Nouns

1. Introduction to Nouns

A noun is the name of a person, place, thing or idea.

For example:

He is Ram. (‘Ram’ is the name of a person.) He lives in Kanpur. (‘Kanpur’ is the name of a place.) He likes ice cream. (‘Ice cream’ is the name of a thing.) He thinks honesty is the best policy. (‘Honesty’ and ‘policy’ are the names of ideas.)

Sometimes a phrase can perform the role of a noun in a sentence.
For example:

I saw a ghost in the bed. (Here, the phrase ‘a ghost in the bed’ answers the question ‘what?’. It is the object of the verb ‘saw’. Hence, it is acting as a noun.)

Sometimes a clause can perform the role of a noun in a sentence.
For example:

He saw that you were hiding from your wife. (Here, the clause ‘that you were hiding from your wife’ acts as the object of the verb ‘saw’. You can ask the question ‘He saw what?’ and get the clause as the answer. Hence, in this sentence, the clause acts as a noun.)

2. Proper, Common, Collective and Abstract Nouns

Proper Nouns
These are the unique names of persons, places and things.
For example:

I saw a movie on Sunday. I am going to Chennai. You are learning English. He will be on leave in June. Raju is a good batsman. Do you read the Indian Express? Have you read the Iliad? Do you live in India? (‘Sunday’, ‘Chennai’, ‘English’, ‘June’, Raju’, ‘Indian Express’, ‘Iliad’ and ‘India’ are all proper nouns.)

Common Nouns
These are the names of persons, places, things of the same class or kind.
For example:

Please drink some water. Plants make oxygen. Which language do you speak? I am a boy and she is a girl. Can you show me the house? They live on an island. Your watch is with me. The pencil is in the drawer. She will come next month. I have never seen so many stars. (‘Water’, ‘oxygen’, ‘language’, ‘boy’, ‘girl’, ‘house’, ‘island’, ‘watch’, ‘pencil’, ‘drawer’, ‘month’ and ‘stars’ are all common nouns.)

Collective Nouns
These are the names given to a group or collection of persons or things.
For example:

The police are on its way. The navy came to the rescue. The crowd is making a lot of noise. The team is practising indoors. The nation salutes its heroes. The parliament has passed the bill. (‘Police’, ‘navy’, ‘crowd’, ‘team’, ‘nation’ and ‘parliament’ are all collective nouns.)

Abstract Nouns
These are the names given to qualities or states of being.
For example:

Pride can sometimes be a good thing. There was complete darkness in the room. Life should be lived to the fullest. You should have enough sleep. Laughter is the best medicine. (‘Pride’, ‘darkness’, ‘life’, ‘sleep’ and ‘laughter’ are all abstract nouns.)

3. Countable and Uncountable Nouns

Countable Nouns
These can be counted. They have a plural form.

He has a comic. She has two comics. (‘Comic’ is singular or one, while ‘comics’ is plural or many.) I bought a shirt. You bought three shirts. (‘Shirt’ is singular or one, while ‘shirts’ is plural or many.)

Uncountable Nouns
These cannot be counted. They do not have a plural form.

Blood contains haemoglobin. Electricity can shock. Ice is the solid state of water. The air is polluted. There is some sugar left. (‘Blood’, ‘electricity’, ‘ice’, ‘water’, ‘air’ and ‘sugar’ have only the singular form.)

4. Possessive and Appositive Nouns

Possessive Nouns
Nouns can show possession or ownership. The possessive is formed by using the apostrophe (’) mark. Let us look at some examples of nouns showing possession.

Hari’s book is torn. (Here, ‘Hari’s book’ refers to a book belonging to a person named Hari. Note that there is an ‘s’ after the apostrophe mark.) The postman’s speech was encouraging. (Here, ‘postman’s speech’ refers to a speech delivered by a particular postman. Note that there is an ‘s’ after the apostrophe mark.) The boy’s dad is a pilot. (Here, ‘the boy’s dad’ refers to the father of a particular boy. Note that there is an ‘s’ after the apostrophe mark.) The boys’ project was a big success. (Here, ‘the boys’ project’ refers to a project made by more than one boy. Note that there is no ‘s’ after the apostrophe mark.) The girl’s name is Geeta. (Here, ‘the girl’s name’ refers to the name of a particular girl. Note that there is an ‘s’ after the apostrophe mark.) I study in a girls’ school. (Here, ‘a girls’ school’ refers to a school where girls study. Note that there is no ‘s’ after the apostrophe mark.) Please call the child’s mother. (Here, ‘the child’s mother’ refers to the mother of a particular child. Note that there is an ‘s’ after the apostrophe mark.) I got a gift from my teacher on children’s day. (Here, ‘children’s day’ refers to a day for children. Note that there is an ‘s’ after the apostrophe mark.) Sudhir and Rajbir’s shop is located in a mall. (Here, ‘Sudhir and Rajbir’s shop’ indicates that the shop is jointly owned by the persons named Sudhir and Rajbir. Note that there is an ‘s’ after the apostrophe mark.) Rachna’s and Naresh’s presentations were liked by all. (Here, ‘Rachna’s and Naresh’s presentations’ indicates that the persons named Rachna and Naresh made separate presentations that were liked by all. Note that there is an ‘s’ after the apostrophe mark.)

Appositive Nouns
Sometimes a noun follows another noun to describe it. The noun that follows is known as appositive noun.
For example:

Joseph, my brother, is an honest man. (Here, ‘Joseph’ and ‘my brother’ refer to the same person. Hence, ‘my brother’ is working as a noun in apposition or as an appositive noun.)