Kinds of Nouns

Introduction

Among all the parts of speech in the English language, noun plays an important role. Let's see what kinds of nouns are there and how they function in sentences.

What is a Noun?

At first, we need to understand what is a noun. To define, we can say that noun names person, animal, feeling, animate and inanimate object. Some common examples of nouns are man, dog, love, flower, etc. There are various kinds of nouns in the English language.

Kinds of Nouns

Noun plays a vital role in the parts of speech as it fulfils the meaning of the sentence to a great extent. There are ten types of nouns, commonly found and used. Check the kinds of nouns with examples to understand the use of nouns in various sentences. The nouns in sentences are marked in bold words to understand easily.

Common Noun

Common noun indicates people, animals, places, and things.

Examples:

• We love this home.

• She carries a bag.

• It is in the box.

• There is a squirrel in the backyard.

Proper Noun

A proper noun indicates the name of a particular person, animal, place, thing, and so on. The words are capitalized in a sentence to recognize a proper noun. Proper noun provides a unique identity to a person, thing, or place.

Examples:

• Samsung manufactures great smartphones.

• Mumbai is an amazing city.

• Jitesh is a good student.

• They are coming via G.T Road.

Singular Noun

The singular noun denotes a single place, person, or thing. The article of the noun helps to understand a singular noun.

Examples:

• He bought an orange.

• She is a teacher.

• My mother has the book you are talking about.

Plural Noun

The plural noun refers to multiple numbers of something. Generally, a plural noun takes the suffix 's' to make a singular noun plural, e.g. students (two or more students). Some plural nouns take the suffix '-es' to transform the singular noun, e.g. class to classes. The spelling of the plural noun changes in some cases. For example, baby (singular) to babies (plural).

There are irregular plural nouns where the name of the noun changes when it becomes plural.

Some examples are −

• Tooth to teeth (plural)

• Child to children (plural)

Examples in sentences −

• The woman sacrificed for her children.

• He has lost three teeth due to the accident.

Concrete Noun

The concrete noun denotes things or people. One can perceive concrete nouns with five senses. It is tangible.

Examples:

• She loves her cat.

• His nose is bleeding.

• This mango is ripe.

Concrete noun includes −

• Proper noun

• Common noun

• Countable noun

• Collective noun

• Material noun

Abstract Noun

An abstract noun is neither touchable nor visible. You cannot perceive it with five senses. It includes ideas, state, person's nature, feelings, theories, and so on.

Examples:

• We understand the reason for your anger.

• Love heals a wounded soul.

• We admire soldiers' bravery.

Collective Noun

A collective noun denotes a group of things, people, and animals. But it functions in the sentence as a singular noun.

Examples:

• Every decision is approved by the committee.

• We make a great team together.

• A herd of elephants is coming this way.

A list of commonly used collective noun −

• A herd of donkeys/ elephants/oxen/swans/zebras.

• A pack of dogs/ hounds/ sharks/ wolves.

• A flock of geese/ birds/ pigeons/ ducks.

• A swarm of flies/insects/ants/butterflies.

• A group of people/ dancers/ islands.

• A gang of thieves/ criminals/slaves.

Compound Noun

A compound noun is a combination of multiple words expressed in a single word. We generally connect the words with hyphens (-) or write separately.

Examples:

• We love to eat ice cream as a dessert.

• He was leaving like a passer-by.

• This new haircut suits your style.

Countable Noun

It is quite evident from the name 'countable noun' that it can be counted. This noun includes things, animals, or people.

Examples:

• He was cleaning the table.

• The girl is sitting alone.

• I bought two cakes for him.

• She wrote a letter to her mother.

Uncountable Noun

An uncountable noun is unlike a countable noun, as you cannot count the noun. Some uncountable nouns can also be abstract nouns.

Examples:

• Happiness is rare.

• This building has no electricity right now.

• The ,air smells fresh and clear near the beach.

Conclusion

Here we have understood about different kinds of nouns that we find in everyday life. The uses of nouns in sentences also depend on the type of noun. So, knowing about the kinds of nouns helps a lot!

FAQs

Q1. What is a noun?

Ans. Noun names a person, things, objects, animals, and perception. It is one of the parts of speech in the English Language. For example, goat, Delhi, idea, and crew are different types of nouns.

Q2. What are the primary classifications of nouns?

Ans. The primary classifications of nouns are concrete and abstract nouns. Concrete nouns are tangible and perceivable, unlike abstract nouns.

Q3. What is the best way to identify concrete nouns?

Ans. A concrete noun refers to an object or person. If you can perceive it with five senses, then it is a concrete noun.

Q4. How can you make plural nouns from singular nouns?

Ans. Plural nouns are formed with an extra 's' or 'es' at the end of the word. Sometimes we see a major change in spelling while making plural nouns from singular nouns like an ox to oxen.

Q5. How do countable nouns differ from uncountable nouns?

Ans. Countable nouns can be counted, unlike uncountable nouns. Uncountable nouns are singular nouns, whereas countable nouns can be both singular and plural.

Examples:

• An apple or apples (countable noun)

• Sand (uncountable noun)

Q6. What is a collective noun?

Ans. A collective noun denotes a collection or group of people, things, or animals as a singular noun, for example, bunch and army.

Another way to identify types of nouns:

There is a common classification of the noun to remember and identify easily in sentences.

The classification contains −

• Proper noun

• Common noun

• Collective noun

• Abstract noun

• Concrete noun.

Countable nouns, uncountable nouns, singular nouns, plural nouns, and compound nouns come under those five above-mentioned nouns.