You already know that nouns are naming words. A common noun is a general name (boy, river, city) and a proper noun is a special name that begins with a capital letter (Arjun, Ganga, Jaipur).
Now let us go further and learn about two more types of nouns -- collective nouns and abstract nouns. These will help you write better sentences and understand the English language more deeply.
Common nouns name any person, place, animal, or thing: teacher, market, parrot, notebook.
Proper nouns name a particular person, place, or thing and always begin with a capital letter: Meera, Chennai, Taj Mahal, Diwali.
A collective noun is a word that names a group or collection of people, animals, or things taken together as one unit.
Instead of saying "many birds flying together," we say "a flock of birds." The word flock is a collective noun.
| Collective Noun | Used For |
|---|---|
| a flock of birds | a group of birds flying or feeding together |
| a bunch of grapes | grapes growing together on a stem |
| a team of players | players in a cricket or kabaddi team |
| a herd of cattle | cows or buffaloes moving together |
| a bouquet of flowers | flowers tied together as a gift |
| a pack of wolves | wolves hunting together |
| a class of students | students studying in one classroom |
| a swarm of bees | bees flying together |
| a litter of kittens | kittens born to one mother cat |
| a fleet of ships | ships sailing together |
| a bunch of keys | keys kept together on a ring |
| a pride of lions | lions living together in a group |
| a choir of singers | singers performing together |
| a library of books | a large collection of books |
| an army of ants | ants marching together in a line |
An abstract noun names something that we cannot touch, see, hear, smell, or taste. It names a feeling, quality, idea, or state.
You can hold a book (common noun), but you cannot hold happiness. You can see a river (common noun), but you cannot see courage. These are abstract nouns.
Feelings: happiness, fear, love, anger, joy, sadness
Qualities: kindness, courage, honesty, beauty, bravery, patience
Ideas and States: truth, freedom, knowledge, childhood, friendship, wisdom
"A team of players from Mumbai showed great courage in the match."
team = collective noun, players = common noun, Mumbai = proper noun, courage = abstract noun.
"Asha felt happiness when she saw a bouquet of flowers on the table."
Asha = proper noun, happiness = abstract noun, bouquet = collective noun, flowers and table = common nouns.
"The class of students learned about honesty from their teacher."
class = collective noun, students and teacher = common nouns, honesty = abstract noun.
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Common noun | A general name for any person, place, animal, or thing |
| Proper noun | A special name for a particular person, place, or thing (starts with a capital letter) |
| Collective noun | A word that names a group of people, animals, or things |
| Abstract noun | A word that names a feeling, quality, or idea that cannot be touched or seen |
Finished learning? Now test what you know!