The Mass-Count Distinction
Why can you count 'chairs' but not 'furniture'? This linguistic puzzle is explained by the mass-count distinction, a fundamental rule that shapes how we talk about everything from objects to…
Tag: noun classifiers
One Slice, One Loaf: The Logic of Measure Words
Ever wondered why you can't say "one rice" in English or "one bread" in Chinese? This post dives into the fascinating world of measure words, or classifiers, exploring how these…
The Three Genders of Dyirbal
Ever heard of a language that groups women, fire, and dangerous things into a single grammatical category? Dive into the fascinating world of Dyirbal, an Australian Aboriginal language whose unique…
Why You Can’t Just “Count” in Thai
Ever tried to say "two dogs" in Thai and been corrected? That's because you can't just count nouns; you need a special "measure word" called a classifier. This post dives…