Nouns

1. Nouns

2. Nouns • A noun is a word that names a person, place, thing, or idea.

3. Two basic kinds of nouns Proper noun names a specific person, place, thing, or idea. • Alexander Graham Bell • Tarrytown • “Rikki-tikki-tavi” Common noun names any one class of people, place, thing, or idea. • inventor • village • story

4. Identify if the noun is a common or a proper noun. Then, if it is a common noun give an example of a proper noun. If it is a proper noun give an example of a class to which each proper noun belongs. government common, Congress pony express common, Wells Fargo

5. postmaster general common, Benjamin Franklin United States proper, country city common, Appleton president common, Abraham Lincoln

6. postal service common, U.S. Postal Service Benjamin Franklin proper, inventor century common, Victorian Era history common, the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

7. Concrete and Abstract Nouns Common nouns can be either concrete or abstract. Concrete nouns things that you can see or touch. Abstract nouns name ideas, qualities, or feelings that cannot be seen or touched.

8. Kinds of Nouns

9. State if the underlined common noun is abstract or concrete. Born in slavery, Fredrick Douglass escaped and fled to Massachusetts. • abstract In 1841 he addressed a meeting and talked about freedom. • abstract After he spoke, he was hired to talk to other groups. • concrete

10. It took courage for him to speak out as he did. • abstract After his autobiography was published in 1845, he went to England. • concrete When he returned, he continued to talk about his beliefs. • abstract He helped men, women, and children flee to Canada. • concrete

11. Plural and Singular Nouns Singular Noun:  When a noun means one only, it is said to be singular.  Examples:  boy, girl, book, church, box Plural Noun:  When a noun means more than one, it is said to be plural.  Examples:  boys, girls, books, churches Rule #1The plural of nouns is usually formed by adding - s to a singular noun. lamp - lamps cat - cats fork - forks  flower -flowers  pen - pens dog - dogs

12. Rule #2Nouns that end in ch, sh, s, ss, x, z, zz form the plural form by adding es. moss - mosses buzz - buzzes box - boxes  church - churches Special Note:If you add - s to such nouns as fox, bush, and bench, you will find that you cannot pronounce them without making an additional syllable.  This is why such nouns form the plural by adding - es.

13. Rule #3There are several different rules for singular nouns ending in the letters f, fe or ff when changing them to the plural form. • Most nouns ending in the letters f, fe or ff form the plural by adding the letter s. surf - surfs • Some nouns that end in f, fe or ff form the plural by changing the final f form to ves. calf - calves

14. Rule #4Most nouns that end in i form the plural by adding the letter s. ski – skis • Some nouns ending with the letter i form the plural both by adding s and/or es taxi-taxis-taxies

15. Rule #5If a singular noun ends in y and is preceded by a consonant, the y is changed to i and es is added. butterfly - y + i + es = butterflies • If a singular noun ends in y and is preceded by a vowel, the letter s is simply added with no other changes made. monkey + s = monkeys

16. Rule #6There are some nouns that form the plurals differently. • Some nouns change their vowels in the middle of the singular form when forming the plural goose – geese mouse – mice woman - women

17. Spell the plural of each of the following nouns. chair  • chairs star  - stars dress • dresses farm  • farms

18. storm  • storms brush • brushes wish • wishes paper • papers

19. grass  • grasses computer  - computers rock • rocks bench • benches fox • foxes

20. cup  • cups cross  - crosses door • doors owner • owners ax • axes

21. shelf  • shelves man - men fly • flies day • days taxi • taxis, taxies

22. dwarf  • dwarfs or dwarves foot - feet loaf • loaves lady • ladies tail • tails

23. Compound Nouns • A compound noun is a noun made up of two or more words. A compound noun can be one word, like storybook; more than one word, like ice cream; or joined by hyphens, like runner-up. USE a dictionary if necessary!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

24. Compound Nouns

25. Identify the compound noun in each sentence. We definitely need a new football. • football Visit the Smithsonian Institution in Washington. • Smithsonian Institution How late is the post office open on Saturday? • post office

26. Her outlook is always positive. • outlook How did your cousin like her new junior high school? • junior high school Paul Simon is my favorite songwriter. • songwriter

27. To improve, we will need a lot of teamwork. • teamwork No medicine is a complete cure-all. • cure-all This cartridge uses an advanced magnetic tape. • magnetic tape We are going to assemble a new mailing list. • mailing list

28. Plural Compound Nouns To form the plural of compound nouns written as one word, add –s or –es. To form the plural of compound nouns that are hyphenated or written as more than one word, make the most important part of the compound noun plural.

29. Forming Plural Compound Nouns

30. Collective Noun A collective noun names a group of individuals. class herd audience staff team orchestra The family struggled through the crowd to see the band.

31. Identify the collective noun in each sentence. An angry crowd assembled in front of the church. • crowd My uncle hopes to raise a flock of sheep. • flock Our class voted to have a spring picnic. • class

32. Melissa applauded the performance of the orchestra. • orchestra What did you think about the reaction of the audience? • audience A company of dancers will entertain us first. • company

33. The jury voted to acquit the defendant. • jury Later, the trio played three interesting numbers. • trio A squadron of soldiers surrounded the building. • squadron The bill was sent to a committee for further study. • committee

34. Singular and Plural Collective Nouns Collective nouns can have either a singular or a plural meaning. When referring to the group as a unit, the noun has a singular meaning and takes a singular verb. The team works on its defensive plays.

35. When referring to the individual members of the group, the noun has a plural meaning and takes a plural verb. The team go to their individual lockers.

36. To help you determine whether a collective noun in a sentence is singular or plural, substitute the word it for the collective noun and any words used to describe it. If the sentence still makes sense, the collective noun is singular. If you can substitute they, the collective noun is plural. The team works on its project. (it, singular) The team work on their separate projects. (they, plural)

37. Identify the collective noun in each sentence and state what verb form in the parentheses that best completes each sentence. The book club (discusses, discuss) their personal opinions of the plot. - book club, discuss The class (is, are) going on a bus to the art museum. - class, is

38. The choir from East High School (sings, sing) the loudest. - choir, sings The elephant herd (makes, make) a thundering noise during a stampede. - herd, makes The baseball team (boasts, boast) an excellent batting average. -team, boasts

39. The budget committee (reaches, reach) a final decision. - committee, reaches The theater troupe (come, comes) out separately at the end of the play. - troupe, come The jury (argues, argue) among themselves over the verdict. -jury, argue

40. Possessive Nouns A possessive noun names who or what owns or has something. Possessive nouns can be common nouns or proper nouns. They can also be singular or plural. Notice the possessive nouns in the following sentences. Rita has a book on history. Rita’s book is new.

41. Add an apostrophe and an –s to show the possessive of most singular nouns. father’s car Dave’s book Add just and apostrophe to show the possessive case of plural nouns ending in –s or –es. dogs’ owner churches’ congregations

42. Add an apostrophe and –s to show the possessive case of plural nouns that do not end in –s or –es. the four men’s car the geese’s honking Add an apostrophe and –s (or just an apostrophe if the word is a plural ending in –s) to the last word of a compound noun to form the possessive. high school’s mascot Boy Scouts’ trip

43. Spell the possessive case of the plural nouns in the following sentences adding apostrophes as needed. The gold seekers need for money led them to the Yukon. • gold seekers’ At that time, many countries economies were suffering. - countries’

44. The prospectors haste to reach the Yukon began in 1896. • prospectors’ It was many travelers belief that they could find gold. • travelers’ Many prospectors would seek a guide assistance. - guide’s

45. Explorers depended on the native peoples knowledge. • people’s Settlers lives were eased by friendships with the Chinook people. • Settler’s The dogs lives were not altogether unpleasant, although they worked hard. • dogs’

46. Using Apostrophes with Pronouns Use an apostrophe and –s with indefinite pronouns to show possession. another’s preference nobody else’s business Do not use an apostrophe with possessive personal pronouns. my, mine, your, yours, his, her, hers, its, our, ours, their, and theirs

47. The following sentences contain possessive pronouns. If a possessive is written incorrectly, spell it correctly. If all pronouns in the sentence are used correctly, say they are correct. In the new claim, the lake was his and the island was their’s. • his/correct; theirs

48. Once prospectors reached the Klondike, they had only to find open land and stake their claims. • correct If a prospector took anothers claim, it was called “claim jumping.”. • another’s

49. Imagine the disappointment of surviving the trip to the Klondike only to lose what was yours’ to claim jumping! • yours Finally, the Miners’ Association was formed to protect everyones legal claims. • everyone’s The association had its first building in Discovery, the tent city of the Pine Creek. - correct

50. Distinguishing Plurals, Possessives, and Contractions Most plural nouns, most possessive nouns, and certain contractions end with the letter –s. As a result they sound alike and can be easily confused. Their spellings and meanings are different.