--- title: "Building a reference lexicon for countability in English — Kiss 2014" description: "The paper builds a lexicon that gives the count-mass class of about 14,000 English nouns, one entry per noun-sense… 22 references, cited by 1 paper here." authors: ["Tibor Kiss", "Francis Jeffry Pelletier", "Tobias Stadtfeld"] year: 2014 venue: "Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC'14)" source: "https://aclanthology.org/L14-1312/" doi: "10.63317/2uw4887z6mj3" licence: "CC BY-NC 4.0 (ELRA, LREC proceedings)" licence_url: "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/" summary_licence: "Elamur Cosmic License" canonical: "https://research.elamur.ai/free/en/papers/kiss-2014-building-reference-lexicon-countability-english/" --- [Elamur Research](https://md.research.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://research.elamur.ai/free/en/papers/kiss-2014-building-reference-lexicon-countability-english/) [home](https://md.research.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [papers](https://md.research.elamur.ai/free/en/papers/) / [2014](https://md.research.elamur.ai/free/en/papers/2014/page/2/) / Building a reference lexicon for countability in English # Building a reference lexicon for countability in English **Authors:** [Tibor Kiss](https://md.research.elamur.ai/free/en/authors/tibor-kiss/), Francis Jeffry Pelletier and Tobias Stadtfeld · **Year:** 2014 · **Venue:** Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC 2014) **Link:** [aclanthology.org/L14-1312](https://aclanthology.org/L14-1312/) · **Licence:** [CC BY-NC 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) (LREC proceedings) — summary only [**10** citations](https://openalex.org/works?filter=cites:W2250951601) OpenAlex, 2026-10-14 · **1** citations in our library of the 140,884 papers whose bibliographies we read · [Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC'14)](https://aclanthology.org/volumes/L14-1/) · [licence](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) - [Publisher's page](https://aclanthology.org/L14-1312/) - [PDF](https://aclanthology.org/L14-1312.pdf) - [DOI 10.63317/2uw4887z6mj3](https://doi.org/10.63317/2uw4887z6mj3) - [OpenAlex](https://openalex.org/W2250951601) **Authors (3)** 1. [Tibor Kiss](https://openalex.org/A5080795652) [ORCID](https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1857-3686) · [Semantic Scholar](https://www.semanticscholar.org/author/144372201) · h 12 · 1,139 citations · 64 works 2. [Francis Jeffry Pelletier](https://openalex.org/A5006576404) [ORCID](https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3399-2718) · [Semantic Scholar](https://www.semanticscholar.org/author/1760616) · h 31 · 4,625 citations · 186 works 3. [Tobias Stadtfeld](https://openalex.org/A5082349968) [Semantic Scholar](https://www.semanticscholar.org/author/2669493) · h 5 · 50 citations · 13 works Citations and author metrics: OpenAlex, 2026-10-14; authors with the same name are not always told apart. ## What it is about The paper builds a lexicon that gives the count-mass class of about 14,000 English nouns, one entry per noun-sense pair. Each noun-sense pair is answered in a questionnaire of six questions about its use, and the answers assign a fine-grained class between count and mass. The starting nouns and senses come from the Open ANC and WordNet. The reference lexicon holds 13,804 noun-sense pairs: 1,000 were annotated by four speakers, and the rest by two annotators each. Krippendorff's alpha is between 0.694 and 0.755. The lexicon shows a middle group of dual-life nouns, which act as mass and as count, and object-mass senses are very rare (0.58% of the total). ## For Mova - I1. Add a countability column (count, mass, dual) to the rows of `data/lemmas.tsv` and use it in `en/src/expert.rs` to check the determiner: "a car" and "much water" should agree with the class. Measure: rule accuracy on EWT test determiner-noun pairs, with and without the column. - I2. Run the six questions as deterministic probes over the Mova raw collection, counting "a N", "much N" and plural forms, and report the probe result next to the class. Measure: agreement with the paper's class on a held-out sample. The gold data are NC, so this is a test only. - I3. Flag dual-life nouns in `prag`/`world` as an ambiguity, so that the reading is given with its reason and not decided silently. Measure: the share of EWT sentences where the flag changes a determiner check. The chapters are [languages/en/10-word-classes.md](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/languages/en/10-word-classes/) and [languages/en/11-nouns.md](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/languages/en/11-nouns/). The code is `en/src/lexgen.rs` and `data/lemmas.tsv` (the new column), and `en/src/expert.rs` (the check). The lexicon is LREC NC: its entries are a test resource only, and the countability column must be made from Mova's own probes. ## Institutions [🎓**Simon Fraser University** Burnaby · Canada 8 works · 4,087 citations](https://md.research.elamur.ai/free/en/universities/simon-fraser-university/) · [🎓**Ruhr University Bochum** Bochum · Germany 19 works · 1,147 citations](https://md.research.elamur.ai/free/en/universities/ruhr-university-bochum/) ## Cite Cite as Tibor Kiss, Francis Jeffry Pelletier and Tobias Stadtfeld. 2014. Building a reference lexicon for countability in English. Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC'14). The paper itself, not this card. BibTeX from the library's record of the work. [DOI 10.63317/2uw4887z6mj3](https://doi.org/10.63317/2uw4887z6mj3) ```bibtex @inproceedings{kiss2014building, title = {{Building a reference lexicon for countability in English}}, author = {Tibor Kiss, Francis Jeffry Pelletier and Tobias Stadtfeld}, booktitle = {Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC'14)}, year = {2014}, doi = {10.63317/2uw4887z6mj3}, url = {https://doi.org/10.63317/2uw4887z6mj3} } ``` - [← previous Diachronic proximity vs. data sparsity in cross-lingual parser projection. A case study on Germanic](https://md.research.elamur.ai/free/en/papers/sukhareva-2014-diachronic-proximity-vs-data-sparsity/) - [next → WordNet—Wikipedia—Wiktionary: Construction of a Three-way Alignment](https://md.research.elamur.ai/free/en/papers/miller-2014-wordnet-wikipedia-wiktionary/) - [↑ back to papers of 2014](https://md.research.elamur.ai/free/en/papers/2014/page/2/) ## References 22 references, 1 of them with a card of ours. ↗ leads to the work, «find» searches for one we have no id for yet. 1. Keith Allan. 1980. Nouns and countability. Language, 56:541–567. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Keith+Allan%2E+1980%2E+Nouns+and+countability%2E+Language%2C+56%3A541%E2%80%93567%2E) 2. Ron Artstein and Massimo Poesio. 2008. Inter-coder agreement for computational linguistics. Computational Linguistics, 34:555–596. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Ron+Artstein+and+Massimo+Poesio%2E+2008%2E+Inter%2Dcoder+agreement+for+computational+linguistics%2E+Computational+Linguistics%2C+34%3A555%E2%80%93596%2E) 3. Alan Bale and David Barner. 2009. The interpretation of functional heads: Using comparatives to explore the mass/count distinction. Journal of Semantics, 26:217– 252. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Alan+Bale+and+David+Barner%2E+2009%2E+The+interpretation+of+functional+heads%3A+Using+comparatives+to+explore+the+mass%2Fcount+distinction%2E+Journal+of+Semantics%2C+26%3A217%E2%80%93+252%2E) 4. David Barner and Jesse Snedeker. 2005. Quantity judgments and individuation: Evidence that mass nouns count. Cognition, 97:41–66. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=David+Barner+and+Jesse+Snedeker%2E+2005%2E+Quantity+judgments+and+individuation%3A+Evidence+that+mass+nouns+count%2E+Cognition%2C+97%3A41%E2%80%9366%2E) 5. Hagit Borer. 2005. Structuring Sense. Vol. I: In Name Only. Oxford UP, Oxford. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Hagit+Borer%2E+2005%2E+Structuring+Sense%2E+Vol%2E+I%3A+In+Name+Only%2E+Oxford+UP%2C+Oxford%2E) 6. Hagit Borer. 2013. Structuring Sense. Vol. III: Taking Form. Oxford UP, Oxford. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Hagit+Borer%2E+2013%2E+Structuring+Sense%2E+Vol%2E+III%3A+Taking+Form%2E+Oxford+UP%2C+Oxford%2E) 7. Harry Bunt. 1979. Ensembles and the formal semantic properties of mass terms. In Francis Jeffry Pelletier, editor, Mass Terms: Some Philosophical Problems, pages 249–277. Reidel, Dordrecht. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Harry+Bunt%2E+1979%2E+Ensembles+and+the+formal+semantic+properties+of+mass+terms%2E+In+Francis+Jeffry+Pelletier%2C+editor%2C+Mass+Terms%3A+Some+Philosophical+Problems%2C+pages+249%E2%80%93277%2E+Reidel%2C+Dordrecht%2E) 8. Harry Bunt. 1985. Mass Terms and Model Theoretic Semantics. Cambridge UP, Cambridge. Originally a University of Amsterdam PhD Dissertation, 1981. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Harry+Bunt%2E+1985%2E+Mass+Terms+and+Model+Theoretic+Semantics%2E+Cambridge+UP%2C+Cambridge%2E+Originally+a+University+of+Amsterdam+PhD+Dissertation%2C+1981%2E) 9. Lisa Cheng, Jenny Doetjes, and Rint Sybesma. 2008. How universal is the universal grinder? In Linguistics in the Netherlands 2008, pages 50–62, Amsterdam. John Benjamins. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Lisa+Cheng%2C+Jenny+Doetjes%2C+and+Rint+Sybesma%2E+2008%2E+How+universal+is+the+universal+grinder%3F+In+Linguistics+in+the+Netherlands+2008%2C+pages+50%E2%80%9362%2C+Amsterdam%2E+John+Benjamins%2E) 10. Gennaro Chierchia. 2010. Mass nouns, vagueness and semantic variation. Synthèse, 174:99–149. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Gennaro+Chierchia%2E+2010%2E+Mass+nouns%2C+vagueness+and+semantic+variation%2E+Synthe%CC%80se%2C+174%3A99%E2%80%93149%2E) 11. Alex Djalali, Scott Grimm, David Clausen, and Beth Levin. 2011. What can be ground? Noun type constructions, and the universal grinder. In Proceedings of the Berkeley Linguistics Society. University of California, Berkeley. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Alex+Djalali%2C+Scott+Grimm%2C+David+Clausen%2C+and+Beth+Levin%2E+2011%2E+What+can+be+ground%3F+Noun+type+constructions%2C+and+the+universal+grinder%2E+In+Proceedings+of+the+Berkeley+Linguistics+Society%2E+University+o) 12. Steven Frisson and Lyn Frazier. 2005. Carving up word meaning: Portioning and grinding. Journal of Memory and Language, 53:277–291. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Steven+Frisson+and+Lyn+Frazier%2E+2005%2E+Carving+up+word+meaning%3A+Portioning+and+grinding%2E+Journal+of+Memory+and+Language%2C+53%3A277%E2%80%93291%2E) 13. Jane Grimshaw. 1990. Argument Structure. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Jane+Grimshaw%2E+1990%2E+Argument+Structure%2E+MIT+Press%2C+Cambridge%2C+MA%2E) 14. Ray Jackendoff. 1991. Parts and boundaries. Cognition, 41:9–45. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Ray+Jackendoff%2E+1991%2E+Parts+and+boundaries%2E+Cognition%2C+41%3A9%E2%80%9345%2E) 15. Otto Jespersen. 1924. The Philosophy of Grammar. Allen & Urwin, London. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Otto+Jespersen%2E+1924%2E+The+Philosophy+of+Grammar%2E+Allen+%26+Urwin%2C+London%2E) 16. Graham Katz and Roberto Zamparelli. 2012. Quantifying count/mass elasticity. In J. Choi et al, editor, Proceedings of the 29th West Coast Conference on Formal Linguistics, pages 371–379, Somerville, MA. Cascadilla Proceedings Project. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Graham+Katz+and+Roberto+Zamparelli%2E+2012%2E+Quantifying+count%2Fmass+elasticity%2E+In+J%2E+Choi+et+al%2C+editor%2C+Proceedings+of+the+29th+West+Coast+Conference+on+Formal+Linguistics%2C+pages+371%E2%80%93379%2C+Somerville%2C+M) 17. George Miller. 1995. WordNet: A lexical database for English. Communications of the ACM, 38:39–41. [our card](https://md.research.elamur.ai/free/en/papers/miller-1994-wordnet/) 18. Francis Jeffry Pelletier and Lenhart Schubert. 1989. Mass expressions. In F. Guenthner and D. Gabbay, editors, Handbook of Philosophical Logic, Vol. IV, pages 327– 407. Kluwer, Dordrecht. See also the updated entry of this entry in Vol. 10, pp. 249–336 of the 2nd edition. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Francis+Jeffry+Pelletier+and+Lenhart+Schubert%2E+1989%2E+Mass+expressions%2E+In+F%2E+Guenthner+and+D%2E+Gabbay%2C+editors%2C+Handbook+of+Philosophical+Logic%2C+Vol%2E+IV%2C+pages+327%E2%80%93+407%2E+Kluwer%2C+Dordrecht%2E+See+also+the) 19. Francis Jeffry Pelletier. 1975. Non-singular reference: Some preliminaries. Philosophia, 5:451–465. Reprinted in (Pelletier, 1979, pp. 1-14). [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Francis+Jeffry+Pelletier%2E+1975%2E+Non%2Dsingular+reference%3A+Some+preliminaries%2E+Philosophia%2C+5%3A451%E2%80%93465%2E+Reprinted+in+%28Pelletier%2C+1979%2C+pp%2E+1%2D14%29%2E) 20. Francis Jeffry Pelletier, editor. 1979. Mass Terms: Some Philosophical Problems. Kluwer Academic Pub., Dordrecht. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Francis+Jeffry+Pelletier%2C+editor%2E+1979%2E+Mass+Terms%3A+Some+Philosophical+Problems%2E+Kluwer+Academic+Pub%2E%2C+Dordrecht%2E) 21. Francis Jeffry Pelletier. 2012. Lexical nouns are neither mass nor count, but they are both mass and count. In Diane Massam, editor, A Cross-Linguistic Exploration of the Count-Mass Distinction, pages 9–26. Oxford UP, Oxford. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Francis+Jeffry+Pelletier%2E+2012%2E+Lexical+nouns+are+neither+mass+nor+count%2C+but+they+are+both+mass+and+count%2E+In+Diane+Massam%2C+editor%2C+A+Cross%2DLinguistic+Exploration+of+the+Count%2DMass+Distinction%2C+pages) 22. Susan Rothstein. 2010. Counting and the mass-count distinction. Journal of Semantics, 27:343–397. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Susan+Rothstein%2E+2010%2E+Counting+and+the+mass%2Dcount+distinction%2E+Journal+of+Semantics%2C+27%3A343%E2%80%93397%2E)