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English Grammar Compound Nouns PDF
English Grammar Compound Nouns PDF
Compound Nouns
A compound noun is a noun that is made up of two or more words. Most compound nouns in English are formed
by nouns modified by other nouns or adjectives.
For example:
The words tooth and paste are each nouns in their own right, but if you join them together they form a new word
- toothpaste.
The word black is an adjective and board is a noun, but if you join them together they form a new word -
blackboard.
In both these example the first word modifies or describes the second word, telling us what kind of object or
person it is, or what its purpose is. And the second part identifies the object or person in question.
Compound nouns can also be formed using the following combinations of words:-
A
afterthought, airplane, another, anybody, anyhow, anyone, anything, anywhere, armchair
B
backbone, backspace, backwoods, become, bedroom, beeswax, birthday, birthright, blackberry, blackbird,
blackboard, blackmail, bloodvessel, bluebell, bodyguard, bookkeeper, bolthole,brainstorm, breadbin, brushwood
C
cardboard, carefree, caretaker, carpet, chairman, clockwork, commonsense, copyright, cupboard
D
daylight, dead weight, downfall, downstairs
E
earring, earthwork, evergreen, everybody, everyday, everyone, everything, everywhere, eyeball
F
fatherland, fingerprint, firearm, fire-engine, firefly, fireman, fireplace, firework, first-rate, floppy disk, football,
footlights, footman, footnote, footprint, footstep, friendship
G
gasworks, goalkeeper, goldfish, goodlooking, good-morning, goodnight, gunboat, gun-carriage,
gunmetal, gunpowder
H
haircut, handbook, handwriting, headdress, headland, headphones, headstone, headway, hereafter, herewith,
herself, highlands, highway, himself, horsback, horseplay, horsepower, hourglass, houseboat, housekeeper,
however
I
inasmuch, income, indoors, inland, inlet, input, inside, instep, into, itself
J
joystick,
K
keyboard
L
landmark, landslip, lawsuit, lighthouse, lipstick, loanshark, looking-glass, loophole
M
manhandle, manhole, meeting room, moonlight, myself
N
network, newspaper, nightcap, nobody, nothing, nowhere
O
offspring, oncoming, oneself, oneline, onlooker, onto, ourselves, outburst, outcome, outcry, outdoor, outgoing,
outhouse, outlaw, outlet, outline, outlook, output, outside, outskirts, outstretched, overacting, overall
overbalancing, overbearing, overcoat, overcome, overdo, overdressed, overfull, overhanging, overhead,
overland, overleaf, overload, overlook, overseas, overseer, overshoe, overstatement, overtake, overtaxed,
overtime, overturned, overuse, overvalued, overweight, overworking
P
pincushion, plaything , policeman, policewoman, postman, postwoman, postmark, postmaster, postoffice
Q,R
railway, receivership, runway, runaway
S
scarecrow, seaman, secondhand, shorthand, shutdown, sideboard, sidewalk, sinkhole, skyscraper, somebody,
someday, somehow, someone, something, sometime, somewhat, somewhere, starlight, startup, steamship,
suchlike, sunburn, sunlight, sunshade, sweetheart
T
themselves, timesheet, today, tonight, toothpaste, tradesman
U
underclothing, undercooked, undergo, undergrowth, undermined, undersigned, undersized, understatement,
undertake, undertaker, undervalued, undo, update, upkeep, uplift, upon, upright, upstairs, uptake, uptight
V
viewpoint .
W
wallpaper, waterfall, weekend, well-being, well-off, whatever, whenever, whereas, whereby, wherever,
whichever, whitewash, whoever, windpipe, within, without, woodwork, workhouse ,
workman, workmanship, workout
X
x-ray
Y
yearbook, yourself
Z
zookeeper
Compound Nouns
A compound noun is a noun that is made with two or more words. A compound noun is usually
[noun + noun] or [adjective + noun], but there are other combinations (see below). It is
important to understand and recognize compound nouns. Each compound noun acts as a single
unit and can be modified by adjectives and other nouns.
Noun + Noun bus stop Is this the bus stop for the number 12 bus?
preposition + Noun underworld Do you think the police accept money from
theunderworld?
British/American differences
Different varieties of English, and even different writers, may use the open, hyphenated or closed
form for the same compound noun. It is partly a matter of style. There are no definite rules. For
example we can find:
container ship
container-ship
containership
If you are not sure which form to use, please check in a good dictionary.
forefoot foretold
forego foreword
foreground grassland
butterball horseman
forecastle horseradish
foremost moonlit
forepaws catwalk
cardstock newborn
foredoom newsperson
forestall rainwater
Vocabulario: Sustantivos Compuestos 1
Como escribí hace un par de días en el articulo de sustantivos y adjetivos compuestos, hay varias maneras de
hacer las palabras compuestas. Hoy quiero dar más ejemplos.
sustantivo + sustantivo
bodyguard — guardaespaldas
goalkeeper — portero (en el futbol)
doorman — portero de un edificio
backbone — espina dorsal (se usa también para decir “coraje”)
cupboard — estantería (literalmente una tabla donde poner las copas)
fireman — bombero
headphones — auriculares
housekeeper — una persona que viene a limpiarte la casa
keyboard — el teclado
conference room — la sala de reuniones
waterfall — una cascada
living room — la sala de estar
bedroom — el dormitorio
sidewalk — la acera
sunburn — quemadura del sol
wallpaper — papel pintado (para cubrir las paredes)
policeman — un policía
wineglass — un vaso para el vino (para decir un vaso de vino, usamos a glass of wine)
goldfish — un pez de colores
Aquí tenemos algunos de otro tipo:
sustantivo + preposición (o preposición + sustantivo)
underwear — la ropa interior
overtime — horas extras que se trabaja
overhead — los gastos generales de una empresa
output — rendimiento
offspring — los críos
shakeup — una situación caótica
upkeep — mantenimiento