李国勤
名词的概念在不同的语法教科书中有不同的解释和分类方法,但就实际应用来讲还是不要过分地追求其理论概念,而更多的要把注意力放在其应用上来。我们不妨把它分为两大类:专有名词与普通名词。顾名思义,专有名词是指:个人、事物、机关等所专有的名称,如,the Great Wall, America等,它们是不能随意变动的。而普通名词中则包括个体名词,如pen, worker等,它表示单一的个体人或事物;集体名词,如:family, class, team等,它表示的是由若干个个体组成的集合体;物质名词,如:water, paper等,它表示的是一种物质,原材料;而后一种是抽象名词,如:work, time等,它表示着一种在实际生活中看不见、摸不到,但却与实际生活紧密相关的某些动作、状态、品质的抽象概念。
一、名词种类
专有名词:London, John, the Communist Party of China…
普通名词: nurse, boy, worker, pencil, dog, table…
集体名词: class, family, army, police, team, people…
物质名词: water, steel, glass, cotton, wood, sand…
抽象名词: happiness, love, work, life, courage, honest…
二、名词功用
作主语: My family are now in New York.
作表语: His father is a scientist.
作宾语: We love our great motherland.
作宾语补足语: He made London the base for his work.
作定语: The girls are making paper flowers.
作状语: The car cost him 1000 dollars.
作同位语: Mr. Brown, a famous scientist, will come here.
名词在使用中的难点在于名词的数,即可数名词与不可数名词的实际应用。不可数名词不能用数字计算,所以它通常只有单数形式。它包含有专有名词、物质名词、抽象名词等,如:English, air, water, cotton, work……可数名词是可以用数量加以计算的名词,所以它具有单数形式和复数形式两种。
可数名词复数形式的构成规律是:
1. 一般情况加s,如:pen—pens, doctor—doctors, boy—boys,其读音规则是在清辅音后读[s],在元音和浊辅音后读[z]。如:map—maps, boy—boys。
2. 在以s, sh, ch, x结尾的名词后面加es,如:bus—buses, class—classes,其读音为[iz]。
3. 以ce, se, ze, (d)ge结尾的名词加s,其读音为[iz]。如:piece—pieces, sneeze—sneezes, college—colleges。
4. 以辅音字母加y结尾的名词,要将y变为i再加es,读作[z],如:factory—factories, country—countries, family—families。但要注意的是以元音字母加y结尾的名词的复数形式只加s,如:boy—boys, day—days。
5. 以o结尾的名词的复数形式一般要加es,但如果o前面是元音字母或外来词,缩写词以o结尾的则只加s,如:tomato—tomatoes, hero—heroes; photo—photos, radio—radios, piano—pianos。
6. 以f或fe结尾的名词的复数形式要将f或fe变为v再加es,如:knife—knives, leaf—leaves, 但有些例外的词如roof的复数形式是roofs。
7. 不规则名词的复数形式是要单个记忆的,它没有规律可循,如:man—men, woman—women, child—children, foot—feet, tooth—teeth, mouse—mice。
8. 单复数同形的名词有:fish, sheep, deer…
9. 单数形式但其意义为复数的名词有:people, police等。
名词还有格的变化,其主格可作主语,宾格可作宾语。还有所有格,用来表示人或物的所有,以及所属关系。表示有生命的名词的所有格其单数形式是加s,其复数形式是s,如其结尾不是s的复数形式仍加s,如:a students room, students rooms, Childrens Day。在表示时间、距离、世界、国家……名词的所有格要用s,如:a twenty minutes walk。但无生命名词的所有格则必须用of结构,如:the capital of our country, the colour of the flowers。
【小试牛刀】
1. Lucy and Lily ____ in the same class.
A. am B. is C. are D. be
2. Which is the ____ to the bus stop, please?
A. road B. way C. street D. address
3. Hurry up! There is ____ time left.
A. little B. a little C. few D. a few
4. How many ____ can you see in the picture?
A. tomatos B. tomatoes C. tomato D. the tomato
5. “____ is the meat, please?” “Ten yuan a kilo.”
A. How much B. How many C. How old D. How long
6. The boys name is James Allen Green. So his given name is ____.
A. James Allen B. Allen Green C. James Green D. Mr. Green
7. Shanghai is one of the biggest ____ in our country.
A. city B. citys C. citys D. cities
8. Would you please pass me ____?
A. two paper B. two papers C. two pieces of paper D. two pieces of papers
9. I only have ____ bread for lunch today.
A. a bit B. a bit of C. little D. few
10. “What would you like, Ann?” “Id like two ____.”
A. glass of milk B. glasses of milk C. glass of milks D. glasses of milks
11. There isnt ____ paper in the box. Will you go and get ____ for me?
A. any; some B. any; any C. some; some D. some; any
12. These foreign friends are ____.
A. German B. Germen C. Germany D. Germans
13. All the students are busy, so ____ of them will go to the cinema.
A. many B. little C. a few D. few
14. There are three ____ and seven ____ in the picture.
A. deers; sheeps B. deers; sheep C. deer; sheep D. deer; sheeps
15. “Whose room is this?” “Its ____.”
A. my B. Kikes and Johns C. our D. Kike and Johns
Key(3)