Nouns

THE FAMILY OF THE NOUNS:
Noun is the name of a person, place or a thing. For example - Rama, Sita, Delhi, Pen, Table, Bus etc. The following chart will make you familiar with the family of the Nouns.

Nature of the Noun & Some examples

Proper Noun: It denotes one particular person, place or thing.
Ex: Chandu, Calcutta, India, the Ganga, etc.

Common Noun: Common Noun is the name given in common to

Table, glass, town, king, etc. Every person or thing of the same class or kind.

Collective Noun: It denotes a group or collection of similar.
Ex: Army, Class, host, jury etc. individuals considered as one complete whole.

Material Noun It denotes matter or substance of which a thing.
Ex: Milk, iron, silver, gold, (is made up of material).

Abstract Noun: It expresses quality, state or action.
Ex: Truth, love, soul, mind, greatness, life, etc.

BEHAVIOUR OF THE NOUN
Rule 1: This group includes those nouns which are always used in the plural.
Example:
1. Premises
2. Spectacles
3. Bowels
4. Valuables
5. Billiards
6. Trousers
7. Socks.. etc.

Examples:
(a) Riches have wings,
(b) Kindly give me a pair of scissors;
(c) My spectacles have been broken.

Rule II: This group includes those nouns that look like plural, but are used in the singular.
Example:
1. Mathematics
2. Statistics
3. Economics
4. Politics
5. Gymnastics
6. Physics

Examples:
(a) Mathematics are a difficult subject. (Incorrect)
Mathematics is a difficult subject. (Correct)
Note: Mathematics looks like plural but, in fact, it is singular. So, we cannot use plural verb with it.
(b) Politics are a game of compromise. (Incorrect)
Politics is a game of compromise. (Correct)
(c) These news were broadcast from All India Radio only yesterday. (Incorrect)
This news was broadcast from All India Radio only yesterday. (Correct)

Rule III: This group is a family of collective nouns. These nouns are singular in form but are used as plural.
Example:
1. Gentry
2. People
3. Police
4. Cattle
5. Poultry

Examples:
(a) The police is looking into the matter. (Incorrect)
The police are looking into the matter. (Correct)
(b) The cattle is grazing in the field. (Incorrect)
The cattle are grazing in the field. (Correct)
(c) Peoples should be loyal to their nation. (Incorrect)
People should be loyal to their nation. (Correct)

Rule IV: This group is a family of those nouns which are generally used in the singular.
Example:
1. Poetry
2. Advice
3. Information
4. Hair
5. Scenery

Example:
(a) I do not like poetries of Keats. (Incorrect)
I do not like poetry of Keats. (Correct)
(b) The old furniture were disposed of. (Incorrect)
The old furniture was disposed of. (Correct)
(c) The sceneries of the Himalayas are excellent. (Incorrect)
The scenery of the Himalayas is excellent. (Correct)

Rule V: Some nouns have the same form in singular and plural.
Example:
1. Sheep
2. Fish
3. Cod
4. Swine
5. Deer

Examples:v (a) I saw ten deers yesterday (incorrect)
I saw ten deer yesterday (correct)
(b) The fishes cannot live without water. (Incorrect)
The fish cannot live without water. (Correct)

Rule VI: Some nouns when preceded by a numeral remain unchanged in form.
Example:
1. Hundred
2. Thousand
3. Lac
4. Crore
5. Million

Examples:
(a) I need 3 crores for my needs (incorrect)
I need 3 crore for my needs (correct)
(b) Six hundreds miles is a long distance. (Incorrect)
Six hundred miles is a long distance. (Correct)

NOUNS AND THEIR NUMBERS:
Making Plural Number:

1. By adding‘s’ to the singular noun;
   

   Singular	Plural
   Pen	Pens
   Cow	Cows
   Dog	Dogs

   
   
2. By adding 'es' at the end of a singular noun if it ends in s, sh, x, ch, z etc:
   

   Singular	Plural
   Touch	Touches
   Gas	Gases
   Box	Boxes
   Match	Matches
   Church	Churches
   Brush	Brushes

   
   
3. By adding 's' to a singular noun if it ends in y and if there is a vowel before the 'y'
   

   Singular	Plural
   Holiday	Holidays
   Journey	Journeys
   Guy	Guys
   Key	Keys
   Boy	Boys

   
   
4. Those singular nouns that end in'f or 'fe' form their plural by changing the F into V and adding 'es' to those that end in F and 's' to those that end in 'fe'.
   

   Singular	Plural
   Half	Halves
   Leaf	Leaves
   Thief	Thieves
   Shelf	Shelves
   Knife	Knives
   Life	Lives
   Wife	Wives
   Self	Selves

   
   However there are certain exceptions to the above rule. For instance, a few ending in 'f or 'fe' get their plurals by adding 's'.
   

   Singular	Plural
   Safe	Safes
   Strife	Strifes

   
   Nouns ending in 'ief, 'oof, 'eef and 'rf get the plural by simply adding 's' to the singular:
   

   Singular	Plural
   Chief	Chiefs
   Grief	Griefs
   Puff	Puffs
   Stuff	Stuffs
   Proof	Proofs
   Roof	Roofs
   Surf	Surfs

   
   There are still other singular nouns ending in F which form their plural by following both the above methods and both the plurals thus obtained are correct.
   

   Singular	Plural
   Hoof	Hoofs or Hooves
   Staff	Staffs or Staves
   Scarf	Scarfs or Scarves

   
   
5. Those singular nouns which end in 'o' and have a consonant before that 'o' form their plural by adding 'es' to the singular:
   

   Singular	Plural
   Mango	Mangoes
   Buffalo	Buffaloes
   Hero	Heroes
   Mosquito	Mosquitoes
   Negro	Negroes
   Potato	Potatoes
   Volcano	Volcanoes

   
   However there are some singular nouns of the above description that do not follow the above rule. Instead they get their plural by simply adding's':
   

   Singular	Plural
   Dynamo	Dynamos
   Halo	Halos
   Photo	Photos
   Piano	Pianos

   
   
6. Such singular nouns which end in ‘o' and have a vowel before that ‘o' form their plural by adding 's’:
   

   Singular	Plural
   Studio	Studios
   Cameo	Cameos
   Cuckoo	Cuckoos
   Radio	Radios

   
   
7. Some nouns form their plurals by changing the vowel sound of the singular.
   

   Singular	Plural
   Foot	Feet
   Goose	Geese
   Louse	Lice
   Man	Men
   Mouse	Mice
   Tooth	Teeth
   Woman	Women

   
   There are some nouns which are a combination of two or more words. These are known as compound nouns.
   Such nouns get their plural by adding's' to the main or the principal word.
   (a) in some cases it is the first word that forms the plural:
   

   Singular	Plural
   Daughter-in-law	Daughters-in-law
   Commander-in -chief	Commanders-in-chief
   Sister-in-law	Sisters-in-law
   Looker-on	Lookers-on
   Brother-in-law	Brothers-in-law

   
   Examples where the second word forms the plural
   

   Singular	Plural
   Book-case	Book-cases
   Class-fellow	Class-fellows
   Race-horse	Race-horses
   Step-son	Step-sons
   Grand-father	Grand-fathers
   Maid-servant	Maid-servants

   
   Examples where both the words make plural:

   Singular	Plural
   Man-servant	Men-servants
   Woman-servant	Women-servants
   Lord-justice	Lords-justices

Assignment – 1

1. His friend (a) / has been (b) / suffering from (c) / measle for three days (d)/ No Error (e)
2. You (a)/ are (b)/ good (c)/ at mathematic. (d)/ No error (e)
3. All the Army Chief (a) / are (b) / present (c) / on the Republic Day Parade, (d)/ No Error (e)
4. There are (a)/ many (b)/ mouses in (c)/ your house (d)/ No Error (e)
5. Some thiefs (a)/ entered (b)/his house (c)/ yesterday, (d)/ No Error (e)

Answers:
1. (d) (measles)
2. (d) (Mathematics)
3. (a) (Chiefs)
4. (c) (Mice)
5. (a) (thieves)

Prepared by,

IACE, Hyderabad.

Published date : 10 Jun 2015 01:01PM