Table of Contents
What is Noun?
A noun is a naming thing.
A noun is the name of a person, place or thing.
Here, anything we can feel or think of is called a thing.
Kinds of Noun:
There are five kinds of Noun-
(1) Common Noun- The name given to one of a class of persons, places or things; as, boy, village, chair, etc.
(2) Proper Noun- The name of a particular person, place or thing; as, Ram, Agra, Gita, etc.
(3) Material Noun- The name of matter, or substance of which things are made; as, iron, wood, rice, flour, etc.
(4) Collective Noun- The name of a number of persons or objects of the same kind considered as one; as, army, class, team, crowd, mob, herd, etc.
A collective Noun denotes one undivided whole. So the verb that follows it is in the singular; as,
- The jury was of one opinion.
- The crowd was dispersed.
- A herd of cattle is grazing.
However, when a Collective Noun denotes the individuals of the group, the verb is plural, although the noun itself is singular in form; as,
- The jury are divided in their opinion.
- The police are searching for the militants.
- The crowd were dispersing when the police resorted to lathi-charge.
(5) Abstract Noun- The name of quality, state or action of a person or thing is called an Abstract Noun.
For Example-
- Kindness is a great virtue.
- Honesty is the best policy.
- Poverty is a curse.
- They all burst into laughter.
In sentences 1 and 2, ‘kindness’, and ‘honesty’ denote quality.
In sentence 3, ‘poverty’ denotes the ‘state’.
In sentence 4, ‘laughter’ denotes the ‘action’.
So the words ‘kindness’, ‘honesty’, ‘poverty’ and ‘laughter’ are Abstract Nouns.
- Quality- Cleanliness, laziness, wisdom, truth, falsehood, sweetness, haste, quickness, etc.
- State- Health, illness, poverty, leanness, thickness, height, depth etc.
- Action- Quickness, laziness, gait, prayer, race, slowness, etc.
Note 1- Sometimes Abstract Nouns are regarded as persons and are used as Proper Nouns. Then they begin with capital letters; as,
- Death is a great leveller.
- Fortune favours the brave.
- Riches have wings.
- Sweetness gains friends.
Note 2- Unlike Concrete Nouns, Abstract Nouns can neither be seen nor touched but only felt.
Formation of Abstract Nouns:
Abstract nouns can be formed from Common Nouns, Verbs and Adjectives.
From Common Nouns:
| Common Nouns | Abstract Nouns |
|---|---|
| Actor | Action |
| Agent | Agency |
| Beggar | Beggary |
| Brother | Brotherhood |
| Cook | Cookery |
| Dacoit | Dacoity |
| Child | Childhood |
| Cycle | Cycling |
| Accountant | Accountancy |
| Baby | Babyhood |
| Boy | Boyhood |
| Enemy | Enmity |
| Thief | Theft |
| Scholar | Scholarship |
| School | Schooling |
| Person | Personality |
| Owner | Ownership |
| Master | Mastery |
| King | Kingship |
| Girl | Girlhood |
| Father | Fatherhood |
| Friend | Friendship |
| Mother | Motherhood |
| Hero | Heroism |
| Neighbour | Neighbourhood |
| Palm | Palmistry |
| Robber | Robbery |
| Servant | Service |
| Slave | Slavery |
| Woman | Womanhood |
From Verbs:
| Verb | Abstract Noun |
|---|---|
| Act | Action |
| Advise | Advice |
| Admire | Admiration |
| Bear | Birth |
| Break | Breach |
| Carry | Carriage |
| Clean | Cleanliness |
| Do | Deed |
| Enjoy | Enjoyment |
| Give | Gift |
| Hate | Hatred |
| Injure | Injury |
| Intend | Intention |
| Justify | Justification |
| Live | Life |
| Marry | Marriage |
| Mix | Mixture |
| Molest | Molestation |
| Punish | Punishment |
| Please | Pleasure |
| Read | Reading |
| Speak | Speech |
| Serve | Service |
| Try | Trial |
| Think | Thought |
| Weave | Web |
| Add | Addition |
| Arrive | Arrival |
| Be | Being |
| Believe | Belief |
| Bind | Bond |
| Choose | Choice |
| Close | Closure |
| Define | Definition |
| Explain | Explanation |
| Go | Gait |
| Heal | Health |
| Instruct | Instruction |
| Judge | Judgement |
| Laugh | Laughter |
| Lose | Loss |
| Meet | Meeting |
| Nourish | Nourishment |
| Move | Motion |
| Pay | Payment |
| Protect | Protection |
| Remove | Removal |
| See | Sight |
| Solve | Solution |
| Treat | Treatment |
| Unite | Union |
| Wed | Wedding |
From Adjectives:
| Adjective | Abstract Noun |
|---|---|
| Able | Ability |
| Big | Bigness |
| Brave | Bravery |
| Cruel | Cruelty |
| Coward | Cowardice |
| Dear | Dearth |
| Departed | Departure |
| Easy | Ease |
| Fat | Fatness |
| Hateful | Hatred |
| Kind | Kindness |
| High | Height |
| Hot | Hotness |
| Mad | Madness |
| Poor | Poverty |
| Rude | Rudeness |
| Small | Smallness |
| Useful | Usefulness |
| Wise | Wisdom |
| Active | Activity |
| Bold | Boldness |
| Broad | Breadth |
| Dark | Darkness |
| Deep | Depth |
| Different | Difference |
| Dull | Dullness |
| Efficient | Efficiency |
| Great | Greatness |
| Intelligent | Intelligence |
| Just | Justice |
| Long | Length |
| Heavy | Heaviness |
| Meek | Meekness |
| Quick | Quickness |
| Short | Shortage |
| Tall | Tallness |
| Wide | Width |
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