Names in English

Names in English are one of the main components of speech that come in different shapes and sizes. One of the main ones is the general and specific name in English.

Although names appear everywhere in our notes, one of the main issues that any learner will face is recognizing English nouns. In this note, in addition to examining the types of nouns and how to use them, the differences between nouns and verbs in English are examined.

To understand and get acquainted with these attributes, this note examines how they are used and common mistakes when using them.

Definition of nouns in English

A noun in English is a word that names something like a person, place, object or idea. For example, in the following sentence, “Milad” refers to a person and “Ball” and “Bat” refer to two different objects. The position of the noun in English can vary. In fact, they can appear in the role of subject, object, subject complement, object complement, or adjective.

Milad hit the ball with the bat .

A phrase or other component of speech, such as a verb, can also act as a noun. For example, consider the following sentence:

Jogging is a fun exercise.

In this sentence, the verb “jog” acts like a noun and appears in the role of the subject.

Common name in English

A generic name in English is a generic name that generally encompasses a wide range of people, places, or objects. We do not use capital letters to write these names because they are general, and this is one of the differences between general and specific nouns in English. It should be noted that if the generic name is at the beginning of the sentence, it should be written in capital letters.

For example, names such as “house”, “cat”, “girl”, “foot” and “Country” can be mentioned. Some names in English can be general or specific, depending on the context in which they are used. For example, “canyon” is a general name in English, while “Grand Canyon” is a special name because the name of a place is specific.

To better understand how to use a generic name, pay attention to the following sentences. For example, in the last sentence, the word “girl” does not refer to a specific girl whose identity we know. Similarly, the word “river” is a generic name that does not refer to a specific river.

The man is on the phone .

This movie is scary.

My cat likes to sleep on the rug .

The market has plenty of watermelons , limes , oranges and pears .

The girl crossed the river .

Special name in English

One of the types of nouns in English is a specific noun that helps to identify a particular person, place or object. These words must be capitalized. Examples include brands like Starbucks, people like Sara, or countries like Spain.

One way to convert a common name into a specific name in English is to give it a personal character. Partial characterization is actually the attribution of human qualities to inanimate objects or ideas. To better understand this, look at the example below, in which the author speaks of “Death” as if it were a person.

Because I could not stop for Death . He kindly stopped for me.

A proper name conveys a better description than a common name. Examples include the specific name “August” and the common name “Month”. When using “Month”, the reader or listener is on the side of a general concept, while using the specific name “August”, he knows which month the speaker or writer is talking about.

Singular and plural nouns

Nouns in English can be used singularly or plurally in a sentence. Singular means that the name refers only to one person, place or object. For example, look at the following names:

house, cat, girl, foot, country

However, the plural name refers to more than one thing. Most singular nouns in English only need an S to appear as a plural when they appear at the end of a word. For example, the singular name “Bee” is changed by adding S to “Bees”, which is a plural noun.

In some cases you have to paste es at the end of a singular noun to make it a plural noun. For example, the singular name “Class” changes to the plural name “Classes” after es is added to the end.

It should be noted that not all names follow this pattern alone. In fact, we will come across names in English that are known as irregular plurals. For example, we can refer to “people” and “tooth”, which are the sum of the names “person” and “teeth”, respectively.

Countable and uncountable names

Is a countable noun that you can count on. When you have three books, you are describing a name that can be counted. Counters can be used singularly or plurally.

In addition to countable names, you can use a few, any, some, the and a / an. To better understand this, look at the following examples:

An uncountable noun, also called a gender noun, is a noun that cannot be counted or added together. These names are always considered singular. You can use some, any, a little and much with them.

An IQ test measures intelligence .

In this sentence, as you can see, “intelligence” is an uncountable noun. You cannot count intelligence, you can measure it.

Name of essence

The noun essence is a type of noun in English that can be understood through one of the five senses. For a better understanding, look at “cat”. A cat is something you can see, touch, hear and smell. For this reason, this word is considered a noun of essence.

In the following sentence, as you can see, “keyboard” is an noun because you can feel it.

My keyboard is sticky.

abstract noun

An abstract noun is a noun in English that, unlike nouns, is intangible. They refer to concepts, ideas, and emotions that cannot be touched, heard, or seen. Take the name “anger”, for example, which is actually a feeling that can lead to arousal.

In the following sentence, “courage” is an abstract name because you can never see, touch or hear courage. However, we know that there is courage.

We can not imagine the courage it took to do that.

The plural noun is a type of noun in English that has a singular appearance

A plural noun is actually a noun that describes a group of different things. This name may be singular or plural depending on how it is used. A singular noun is a group that acts as a unit or does the same thing at the same time. For example, note the following sentence in which a group of players is considered as a unit:

The team plays in the main gym.

Although they, like the plural form of a singular, refer to a group of things, these two types of nouns cannot be considered. As mentioned, you can use the plural noun in the plural or singular, while the plural of a singular always appears in the plural. To better understand this issue, pay attention to the following two sentences:

She has two children .

The army fought well.

In the first sentence, “children” is the plural form of the singular noun “child”. However, in the second sentence, the plural name “army”, although it has a singular appearance, actually refers to a group of soldiers who did well.

Verb and noun differences in English

When learning English grammar, one of the main things you encounter is speech components such as verbs and nouns. Although verbs and nouns are an integral part of English, many learners do not fully understand the difference between nouns and verbs in English.

As mentioned, the name in English refers to a person, place or object. It can also talk about state, action, or concept. However, a verb is a part of speech that expresses an action. In fact, nouns and verbs are “What?” Questions, respectively. And “How?” They answer. In addition, the noun can be in the sentence of the subject or object, but the verb is always the main part of the proposition.

One way to make a noun through a verb is to use noun signs in English such as ance and ence. With the help of these two extensions you can turn a wide range of verbs into nouns. For example, consider the verbs “appear” and “resist”, which become “appearance” and “resistance” after adding the suffix. To better understand this issue and the difference between nouns and verbs in English, pay attention to the following two sentences:

He appeared on many talk shows while promoting his book.

He made many talk show appearances while promoting his book.

Other noun signs in English include tion, ment, and sion at the end of the word.