Introduction to Eight Parts of Speech
Nouns
A noun is a word that represents a person, place, thing, or idea. Nouns
are one of the main parts of speech in English and help us identify or name
different things in a sentence. Here are the main types of nouns:
1. Common Nouns: These are general names for things and are not
capitalised unless they start a sentence. Examples include: cat, city,
teacher.
2. Proper Nouns: These are specific names of people, places, or things
and are always capitalised. Examples include: London, Jennifer, Eiffel Tower.
3. Concrete Nouns: These refer to things that can be perceived through
the five senses (things you can see, touch, hear, smell, or taste). Examples
include: book, music, apple.
4. Abstract Nouns: These represent ideas, qualities, or conditions—things
that can’t be physically touched or seen. Examples include: love, freedom,
happiness.
5. Countable Nouns: These are nouns that can be counted, meaning they
have both singular and plural forms. Examples include: car (cars), apple
(apples).
6. Uncountable Nouns: These refer to things that cannot be counted
individually. They are often substances or concepts. Examples include: water,
rice, knowledge.
7. Collective Nouns: These are words that refer to a group of people or
things as a single unit. Examples include: team, family, herd.
Nouns can serve several functions in a sentence, such as the subject (the
doer of an action), the object (the receiver of an action), or even an object of
a preposition.
For example:
• Subject: The cat chased the mouse. (“Cat” is the subject doing
the action.)
• Object: The boy threw the ball. (“Ball” is the object receiving the
action.)
• Object of Preposition: She sat on the chair. (“Chair” is the object
of the preposition “on”.)
Exercise 1: Identify the Nouns
Read the following sentences and underline or write down all the nouns you
find. Identify whether they are common, proper, concrete, or abstract
nouns.
1. The teacher gave the students homework.
2. Happiness is the key to a good life.
3. My family went to Paris for a vacation.
4. The cat chased the mouse across the yard.
5. Honesty is always appreciated.
Exercise 2: Sort the Nouns
Sort them into categories: common, proper, countable, uncountable, and
collective.
• Apple, London, Love, Water, Team, Elephant, Knowledge, Family, Teacher,
New York
Exercise 3: Fill in the Blanks
Complete each sentence by filling in the blanks with an appropriate noun.
You can make it up or use any word that makes sense in the sentence.
1. My favourite ___ is beautiful during spring.
2. The ___ barked loudly at the stranger.
a 3. She gave her friend a ___ as a gift.
4. There was a lot of ___ in the air.
5. The ___ won the match easily.
Exercise 4: Make Your Own Sentences
Write a sentence for each of the following types of nouns:
1. Proper Noun
2. Abstract Noun
3. Collective Noun
4. Countable Noun
5. Uncountable Noun
Exercise 5: Identify the Function
Identify the function (subject, object, or object of a preposition) of the noun
in each sentence.
1. The dog ran to the park.
2. She bought a new car.
3. The children are playing in the garden.
4. John loves pizza.
5. The book is on the table.
Exercise 6: Find and Classify
Read the paragraph below and find all the nouns. Then classify each one as
common, proper, concrete, abstract, countable, uncountable, or collective.
“Samantha went to the library to borrow some books about history. She
found a book on ancient civilisations and decided to take it home. Later, her
brother joined her for dinner, where they discussed their dreams and shared
memories from their trip to New York.”
Exercise 7: Plural or Singular?
Write the plural form of the following nouns. If the noun is uncountable,
write “uncountable.”
Child, Mouse, Information, Woman, Box, Rice, Tooth, Sheep
-Read the short paragraph below and answer the comprehension questions
given.
John had always been fascinated by history, especially the stories of
explorers who traveled to unknown lands. He often spent his weekends at
the local library, reading about the great voyages of Christopher Columbus,
Marco Polo, and other adventurers. One day, John decided to visit a nearby
historical museum that had a special exhibit on ancient navigation. The
exhibit featured maps, compasses, and tools used by sailors in the past. John
was amazed at how these explorers managed to cross vast oceans without
modern technology. It made him appreciate the courage and determination
it took to discover new territories. He spent hours in the museum, taking
notes and imagining what it would have been like to live during that era.
Comprehension Questions:
1. What was John’s main interest, and how did he spend his
weekends?
2. Why did John decide to visit the historical museum?
3. What did the special exhibit at the museum display?
4. How did John feel about the explorers after seeing the exhibit?
5. Why might John have taken notes during his visit to the
museum?
