"Oil" is an uncountable noun.
The idea of a noun is used in the field of grammar to refer to a name : a type of word that can designate different kinds of entities and allows the generation of nominal phrases that assume different roles. Nouns have number and gender, adapting to the circumstances of the message.
Uncountable , meanwhile, is an adjective that describes something that cannot be counted: that is, something that cannot be numbered. Something that is uncountable cannot be assigned a number because its fragmentation into homogeneous units is unfeasible.
Uncountable noun concept
Based on these definitions, it can be stated that an uncountable or non-countable noun refers to something that cannot be numbered or counted . It can be used only in the singular or plural, as the case may be, and is linked to elements that cannot be divided into units .
Due to their characteristics , uncountable nouns cannot be accompanied by numeral quantifiers. However, they can be combined with indefinite quantifiers ( “little” , “much” , etc.).
Uncountable nouns like "patience" lack a specific form and cannot be counted in homogeneous units.
Examples of use
There are many uncountable nouns that are frequently used in everyday life. One of them is aire : it is most commonly used in the singular and generally cannot be quantified. Thus, we find expressions such as “Hay poco aire en este lugar” or “Me falta el aire” . On the other hand, we do not find “Hay tres aires en este lugar” or “Me faltan cinco aires” .
Another uncountable noun is oil . You can add “a little oil” , “a lot of oil” or “a pinch of oil” to food, to name a few possibilities.
It should be noted, however, that uncountable nouns can become countable nouns in certain contexts or through a re-signification. A dish may use “two oils” if olive oil is combined with corn oil, for example. A person, on the other hand, may buy “four oils” ( “four bottles of oil” ) or use “half a liter of oil” in a recipe.
Uncountable nouns and the form
It is often pointed out that uncountable nouns do not have a concrete, constant or fixed form . We can appreciate this peculiarity if we analyze what happens with the term patience .
Patience cannot be precisely quantified or measured; nor does it have a form. Individuals may have “a lot of patience” or “a little patience,” feel that their “patience is running out,” or request that “more patience” be given to them, although they may not comment that they need “twenty patiences” or that they have “three dozen patiences.”
Something similar happens with wisdom . A young man can study to increase his wisdom, but he cannot study to accumulate “seven wisdoms” . In a given situation, one can notice a lack of wisdom, not of “three quarters of wisdom” or of “a hundred wisdoms” .
The situation is completely different with countable nouns. Expressions such as “I ate four hamburgers last night” , “They gave me two books” , “Mariana has three brothers” and “My neighbour has two cars” are built from nouns that can be counted or counted without any difficulties.