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This article covers everything ypu need to knwo about nouns. We will explore its definition, types, and gramatical functions. This article is meant to be a comprehensive guide about nouns. Without firther ado, let start with answering the first question: what are nouns?
What are Nouns?
A noun is a part of speech that is used to name a person, place, thing, or idea. A noun can function as a subject, object, complement, appositive, or object of a preposition.
Nouns are recognizable by the determiners (e.g., the, a, an, many, some, this, these, those, etc.) that we often add in front of them:
- The car.
- An elephant.
- A bus
- Many buses.
- These ideas
- Some students.
Examples Of Nouns:
- Person: teacher, student, doctor
- Place: city, park, school
- Thing: book, chair, pen
- Idea: happiness, freedom, love
Why Are Nouns Important?
Nouns can function as a subject, object, complement, appositive, or object of a preposition. One can not imagine a sentence without a noun. It will make no sense. Let us consider an example:
- John offered Jane a beautiful bunch of flowers.
This sentence contains four nouns having different critical grammatical functions:
- “John” is the subject of the sentence.
- “Jane” is the direct object of the verb “offered“.
- “Bunch” is the indirect object of the verb ” offered“.
- “Flowers” is the object of the preposition “of“.
A sentence without these elements will be nonsensical:
- offered a beautiful of. (!)
Plural Vs. Singular Nouns
Nouns can be singular or plural. The plural form of a noun is usually formed by adding “s” at the end of the noun.
Regular Plural Nouns Examples
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| book | books |
| boy | boys |
| car | cars |
| chair | chairs |
| cup | cups |
| girl | girls |
| student | students |
| teacher | teachers |
But this is not always the case. We don’t always add “s” to the noun to get the plural. There are exceptions to the rule. Some plurals are irregular:
Irregular Plural Nouns Examples
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| child | children |
| fish | fish |
| foot | feet |
| man | men |
| sheep | sheep |
| tooth | teeth |
| tooth | teeth |
| woman | women |
Different Types Of Nouns
There are different types of nouns:
1. Abstract Vs. Concrete nouns:
An abstract noun names an idea, event, quality, or concept (e.g., freedom, love, courage, glory, beauty, etc.) Concrete nouns name something recognizable through the sense (table, dog, house, rock, bicycle, umbrella, etc.)
Abstract and Concrete Nouns Examples
| Abstract Nouns | Concrete Nouns |
|---|---|
| beauty | bicycle |
| courage | chair |
| faith | cup |
| freedom | dog |
| glory | door |
| happiness | house |
| honesty | rock |
| love | table |
| truth | umbrella |
2. Animate Vs. Inanimate Nouns:
Animate nouns refer to a person, animal, or other creature (e.g., man, elephant, chicken, etc.) An inanimate noun refers to a material object (stone, wood, table, etc.)
Animate and Inanimate Nouns Examples
| Animate Nouns | Inanimate Nouns |
|---|---|
| bird | bag |
| cat | bottle |
| dog | chair |
| grandmother | jacket |
| human | pen |
| Jane | rock |
| man | table |
| sister | teapot |
| woman | wood |
3. Collective Nouns:
A collective noun describes a group of things or people as a unit (e.g., family, flock, audience, etc.)
Here is a list of some common collective nouns:
- A choir of singers.
- A colony of ants.
- A committee of directors, lawyers, managers, etc.
- A crowd of people.
- A fleet of ships.
- A flock of birds.
- A group of people.
- A herd of sheep.
- A pack of wolves.
- A pride of lions.
- A shoal or school of fish.
- A swarm of bees.
- A team of players, workers, etc
4. Common Vs. Proper Nouns:
A common noun is the name of a group of similar things (e.g., table, book, window, etc.) Proper nouns, however, refer to the name of a single person, place, or thing (e.g., John, Joseph, London, etc.)
| Common Nouns | Proper Nouns |
|---|---|
| author | Chomsky |
| camera | Nikon |
| city | London |
| company | Tesla |
| grandfather | William |
| man | John |
| prophet | Moses |
| singer | Michael Jackson |
| university | Harvard |
| woman | Jane |
5. Compound Nouns:
Compound nouns refer to two or more nouns combined to form a single noun (e.g., sister-in-law, schoolboy, lunchtime, etc. )
Here is a list of compound nouns:
| List of 60 Compound Nouns | ||
|---|---|---|
| armchair | eyewitness | network |
| bandwagon | fatherhood | newsletter |
| baseball | feedback | outlook |
| bathroom | fingerprint | overseas |
| bedtime | fishbowl | paperback |
| chairman | footprint | passport |
| chopstick | godfather | roadrunner |
| copyright | greenhouse | runway |
| cowboy | guideline | rainbow |
| crackdown | handbag | saucepan |
| daytime | handshake | screenplay |
| deadline | headlight | snowball |
| dishwasher | heartbeat | stepchild |
| doorbell | homework | suitcase |
| downfall | honeymoon | tablespoon |
| downfall | jigsaw | teardrop |
| drawback | lighthouse | teaspoon |
| dressmaker | lipstick | toothpick |
| drugstore | mailbox | watchdog |
| eardrum | mastermind | wheelchair |
| earphone | neighborhood | windpipe |
6. Countable Vs. Uncountable Nouns:
Countable (or Count) nouns have a singular and a plural form. In the plural, these nouns can be used with a number- they can be counted. (e.g., friends, chairs, houses, boys, etc.) We can also add the indefinite articles “a” and “an.”
Uncountable (or Noncount) Nouns, however, can only be used in the singular form. They can’t be counted. (e.g., money, bread, water, coffee, etc.) In addition, we cannot add “a” and “an” to uncountable nouns.
| Countable Nouns | Uncountable Nouns |
|---|---|
| Apples | Water |
| Books | Sugar |
| Chairs | Milk |
| Cars | Rice |
| Pens | Flour |
| Houses | Bread |
| Televisions | Cheese |
| Computers | Butter |
| Bottles | Oil |
| Bicycles | Coffee |
| Cups | Tea |
| Plates | Salt |
| Tables | Pepper |
| Oranges | Juice |
| Dogs | Meat |
Noun Functions
A noun may function as a subject, object, complement, or object of a preposition.
Here are some examples of noun functions:
Subject:
- The cat chased the mouse. – “The cat” is a noun functioning as a subject in this sentence.
- The teacher gave a lecture. – “The teacher” is a noun functioning as a subject in this sentence.
- The ocean waves were high. – “The ocean” is a noun functioning as a subject in this sentence.
Object:
- The boy kicked the ball. – “The ball” is a noun functioning as an object in this sentence.
- She made a cake for the party. – “A cake” is a noun functioning as an object in this sentence.
- The wind broke the branch. – “The branch” is a noun functioning as an object in this sentence.
Complement:
- The problem is a lack of communication. – “A lack of communication” is a noun functioning as a complement in this sentence.
- She became a doctor. – “A doctor” is a noun functioning as a complement in this sentence.
- The news was a surprise. – “A surprise” is a noun functioning as a complement in this sentence.
Appositive:
- My friend, the doctor, is coming over. – “The doctor” is a noun functioning as an appositive in this sentence.
- The capital of France, Paris, is beautiful. – “Paris” is a noun functioning as an appositive in this sentence.
- My brother, Alan, is nice. – “Alan” is a noun functioning as an appositive in this sentence.
An Object Of A Preposition:
- The book is on the shelf. – “The shelf” is a noun functioning as an object of the preposition “on” in this sentence.
- The pen is in the bag. – “The bag” is a noun functioning as an object of the preposition “in” in this sentence.
- The picture is above the fireplace. – “The fireplace” is a noun functioning as an object of the preposition “above” in this sentence.
Conclusion
In conclusion, nouns are an essential part of speech that play a crucial role in the English language. They are used to name people, places, things, or ideas and can take different forms such as plural and singular.
There are different types of nouns: proper, common, animate, inanimate, countable, uncountable, and more.
Nouns function in a sentence differently. They can be subjects, objects, complements, appositives, or objects of a preposition.
Understanding the different forms and functions of nouns is important for effective communication and clear expression of thoughts and ideas.
| NOUNS | ||
|---|---|---|
| Referring to | Person | Bill, James, Leila |
| Place | city, park, school | |
| Thing | book, chair, pen | |
| Idea | happiness, freedom, love | |
| Number | Singular | book, city, car |
| Plural | books, cities, cars | |
| Types | Abstract | freedom, love, courage |
| Concrete | table, dog, house | |
| Animate | man, elephant, chicken | |
| Inanimate | stone, wood, table, | |
| Collective | family, flock, audience | |
| Common | table, book, window | |
| Proper | John, Joseph, London | |
| Compound | sister-in-law, schoolboy, fruit juice | |
| Countable (or count) | friends, chairs, houses, boys | |
| Uncountable (or noncount) | money, bread, water, coffee | |
| Functions | Subject | The cat chased the mouse. |
| Object | The boy kicked the ball. | |
| Complement | The problem is a lack of communication. | |
| Appositive | My friend, the doctor, is coming over. | |
| An object of a preposition | The book is on the shelf. | |
More about defining nouns in English grammar here.
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