Noun and it types with examples

 Nouns refer to persons, animals, places, things, ideas, or events, etc. Nouns encompass most of the words of a language.

Noun can be a/an -  

Person – a name for a person: - Max, Julie, Catherine, Michel, Bob, etc.

Animal – a name for an animal: - dog, cat, cow, kangaroo, etc.

Place – a name for a place: - London, Australia, Canada, Mumbai, etc.

Thing – a name for a thing: - bat, ball, chair, door, house, computer, etc.

Idea – A name for an idea: - devotion, superstition, happiness, excitement, etc.

Different Types of Noun:

1)Proper Noun

2)Common Noun

3)Abstract Noun

4)Concrete Noun

5)Countable Noun

6)Non-countable Noun

7)Collective Noun

8)Compound Noun

1)Proper Noun:

A proper noun is a name which refers only to a single person, place, or thing and there is no common name for it. In written English, a proper noun always begins with capital letters.

For example, Rakesh and Amit are the names of boys; Delhi, the name of a city; Taj Mahal, the name of a monument; Ganga the name of a river; Mt Everest, the name of a mountain range. Hence Rakesh, Mayank, Delhi, Taj Mahal, Ganga and Mt. Everest are proper nouns.

Note: A Proper noun always begins with a capital letter.

2)Common Noun:

A common noun is a name for something which is common for many things, person, or places. It encompasses a particular type of things, person, or places.

The name ‘boy’ refers to all boys (Rakesh, Raju, Amit, Rajesh, Mayank etc.) but does not mention any particular boy. Hence, the name ‘boy’ is a common noun. Similarly, the name ‘city’ refers to any city in the world (Delhi, Patna, Japan, New York, etc.) but does not mention any particular city. Thus, ‘city’ is a common noun. (We must use an article before a singular Common noun.)

3)Abstract Noun:

An abstract noun is a word for something that cannot be seen but is there. It has no physical existence. Generally, it refers to ideas, qualities, and conditions.

Charity is an abstract noun for it is the name of a quality which cannot be seen but can only be understood by seeing certain actions or behavioural pattern of a person.

Formation Of Abstract Nouns

Abstract nouns can be formed from adjectives, verbs, and common nouns.

vain -vanity

miser -miserly

cruel -cruelty

efficient- efficiency

honest -honesty

brave- bravery 

°By Addition Of Ness

Word Word + ness

good goodness

calm calmness

foolish foolishness 

°Addition of ‘ce’ replacing ‘t’

Word Addition of ‘ce’ replacing ‘t’

intelligent intelligence

brilliant brilliance 

°Addition of ‘th’ and change in vowels

Word Addition of ‘th’ and change in vowels

strong strength

long length

high height 

°Deletion Of ‘Y’

Word new word

Easy ease

worthy worth

greedy greed 

°By Addition Of “Ence Or Ance Or Ce”

Word Abstract Noun

good goodness

calm calmness

foolish foolishness 

°Abstract Nouns Formed From Verbs By Addition Of “Tion/Sion”

Verb Abstract Noun

attract attraction

create creation

prevent prevention 

°Abstract Nouns Formed From Common Nouns By Addition Of “Hood”:

Common Noun Abstract Noun

child childhood

man manhood

woman womanhood 

4)Concrete Noun:

A concrete noun is the exact opposite of abstract noun. It refers to the things we see and have physical existence.

Example: Chair, table, bat, ball, water, money, sugar, etc.

5)Countable Noun:

The nouns that can be counted are called countable nouns. Countable nouns can take an article: a, an, the.

Example: Chair, table, bat, ball, etc. (you can say 1 chair, 2 chairs, 3 chairs – so chairs are countable)

6)Non-countable Noun:

The nouns that cannot be counted are called non-countable nouns.

Example: Water, sugar, oil, salt, etc. (you cannot say “1 water, 2 water, 3 water” because water is not countable)

Abstract nouns and proper nouns are always non-countable nouns, but common nouns and concrete nouns can be both count and non-count nouns.

7)Collective Noun:

A collective noun is a word for a group of things, people, or animals, etc.

Example: family, team, jury, cattle, etc.

Collective nouns can be both plural and singular. However, Americans prefer to use collective nouns as singular, but both of the uses are correct in other parts of the world.

8)Compound Noun:

Sometimes two or three nouns appear together, or even with other parts of speech, and create idiomatic compound nouns. Idiomatic means that those nouns behave as a unit and, to a lesser or greater degree, amount to more than the sum of their parts.

Example: six-pack, five-year-old, and son-in-law, snowball, mailbox, etc.