LoginProper and Common Nouns
Dive deep into proper and common nouns with detailed explanations. Examples include 'Shakespeare' and 'author', plus a quiz to test your knowledge.
What Do We Mean by Proper and Common Nouns?
Nouns can be categorized into two groups based on whether they refer to a general entity or a specific entity: common nouns and proper nouns.
Common Nouns
Common nouns are used to refer to general persons, places, or things in a class or group, rather than specific ones. Examples of common nouns include a mug, table, sofa, TV, phone, wallet, and key. In contrast to proper nouns, which refer to specific people, places, or things, common nouns provide a generic name for a class or group of items. For instance, the noun 'cat' is a common noun, but if you give your cat a name like Marlo, the word Marlo becomes a proper noun.
Common Nouns: Properties
A vast majority of English nouns fall under the category of common nouns. Most grammatical rules related to nouns apply to common nouns, including their ability to be countable or uncountable and plural or singular, take a definite or indefinite article, and be abstract or concrete. Accordingly, common nouns can be classified into various groups, such as:
Concrete nouns: Nouns that refer to entities that can be perceived through the senses of sight, touch, hearing, smell, and taste
Abstract nouns: Nouns that cannot be perceived through the senses, such as emotions and ideas
Countable nouns: Nouns that can be counted
Singular nouns: Nouns that refer to a single entity
Plural nouns: Nouns that refer to more that one person or thing
Collective nouns: Nouns that refer to a group of people, animals, or things as a single unit
Uncountable nouns: Nouns that cannot be counted and are always treated as singular
Plural-only nouns: Nouns that are always used in the plural form
Gender-specific nouns: Nouns that refer exclusively to either a male or female
Now let us look at some examples from each category:
doctor, restaurant, father → concrete nouns
love, pride, patience → abstract nouns
flower, chair, book → countable nouns
rice, water, air → uncountable nouns
actress, sir, wizard → gender-specific nouns
team, society, class → collective nouns
Warning
Common nouns are generally written in lowercase letters and are not capitalized, unless they appear at the beginning of a sentence or in a title.
His father is a hard-working man.
As you know, father is a common noun.
Fathers are hard-working.
'Fathers' is a plural common noun, but it is written with capital letter because it is at the beginning of the sentence.
Proper Nouns
In contrast to common nouns, which refer to general people, places, or things, proper nouns are specific and typically refer to a unique person, thing, or place. We use proper nouns to name people, places, or things that are one-of-a-kind or unique in some way.
Names of people: Johnny, Lisa, Tom, Max, Rafael, George Orwell, Leo Tolstoy
The days of the week: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday
The months of the year: January, February, March, April, May, June, July
Places: France, England, Nevada, California, Moscow, Rome, Louisville, Lockport
Geographical landmarks: Grand Canyon, The Pacific Ocean, Mount Fuji, Niagara Falls
Urban spaces: Wall Street, Madison Avenue, Broadway, Mosholu Parkway, Victory Boulevard
Names of pets: Bubbles, Lucy, Max, Bella
Holidays: Thanksgiving, Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter
Planets: Mercury, Mars, Earth, Venus
Languages: English, French, Spanish, Korean, Chinese, Persian
Brand names: Coca Cola, Ford, Porsche, Apple, Fender
Warning
The words 'street,' 'avenue,' 'parkway,' 'boulevard,' 'lane,' 'park,' and 'square' are generally common nouns, but when they are part of a proper noun (as in the examples above) they must be capitalized.
Nouns of Address
When addressing people or things directly, we can use nouns of direct address, also known as vocatives or nominatives of address. Such nouns are not inherently proper nouns, but when they are used before a proper noun, or when they are used to directly address someone, they must be capitalized. Take a look at the examples:
Have you met the pope?
Here, the noun 'pope' is not preceding a proper noun (in this case a particular pope); as a result, it is not capitalized.
I met Pope Francis when I was in Rome.
But here, the noun 'Pope' is preceding a particular pope and is used as a title. Therefore, it is capitalized.
I'm really sorry, Mom.
'Mom' is used as a noun of address. As a result, it is capitalized.
Was your mom angry?
Here, although the word 'mom' is referring to a particular mom, it is not capitalized since is not addressing a person (directly).
Prince Charles is the heir to the British throne.
The word 'prince' is a common noun that is used as a title before a proper noun. Therefore, it is capitalized.
Cardinal Directions
Cardinal directions, such as north, south, east, and west, are generally not proper nouns, but when they are used as part of the name of a specific region, they are capitalized.
Have you been to the west of Canada?
Here, the word 'west' is not immediately preceding the proper noun 'Canada,' so it is not capitalized.
Have you been to the West Virginia?
Here, 'West' is immediately preceding the word 'Virginia,' and is part of the name of the region. So, it must be capitalized.
Capitalization Rule
Proper nouns can consist of one or more words, and in the case of multi-word proper nouns, all words should be capitalized.
New York City
World War II
Proper Nouns with and without 'The'
Normally, the definite article "the" is not used with proper nouns, unless it is part of the proper noun itself and refers to a particular place or organization*, such as companies, hotels, museums, etc. Additionally, 'the' is used with the names of countries that have "States," "Kingdom," or "Republic" in them, as well as with the names of canals, rivers, seas, and oceans. Keep in mind that in such cases, "the" is not capitalized. Let us see some examples:
Jennifer is my wife. (Not "the Jenifer is my wife.")
'Jennifer' is a proper noun, so 'the' can't precede it.
He is originally from the People's Republic of China
Many species of marine life inhabit the Pacific Ocean.
Several humanitarian projects worldwide are supported by the United Nations
Proper Adjectives
'Proper adjectives' are formed from certain proper nouns (names of people and places, including continents, countries, cities, etc.) and, like proper nouns, they must be capitalized.
Do you prefer Italian food or Chinese food?
The words 'Italian' and 'Chinese' are both proper adjectives and respectively made from the proper nouns 'Italy' and 'China.'
I married an African woman.
Here 'African' is a proper adjective and comes from the proper noun 'Africa.'
Review
There are two types of nouns in English based on whether they refer to a generic or a specific entity.
The table below summarizes the characteristics of these two groups of nouns:
Common Nouns | Proper Nouns |
|---|---|
not capitalized | capitalized |
not unique | unique |
generic | specific |
Quiz:
Which of the following sentences demonstrates correct use of both common and proper nouns?
My Uncle works at the Museum of modern art in new York.
We visited the grand canyon during our trip to arizona last Summer.
Dr. Johnson prescribed medicine for my dog Max.
The President of france will meet with the British Prime minister tomorrow.
Choose proper or common for each underlined noun.
Easter is my favorite holiday. | |
Birds migrate during the winter months. | |
Doctors often work long hours. | |
Children love playing in the snow. | |
Paris attracts millions of visitors each year. | |
January is usually very cold in Canada. |
Match each proper noun to its relevant category.
Choose True or False for each sentence.
Common nouns refer to specific people, places, or things. | |
Titles such as "pope" and "president" are always capitalized. | |
Cardinal directions are always treated as proper nouns and must be capitalized. | |
The article "the" is always used before all proper nouns. | |
Proper adjectives must be capitalized because they are derived from proper nouns. |
Which of the following is correctly capitalized as a proper noun?
the Golden Gate bridge
united states of America
Central park zoo
Statue of Liberty
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