Nouns Flashcards
What is a noun?
Name the nouns in this sentence:
With inspiration, George and Godzilla walked to Papa John’s to order a large vegan pizza.
A noun is a person/place/thing/idea.
Inspiration = idea
George = person
Godzilla = technically a thing in grammar
Papa John’s = place
Pizza = thing
Ex: Woman, school, rain, bed. If a word can be preceded by a/an/the chances are its a noun
T/F: Nouns can appear anywhere in a sentence.
True. There are no rules about where a noun can or cannot appear in a sentence. However, a sentence must have at least one noun acting as the subject in order for the sentence to be complete.
Find all the nouns in the following sentence:
Children enjoy cookies, television, books, and soft sheets.
The nouns are children, cookies, television, books and sheets.
What is a common noun?
A common noun is a naming noun that is not capitalized (unless it happens to be at the beginning of a sentence). It is a general name for a person, place, thing, or idea.
actor
planet
month
EX: interstate, college, books, cars
What is a proper noun?
A proper noun is a specifically named (a particular) person, place, or thing. A proper noun is capitalized.
President Clinton
Snafu University
England
Boston Red Sox
Adam Sandler
Venus
November
T/F: All proper nouns are capitalized.
True
What type of nouns are -airplane- and -Delta-?
Airplane is a common noun. Delta is a proper noun.
What is the difference between a proper noun and a common noun?
A proper noun names a specific person, place, or thing, whereas a common noun does not specify by name instead referring to a general person, place, or thing.
Are Skippy and peanut the same type of noun?
No. Skippy is a proper noun, and peanut is a common noun.
T/F: No common noun is ever capitalized.
False. If a sentence begins with a common noun, that common noun will be capitalized.
EX; Apples are good for you.
Find all the common nouns in the following sentence:
The Robertsons drove for thirty miles on the freeway before they stopped at a restaurant to eat some pie.
The common nouns are miles, freeway, restaurant, and pie
Find all the proper nouns in the following sentence: Mrs. Wallace told her fifth-grade class that Texas, California, and Alaska are the biggest states in America.
The proper nouns are Mrs. Wallace, Texas. California, Alaska, and America.
T/F: Kleenex and Xerox are the same type of noun.
True. Kleenex and Xerox are both proper nouns.
What is a concrete noun?
A concrete noun is any noun that is experiential and thus can be felt or perceived by one of the five senses.
Names a person, place, or thing that can be seen, heard, smelled, touched, or tasted.
milk
music
orange
bell
skunk
sand
apple
What is an abstract noun?
An abstract noun is a noun that refers to something intangible, like an idea or a feeling. It names an idea, quality, or state.
peace
irony
kindness
pride
sadness
uncertainty
independence
Is -sadness- a concrete noun?
No. Although we feel sadness, we don’t feel it in a literal way-that is, we can’t touch it or taste it. Sadness- is an abstract noun.
What type of noun is -contentment-?
Contentment - is an abstract noun
Find all the abstract nouns in the following sentence:
Freedom and democracy allow for liberty and happiness.
The abstract nouns are freedom, democracy, liberty, and happiness
What is a singular noun?
names only one person, place, thing, or idea
city
foot
monster
What is a plural noun?
names more than one person, place, thing, or idea
cities
feet
monsters
What is a collective noun?
names a group of people or things
takes on a singular form but refers to a group
herd
media
pack
team
band
division
Do all collective nouns take singular verbs?
No. Most collective nouns take singular verbs (our class is always rowdy). In British English, some collective nouns take plural verbs when members of the group are acting individually (the family bicker during the holidays)
T/F : Flock is a collective noun.
True. Flock is a singular word referring to a group of individual beings usually birds.
T/F: Freshness is a collective noun.
False. Freshness- is an abstract noun.
What is a compound noun?
a single noun that is formed by combining two or more words
footprint
doghouse
backpack
What is a gendered noun?
A gendered noun is a gender-specific and changes depending on the object’s gender.
Ex: Actor - Actress
What is a countable noun?
A countable noun is any noun that can be numbered.
EX: Four bowls, Several papers, many bottles.
A noun like paint is not countable. We can say -a lot of paint- but we cannot say seven paints.
Is -rain- a countable noun?
No
T/F: -Wine- is a non- countable (mass) noun.
True. Wine- cannot be counted.
What is a non-countable (or mass) noun?
A non-countable noun is any noun that cannot be numbered.
EX> earth, wind, fire.
Find all the countable nouns in the following sentence:
Nat had two sandwiches, and Angle had soup and a few marshmallows.
The countable nouns are sandwiches and marshmallows
T/F: A countable noun names a non-specific noun
False. A common noun names a non-specific noun. A countable noun is any noun that can be numbered.
T/F: Pumpkins-is a countable noun
True. We can count pumpkins, so =pumpkins- is a countable noun
T/F: Air- is a countable noun
False. Air- cannot be counted, so it is not a countable noun
Find all the non-countable (mass) nouns in the following sentence:
The rain poured in through the roof, dampening the flames and smoke.
The non-countable nouns are rain, flames, and smoke.
T/F: “Rims” is a countable noun.
True. We can count rims.
T/F: A noun can only be one type of noun.
False. Nouns can fall into multiple categories. For EX> Waitress is both a gendered noun and a countable noun.
What is an appositive?
An appositive modifies or clarifies the noun or noun phrase that precedes it.
Ex: Ivan the Terrible ruled for a number of years. (The Terrible is an appositive that tells us something about Ivan.)
Final all the appositives in the following sentence:
Lucas the Kind had lunch with Donald the Cheapskate.
The Kind- and -he Cheapskate- are appositives.
They modify the nouns Lucas and Donald.
what is an appositive phrase?
An appositive phrase is a phrase set off by commas that tells the reader more about the noun or pronoun it modifies.
Ex: San Francisco, a city often shrouded in fog, is chilly at this time of year. (A city often shrouded in fog is the appositive phrase.)
Why are appositive phrases set off by commas?
Appositive phrases are treated as asides that are not essential to the meaning of the sentence. The commas act almost like parentheses, indicating the nonessential quality of the information they contain.
What is a gerund?
A gerund is a verb that acts as a noun. Gerunds always end in -ing.
Ex: Skiing is my favorite form of exercise; eating enough leafy greens is hard to do; sleeping solves most of my problems. (skiing, eating, and sleeping are gerunds).
T/F: Every profession differentiates between gender.
False. Many professions (law, medicine, etc.) do not distinguish between their male and female practitioners (lawyers, doctors, etc.)
T/F: An infinitive can sometimes act as a noun
True. An infinitive sometimes acts as a noun. For example, in the sentence -To grow is the dream of many pre-teens-, -to grow- is an infinitive acting as the subject of the sentence.
Can a gerund be the subject of a sentence?
Yes. A gerund takes on all the traits of a noun, and since nouns can be subjects, so can gerunds.
Can an infinitive be the subject of a sentence?
Yes. In the sentence -to err is human, to err - is the subject.
What famous line in -Hamlet- repeats the same infinitive twice?
“to be or not to be, that is the question”
Find the gerunds in the following sentence;
After I went running the other day, I decided that drinking cold water is one of life’s most underrated pleasures.
Drinking- is a gerund. Running is not, because in this instance it refers to a specific jog and therefore does not act as a noun.
What part of speech are the infinitives in the following sentence?
Tomorrow, Johnny plans to go to the game and then to wash his mascot suit.
To go- and -to wash- are verbs.
