How the canon teaches the count-mass distinction (CMD)
If you asked 10 different teachers of all ages and experience levels to characterise the CMD, they’d probably come up with a version of this rule of thumb:
Countable nouns take a/an, plural ‘s’ and can be counted
(one apple, two apples).
Uncountable mass nouns take some, have no plural and can’t be counted
(milk, furniture).
If you asked them to elaborate, they’d probably add that learners should be . . .
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