Grammar: What is noun?
Noun
A noun is a word used to refer to people, animals, objects, substances, states, events, ideas and feelings. A noun functions as a subject or object of a verb and can be modified by an adjective.
Examples - John, lion, table, freedom, love
- I live in United States of America.
- Emma is my sister.
- I love to play with my cat.
Different types of Nouns
There are different types of nouns:
- Abstract Noun - An Abstract Noun names an idea, event, quality, or concept (freedom, love, courage etc) Concrete nouns name something recognizable through the sense (table, dog, house etc)
Examples –
- Love-Love is a wonderful thing!
- Peace-Let there be peace on
- Fear-I was full of fear.
- Compound Noun – A Compound nouns refer to two or more nouns combined to form a single noun (sister-in-law, schoolboy, fruit juice)
Examples –
- Get your hair-cut today, please.
- Emma is my girl-friend.
- The Police-man rushed to the scene of the crime.
- Collective Noun - A collective noun describes a group of things or people as a unit (family, flock, audience)
Examples –
- Our class took a field trip to the natural history museum.
- We waited anxiously for the jury to come to a verdict.
- Napoleon’s army was finally defeated at Waterloo.
Some Collective Nouns
- Flock– A group of birds; also used to discuss small hooves animals such as sheep or goats.
- Swarm– A group of insects.
- Shoal– A group of fish.
- Group– A very general term used to describe people, places, things, and animals.
- Crowd– Usually used to describe a group of people.
- Common Noun - Common noun is the name of a group of similar things (table, book, window) Proper nouns, however, refer to the name of a single person, place or thing (John, Joseph, London)
Examples –
- Let's pick the yellow flowers for Dad.
- I really like the song that is playing on the radio.
- Sophia gives us homework every day of the week except Sunday.
More Examples of Common Nouns:
- People: boy, man, teacher, nurse, firefighter, president
- Places: house, yard, building, church, city, country, beach
- Things: desk, phone, book, candle, pencil, basket, dog
- Ideas: confidence, sadness, courage, speed
- Animate Noun - Animate nouns refer to a person, animal, or other creature (man, elephant, chicken etc) An inanimate noun refers to a material object (stone, wood, table etc)
Examples –
- Tigers and Elephants are found throughout the country.
- The young Lions are far more destructive than the old.
- The new office block has become an expensive leopard.
- Countable Noun- Countable (or count) nouns have a singular and a plural form. In plural, these nouns can be used with a number- they can be counted. (Friends, chairs, houses, boys) Uncountable (or non count) nouns, however, can only be used in singular. They can't be counted. (Money, bread, water, coffee)
Examples –
- There are almost 35 restaurants in New York where I like to go.
- We took many photographs when we went to Los Angeles.
- I have only few
Plural Vs Singular
Nouns can be singular or plural. The plural form of a noun is usually formed by adding s at the end of the noun. But this is not always the case. There are exceptions to the rule. Some plurals are irregular.
Singular Vs Plural Examples –
Leaf – Leaves
Knife – Knives
Scarf - Scarves
Singular Examples –
- A girl was playing football in the ground.
- My horse is hungry and tired.
- There is only one window in that house.
Plural Examples –
- My sisters have given me a gift.
- That boy has been beaten up by those boys.
- We have bought new brushes.
