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Anonymous Posted 14 years ago
Grammar

Help in the supermarket?

Hi. If the following are correct sentences, why do we use the uncountable noun form of the word "lettuce" and not for the word "onion" when I think both can be used either as a countable or an uncountable noun depending on your uses of the word?

He needs lettuce and onions.

Also, please help me with this, too. Why do we use the uncountable noun form of the word "salmon" when I think both countable and uncountable forms are available for the word "salmon" (depending on one's uses of the word)? I think when we say "a salmon," we mean the fish that roams under water, whereas when we say "salmon" without the indefinite article
we mean the meat we consume (eat). Thank you for your help in advance.

Hi, I'm looking for salmon.
  

Top answer

Anonymous when I think both can be used either as a countable or an uncountable noun depending on your uses of the word No, lettuce is uncountable and onions are countable when shopping. Anonymous I think when we say "a salmon," we mean the fish that roams under water, whereas when we say "salmon" without the indefinite articlewe mean the meat we consume (eat). Right, and in the sentence she's shopping for salmon meat.

— Mister Micawber

  • Anonymous when I think both can be used either as a countable or an uncountable noun depending on your uses of the word No, lettuce is uncountable and onions are countable when shopping.
  • Anonymous I think when we say "a salmon," we mean the fish that roams under water, whereas when we say "salmon" without the indefinite articlewe mean the meat we consume (eat).
  • Right, and in the sentence she's shopping for salmon meat.
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9 Answers
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Anonymouswhen I think both can be used either as a countable or an uncountable noun depending on your uses of the word
No, lettuce is uncountable and onions are countable when shopping.
AnonymousI think when we say "a salmon," we mean the fish that roams under water, whereas when we say "salmon" without the indefinite arti
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Hi. Thank you. What would be the situation where the word "lettuce" is (was??) used as a countable noun, if not when shopping? Also, I am sorry (but please help with this, too), but I am sure I was asking a hypothetical question previously and wonder if I have to use the past tense "was" in place of the present tense word "is" in the question I just wrote.

How about this?

I w
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'He grew cabbages and lettuces on his allotment last year.'

'What would be a situation where the word "lettuce" was used as a countable noun,'

'I would give it to him if he paid me.'

Rover
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Hi. Thank you very much. As to the sentence (as you corrected) 'What would be a situation where the word "lettuce" was used as a countable noun,' could there be any chance that we could use tenses other than the past tense (as you underlined it)?

As for an example, how about this? Should the underlined verb be "were"? Thank you for your h
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AnonymousShould the underlined verb be "were"? Thank you for your help in advance.A real test for this restaurant would be a situation where there are more than one hundred customers at any one time.
'Should be'? No. 'Could be'—yes.
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Hi. Thank you. Please tell me when the word "onion" could be (would be?) used as an uncountable noun? I tried hard to find some help on this subject and came upon a thread titled "uncountable nouns?" in your forum, started by Alex+
(I think this is how his name is written).

And based on what I think were the responses to Alex+'s questions, let me ask you why the word "lettuce" cannot
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AnonymousPlease tell me when the word "onion" could be (would be?) used as an uncountable noun?
If the onion is chopped or sliced, it's seen as a mass. "We need some more onion in this soup"
Anonymous let me ask you why the word "lettuce" cannot be used in a countable sense when set in a shopping context when I think we usually find let
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fivejedjon However, as we generally serve lettuce as a mass of leaves rather than as individual salad vegetables, we more usually regard it as uncountable.
And therefore we have a counter for it, Anon: one head of lettuce, two heads of lettuce.
Compare: one hand of bananas, two hands of bananas
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Mister Micawberone head of lettuce, two heads of lettuce.
Fine, but You will hear, in BrE at least, one lettuce two lettuces.
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