Identifying nouns
A noun is the name of a person, place, thing, or concept.
Nouns sometimes function as adjectives modifying other nouns. Because of their dual roles, nouns used in this manner may be called noun/adjectives.
Nouns are classified in a variety of ways.
- Proper nouns, capitalized (Maureen, Idaho, Detroit Tigers), and common nouns, not capitalized (woman, state, team)
- Concrete nouns (stone, bread, flower, building) and abstract nouns (justice, beauty, kindness)
- Count nouns, which can have a plural form (city/cities, child/children, book/books), and noncount nouns, which generally do not form the plural (air, rain, traffic, knowledge)
- Collective nouns, which may be singular or plural depending on how they are used (class, team, family)
- Possessive nouns (Harry's, computer's, children's)