Countable & Uncountable Noun

[bmfo]

Is there any sort of indicator that natives unconsciously utilize to assume a particular noun as countable or uncountable?
I looked up some websites to gather information about it but lots of them seem to be quite culture-driven and, you know, there are hundreds of thousands of nouns that I couldn't imagine memorizing all of them. So I want to ask how the native English speakers become distinguishing them without extra thoughts.
Personally I have three perspectives of it.
1. Not that important.
2. Just permeates naturally after reading tons of articles and books. (I personally think this is the fact and the best way)
3. After memorizing tens of hundreds of countable and uncountable nouns, some kind of big picture would be formed in my brain so that I can somehow sort other nouns out whether they are countable or uncountable.

Thank you very much.

 

[SoothingDave]

Native speakers don't consciously go out to learn the difference between countable and uncountable nouns.

 

[bmfo]

Thank you but I didn't say a thing like Native speakers consciously going out to learn the difference between countable and uncountable nouns.
If my first sentence is causing any misunderstading, I meant by 'indicator' that like something engraved on your brain as a reference book. And I want to know how did you guys gain that ability to sort them out.
I am sure Native speakers should have learnt at some point of their age. I can't write 100% grammatically correctly in Korean which even is my mother tongue and I have to look up the Internet sometimes for correct grammar or think about it a tiny bit to find out whether I have written it correctly.
I need the answer from an English teacher.

Thank you very much.

 

[SoothingDave]

It's based on a logical concept, isn't it? Whether you can count something.

Can you provide some examples of things that cause you confusion?

If I think of a giant pile of salt, waiting to be spread on the roads, it is one mass of salt. It's not countable. Just salt.

Now, put that salt into 50 pound bags and it is now bags of salt. Countable bags.

The same way, when the rain freezes there is ice out there on the roads. One big mass of ice. Not countable.

In my beverage, there can be individual cubes of ice. Countable.

 

[bmfo]

Sorry my bad. Like, journey is countable and travel is uncountable. what makes it different?

However, thank you very much for the easy explanation.

 

[SoothingDave]

That is more difficult and just picked up by example (hearing it used by others). I can't think of a good reason why we might go on many journeys, but not on a bunch of "travels."

 

[emsr2d2]

With the examples that aren't logical, we just pick them up during our lifetime, usually during childhood. We are not taught them formally.

 

[bhaisahab]

Who says "travel" is not countable? One example of many: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travels_with_a_Donkey_in_the_Cévennes

 

[SoothingDave]

Who says "travel" is not countable? One example of many: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travels_with_a_Donkey_in_the_Cévennes

Never say "never" with English, right?

I would say there are specialized uses, but it would sound awfully strange for someone to ask me if "I have had a lot of travels," for example.

 

[emsr2d2]

You would be happy with "During my travels, I have encountered many interesting people" though, wouldn't you?

 

[SoothingDave]

You would be happy with "During my travels, I have encountered many interesting people" though, wouldn't you?

Yes.

 

[bmfo]

I saw it from here from two websites:

1.https://www.englishclub.com/grammar/nouns-countable-un.htm

2.http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv192.shtml

I have also searched its definition on google and I came up with this:
the action of traveling, typically abroad.
"I have a job that involves a lot of travel"•journeys, especially long or exotic ones.
plural noun: travels
"perhaps you'll write a book about your travels"

Now I'm lost

 

[Tdol]

Sorry my bad. Like, journey is countable and travel is uncountable. what makes it different?

Sometimes we have two words-one for the countable form, the individual journeys, and one for the uncountable concept- travel broadens the mind. We do have the form travels, used for someone who has travelled extensively, but it is plural, but not truly countable- we don't say ten travels.