Hi, Alexander!  Recently you wrote in a message to All:

AK>  I learned recently that an English pie can be countable 
AK>  and uncountable. 


         Uh-huh.  And since you just happen to know an English major who earned her university fees working in the restaurant business...  



AK>  What does the latter mean? 


         ... I can tell you the average pie is about the size of a dinner plate & may be divided into roughly six or eight pieces, depending on various factors such as what one's customers want &/or how many mouths one is expected to feed. Nowadays I know of a few places around here where one can get individual sizes. Maybe one couldn't years ago, but you didn't say when your excerpt was written. Singletons & childless couples were less common when I was growing up....  :-))



AK>  She was sitting at the dining room table with the other 
AK>  children, two of whom were eating pie and ice cream with 
AK>  expressions of immense satisfaction." 

AK>  I understand uncountable ice cream, but I don't understand
AK>  uncountable pie. ;-) 


         Where I come from, ice cream is measured by volume or by weight... and I see you understand that.  When you visit a bakery, however, you may notice it offers "pies, cakes, and pastries" for sale.  You can purchase one or more such items as you wish or make them yourself at home.  Either way I see that in this example there are probably one or more grownups & at least two kids who need to be fed, in which case the thrifty housewife would cut a large pie into servings (or pieces or portions) of whatever size she deems to be most appropriate.  :-Q




--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+