Welcome to this learning platform where we shall learn about nouns. What is a noun, you may ask? Well, there are various ways in which people construe nouns. But let us see some descriptions. You can see the video lesson of this post on ‘what is a noun?’ Kindly subscribe to our YouTube Channel.
Table of Contents
What is a Noun?
In a layman’s term, a noun is generally a name, a content word that is used to refer to anything; a name tag or a label by which something is known; that is, a signifying word.
The definition above virtually describes what a noun is; but you need to know in details, for proper understanding, other ways by which a noun can be easily identified.
Now follow me as I take you on step by step…
Grammatical Category of a Noun
A noun belongs to the grammatical category of words commonly referred to as Parts of Speech or Word Classes. A noun has been generally defined as the name of persons, places, animals or things. You must have used this definition at one time or the other. It could even be the only definition of a noun you know. Never bother, this is very true but there are numerous words that do not belong to any of these categories and they are still classified as nouns. Therefore, the definition of noun as the name of any person, place, animal or thing does not completely capture what a noun is.
Description of a Noun
So then, what is a noun? Rather than provide an overarching definition of a noun or a one-size-fits-all definition, it is expedient to describe a noun by what it does or how it appears – by its form and function. In other words, we will adopt a descriptive perspective to explaining the concept of a noun rather than a prescriptive approach which simply prescribes or defines. There are various ways to describe what a noun is:
Noun Functions
A noun is generally a name
Whatever you can think of that has a name is a noun. It is a content word that can be used to refer to anything: a person, a place, a thing, an animal, a concept, a quality, an idea, a feeling, a doctrine, a theory, an ideology, a state, etc. It can be a name tag for places, natural occurrences or disasters, persons, institutions, organisations, rivers, mountains, lakes, islands, continents, countries, states, districts, wards, areas, villages, cities, towns, hamlets, settlements, communities, oceans, seas, books, etc. or a label by which something is known; that is, a noun could be seen as what signifies anything – a signifier.
A noun is usually preceded by the article
A’, ‘AN’ or ‘THE’: This is another way to identify what a noun is. Just insert the article ‘a’ before it if it begins with a consonant and ‘an’ if it begins with a vowel. This is usually applicable to count nouns. Some words are nouns, but it is only the article ‘the’ that can precede them, especially non-count nouns. Once you do this and it makes sense, then what you have is a noun.
A noun is usually modified, qualified or described by adjectives
When you have a word an adjective precedes, the word is most likely a noun. Adjectives usually describe qualities possessed by other words. In some cases, a word that is naturally an adjectives could become a noun based on its functions or usage. Consider this example:
- The rich people also complain.
‘Rich’ in this example is traditionally an adjective while the word ‘people’, preceded by the adjective ‘rich’, is a noun. Having established this, look at yet another example in which a natural adjective is made to function as a noun:
- The rich also complain.
Based on usage or function, a traditional adjective has been made to function as a noun. This is also a way of identifying a noun. Consider another example:
- The great Alexander conquered then whole empire.
(‘Great’ as used above is an adjective)
- Alexander, the great conquered Greece and founded Alexandria
(‘Great’ as used here is a noun). Form and function are important concepts in identifying a noun.
A noun usually functions as the subject of a sentence
A sentence (the largest grammatical unit in the English Language) generally consists of a subject and the predicate. The subject is the actor, the performer or the initiator of the action in a sentence and it comes just before the verb in the sentence. The predicate consists of other grammatical elements in the sentence such as the verb, the object, the complement and the adverb or the adverbial. The subject of any sentence is usually a noun. Look at these examples:
- The tall man is very kind to his dear wife.
(‘The tall man’), though a noun phrase, is the subject of the sentence. Subjects of sentences may not necessarily be made up of one word; they could comprise strings of words, but no matter the number of words they contain, they serve as the subject of the sentence.
A noun usually functions as the object of a sentence
The object of a sentence is usually the receiver of the action in a sentence. Just like the subject, an object of a sentence could be a word or a string of words; but the object of a sentence is usually a noun. Take a look at these examples:
- The farmer killed a snake. (‘a snake’ is the object)
- The team walloped its opponent. (‘its opponent’ is the object)
It will be good at this point to mention the types of objects that a noun can be. First, there is the Direct object and the Indirect object.
Consider the following illustrations:
- The man bought his wife a car.
- The governor bought the students a bus
- The architect designed his mother a detached duplex.
In each of the three examples above, we have both the direct and indirect objects. Let us look at them closely:
Direct Object | Indirect Object |
a car | his wife |
a bus | the students |
a detached duplex | his mother |
One way to differentiate between these two forms of objects is to ask the question ‘what was done?’ and ‘for whom was it done?’ a direct object answers the first question while the indirect object answers the second question.
‘a car’, in example (a) is what was bought (direct object); ‘his wife’ is the recipient of what was bought (indirect object).
In example (b), ‘a bus’ is what was bought (direct object); ‘the students’ is for whom it was bought (indirect object).
In example (c), it is ‘a detached duplex’ that was designed (direct object) while ‘his mother’ is for whom the duplex was deigned (indirect object).
Note that in a sentence where the transitive verb has both direct and indirect objects, the indirect object comes directly after the transitive verb.
Differentiating Between Direct & Indirect Object
In a nutshell, understand that the direct object answers the question WHAT; while the indirect object answers the question FOR WHOM! Another way to differentiate between the two is that the indirect object can accommodate a preposition if the sentence is expanded while the direct object would not accommodate a preposition. Let us use the same examples above and introduce prepositions. This is what we will have:
- The man bought a car for his wife.
- The governor bought a bus for the students
- The architect designed a detached duplex for his mother.
A noun usually functions as the complement of the subject
This is similar to a noun functioning as an object of the sentence but with a slight difference. When a noun functions as the complement of the subject, a linking verb, usually the ‘be’ form of the verb is usually involved rather than a transitive verb. Consider the following examples:
- Sola is a trader (‘a trader’, a noun phrase, is the complement of the subject).
- The man is a shrewd business man (‘a shrewd business man’, a noun phrase, is the complement of the subject ‘the man’)
- The boy became the villain nobody could ever believe (‘the villain nobody could ever believe’, a noun clause, is the complement of the subject ‘the boy’.
Note: Don’t forget that we did mention earlier that the subject of a sentence may not necessarily be made up of one word; it could be a string of words. But that no matter the number of words a subject contains, it still serves as the subject of the sentence. This is also applicable to a noun serving as the complement of the subject; it could consist of strings of words.
A noun usually functions as the complement of the object
Another way a noun can also be identified is that it functions as the complement of the object of the verb in a sentence. The complement of the object could be a noun, a noun phrase or equally a noun clause. Consider the examples below:
- You can call the man Samson.
(The noun ‘Samson’ functions as the complement of the object ‘the man’).
- Nigerians elected Buhari the president.
(The noun phrase ‘the president’ serves as the complement of the object ‘Buhari’).
- You may wish to give the girl whatever she deserves.
(The noun clause ‘whatever she deserves’ functions as the complement of the object ‘the girl’).
A noun also functions as the complement of the preposition
We can also identify a noun by its function as the complement of the preposition. This can be demonstrated in the following examples:
- We trekked for hours.
(The noun ‘hours’ serves as the complement of the preposition ‘for’)
- They complained about the roads.
(‘the roads’ is a noun phrase which functions as the complement of the preposition ‘about’).
- The Music Director did not insist on who should lead the song.
(The preposition ‘on’ has the noun clause ‘who should lead the song’ as its complement).
Having followed our discussion on the various ways by which one can identify a noun, let us now take a look at the different types of nouns that exist.
Types of Nouns
There are various types of noun which include: Proper, Common, Count, Non-Count, Concrete/Material, Abstract, Collective, Verbal, Possessive, etc. I have provided detailed explanations on each of these types of noun in another post. (See Types of Nouns). You can also check out nouns and their plural forms.
By this article, I now know that the definition of a Noun is based on the form it was used.
Very educative and explanatory.
I got to know that a noun can complement a preposition
Great piece
A wonderful expository article on Nouns. Most students have superficial knowledge of the topic discussed but with this article, I believe every reader who has read this write-up should be well informed on the subject area.
My first lesson on this article is that noun is not only a name of person, animal, place or thing
But It is a content word that can be used to refer to anything
Noun serves so many functions as Subject, object, complement of noun, complement of preposition, etc
Noun are always modified or qualified by adjective
Wow I never knew noun was this wide, gained a lot from this article.
I am intrigued by the explanations. This is awesome
Noun is a broad topic which i really didn’t understand but this is very explanatory ,I gained a lot from this ,thank you sir
This is very good sir,with this article,I don’t think anybody should have problem with noun anymore.
I will be looking forward for some articles on transitive and intransitive verbs,and others parts of speech from you.
Very educational content sir.
Truth be told, that was the only definition of a noun I knew.
Thanks sir.
More power to your elbow.
I have gained a lot from this,I never knew noun can serve as the complement of a preposition,it would have been better with more examples.
This article has actually enabled me to more about noun,it’s function and application.
Noun can actually function as a subject or object depending on the structure of the sentence
This has broaden my knowledge on noun as a whole. Very educative and easy to comprehend.
Very comprehensive text and it actually made me to know more of the functions of noun
Wow! What a nice and simple enlightenment about noun. It broadens my knowledge about noun. Very educational
Wow that is interesting just learn something new about the concept of noun very well
That means a word is not called a noun or adjective but how the word is used in a sentence
This article is very educative, I just learnt about VERBAL NOUNS today
I learnt that noun can be as a complement of preposition
This is nice,very easy to understand,very educative and very explainative
This is very interesting. I don’t know noun is broad like this untill I read this. Have gained a lot in this. Thanks
Nothing to add,it’s a fully loaded article about noun which is far far educative than what i was taught in high school
Thanks for the knowledge impacted sir.
This is an educating article. I’ve received more information about the concept of nouns. I’m just getting to know verbal and possessive types of noun exist.
Thought I knew all what noun is all about but going through this? I must say that I have really added more knowledge of what noun is all about.
This was really educative and enlightening sir!! I actually realized that noun is far more than what I used to know and now I see more reasons to reading beyond what we’re taught in class! Will be looking forward to more articles from you sir!
Now I know that the definition of a noun really goes beyond the names of animals, places or things.
This is wonderful and so great,i really appreciate you for this explanation
Nice article sir, but what part of speech is “Alexander” in Alexander, the great conquered Greece and found Alexandria
It is a NOUN.
This has been very helpful to me now I know more about nouns.Thanks a lot for this article.
A noun is the name of anything one can think of. It can be qualified by adjectives and they serve different functions in a sentence.
This is a very insightful article. It has really broadened my knowledge on the types of nouns we have, and the different ways in which a noun can function
Reading this article i learnt their difference between direct object and indirect object in which direct object answer the question what while indirect object answer the question whom.thank you sir
What a mind opening piece, thanks for this contribution
I really learn a lot on this article “noun”.Actually I can recognize a word has a noun in a sentence, but I don’t know their function in the sentence with the exception of when it’s serving has subject or object. Now I know the function of a noun in sentence, thanks a lot sir.
A well detailed explanation of noun and very much educative.
Thank you sir. It’s educative and gives the precise meanings of a noun
This has just shown me the difference between adjectives and nouns… definitely worth reading.
Nice write up.. Well composed and it is more detailed than what we were taught before
Well done sir.
Wow! Amazing write-up. My knowledge on nouns has just been expanded from just “a name of any person, animal etc” to all this.
Thanks for the knowledge.
This is really educating as there is an increase in knowledge about nouns.
A very educative, self explanatory post. taught me a lot
Interesting
These makes me understand more about noun and how its function. They can function as a subject, object, compliment of a subject, compliment of an object, compliment of a preposition.
From this article,I suggested that sentences depend on a noun,that is every sentence contains noun or pronoun
This is a qualitative description of nouns and how to identify them. Really insightful. Nice write-up sir.
Wow…very educative write-up…I never knew nouns had as much qualities
Wow,I never knew noun is as broad as this. I actually thought it’s just a name of a person,animal place and things which we were taught in primary and secondary school. It’s very explanatory and shed more light on nouns. Thanks so much sir
I now have a better and also an extra knowledge on a noun.
This is highly educational and a very good one i must say, i’ve gotten an additional knowledge about nouns, about how they function as subject and object of sentences, complement of object, subject and preposition and so much more.
This is really educative about nouns,so a noun can also act as a compliment,compliments the object,subject and also preposition.
This great… Reading this, I have learned a little bit more about NOUN. Thanks for sharing this.
Hmmmmmmm… I love this, this much more than what I was taught in high school about Noun. Now I see that Noun is broad as a topic .. Thank you Sir for sharing this knowledge with us.
Just learnt this ;Subjects of sentences may not necessarily be made up of one word; they could comprise strings of words, but no matter the number of words they contain, they serve as the subject of the sentence.
This article make me realize that noun is more than what I have been thought. It teaches me how and when to make use of noun.
I never thought of a noun has anything that has a name before… that is a better explanation than animal,place or thing
This article was helpful.
So from this article it can be explained that one of the major functions of noun is that A noun is generally a Name.
“Whatever you can think of that has a name is a noun”.
I now understand that the scope of function of a Noun is beyond the name of a person, animal place or thing.
Wow I have gained a lot from this article.Nice write up
I never knew that noun is this broad, l really did understood the concept explained in this platform
The concept “Noun” was clearly understand in relations to it’s definition, descriptions and functions, in relations to the article a,an and the.
A noun is fully understood. Based on it’s functions and description “article”A and An or The which is applicable to count nouns
This article is really expository.
Thanks.
Interesting… The Reffered link was Really helpful
More enlightening and detailed explanation of what nouns are,what forms they occur and their functions. After reading this,proper understanding of nouns is assured.
very helpful
An educating article. The article really described what a noun is and how it is used. It also described how a noun functions in a sentence.
Interesting! I think, I learnt something.
Since ths word noun is stated as a naming word from the above explanation.any object in the universe that can be seen or unseen must have a name,the name given to the object it’s stated as noun to denote the kind of object look like
The article was a nice one. It also changed my metallity compared to what I was taught in secondary school.. I think we can also say or define a noun as a naming words, it can be used to identify name of any living thing.
It’s fully understood sir
This is an in depth explanation on the concept of nouns.I have a question though, in the case of an indirect speech where the sentence is rearranged will the function of the noun change irrespective of its position in the sentence
Will a subject of a sentence be change to object . E.g Fola killed a bird, In a reportive sentence,it becomes The bird was killed by Fola… Will Fola now become the object in the 2nd sentence
Not necessarily. What you are describing is within the context of active and passive voice in English which you can read up on.
It is very educative
This Write-up has added more to my understanding of NOUNS. Thank you sir, this is really helpful
As read above a noun is simply what we use to describe a person or anything just like a significance of what the person stands for
This piece is very educafive and worth reading
Very educative sir,it’s really helping me alot .sir I will love u to elaborate more on the term COMPLEMENT of a noun.
After reading this post I understand the concept of a noun,and how to describe a noun.
Never knew nouns were this broad
Truly enlighten me on nouns things I never knew about it nice piece of art
How can we differentiate between a noun and an adjective when used in the same context??
They are different. An Adjective qualifies a Noun! Read up about Adjective.
This is well understandable and easy to learn from
This article has enlightened and broadened my view on the concept of nouns,thanks for the educative write-up sir.
Educative
Enlightening! Very!
Worth reading.
Nouns aren’t just signifying words, they serve other purposes too.
This is a detailed post on what a noun really is. Far above the general definition of noun, it has exposed me to what nouns are, how to identify them, etc. In adding articles to nouns, one must ensure that it makes sense. It is impossible to say ‘a David’ though ‘David’ is a noun because it doesn’t make sense. Also, when converting adjectives or other parts of speech to nouns, it is called NORMINALIZATION.
It’s amazing how the definition of noun could go from,
“name of any person, animal,place or thing”
to all this. Interesting write-up
Lack of noun will eradicate any subject or object from a sentence that is well meaning full will be nothing.
Without the use of nouns , I basically feel,communication would have been harder due to the inability of humans to truly express their thoughts and opinions effectively.
As explained above noun does not deal only on naming word but also it has some functions likewise the noun clause or phrase
My question is that what are the difference between noun and noun clause since it has the same functions
A noun clause, which we also call a dependent or subordinate clause, performs the function of a noun in a sentence or functions like the nominal group. Read more on Noun Clause.
Very educative
Having read this article i have seen that a noun have various types of definition
A Noun can be describe in so many way
It has really being helpful especially in the arears of direct and indirect object.
Thank you sir for opening my mind on noun acting as a preposition, a new piece to assimilate!
Hmmm…….
Learnt a lot
Thought I knew everything about a noun
Reading this article really improved my knowledge of noun as part of speech. the meaning type and functions.
Nice article . I have been able to understand the different functions of a noun and so much more .
Reading this really improved my knowledge of Noun as a part of speech. I learnt the following through this article:
1. A noun is a namely word
2. The article A is used to precede noun with consonant at initials while AN is used to precede nouns with vowels at initials and THE to precede majorly non- count nouns.
3. Adjective modifies and qualifies a noun
4. Adjective can also be used as noun depending on the function in a sentence
5. The doer of an action is the SUBJECT of the sentence while the receiver is the OBJECT of the sentence which is further divided in two( direct and indirect).
6. Noun also function as compliment of subjects, objects, and preposition in a sentence.
7. There are various types of nouns which include; proper, common, count, non-count, concrete/material, abstract, e.t.c
It worth reading.
Interesting and educative
Another way a noun can also be identified is that it functions as the complement of the object of the verb in a sentence. The complement of the object could be a noun, a noun phrase or equally a noun clause.
Noun can also Function as apposition to another noun
A noun can be in apposition to another noun. By definition, the word “apposition” means putting a noun next to another noun to explain it. So each time you see a noun placed next to another noun and that noun is explaining the other noun, then you have a good example of a noun being in apposition to anther noun.
For example: The footballer, Suarez has been suspended.(from Welcation)
Amazing article. I have been more enlightened on Noun and its functions, especially on the aspect that a word which is naturally an adjective could become a noun.
Never knew nouns could be object complement, thanks for the enlightment
This is a simplified introduction to understanding noun. Good work
Good write up
It is well detail and comprehensive
Wonderful write up
Nouns have always been complicated especially when it comes to the functions and the various examples of nouns that you wouldn’t expect to be a noun, though this article isn’t very explicit but brief with few examples , at least it feels less complicated now and understandable. It would have been better if it were a little bit more detailed with more examples to show the various noun and more examples to further explain its functions.
This explains a lot
It’s a nice one
Nouns. It never gets old! They are content words used to refer to anything!
A noun is generally a name, and usually is preceded by the article.
Also, noun is usually modified, qualified or described by adjectives and functions as the subject of a sentence.
Very very details
Noun prescriptively is a signifier or a naming word. Noun descriptively can be described according to it’s functions, functioning as the subject of a sentence and so on.
This literally reveals the definition, functions and digs deep into the entire concept of a noun.
A noun is just a name tag or label for which something Is known….
I have always convinced myself that the accepted definition of a noun is “a noun is a name of any person, animal, place or things”
a noun is generally a name, a content word that is used to refer to anything; a name tag or a label by which something is known; that is, a signifying word.
Noun has never been more broken down for easier assimilation than this,it shows the intricacies and efficacy of Noun
Wow! This is a new approach to the meaning of a noun.
Wonderful write-up
Thanks for the information. I also believe there is more to Noun than what is here.
Well Understood
This explains a lot of things about noun, its functions and types.
It can help a lot.
Wow this is extraordinary I love this
I really gained a lot from reading this write-up. It was made known to me that a noun is not just a naming word but a content word used to refer to anything.
This serve as a reminder and addition to what have learnt about NOUN .Thank you
A noun comprises of words that can be used to refer to anything.A noun serves as subject of a sentence ,object of a sentence ,compliment of a subject and also a compliment of a preposition and object
Wow! I love this approach to the definition of noun- a descriptive perspective. This is like a paradigm to the rhymes we sing back at school.
Indeed, this is a great Job. This has eventually fetch me more knowledge on what a noun is. Thanks, more power to your elbow.
This article is actually a loaded one… Now I know the definition, functions and types of noun…
Wow! This is detailed enough to settle confusion on nouns.
Saying this is the best Article I’ve ever read on Nouns and it’s concepts, wouldn’t be an understatement….. Thank you very much sir.
A noun is a part of speech which is generally defined as the name of persons,places,animal or things.
I would define a noun by it functions which are;a noun is a name,it is usually preceded by the article,it is qualified by adjectives,it functions as subject of a sentence,object of a sentence,complement of the subject,complement of the object and complement of the preposition.
worth reading
A Noun simply refers to a content word that can be used to refer to anything: a person, a place, a thing, an animal, a concept, a quality, an idea, a feeling, a doctrine, a theory, an ideology, a state, etc. It is also a signifying word.
Eyes opening
When a noun functions as the complement of the subject, a linking verb, usually the ‘be’ form of the verb is usually involved rather than a transitive verb.
Very self explanatory. Indeed an eye opener.
Well simplified yet detailed,learnt alot
Thumbs up…nice write up sir
This is additional knowledge about noun and its different perspective and sincerely this write up needs to be turn into a book
A very educating post…taught me a lot
Wow….you have really expanciated it better …thank you sir
A very good write up .
My questions are:
1)Can a noun,noun phrase or clause be used as an apposition ?and
2)Do all noun phrases and clauses answer the question ‘WHAT’
The two articles below would answer you questions:
What is an Apposition?
What is a Noun Clause?
I am really happy to say it’s an interesting post to read…
Educative.
This article exposes me to more function of noun