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Common Noun: Definition, Rules, Examples, Usage, Worksheet

As we all know, nouns are parts of speech that are used to define things like a person’s name, a thing’s name, a concept, a place, or a person’s quality. We can classify the nouns into main two classes – Common nouns and proper nouns. A proper noun belongs to a class of nouns that are used to express a specific name of a person, place, item, etc.

On the other hand, a common noun is a term used to refer to a group of similar things, such as people, places, or things. In this article, we will go over thorough Common Nouns, their definition, usage, and examples.

Common Noun Definition

A common Noun is a type of noun or naming word that is used to refer to a group of similar things, such as people, places, or things. As per the Cambridge Dictionary, ” a common noun is defined as a noun that is the name of a group of similar things, such as “table” or “book”, and not of a single person, place, or thing’. ”

For common noun example-Students, Teachers, chairs, Bench boys, town, Planet, etc. These examples suggest a group of similar persons (Students, Teacher ), Similar thing (Chair, Bench) So these are common Nouns.

What is a Common Noun?

Before knowing What a common noun is, we must first understand the definition. Nouns are words that identify a specific person, animal, location, item, or concept. All nouns can also be divided into proper and common nouns. Common nouns are words that are used to refer to common objects rather than particular ones. In contrast to proper nouns, common nouns are not capitalized unless they open a sentence or occur in a title. For Example, a Cat, a chair, and Glass are examples of common Nouns.

Common Nouns Rules

As Noun suggests naming words, we are used to writing them in capital letters. But when we write a proper noun, the first letter always comes with capital letters. but in the case of common nouns generally, we used to write it in lowered case.

  • The definition of common nouns suggests that Common nouns, on the other hand, are used to describe very common natural similar things that are easily found. so, there is no need to capitalize them. But Yes In the case of starting a sentence with a common noun, It must be written in Capital letters. For example.

“The water in this pot is not suitable for drinking”

In this sentence, water is a common noun, so it is not required to capitalize the first letter of water.

  • “Water is the most essential for the human body.”

Here, although water is a common noun because it starts a sentence, we must write the first letter of water in capitalized form.

Common Noun Examples

Earlier we came to know what is a common noun. Now Take a look at the examples of common Nouns in the below table.

Common Nouns

Common Nouns Used for Animals

Elephant, Dog, Pet, Goat, Horse, Pig, Donkey, kitten, Cow, Fish, Monkey, Lion, Tiger, etc.

Common Nouns Used for both Male and female

 Customer, Doctor, Employee, Person,  Guardian, Child, Singer, etc

Common Nouns Used for Male

Boy, Wizard, Horse, Heir, Benefactor, Fiance Actor, Father, Men, etc

Common Nouns Used for Female

Girl, woman, Mother, Nurse, Heiress, Actress, Fiancee, etc.

Common Nouns Used for Places

College, Airport, School, Court, District, State, Street , Ground, School, College, Rail Station, etc

Common Nouns Used for Things

Headphone,Window,Radio,Plant, Glass,Car, Spray,Tie,table,fan,water,gold, money   etc.

Common Nouns Used for Concept / Ideas

Love, Hate, Peace, Cleanliness, Movement, Chaos, Friendship, Relationship, Life, Death, Sleep,  Reason, Justice, Crime, Technology

Common Nouns Used for Birds/ Insects /reptiles

Dove, Parrot, Snake, Lizard, crocodile, Mosquito Grasshopper, Housefly, Mosquito, Honeybee, Wasp, Ant, Beetle, Butterfly,Crow etc

Common Noun Usage

Here are some examples and usage of how common nouns are used in sentences.

  1. The students of Medical eagerly waiting for their NEET results.
  2. Gold is the most valuable metal of all the metals.
  3. Have you any pen in your bag?
  4. I don’t have her new phone number.
  5. He belongs to a very educated family.
  6. My favorite city is Varanasi.
  7. My friend Rohita bought a brand new bike last month.
  8. I will buy some books next week in preparation for the entrance test.

Difference Between Common Noun and Proper Noun

We know that nouns fall into two main categories: common nouns and proper nouns. This is a very general question. What’s the difference between proper nouns and common nouns? Before you know the difference, you need to know the definitions of proper nouns and common nouns. Proper nouns are a class of nouns used to represent specific names of people, places, things, etc.

  • For example, Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House, Earth, Mumbai. It’s very easy to understand the difference between definitions and examples.
  • The main difference between proper nouns and common nouns is that proper nouns are used to indicate specific names of people, places, things, etc. For example, home, class, bike, etc.
  • Common nouns, on the other hand, are used to describe very common natural things that are easily found in the same copy. For example, houses, classes, bicycles, and so on.

Common Noun Worksheet

Here we have prepared a Common Noun worksheet for students. Students needs to read the theory first and then practice the question given below.

Common Noun: Definition, Rules, Examples, Usage, Worksheet -_3.1

Common Noun Exercise – Common Noun Worksheet PDF

Related Articles
Possessive Nouns Singular Nouns
Collective Nouns Abstract Nouns
Plural Nouns Compound Nouns

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FAQs

What are the 10 example of common nouns ?

Fork, dish, goat, dove, man, child, boat, ship, ambulance, water bottle

What are some examples of common nouns?

Some examples of common nouns include:

People: man, woman, child, doctor, teacher, student
Places: city, country, state, street, park, school
Things: car, book, house, table, chair, pen
Ideas: love, peace, happiness, sadness, anger

How do you identify a common noun?

Common nouns can be identified by their following characteristics:

They are not capitalized unless they appear at the beginning of a sentence.
They can be used with articles (a, an, the).
They can be used with plural forms.
They can be used with adjectives.

What is the difference between a common noun and a proper noun?

A proper noun is a noun that refers to a specific person, place, thing, or idea. Proper nouns are always capitalized.

About the Author

Soumyadeep specializes in content creation for board exams, catering to the demands of CBSE, ICSE, and other state boards students. He has two years of experience in the education industry. He has a graduate degree in Zoology Honours, he delivers content across several domains, including CUET (UG and PG), NEET, JEE, and universities.