non-restrictive.
» In defining relative clauses we use:

o For persons:
subject who, that
object who, whom/who, that
possessive whose
o For things:
subject which, that
object which, that
possessive whose/of which
The man who/whom I spoke to is the general manager.

People whose cars need to pass state inspections should pay for the service.
o Relative pronouns when, where, why.
The day when I was born was cold, but sunny.

English Grammar
» In non-defining relative clauses we use:

o For persons:
subject who
object whom, who
possessive whose
o For things:
subject which
object which
possessive which/of which
Mr. Clayton, who was working at the sales department, is concerned with the
future of the company.
1.7. Bibliographical references
Downing, A. & Locke, Ph. (2006). English Grammar: A University Course. London &
New York: Routledge.
Huddleston, R. & Geoffrey, K. (2005). A Student’s Introduction to English Grammar.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

English Grammar
Specially recommended
Master Class
The Nominal Group and its Elements
The master class offers a brief overview of the nominal group and its elements. We will
discuss the most important aspects of the noun and the difference between countable
and uncountable nouns. At the end of our master class, we will describe the types of
pronoun in English and their use.
This class is available in the virtual classroom
UNIT 1 – Specially recommended 17 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

English Grammar
Be sure you read…
A Defence of Grammar
Crystal, D. (2016, June 3). A Defence of Grammar. Times Educational Supplement, 26-
32.
In this article, David Crystal explains the importance of grammar knowledge in

educational practice. He argues that grammar helps us make ourselves understood and
interpret what others mean when they speak or write. He also gives us some clues as to
how to get our knowledge of grammar improve our performance.
Available at the virtual campus under the art. 32.4 of the Spanish Intellectual Property
Law.
Nouns and Noun Phrases
Huddleston, R. & Geoffrey, K. (2005). A Student’s Introduction to English Grammar.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 82-119.
A Student’s Introduction to English Grammar by Rodney Huddleston and Geoffrey K.

Pullum is intended for students taking undergraduate courses in English grammar. The
chapter that is recommended for reading offers a general idea on number and
countability, the elements of the nominal group, the pronoun, and the genitive case.
The concepts are clearly explained and presented.
Access to the chapter through the virtual campus or the following link:
https://archive.org/stream/ilhem_20150416/A_Student_39_s_Introduction_to_Engl
ish_Grammar#page/n3/mode/2up

English Grammar
Watch out!
Countable and uncountable nouns
This short video provides a number of useful examples and exercises that illustrate the
difference between countable and uncountable nouns and their use in context.
The information is in the virtual classroom or in the following link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFUztCn_ldU

English Grammar
+ Information
In depth
History and structure in the English noun phrase
Adamson, S. & González-Díaz, V. (2009). History and structure in the English noun
phrase: introduction. Transactions of the Philological Society, 107 (3), 255-261.
Adamson and González’s article provides an overview of the study of the English noun
phrase. The authors examine the most important monographs that include an analysis
of the noun phrase and the variety of approaches they adopt. The article is a valuable
source for a number of references to recent studies on the topic and would be of interest
to all those who are interested in expanding their knowledge on the English noun.
Available at the virtual campus under the art. 32.4 of the Spanish Intellectual Property
Law
Webgraphy
Structure and Functions of the Nominal Group
The website provides a description of the nominal group and its elements with a great
number of examples of the items that function as pre-modifier and post-modifier. It
contains useful exercises that you can do online. The explanations and examples on this
website are based on a wide range of sources, which helps get a global vision of the
nominal group.
Access to the website through the virtual campus or the following link:
http://www.uefap.net/grammar/grammar-in-eap-nouns/grammar-in-eap-nominal-
groups
UNIT 1 – + Information 20 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

English Grammar
Test
1. Choose the correct answer:

A. The nominal group has four obligatory elements.
B. The head is the only obligatory element in the nominal group.
C. The head and the determiner are obligatory elements in the nominal group.
2. In the sentence: One senior Western European diplomat based in London said that
that they have to improve relations with China, the subject is comprised by a nominal
group. This nominal group is:
A. One senior Western European diplomat
B. One senior Western European diplomat based in London
C. Western European diplomat based in London

A. They helped each other.
B. They helped each other’s children.
C. Both A and B are correct.

A. My friend spent a great deal of time on his master’s dissertation.
B. My friend spent plenty of time on his master’s dissertation.
5. I have just moved to this flat. I don’t know ______.

A. Anybody.
B. Somebody.
C. Nobody.
6. In the sentence: There is no truth in your words.

A. The noun truth is uncountable.
B. The noun truth is countable.
UNIT 1 – Test © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

21
English Grammar
7. Police ______ missing girl hiding in her bedroom.

A. Find.
B. Finds.
8. Among the people who went to the party ___ my brother.

A. Was.
B. Were.
C. Both are possible.
9. The structure of the nominal group: The most important examples given in that
book is as follows:
A. The most important (pre-modifier) / examples given in that book (head).
B. The (pre-modifier) / most important (pre-modifier) / examples given in that
(pre-modifier) / book (head).
C. The (determiner) / most important (pre-modifier) / examples (head) / given
in that book (post-modifier).

A. To whom were you speaking?
B. Who were you speaking to?
UNIT 1 – Test © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

22

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Nouns and Pronouns

[1.1] How to study this unit?

[1.2] Nouns and pronouns

[1.3] Gender and number

[1.4] Countable and uncountable nouns

[1.5] Genitive case

[1.7] Bibliographical references

Elements of the Charachteristics Personal and

© Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

Pay attention to…

1.1. How to study this unit?

In order to study this unit you should read the following:

Hewings, M. (2005). Advanced Grammar in Use. Cambridge: Cambridge University

Payne, T.E. (2011). Understanding English Grammar. A Linguistic Introduction.

1.2. Nouns and pronouns

UNIT 1 – Pay attention to… 3 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

The Nominal Group

Determiner Pre-modifier Head Post-modifier

Figure 1. The nominal group.

People are reading The Guardian these days.

It contains interesting facts.

The unemployed have difficulty in making ends meet.

UNIT 1 – Pay attention to… 4 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

» Articles: a bird, an apple, the bird, the apple

The pre-modifier is placed in pre-head position. When there is a determiner in the

A (determiner); mysterious (adjective) is the pre-modifier; island (noun) is the head.

A (determiner); delightful (adjective) is the pre-modifier; trip (noun) is the head.

Pre-modifiers can also be nouns.

UNIT 1 – Pay attention to… 5 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

Find a few examples below:

The book that you gave me is very interesting.

His shift in the restaurant has come to an end.

Determiner Pre-modifier Head Post-modifier

1.3. Gender and number

In English we distinguish the following genders: feminine, masculine, common

UNIT 1 – Pay attention to… 6 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

» By separate forms for masculine, feminine, and common gender. Some

UNIT 1 – Pay attention to… 7 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

» Compound nouns: policeman>policewoman; postman>postwoman

» Most nouns ending in -o form their plurals by adding -es: tomato>tomatoes;

UNIT 1 – Pay attention to… 8 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

Nouns ending in consonant + -y make their plural form by changing y into i

» Other forms of making plurals include:

1.4. Countable and uncountable nouns

In English, a referent can be perceived in two ways: as a countable or uncountable

Countable nouns Uncountable nouns

those rivers, these buildings

UNIT 1 – Pay attention to… 9 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

In singular they are preceded by a

Nouns with countable and uncountable uses

Some nouns can be interpreted as either countable or uncountable depending on the

Would you like some coffee?

Two coffees, please, and three delicious chocolate cakes.

The noun coffee is interpreted as a cup of coffee.

UNIT 1 – Pay attention to… 10 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

With both countable and

Some of my friends don’t like pizza.

No of my friends like football.

UNIT 1 – Pay attention to… 11 © Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)