| Hi, everybody. My name is Alisha. Today, I'm going to talk about some counter words that we can use for explaining drinks. If you've seen some of the other videos we've done in this whiteboard series, you may have seen some information about countable and uncountable nouns. So, uncountable nouns are nouns that we cannot count with simply "one," two" or "three" in front of the noun. Instead, we have to use what are called, "counter words" to explain the quantity. These are some words that we can use to talk about drinks, specifically. |
| Before we begin, though, I want to mention that an easy hint for counting drinks is to remember that we often count drinks according to the item the container they are sold in or the container they are served in. This can help make it really, really easy to choose your counter word when you're thinking about drinks. Also, you'll notice that each one of these counter words is followed by the word, "of." For example, "mug of something" will be our first one. So, remember to use your number before the counter word. Next comes the counter word, then "of," and finally, your noun, the item you're counting. Let's take a look at a few ways that we can count liquids and drinks. Okay. |
| As I said, let's begin. The first word is "mug." "Mug" has this sort of image. We use a mug primarily for coffee and tea. Something that we typically have hot drinks in is a mug. "A mug of coffee," "a mug of tea." We use "mug" for items that have this shape. It's kind of a tall shape, usually a bit thick and it has this handle perhaps. There are different shapes of mug but they generally can hold heat quite well. "A mug of coffee," "a mug of tea." |
| The next one is "glass." So, "a glass of water," "a glass of juice," "a glass of wine." These are just simple glasses. As you can see the word glasses here but the container, it doesn't have to be made of glass. It's just "glass" is the word that we use to talk about the serving size. Keep in mind, "a glass of wine" means one serving of wine only. You might have a special wine glass to drink a glass of wine from. So, "wine," in this case, is referring only to a single serving so please be careful there. So, "glass" is another word we can use for one serving of something. |
| The next word is "bottle." We can say, "a bottle of beer." It's made of glass, yes, but we use "bottle" to describe it. "A bottle of beer," "a bottle of wine," "a bottle of water," "a bottle of tea," "a bottle of cola or soda," any drink which is sold in a bottle shape, a bottle container, we can use bottle for. Please remember, however, that "bottle of wine" and "glass of wine" are quite different. "A glass of wine" is a single serving of wine, "a bottle of wine" is a large quantity, a large amount of wine. So, "a bottle of wine" has many servings, "a glass of wine" is one serving in theory. Okay. |
| Next is "can." So, we can have "a can of coffee," "a can of tea," "a can of soda," "a can of cola," "a can of beer." By the way, the difference between "soda" and "cola" really depends on the place you're in. Depending on the place in the US or the place in any other English-speaking country, really. There might be a preferred way of saying cola or soda or even pop, so just keep in mind that many people use different words to mean the same thing, it depends on region. So, "soda" and "cola," this is an example of this. So, we use "can" if it is sold in a can, we can use can to describe it. Any of these items or maybe there's a different item in your country sold in a can. But, we can use "can of" to talk about these nouns. |
| Next one is "cup." We usually use "cup" with coffee and tea. This is a little bit different from "mug." A "cup" looks something like this, a "mug" looks something a little bit more like this. They're very, very similar. "Mug" kind of has the image of something warm, something a bit thick and heavy. "Cup" has sort of a feeling of a little bit lighter, maybe it doesn't have to be hot. "Mug" kind of you imagine that it's going to be a warm drink or a hot drink, "cup," not necessarily so. So, we can use "cup for tea or coffee," as well. |
| Okay, let's go to the next group. Next is "drop," the word, "drop." We can use "drop" to count liquid but just a little bit of something. For example, we use "drop" to count rain. So, "raindrops," "drops of rain." We could use it for water like "drops of water" on my iPhone screen or something. We could say, "Drops of wine got on my sweater," for example. So, "drops" means a few pieces of water, but we cannot use pieces for a liquid. Instead, we use a "drop." So, please use "drop" to refer to the small parts of liquid, "drops of something," "drops of liquid." |
| Okay, next one is "sip." "Sip" is interesting. "Sip" refers to a small taste of liquid. If you want to try a drink, you can say, for example, "Can I have a sip of tea?" "Can I have a sip of your wine?" means just a small taste. A small taste of something is a "sip." A "sip of something." We can use "a sip of water," like, "I need a sip of water," or "Can I have a sip of tea?" or "She took a big sip of beer." We could say, "a big sip" if we want to kind of make an interesting phrase. So, "a sip," yes, but a big one. Maybe sounds like a mouthful instead of just a small quantity. Usually, "sip" means just a small quantity. |
| Okay, next one is "carton." I've used milk here as the primary example but anything sold in this sort of cardboard shape that we have to open and pour from, we can use the word, "carton" to describe. So, "a carton of milk." In your country or in your city, there might be a different item that is sold in cartons, you can use "carton" to talk about that to count it. "One carton of milk," "two cartons of milk." |
| Another one that drinks are commonly sold in is "jug." We can say, "a jug of milk." Sorry. "A jug of milk," "a jug of juice." The difference between a "carton" and a "jug" is that a "jug" is usually made of plastic and it has a handle on the side. So, "a jug of something" is different from a "carton." A "carton" is usually made of cardboard or some kind of paper material and it does not have a handle on it. |
| Okay, finally is "keg." "Keg" is something typically we do not buy ourselves in stores but we can see at bars or restaurants maybe. So, a "keg" is used to count beer. "Keg" is used to count beer. It's as very large, often very large, though, sometimes there may be smaller kegs. There are these storage containers for fresh beer. You might see beer being served from a tap, the tap is connected to a keg. So, we can say, "one keg" or "two kegs of beer," or "Let's preserve a keg of beer for our party next weekend." So, this is a word we typically use only for beer. Okay. |
| Those are a few counter words that are commonly used to talk about drinks and maybe other liquids, too. If you have any questions or comments or if there's another counter word you know, please feel free to let us know in the comments. I hope that this video was useful for you. Please give it a thumbs up if you liked it. Check us out at EnglishClass101.com for other good stuff and subscribe to this channel, too, if you haven't already. Thanks very much for watching this episode and I will see you again soon. Bye-bye! |
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