Page 172 - English Grammar in Use

Unit
80 Noun + noun (a bus driver / a headache)

A You can use two nouns together (noun + noun) to mean one thing/person/idea etc. :
a bus driver income tax the city centre an apple tree
The first noun is like an adjective. It tells us what kind of thing/person/idea etc. :
a bus driver = the driver of a bus
income tax = tax that you pay on your income
the city centre = the centre of the city
an apple tree = a tree that has apples
a Paris hotel = a hotel in Paris
my life story = the story of my life

So you can say:
a television camera a television programme a television studio a television producer
(things or people to do with television)
language problems marriage problems health problems work problems
(different kinds of problems)
Sometimes the first word ends in -ing:
a frying pan (= a pan for frying)
a washing machine
a swimming pool

B Sometimes there are more than two nouns together:
I waited at the hotel reception desk.
We watched the World Swimming Championships on TV.
If you want to play table tennis (= a game), you need a table tennis table (= a table).

C When two nouns are together like this, sometimes we write them as one word and sometimes as two
separate words. For example:
a headache toothpaste a weekend a car park a road sign
There are no clear rules for this. If you are not sure, write two words.

D Note the difference between:
a coffee cup (maybe empty) and a cup of coffee (= a cup with coffee in it)
a shopping bag (maybe empty) and a bag of shopping (= a bag full of shopping)

E When we use noun + noun, the first noun is like an adjective. It is normally singular, but the
meaning is often plural.
For example: a car park is a place to park cars, an apple tree is a tree that has apples.
In the same way we say:
a three-hour journey (= a journey that takes three hours)
a ten-pound note (= a note with the value of ten pounds)
a four-week course
a six-mile walk
two 14-year-old girls
Compare:
It was a four-week course. (not a four weeks course)
but The course lasted four weeks.

160 -’s and of … ➜ Unit 81 a week’s holiday / three weeks’ holiday etc. ➜ Unit 81E