Grammar

Types of Nouns

What is a noun?

Definition
A NOUN is a word that names a person, a place, a thing, or an idea.
thing person

?
idea place

IDEA?
Why cant we identify the idea in this picture?
Ideas are thoughts and cannot be seen. Examples of ideas include happiness, joy, pain, and fairness.

What ideas might this person have?

Kinds of Nouns
There are two basic kinds of nouns: 1. Common 2. Proper

Common Nouns
A COMMON NOUN names a general person, place, thing, or idea. It does not refer to something specific.

shoe cat house

Proper Nouns
A PROPER NOUN names a specific person, place, thing, or idea. It is always capitalized.

Nike Ralphie White House

Common or Proper?
Common 1. The usher in the theater shined his flashlight on the empty seats. 2. Amy wrote a story about a space creature from Mars. Proper Proper Common 3. To some Native Americans, the buffalo is a symbol of good fortune.

Abstract NOUNS
ABSTRACT NOUNS are nouns that you cannot see, hear, touch, smell, or taste. They are ideas, qualities, and feelings that cannot be seen or touched.
RESPONSIBILITY FAIRNESS JUSTICE RESPECT

Abstract Noun A noun that denotes an idea, emotion, feeling, quality or other abstract or intangible concept

Find all the abstract nouns:

Bike peace desk snow city Janet scissors Jupiter justice judge dollar Tom Grand Canyon Pennsylvania friendship

Collective NOUNS
A COLLECTIVE NOUN is a singular noun that represents a group of individuals.

A collective noun can name a:

Person Animal Place Thing

tribe litter
United States

class gaggle Rockies cluster

congregation herd Bahamas bunch

batch

Find the collective noun in each sentence. The night crew are asked to take separate breaks. A flock of geese flew over the fleet of ships. The fans cheered when the team won the game. The entire family played the game together. We spied a school of fish under the lily pads. That committee is made up of a large group of people. 7. The children ran from the swarm of bees. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Testing Your Knowledge

What is a noun?
a person, place, thing, or idea

What is a concrete noun?

a noun that can be seen, touched, heard, tasted, or smelled

What is a abstract noun?

a noun that cannot be seen, touched, heard, tasted, or smelled. They are ideas, qualities, and feelings that cannot be seen or touched.

What is a proper noun?

A noun that names a specific person, place, thing, or idea

What is a common noun?

A noun that names a general person, place, thing, or idea.