What is noun?
A noun is a part of speech that
refers to a person, place, thing, idea, or concept. It is a word that serves as
the name or label for these entities. Nouns can represent both tangible objects
(like "dog" or "apple") and intangible concepts (like
"love" or "freedom"). Nouns can also be singular (referring
to one item) or plural (referring to more than one item).
Classification of noun.
1.
According to naming
a.
Proper Nouns:
These are specific names of people, places, or organizations, and they are
typically capitalized (e.g., "John," "Nepal,"
"Microsoft").
b.
Common Nouns:
These are general names for people, places, things, or ideas (e.g.,
"dog," "city," "book").
c.
Collective Nouns:
These refer to groups of people, animals, or things considered as a single unit
(e.g., "team," "herd," "family").
d.
Abstract Nouns:
These refer to intangible concepts, ideas, or qualities that cannot be
perceived through the senses (e.g., "love," "freedom,"
"happiness").
2.
According to gender
a.
Masculine Nouns: These nouns are associated with
males or male-specific entities. Examples: father, son, king, uncle, actor,
brother, etc.
b.
Feminine Nouns: These nouns are associated with
females or female-specific entities. Examples: mother, daughter, queen, aunt,
actress, sister, etc.
c.
Common Nouns (used for both genders): These
nouns are not inherently gender-specific and can be used to refer to both males
and females. Examples: child, parent, cousin, friend, teacher, doctor, etc.
d.
Neuter Nouns (neutral in terms of gender): These
nouns do not pertain to or imply the gender of beings or objects and are used
for entities that are not assigned a gender.Examples: book, table, chair, tree,
car, house, etc.
3.
According to counting
a.
Countable Nouns:
These are nouns that can be counted and have both singular and plural forms
(e.g., "cat" - singular, "cats" - plural).
b.
Uncountable Nouns:
These are nouns that represent things that cannot be counted as separate items
or units (e.g., "water," "knowledge").
4.
According to number
a.
Singular Nouns:
Singular
noun refers to one as book, copy, pen, etc.
b.
Plural Nouns:
Plural noun refers to more than one as books, copies, pens, etc.
5. Compound Nouns:
These are formed by combining two or more words to create a new noun (e.g., "mailman," "bookstore", "blackbox").
How to make noun plural?
Making nouns plural in English typically involves adding specific suffixes to the singular form of a noun. Here are the common rules for forming plurals:
Ø Adding -s: This is the most common way to form a plural noun. Simply add -s to the end of the singular noun.
Example: car → cars, book → books
Ø Adding -es: This is used for nouns ending in -s, -x, -z, -sh, or -ch.
Example: bus → buses, box → boxes, church → churches
Ø Changing -y to -ies: When a singular noun ends in a consonant + -y, you change the -y to -ies.
Example: baby → babies, city → cities
Ø Changing -f or -fe to -ves: When a singular noun ends in -f or -fe, you change the -f or -fe to -ves.
Example: leaf → leaves, knife → knives
Ø Irregular Plurals: Some nouns have irregular plural forms that don't follow the typical rules. These need to be memorized.
Example: man → men, woman → women
Ø No Change: Some nouns remain the same in both singular and plural form.
Example: deer (singular and plural)
Ø Compound Nouns: For compound nouns (nouns made up of two or more words), the plural is usually formed by making the last word in the compound plural.
Example: mother-in-law → mothers-in-law
List of nouns that remain the same in both singular and plural form:
Deer
Fish
Sheep
Aircraft
Series
Species
Moose
Swine
Head
Offspring
Corps
Equipment
Shrimp
Squid
Rice
Common Suffix that indicate word as noun
-tion (e.g., celebration,
information)
-ment (e.g., development,
government)
-ness (e.g., happiness, darkness)
-ity (e.g., creativity, unity)
-ance (e.g., resistance,
acceptance)
-ence (e.g., confidence,
dependence)
-er (e.g., teacher, runner)
-or (e.g., actor, doctor)
-ant (e.g., assistant, applicant)
-ist (e.g., artist, biologist)
Extra Tip 1: Numerical Noun
Noun that involves a specific
number
Pair - 2
Dozen - 12
Score - 20
Hundred - 100
Thousand - 1,000
Million - 1,000,000
Billion - 1,000,000,000
Trillion - 1,000,000,000,000
Numerical noun uses –s for alone
Eg. Pairs of socks.
Thousands of people.
But don’t uses –s with cardinal numbers
Eg. Two
pair of socks.
Two
thousand people.
Extra Tip 2: Words that appear to be plural but refer to a single item or
concept. Here are some examples:
Ø
News: Refers to information or reports.
Ø
Mathematics: Refers to the field of mathematics
as a whole.
Ø
Politics: Refers to the activities associated
with governance and government.
Ø
Measles: Refers to a contagious viral disease.
Ø
Physics: Refers to the field of physics as a
discipline.
Ø
Acoustics: Refers to the properties of sound.
Ø
Economics: Refers to the field of economics.
Ø
Gymnastics: Refers to a sport involving physical
exercises and performances.
Ø
Statics: Refers to the branch of mechanics
dealing with stationary objects.
These words may appear plural due to the -s ending, but they
are treated as singular nouns in English.
Extra Tip 3: Words that appear to be singular but refer to a plural item or concept. Here are some examples:
Men (referring to more than one male individual) Women (referring to more than one female individual) Children (referring to more than one child) Teeth (referring to more than one tooth) Feet (referring to more than one foot) Geese (referring to more than one goose) Mice (referring to more than one mouse) Lice (referring to more than one louse) Cattle (referring to a group of cows) People (referring to a group of individuals) Alumni (referring to a group of graduates) Data (referring to a collection of information or facts) Criteria (referring to multiple standards or criteria) Phenomena (referring to multiple occurrences or phenomena) Bacteria (referring to multiple microorganisms) Viruses (referring to multiple virus particles) Fish (referring to multiple fish) Media (referring to various forms of mass communication)
