A noun is a naming word which can name a person, a place or an object (thing).
We’re looking at three different types of nouns in this activity.
Common Nouns
Common nouns are the names of places and objects that we can often touch, see or feel.
Look at the sentence below:
The football accidentally rolled into the road.
Both ball and road are common nouns as they are things.
Can you spot the common nouns in the sentence below?
The hungry dog was in the kitchen.
Our common nouns were kitchen and dog.
Proper Nouns
Proper nouns are the specific names we give people, places and things.
They always begin with a capital letter.
They could be the specific name of a place:
London (capital city) or Spain (country)
They could be the specific name of a person:
Joe, David Beckham or Roald Dahl
They could be the name of a famous landmark:
Buckingham Palace or Tower of London
Proper nouns also include months of the year and days of the week.
Can you identify the proper nouns in the sentence below?
Sophie went to Blenheim Palace.
This sentence had two proper nouns: Sophie (the name of a person) and Blenheim Palace (the name of a place).
Collective Nouns
Collective nouns are words used to describe groups or collections of things.
A litter of kittens
A pride of lions
Litter and pride are collective nouns as they describe a collection of things.
One of the most unusual collective nouns is a parliament of owls!
In this activity, you’ll be on the hunt for all three types of noun so make sure you’re familiar with them before you begin.