Nouns in English are perhaps regarded as the first parts of speech that play a crucial role in writing and speaking sentences in English Grammar. This article will provide knowledge regarding Types, Definitions, and Examples of Nouns in English.
Definition of Nouns in English
A word used for naming anything is called Noun. as "ship", "fox", house", "man". Hence a noun is a naming word. - J.C Nesfield.
A noun is a word used as the name of a person, place, or thing; as Kolkata is on the Hoogly. The rose smells sweet. Akbar was a great king. The sun shines bright. - Wren & Martin
A noun is a word used to name or identify any of a class of things, people, places, or ideas, or a particular one of these. - OALD, A.S. Hornby
A Noun is a word that indicates the name of a person, animal, place, thing, or quality. The use of Nouns in English is very important as almost every sentence contains nouns used either as the subject or the object of a sentence.
Examples:
Person: Shakespeare, Vidyasagar, Swami Vibwkakanada, R. N. Tagore, Einestine. etc
Animals: Lion, deer, tiger, Fox, Elephant, etc.
Places: Newyork, London, India, Kolkata, Mumbai, etc
Things: Book, table, tree, Glass, Pen, etc
Quality: Kindness, honesty, Knowledge, Childhood, Beauty, etc.
Types of Nouns
Nouns are mainly categorized into the followings –
1. A proper noun is the name of one particular person, place thing or event, or group of persons or places as distinct from every other.
Example :
The Indian Ocean, Australia, The River Nile, Egypt, India, Jupiter, Hyderabad, The Himalayas, Aladdin, Tom and Jerry, Holi, Wednesday, May, The Victoria Memorial, The Nilgiri Hills, Mount Everest, The Arabian Sea, The river Bhagirathi, etc.
Proper Nouns Examples in sentences:
(a) Ramesh is my friend.
(b) Kolkata is the capital of West Bengal.
(c) The French Revolution broke out in 1789.
(d) The Ganga is the sacred river of India.
(e) The Ramayana is the epic poem of the Hindus.
Common Nouns Examples
| Persons | Animals | Things |
| Boy Girl Man Woman Friend Aunt friend | Animal Dog Cow Goat Tiger fish lion | Pen River Book Flower Planet bottle Country |
Common Nouns examples in sentences.
(a) Ram is a good boy.[ Ram is a Proper Noun, but boy is a common noun]
(b) India is a big country. [ India is a Proper Noun, but the country is a common noun]
(c) The Gita is a holy book. [ “Gita” is a Proper Noun, but the book is a common noun]
(d) The Ganga is a sacred river. [ “Ganga” is a Proper Noun, but the river is a common noun]
(e) Rose age a beautiful flower. [ Rose is a Proper Noun, but the flower is a common noun]
3. A collective noun is the name of a group or collection of persons or things taken together and spoken of as one complete whole.
Collective Nouns examples
| crowd army fleet jury Atlas dynasty cloud Range pack herd, galaxy | mob team flock band swarm bevy bale class pair pride mob | Parliament committee crew Quiver crowd body team family nation heap council |
Collective Nouns examples in sentences.
(a) A herd of elephants is passing.
(b) The jury found the prisoner guilty.
(c) The police dispersed the crowd.
(d) A pack of dogs was chasing him.
(e) A crowd of people gathered at the fair.
“Pack of dogs ”, “a crowd of people ” “ pack ”, and “ crowd ” are collective nouns as they stand for all the “ dogs ” and “ people ” taken together at once and not for anyone “ dog ” or “ person” taken separately.
4. A Material Noun denotes the matter or substance of which things are made. It is also called Mass Noun.
Thus, “river” is a common noun but “water” of which it is made is a Material Noun. “Sheep” common noun but “mutton” (the flesh of a sheep) is a Material Noun.
Material Nouns examples in sentences
(a) The table is made of wood.
(b) We cannot live without water.
(c) This package is made of fine leather.
(d) I would like to eat Dehradun rice.
(e) The trophy is made of silver.
5. An Abstract noun is usually the name of a quality, action, or state considered apart from the object to which it belongs.
Abstract Noun Examples in Chart
| Quality : | Action: | State: |
| goodness kindness darkness hardness brightness honesty bravery | Laughter theft movement judgment hatred wisdom action | childhood boyhood slavery youth poverty sickness richness |
Abstract Nouns examples in sentences
(a) Honesty is the best policy.
(b) Kindness is a great virtue.
(c) He is very meritorious since his childhood.
(d) Lean freedom is better than slavery.
(e) I want obedience from you.
6. Countable Nouns: Countable nouns stand for something that can be counted.
Examples:
(a) He seems to be a good boy.
(b) He is a man of word.
(c) We should tree trees as our best friends.
(d) Barking dog seldom bites.
(e) The cat is running after the mouse.
7. Uncountable Nouns: Uncountable Nouns stand for something that cannot be counted though they can be measured.
Examples:
(a) We can not live without water.
(b) Air pollution makes our life complex.
(c) The cows are eating grass.
(d) The table is made of wood.
(e) We may get sand on the beach.
8. Singular Noun: When a Noun relates to one person or thing at a time and not more than one, it is in the singular Noun.
Examples:
(a) My friend gave me a pen.
(b) She eats an apple.
(c) Baby is sleeping in the bed.
(d) I hold a branch to climb up the tree.
(e) Give me the key to the room.
9. Plural Noun: When a Noun relates to more than one person or thing that is to several persons or things of the same kind, it is in the plural noun.
Examples:
(a) He made two goals in the match.
(b) Tigers are strange creatures.
(c) My father built two buildings.
(d) Horses are running at top speed.
(e) I bought six bananas from the market.
Use of Nouns in English Sentences
In English, to make sentences, Nouns can be used as –
1. Subject: The person or thing about which something is said in a sentence is called the subject of the sentence. To find out the subject of a sentence, ask the verb of a sentence with “who“.
- Ramen is the best boy in the class.
- Satyajit Ray is my favorite author of all time.
2. Object: When we ask a verb of a sentence, a question with “what/whom”, the answer we get is called an object. The object that denotes a thing, is called a Direct object. The object that denotes a person is called the Indirect Object.
- We will visit the Taj(D.Obj) with my father. (Ind.Obj)
- Now, she is playing the guitar. (Ind.Obj)
3. Complement: Some verbs do not make a complete sense by themselves, but require some other words to make the sense complete. Those words are called complements. Mostly we use complements after intransitive verbs but sometimes transitive verbs also take complements after them. Complements are of two types – subjective complements and objective complements.
- We named our youngest daughter Ruma.
- They have made him President.
- He is an advocate.
- He seems tired.
4. Infinitive: The infinitive is formed by adding to, expressing, or understood to the base form of the verb.
- To walk in the morning is good for health.
- To love men is to love God.
5. Gerund: A gerund is a double part of speech – a noun and a verb combined. It is formed by adding ing the base form of the verb.
- Swimming is good for health.
- Did you enjoy reading the novel?
6. Compound noun: A compound noun is formed with two nouns that refer to a new meaning.
- This is a sleeping room
- We have no drinking water here.
Nouns used as different Parts of speech
1. Noun used as Verb
(a) Her mother gave her a slap(N).
Her mother slapped(V) her.
(b) She gave a scream(N) in wonder.
She screamed(V) in wonder.
(c) He had no intention of insulting you. (Noun)
Ans: He did not intend to insult you. (Verb)
(d)There is a great difference between the two languages. (Noun)
Ans: The two languages differ greatly from each other. (Verb)
(e) What will be the cost? (Noun)
Ans: How much will it cost? (Verb)
2. Noun used as an adjective
(a) He showed generosity even to his enemies. (Noun)
Ans: He was generous even to his enemies. (Adj)
(b) There is a slight difference between the two pictures. (Noun)
Ans: The two pictures are slightly different. (Adj)
(c) He has sufficient intelligence to do the job. (Noun)
Ans: He is sufficiently intelligent to do the job. (Adj)
(d) The girl is a beauty. (Noun)
Ans: The girl is very beautiful. (Adj)
(e) In spite of his poverty, he is honest. (Noun)
Ans: Though poor, he is honest. (Adj)
3. Noun used as Adverb
(a) He set down his burden with gentleness. (Noun)
Ans: He set down his burden gently. (Adv)
(b) She answered my questions with intelligence. (Noun)
Ans: She answered my questions intelligently. (Adv)
(c) It is unfortunate that he failed. (Noun)
Ans: Unfortunately, he failed. (Adv)
(d) He agreed to the proposal with joy. (Noun)
He agreed to the proposal joyfully. (Adv)
(e) There is no doubt that he is guilty. (Noun)
Ans: Undoubtedly, he is guilty. (Adv)
