Nouns A noun is the name of a person, a place, a thing or an idea. Sometimes a noun is the name of an action.

Person Place Thing Idea Action man, woman, child ocean, desert, wood, farm cabbage, hammer, hope, plan, memory intention, thinking, running

Common and Proper Nouns Common nouns describe groups or members of groups; whereas, proper nouns identify a unique example. Proper names are usually capitalised. Common Noun Man aircraft religion entertainers Nation Proper Noun Tom Tiger Moth Christianity The Beatles England

In English, the days of the week and the months are capitalised: January, February ... November, December but the seasons are not: winter, spring, summer, autumn (Although the seasons are capitalised in USA). Directions are not capitalised: north, west, south, east Identifying Nouns Proper nouns are easy to identify because they are the names of particular people or things. For instance, Rob, Betty, Lorraine. Common nouns have the following properties:

They can be preceded by some determiners. They sometimes have plurals. They can have a possessive case.

Determiners Common nouns can be preceded by determiners: a, the, some, a few, my, ... If a word is a common noun, then the following sentence makes sense when the word is inserted: My [insert noun] (is/are here). For instance, house is a noun, so: My house is here, makes sense. The word happy, however, isn't a noun, so: My happy is here, does not make sense.

Examples of Nouns and Non-Nouns Here are some examples of applying the test on nouns and non-nouns: Nouns My cat is here My bread is here My principal is here My dollars are here My envelope is here Non-Nouns My entertaining is here My starchy is here My quickly is here My full is here My exceptional is here

Plurals Nouns often have plurals; whereas other parts of speech do not. So if a word has a plural, it is a noun. Uncountable Nouns, however, do not have plurals. Singular Cat Man Fish Formula Plural Cats Men Fishes formulae

MP (Member of Parliament)

MPs

Nowadays, in Standard English, acronyms do not have periods. So M.P. becomes MP. Plurals are made by adding an s MPs. If periods are retained, then apostrophe s is used M.P.'s. The 's plural is sometimes used when confusion might result Dot the i's and cross the t's, 1's and 2's (because 1s might look like Is, and 2's for consistency). Possession We can check whether a word is a noun, by asking whether it has a possessive form. For instance: Noun dog Charles yesterday Possessive Form the dog's dinner. Charles' dinner. yesterday's error.

We indicate possession by adding the apostrophe (') s. If Mary is the owner of the book we write Mary's book. When the word for the owner ends in s anyway, we would normally add only an apostrophe at the end of the word. So we write and say the boys' school. However, especially with proper names, we add the apostrophe s when sound requires it Charles's book, Odysseus's Quest. But ... if this would mean we end up saying a sound like "iz-iz", we do not add the final s. So if the owner of the book is Mr Bridges, we write and say Mr Bridges' book (without an s after the apostrophe). Notes: In older English, Charles' book and Odysseus' Quest would have been correct, although almost everyone would have said Charles's book, although some might have tried to say Odysseus' Quest (because it sounds more literary). The apostrophe is not used with pronouns its, yours, ours. The apostrophe is sometimes called a mark of elision to indicate some letters have been omitted it's going (it is going), it'll go fine (it will go fine). Abstract and Concrete Nouns What are concrete and abstract nouns? In grammar, it is often said: Concrete nouns name something you can see or touch. They name people, objects, animals and places. Abstract nouns name things you cannot see, touch, etc. They name qualities, ideas, states of mind and events and actions. The following nouns are abstract: walk, jump, intelligence and embarrassment. However, a thoughtful reader might object and say: I saw Mr Jones take a walk with her dog. I saw the record-breaking jump on tv.

I can hear the intelligence in her words.

[Hear intelligence? ]

The embarrassment was obvious [clearly seen]. Actually, abstract nouns are nouns that name things that we clearly cannot see or feel. For instance, luck, freedom and justice are more or less intangible. With other abstract nouns, we might be unsure. After careful thought, we might wonder whether we can see 'a walk'. Or see a 'jump'. Can we really hear 'intelligence', and see 'embarrassment'. It seems we infer 'intelligence' and 'embarrassment' rather than perceive them directly through the senses we see a red face and infer embarrassment; we hear someone speaking logically and infer they are intelligent. And while we can see someone or something jumping or walking, when these become nouns 'the jump' and 'the walk' we have omitted or abstracted the subject. In: I saw the jump on the tv. We note there cannot be a 'real' jump without a jumper (subject), and the jumper has been omitted or abstracted. So 'jump' is an abstract noun. In writing 'the jump' we have made a verb into a noun and abstracted the person, animal or thing that did 'the jumping' (jumping is also an abstract noun). If the writer wished to avoid the abstract noun 'jump', she would have written: I saw the horse jump the hurdle on the tv. We can perceive a horse jumping, but we cannot perceive the jump without the horse, so 'jump' is not sensory after all. In a similar way, when we make an adjective or an adverb a noun, we abstract some important grammatical part, such as a subject and the word becomes an abstract noun. I can hear the intelligence in her words. I heard her speaking intelligently [adverb]. I could see he was embarrassed.

The embarrassment was obvious [clearly seen].

Examples of Concrete and Abstract Nouns Concrete nouns are perceivable by the senses. Concrete Nouns People Tom, woman, man, doctor, policeman, turnip, wind, bed, test-tube, chair, basket, atom, DNA, cell, tree puppy, lion, animal, germ, virus, England, country, island,

Objects

Animals Places

mountain, lake Abstract nouns are not perceivable by the senses. For instance, we can see a person is joyful, but we cannot perceive joy apart from someone being joyful. The word joy is therefore an abstract noun. Abstract Nouns intelligence, beauty, ugliness, Qualities kindness, strength, vulnerability, truth, heat, humanity, freedom, abstraction, energy, force, luck, justice, injustice, misfortune, grammar, calculus, ideas, disease, (the common) cold,

Ideas

love, hate, fear, anger, imagination, courage, loneliness, happiness, sadness, States of bravery, cowardice, Mind embarrassment, joy, confidence, bitterness, grief, boredom, cheerfulness, cognition, depression, dream, Actions and Events walk, sleep, jump, explosion, journey, childhood, progress, growth, year, day, week, Tuesday, March, war, history,

The classes above are not exclusive. So a word, such as day could be an action (series of actions) or event, or an idea.

Nominalizations A nominalization is a noun which has been made from another part of speech, such as a verb, adjective or adverb. They are abstract nouns. Nominalizations summarizing Previous Ideas The nominalizations are shown in bold. By excluding details, you produce an abstract idea. Therefore, an abstraction has fewer details than the original.

He campaigned against violent behaviour on the streets. He would not tolerate street violence. They selected the important books. This selection was controversial. Nominalizations naming the Verb's Subject or Object Nominalizations can be used to replace a wordy subject or object. In the sentences below, the subjects or objects are in italic, and the nominalizations in bold. I was wondering about what they concluded. I was wondering about their conclusions. He inferred a number of things about the new substance. What he had inferred, however, was invalid. He inferred a number of things about the new substance. However, his inferences were invalid. Common Ideas A nominalization can be used to succinctly express a common idea, when it becomes a short-hand way of referring to a complex idea. For the new year, I resolved to do some new things. I made some New Year Resolutions. He believed that individuals should be free to inspect what organizations held about them on computer. He believed in freedom of information. They objected to women being allowed to ask doctors to abort their foetuses, for nonmedical reasons. The objected to abortion on demand. General and Specific Nouns A general noun or expression can be concrete or abstract. General and Specific Nouns General More Specific Even More Specific

animal furniture

carnivore table, chair, sofa, meat, vegetables, fruit, fish, mathematics, English, science

cat, lion, tiger divan beef, turnip, apple, cod calculus, grammar, chemistry

Food

subjects

Sport

sprint, backrunning, stroke, soccer, swimming, bowling or football, cricket batting bakery, grocers, supermarket men, women, children thinking, remembering, loving, hating

business shop humanity people cognition, affect

Mind

Countable and Uncountable Nouns (Mass Nouns) Most nouns have a plural and a singular form. For instance: Singular Man Dog Idea Beach Mind men dogs ideas beaches minds Plural

All such nouns are countable. Other nouns are uncountable in certain uses. For instance: fish, bread, art, luck, greed, flour, data We cannot use the determiner a before uncountable nouns: we can, however, use the determiners the and some. In American English, data is regarded as plural, but in English it is singular:

The data is ready. The data are ready. (American)

We can sometimes quantify such nouns using words like: slice, piece, bits, ounces, snippets For example: Singular a slice of bread a piece of fish an ounce of salt a snippet of music a book on film Plural some slices of bread some pieces of fish several ounces of salt several snippets of music several books on film

Uncountable nouns are sometimes called mass nouns. We think of them as a mass. For instance, fish is uncountable when used to refer to food, but is countable when we think of a number of individual fish, when its plural is fish or fishes. Similarly, we can say: I spent the weekend watching films. When we think of watching several films. But when we think of the subject, film, we do not use the plural. We might say: I spent the weekend studying film. (Reading books about film or films, watching films, etc).

Collective Nouns (Group Nouns) Collective nouns identify groups of things. Examples are: audience, council, jury, flock, herd The group is considered as a unit. The Union refuses to negotiate. The jury is hung. The staff has objected. The team plays well. The flock turned and flew away The herd is about to stampede.

Collective nouns are normally singular, except when this seems obviously wrong. Considered as a unit. The audience is quiet The flock of birds is heading North. The team is working together. The family is going to the cinema. For instance: The audience is clappings its hand. is obviously wrong. Considered as a number of Individuals The audience are clapping their hands. Now, the flock of birds are competing for food. The team aresquabbling. The family are at loggerheads.

Quantity Nouns In the following sentences, the quantity nouns take a plural verb: A number of books are on the table. A few people are coming today. One half of the animals are trained. The couple over there are available. In the following sentences, the quantity nouns take a singular verb: The number of applicants is small. The quantity of sand is large. The weight of the truck is ten tons. The measure of success is profit Where the number is definite, we use a singular verb: The number of applicants has increased recently. But when it is indefinite, we use a plural form: A number of people are coming. In the following sentence, the author says a combination ... are instead of a combination ... is. A combination of increased physical activity and suitable weight reducing diets arerecommended for overweight/obese adults who wish to lose weight.

Pronouns A pronoun can replace a noun or another pronoun. You use pronouns like "he," "which," "none," and "you" to make your sentences less cumbersome and less repetitive. Grammarians classify pronouns into several types, including the personal pronoun, the demonstrative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun, the indefinite pronoun, the relative pronoun, the reflexive pronoun, and the intensive pronoun. A. Personal Pronouns A personal pronoun refers to a specific person or thing and changes its form to indicate person, number, gender, and case. B. Subjective Personal Pronouns A subjective personal pronoun indicates that the pronoun is acting as the subject of the sentence. The subjective personal pronouns are "I," "you," "she," "he," "it," "we," "you," "they." In the following sentences, each of the highlighted words is a subjective personal pronoun and acts as the subject of the sentence: I was glad to find the bus pass in the bottom of the green knapsack. You are surely the strangest child I have ever met. He stole the selkie's skin and forced her to live with him. When she was a young woman, she earned her living as a coal miner. After many years, they returned to their homeland. We will meet at the library at 3:30 p.m. It is on the counter. Are you the delegates from Malaga watch? C. Objective Personal Pronouns An objective personal pronoun indicates that the pronoun is acting as an object of a verb, compound verb, preposition, or infinitive phrase. The objective personal pronouns are: "me," "you," "her," "him," "it," "us," "you," and "them." In the following sentences, each of the highlighted words is an objective personal pronoun:

Seamus stole the selkie's skin and forced her to live with him. The objective personal pronoun "her" is the direct object of the verb "forced" and the objective personal pronoun "him" is the object of the preposition "with." After reading the pamphlet, Judy threw it into the garbage can. The pronoun "it" is the direct object of the verb "threw." The agitated assistant stood up and faced the angry delegates and said, "Our leader will address you in five minutes." In this sentence, the pronoun "you" is the direct object of the verb "address." Deborah and Roberta will meet us at the newest caf in the market. Here the objective personal pronoun "us" is the direct object of the compound verb "will meet." Give the list to me. Here the objective personal pronoun "me" is the object of the preposition "to." I'm not sure that my contact will talk to you. Similarly in this example, the objective personal pronoun "you" is the object of the preposition "to." Christopher was surprised to see her at the drag races. Here the objective personal pronoun "her" is the object of the infinitive phrase "to see." D. Possessive Personal Pronouns A possessive pronoun indicates that the pronoun is acting as a marker of possession and defines who owns a particular object or person. The possessive personal pronouns are "mine," "yours," "hers," "his," "its," "ours," and "theirs." Note that possessive personal pronouns are very similar to possessive adjectives like "my," "her," and "their." In each of the following sentences, the highlighted word is a possessive personal pronoun: The smallest gift is mine.

Here the possessive pronoun "mine" functions as a subject complement. This is yours. Here too the possessive pronoun "yours" functions as a subject complement. His is on the kitchen counter. In this example, the possessive pronoun "his" acts as the subject of the sentence. Theirs will be delivered tomorrow. In this sentence, the possessive pronoun "theirs" is the subject of the sentence. Ours is the green one on the corner. Here too the possessive pronoun "ours" function as the subject of the sentence. E. Demonstrative Pronouns A demonstrative pronoun points to and identifies a noun or a pronoun. "This" and "these" refer to things that are nearby either in space or in time, while "that" and "those" refer to things that are farther away in space or time. The demonstrative pronouns are "this," "that," "these," and "those." "This" and "that" are used to refer to singular nouns or noun phrases and "these" and "those" are used to refer to plural nouns and noun phrases. Note that the demonstrative pronouns are identical to demonstrative adjectives, though, obviously, you use them differently. It is also important to note that "that" can also be used as a relative pronoun. In the following sentences, each of the highlighted words is a demonstrative pronoun: This must not continue. Here "this" is used as the subject of the compound verb "must not continue." This is puny; that is the tree I want. In this example "this" is used as subject and refers to something close to the speaker. The demonstrative pronoun "that" is also a subject but refers to something farther away from the speaker. Three customers wanted these. Here "these" is the direct object of the verb "wanted."

F. Interrogative Pronouns An interrogative pronoun is used to ask questions. The interrogative pronouns are "who," "whom," "which," "what" and the compounds formed with the suffix "ever" ("whoever," "whomever," "whichever," and "whatever"). Note that either "which" or "what" can also be used as an interrogative adjective, and that "who," "whom," or "which" can also be used as a relative pronoun. You will find "who," "whom," and occasionally "which" used to refer to people, and "which" and "what" used to refer to things and to animals. "Who" acts as the subject of a verb, while "whom" acts as the object of a verb, preposition, or a verbal. The highlighted word in each of the following sentences is an interrogative pronoun: Which wants to see the dentist first? "Which" is the subject of the sentence. Who wrote the novel Rockbound? Similarly "who" is the subject of the sentence. Whom do you think we should invite? In this sentence, "whom" is the object of the verb "invite." To whom do you wish to speak? Here the interrogative pronoun "whom " is the object of the preposition "to." Who will meet the delegates at the train station? In this sentence, the interrogative pronoun "who" is the subject of the compound verb "will meet." To whom did you give the paper? In this example the interrogative pronoun "whom" is the object of the preposition "to." What did she say? Here the interrogative pronoun "what" is the direct object of the verb "say."

G. Relative Pronouns You can use a relative pronoun is used to link one phrase or clause to another phrase or clause. The relative pronouns are "who," "whom," "that," and "which." The compounds "whoever," "whomever," and "whichever" are also relative pronouns. You can use the relative pronouns "who" and "whoever" to refer to the subject of a clause or sentence, and "whom" and "whomever" to refer to the objects of a verb, a verbal or a preposition. In each of the following sentences, the highlighted word is a relative pronoun. You may invite whomever you like to the party. The relative pronoun "whomever" is the direct object of the compound verb "may invite." The candidate who wins the greatest popular vote is not always elected. In this sentence, the relative pronoun is the subject of the verb "wins" and introduces the subordinate clause "who wins the greatest popular vote." This subordinate clause acts as an adjective modifying "candidate." In a time of crisis, the manager asks the workers whom she believes to be the most efficient to arrive an hour earlier than usual. In this sentence "whom" is the direct object of the verb "believes" and introduces the subordinate clause "whom she believes to be the most efficient". This subordinate clause modifies the noun "workers." Whoever broke the window will have to replace it. Here "whoever" functions as the subject of the verb "broke." The crate which was left in the corridor has now been moved into the storage closet. In this example "which" acts as the subject of the compound verb "was left" and introduces the subordinate clause "which was left in the corridor." The subordinate clause acts as an adjective modifying the noun "crate." I will read whichever manuscript arrives first. Here "whichever" modifies the noun "manuscript" and introduces the subordinate clause "whichever manuscript arrives first." The subordinate clause functions as the direct object of the compound verb "will read."

H. Indefinite Pronouns An indefinite pronoun is a pronoun referring to an identifiable but not specified person or thing. An indefinite pronoun conveys the idea of all, any, none, or some. The most common indefinite pronouns are "all," "another," "any," "anybody," "anyone," "anything," "each," "everybody," "everyone," "everything," "few," "many," "nobody," "none," "one," "several," "some," "somebody," and "someone." Note that some indefinite pronouns can also be used as indefinite adjectives. The highlighted words in the following sentences are indefinite pronouns: Many were invited to the lunch but only twelve showed up. Here "many" acts as the subject of the compound verb "were invited." The office had been searched and everything was thrown onto the floor. In this example, "everything" acts as a subject of the compound verb "was thrown." We donated everything we found in the attic to the woman's shelter garage sale. In this sentence, "everything" is the direct object of theverb "donated." Although they looked everywhere for extra copies of the magazine, they found none. Here too the indefinite pronoun functions as a direct object: "none" is the direct object of "found." Make sure you give everyone a copy of the amended bylaws. In this example, "everyone" is the indirect object of the verb "give" -- the direct object is the noun phrase "a copy of the amended bylaws." Give a registration package to each. Here "each" is the object of the preposition "to." I. Reflexive Pronouns You can use a reflexive pronoun to refer back to the subject of the clause or sentence.

The reflexive pronouns are "myself," "yourself," "herself," "himself," "itself," "ourselves," "yourselves," and "themselves." Note each of these can also act as an intensive pronoun. Each of the highlighted words in the following sentences is a reflexive pronoun: Diabetics give themselves insulin shots several times a day. The Dean often does the photocopying herself so that the secretaries can do more important work. After the party, I asked myself why I had faxed invitations to everyone in my office building. Richard usually remembered to send a copy of his e-mail tohimself. Although the landlord promised to paint the apartment, we ended up doing it ourselves. J. Intensive Pronouns An intensive pronoun is a pronoun used to emphasise its antecedent. Intensive pronouns are identical in form to reflexive pronouns. The highlighted words in the following sentences are intensive pronouns: I myself believe that aliens should abduct my sister. The Prime Minister himself said that he would lower taxes. They themselves promised to come to the party even though they had a final exam at the same time.

Adjectives An adjective modifies a noun or a pronoun by describing, identifying, or quantifying words. An adjective usually precedes the noun or the pronoun which it modifies. In the following examples, the highlighted words are adjectives: I. II. III. IV. V. VI. VII. The truck-shaped balloon floated over the treetops. Mrs. Morrison papered her kitchen walls with hideous wall paper. The small boat foundered on the wine dark sea. The coal mines are dark and dank. Many stores have already begun to play irritating Christmasmusic. A battered music box sat on the mahogany sideboard. The back room was filled with large, yellow rain boots.

An adjective can be modified by an adverb, or by a phrase or clause functioning as an adverb. In the sentence, My husband knits intricately patterned mittens. for example, the adverb "intricately" modifies the adjective "patterned." Some nouns, many pronouns, and many participle phrases can also act as adjectives. In the sentence Eleanor listened to the muffled sounds of the radio hidden under her pillow. for example, both highlighted adjectives are past participles. Grammarians also consider articles ("the," "a," "an") to be adjectives. A. Possessive Adjectives A possesive adjective ("my," "your," "his," "her," "its," "our," "their") is similar or identical to a possessive pronoun; however, it is used as an adjective and modifies a noun or a noun phrase, as in the following sentences: I can't complete my assignment because I don't have the textbook. In this sentence, the possessive adjective "my" modifies "assignment" and the noun phrase "my assignment" functions as an object. Note that the possessive pronoun form "mine" is not used to modify a noun or noun phrase. What is your phone number.

Here the possessive adjective "your" is used to modify the noun phrase "phone number"; the entire noun phrase "your phone number" is a subject complement. Note that the possessive pronoun form "yours" is not used to modify a noun or a noun phrase. The bakery sold his favourite type of bread. In this example, the possessive adjective "his" modifies the noun phrase "favourite type of bread" and the entire noun phrase "his favourite type of bread" is the direct object of the verb "sold." After many years, she returned to her homeland. Here the possessive adjective "her" modifies the noun "homeland" and the noun phrase "her homeland" is the object of the preposition"to." Note also that the form "hers" is not used to modify nouns or noun phrases. We have lost our way in this wood. In this sentence, the possessive adjective "our" modifies "way" and the noun phrase "our way" is the direct object of the compound verb"have lost". Note that the possessive pronoun form "ours" is not used to modify nouns or noun phrases. In many fairy tales, children are neglected by their parents. Here the possessive adjective "their" modifies "parents" and the noun phrase "their parents" is the object of the preposition "by." Note that the possessive pronoun form "theirs" is not used to modify nouns or noun phrases. The cat chased its ball down the stairs and into the backyard. In this sentence, the possessive adjective "its" modifies "ball" and the noun phrase "its ball" is the object of the verb "chased." Note that "its" is the possessive adjective and "it's" is a contraction for "it is." B. Demonstrative Adjectives The demonstrative adjectives "this," "these," "that," "those," and "what" are identical to the demonstrative pronouns, but are used as adjectives to modify nouns or noun phrases, as in the following sentences: When the librarian tripped over that cord, she dropped a pile of books. In this sentence, the demonstrative adjective "that" modifies the noun "cord" and the noun phrase "that cord" is the object of the preposition "over."

This apartment needs to be fumigated. Here "this" modifies "apartment" and the noun phrase "this apartment" is the subject of the sentence. Even though my friend preferred those plates, I bought these. In the subordinate clause, "those" modifies "plates" and the noun phrase "those plates" is the object of the verb "preferred." In the independent clause, "these" is the direct object of the verb "bought." Note that the relationship between a demonstrative adjective and a demonstrative pronoun is similar to the relationship between a possessive adjective and a possessive pronoun, or to that between a interrogative adjective and an interrogative pronoun. C. Interrogative Adjectives An interrogative adjective ("which" or "what") is like an interrogative pronoun, except that it modifies a noun or noun phrase rather than standing on its own (see also demonstrative adjectives and possessive adjectives): Which plants should be watered twice a week? Like other adjectives, "which" can be used to modify a noun or a noun phrase. In this example, "which" modifies "plants" and the noun phrase "which plants" is the subject of the compound verb "should be watered": What book are you reading? In this sentence, "what" modifies "book" and the noun phrase "what book" is the direct object of the compound verb "are reading." D. Indefinite Adjectives An indefinite adjective is similar to an indefinite pronoun, except that it modifies a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase, as in the following sentences: Many people believe that corporations are under-taxed. The indefinite adjective "many" modifies the noun "people" and the noun phrase "many people" is the subject of the sentence. I will send you any mail that arrives after you have moved to Sudbury.

The indefinite adjective "any" modifies the noun "mail" and the noun phrase "any mail" is the direct object of the compound verb "will send." They found a few goldfish floating belly up in the swan pound. In this example the indefinite adjective modifies the noun "goldfish" and the noun phrase is the direct object of the verb "found": The title of Kelly's favourite game is "All dogs go to heaven." Here the indefinite pronoun "all" modifies "dogs" and the full title is a subject complement.

Bibliography MacFadyen, H. (2010, February 19). University of Ottawa. Retrieved January 3, 2013, from What is a Noun? -The Writing Center: http://www.writingcentre.uottawa.ca/hypergrammar/nouns.html MacFadyen, H. (2008, October 10). University of Ottawa. Retrieved January 3, 2013, from What is a Pronouns?-The Writing Centre: http://www.writingcentre.uottawa.ca/hypergrammar/pronouns.html MacFadyen, H. (2009, May 1). University of Ottawa. Retrieved January 3, 2013, from What is an Adjectives?-The Writing Centre: http://www.writingcentre.uottawa.ca/hypergrammar/adjectve.html