Definition and Types of Noun | Parts of Speech

What is a Noun?

A noun is a word used to identify a place, person, thing, or idea. Anything that has a name and can be talked about is a noun. Everything is denoted by a name, and that naming word is called a “noun.”

Often, a noun will be the name for something we can touch (e.g., lamb, pen, table), but sometimes a noun will be the name for something we cannot touch (e.g., happiness, determinism, truth).

Examples of Nouns

Everything is represented by a word that is called a noun. Here are some examples:

• People: Ali, boy, singer.
• Animals: Cat, cow, elephant.
• Places: Karachi, city, street.
• Objects: Cup, pencil, book.
• Qualities: Boldness, sorrow.
• Actions: Writing, listening, running.

Types of Nouns:

There are many types of nouns depending on various aspects. One noun may fall into multiple categories. For instance, a common noun may also be a countable noun and, at the same time, a concrete noun. For example, “pencil” is a common noun, it is countable, concrete, and it is a singular noun. Some main types of nouns are described below.

Proper Noun:

A proper noun is the given name of a specific person, place, or thing, i.e., its own name (e.g., Imran, Karachi, Rover). A proper noun always starts with a capital letter. All days and months are proper nouns and start with capital letters (e.g., Sunday, March, December). Names of all persons, countries, and oceans are considered proper nouns (e.g., Mashal, Pakistan, Atlantic).

Examples:

• People: Alexander, Emily
• Places: Paris, Nile River
• Things: The Eiffel Tower, The Great Wall of China

Common Noun:

A common noun is a word used for a class of persons, places, or things (e.g., person, city, and dog). Common nouns are not capitalized unless they begin a sentence. There are some exceptions, like in poetry, where every word of a new line is capitalized. Something personified in poetry is also capitalized, e.g., “So Nature incites them in their hearts” (Prologue – Geoffrey Chaucer).

Examples:

• People: teacher, child
• Places: village, park
• Things: chair, apple

Concrete Noun:

Concrete nouns are things we can see or touch physically. These nouns contrast with abstract nouns. For example: tree, hammer, pen. We can see, feel, or touch them. Sometimes, they are referred to as material nouns.

Examples:

• Tree: oak, pine
• Tool: saw, screwdriver
• Food: pizza, chocolate

Abstract Noun:

Abstract nouns are things you cannot see or touch. Abstract nouns do not have a physical existence. These nouns are sometimes difficult to identify, as learners might confuse them with adjectives. Abilities and emotions are examples of abstract nouns, e.g., bravery, joy, determination.

Examples:

• Emotions: love, anger
• Qualities: honesty, wisdom
• Concepts: freedom, justice

Collective Noun:

Collective nouns are words that denote groups, collections, or multitudes of something. These nouns are used as singular, e.g., team, army, concert.

Examples:

• Group of people: jury, staff
• Group of animals: flock, herd
• Group of things: bunch, set

Compound Noun:

Compound nouns are nouns made up of more than one word. For example: court-martial, pickpocket, water bottle. Some compound nouns are two words (e.g., peace pipe), some are hyphenated (e.g., play-off), and some have become single words (e.g., eyeopener). Spelling compound nouns can be challenging, as some are currently transitioning through different stages. Some compound nouns form their plural by adding an “s” to the principal word, not necessarily to the end (e.g., brothers-in-law).

Examples:

• Two words: bus stop, swimming pool
• Hyphenated: mother-in-law, editor-in-chief
• Single words: toothpaste, haircut

Countable Noun:

A countable noun is a noun that can be counted in numbers, like one pen, two cars, and has both a singular and a plural form (e.g., dog/dogs, pie/pies).

Examples:

• Singular: book, apple
• Plural: books, apples

Uncountable Noun:

An uncountable noun is a noun without a plural form. For example: oxygen, patience. Such nouns do not include counting. All abstract nouns fall under the uncountable category of nouns.

Examples:

• Substances: water, rice
• Concepts: advice, information
• Qualities: beauty, courage

Gerund Noun:

Gerunds are nouns that end in “-ing” and represent actions. Gerunds have verb-like properties but are used differently in a sentence than verbs. Gerund nouns are modified with adverbs. To differentiate a gerund noun from a verb, consider the following examples:

(a) Ali is singing a song.

(b) Ali is fond of singing.

In sentence (a), “singing” is a verb as it shows the action Ali is performing. Verbs ending in “-ing” are used following helping verbs such as “is,” “am,” “was,” “were,” etc. In sentence (b), “singing” is not an action being performed by Ali and is not followed by a helping verb.

Examples:

• Running is fun. (Gerund)
• She enjoys swimming. (Gerund)

Gender-specific Nouns:

Gender-specific nouns are nouns that are definitely male or female. For example: king, vixen, actress. A blonde refers to a woman, while a blond refers to a man.

Examples:

• Male: prince, groom
• Female: princess, bride

Verbal Noun:

Verbal nouns are nouns derived from verbs but do not have verb-like properties (e.g., building, drawing, attack).

 

How to Differentiate Gerund Noun and Verbal Noun?

To understand the difference between a gerund noun and a verbal noun, consider the given example:

“The ceremonial raising of the flag has started.”

Like gerund nouns, verbal nouns are also derived from verbs, but unlike gerunds, they have no verb-like properties. In the above example, the verbal noun “raising” is not showing any verb-like qualities. It is modified by a determiner and an adjective (“the” and “ceremonial”) and requires a preposition (“of”) to link it to the noun. In contrast, in the sentence “Raising the flag carefully is key,” the word “raising” (which, despite being spelled the same, is now a gerund) is showing verb-like qualities. More specifically, it is modified with an adverb (“carefully”).

Verbal nouns are usually preceded by “a,” “an,” or “the,” and followed by a preposition (e.g., “of,” “in,” “for”). This makes them pretty inefficient from a word count perspective. Also, a sentence with verbal nouns can often sound stuffy. However, verbal nouns can give an air of formality or provide emphasis.

So, we should all care about verbal nouns for two reasons:

(1) Replacing verbal nouns with verbs and gerunds will reduce your word count and improve sentence flow.

(2) Sentences featuring pure verbal nouns could portray you as stuffy (bad) or authoritative (good). Employ them smartly to suit your needs.

Examples:

• The building of the bridge took years. (Verbal noun)
• Drawing is her favorite hobby. (Gerund)

Summary

In conclusion, understanding the various types of nouns and their usage can significantly enhance your grammatical skills. Nouns are basic building blocks of sentences, and recognizing their different forms and functions allows for more precise and effective writing and communication skills.