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Callum        
Hello and welcome to 6 Minute Grammar, I'm Callum.

Catherine   
And I'm Catherine, hello.

Callum       
In this programme we're talking about the definite article with abstract uncountable nouns. 

Catherine
Yes, we'll explain what that all means.

Callum        
And we'll end up with a quiz to see if we've done a good job.

Catherine
No pressure then!

Callum        
Indeed. To start with, let's just remind everyone about the terms we're using. First, there's the definite article. What's that, Catherine?

Catherine   
The.

Callum        
The what?

Catherine   
Just the.

Callum
Just the what?

Catherine
You're doing this on purpose, aren't you Callum? The definite article is the word the. Articles are used before nouns.

Callum
Today's topic is using the with abstract uncountable nouns. Tell us about those.

Catherine
OK. Now, before I get to the abstract part, let's just remind everybody about uncountable nouns, which you might also hear described as mass nouns. These are nouns that, as the name suggests, you can't count. They have no plural form. Words like air, water, cheese, money...

Callum
Wait a minute...

Catherine
Yes?

Callum
Did you say money?

Catherine
Yes.

Callum
Did you say you can't count money?

Catherine
That's right. You can't count money, at least not grammatically. You can't count money in the same way as you can count, for example, chairs. Because, when you count chairs, you can just give a number. How many chairs are there? Three, ten, 2,150. But if I ask you Callum how much money you have in your pocket, what would you say?

Callum
OK, well, let me see. I've got five, ten... I've got £15. So I can count money, surely?

Catherine
Yes, you've got 15 pounds. But you haven't got 15 moneys. So, pounds are countable, money isn't. We are counting the pounds.

Callum
I see, and what are abstract uncountable nouns then?

Catherine
Well, before we go to abstract, let's first talk about the concrete ones. Concrete uncountable nouns are things that you can physically experience, that's things that you can touch, see, hear, smell or taste. But abstract nouns don't refer to these physical things. Abstract nouns refer to ideas, feelings, emotions, qualities and concepts. So, things like: love, fun, happiness, bravery, patience, enthusiasm and childhood.

Callum
But I'm sure I experienced childhood. It seemed pretty real to me.

Catherine
Well, because we describe something as abstract, it doesn't mean it isn't real. You certainly were a child Callum at some time, whenever that was. But the period of time when you were a child... all the experiences that you had when you were growing up... aren't physical things. Together they make an idea or a concept that we call childhood.

IDENT
6 Minute Grammar from BBC Learning English

Callum
Today we're looking at using the definite article with abstract uncountable nouns. We've defined our terms, so now let's look at how these two go together. Catherine, can we use the with abstract uncountable nouns?

Catherine
Well, Callum, it depends on the context. If we are talking about something in general, we don't use the definite article. Here's Finn, with an example.

Finn
It can be difficult to find happiness.

Catherine
The abstract noun there is happiness. Here we're talking about happiness in general, we don't use the definite article. Now compare that use of happiness, with this one.

Finn
I can't express the happiness that I felt when my son was born.

Catherine
Now in this case, are we talking about happiness in general?

Callum
No, we're talking about a specific time, a particular moment when there was happiness.

Catherine
Right, so in this case, because it is referring to a particular time we do need to use the definite article. Note that after the noun the happiness there is a phrase that points to the exact time being described. And in this case the phrase is:

Callum
That I felt when my son was born.

Catherine
Exactly. And that phrase is a defining relative clause. When there is a defining relative clause following an abstract uncountable noun, the chances are the noun will have the definite article in front of it.

Callum
So we know that the definite article the is used with abstract uncountable nouns when we are talking about a specific example of that noun.

Catherine
And when we are talking about that noun in general, we don't use any article.

Callum
I think it's time for a little quiz. Listen to each sentence and decide if the use of the article is correct or not. Finn, number one please.

Finn
I've got a lot of the ambition.

Catherine
And that one is... not correct. Ambition is the noun but it shouldn't have the definite article. Next one please, Finn.

Finn
He had the confidence that is needed to sing in public.

Callum
That is correct. The noun is confidence and as the particular example of confidence is defined, we do need the. Last question, please.

Finn
Love is all you need.

Catherine
Of course, that one is correct. Love is the noun and it refers to the idea of love in general so no definite article. Well done if you got all those right.

Callum
That's all from us today, there's more about this topic on our website bbclearningenglish.com. Do join us again for more 6 Minute Grammar.

All
Bye.