Common Nouns and Proper Nouns - Definition and Examples

Common Nouns

As covered in the lesson nouns a noun is a word that names a person, place or thing. Nouns are divided into common nouns and proper nouns.

Common nouns are words for people, animals, places,

or things.

These are words for people. They are common nouns.

[artist, acrobat, actor, astronaut, dentist, lawyer, judge, etc.]

These are words for animals. They are common nouns.

[deer, crocodile, dolphin, fish, goat, parrot, whale, etc.]

These are words for places. They are common nouns.

[beach, park, library, church, zoo, school, stadium, etc.]

These are words for things.They are common nouns.

[basket, bed, drum, cake, gate, kite, lamp, picture, radio, etc.]

*Common nouns are capitalized only when they start a sentence.

The table below lists some more examples of common nouns.

Common Nouns
These are words for *people*. They are common nouns.
artist	acrobat	actor	aunt
astronaut	doctor	judge	singer
baker	soldier	teacher	lawyer
gardener	barber	swimmer	dentist
baby	space man	man	cook
These are words for *animals*. They are common nouns.
eagle	zebra	deer	crocodile
bear	mouse	goose	whale
dolphin	horse	parrot	cow
fish	goat	duck	bird
dog	shark	hen	cat
These are words for *places*. They are common nouns.
beach	market	library	church
airport	cave	hospital	mountain
farm	shop	hotel	playground
park	seashore	island	mall
house	restaurant	supermarket	temple
hill	school	stadium	zoo
These are words for *things*. They are common nouns.
basket	bread	gate	ladder
bed	desk	chair	picture
cake	bag	box	lamp
drum	blanket	door	television
kite	window	truck	flag
radio	letters	watch	train
cup	can	cot	egg

Proper Nouns

Proper nouns are names for particular people, places, or things.

They always begin with a capital letter.

Names of people are proper nouns.

[Santa Claus, Beethoven, Ali Baba, Patrick, Robin Hood, etc.]

The names of countries and their people are proper nouns.

Country People Country People

America Americans Thailand Thais

India Indians Malaysia Malaysians

The names of towns, cities, buildings, and landmarks are proper nouns.

[Bangkok, Hong Kong, the Great Wall of China, New Delhi, etc]

The days of the week and months of the year are proper nouns.

Days: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday,

Friday, Saturday.

Months: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August

September, October, November, December.

The names of mountains, seas, rivers, and lakes are proper nouns.

[Mount Everest, Niagara Falls, the Alps, the Dead Sea, etc.]

* Use the before names of oceans, rivers, seas, and ranges

of mountains. Mount means mountain. It is often used in

the names of mountains.The written short form for Mount is

Mt. For example, Mt. Everest.

The names of festivals, some special events and

holidays are proper nouns.

[New Year's Day, Independence Day, Thanksgiving Day, etc.]

The table below lists some more examples of proper nouns.

Proper nouns
Names of *people* are proper nouns
Omar			Lisa			Santa Claus
Ali Baba			Beethoven			Patrick
Pinocchio			Derek Jeter			Robin Hood
Florence Nightingale			Harry Potter			Pauline
The names of *countries* and *their people* are proper nouns.
Country	People			Country			People
America	Americans			Egypt			Egyptians
Thailand	Thais			India			Indians
Korea	Koreans			Italy			Italians
Malaysia	Malaysians			Philippines			Filipino
Japan	the Japanese			Pakistan			Pakistanis
France	the French			China			Chinese
The names of *towns, cities, buildings* and *landmarks* are proper nouns.
London	Paris			the Great Wall of China
Sydney	Denver			the Statue of Liberty
Beijing	Egypt			the Grand Canyon
New Delhi	Bangkok			the Leaning Tower of Pisa
New York	Tokyo			Brooklyn Bridge
Big Ben	Central Park			the Eiffel Tower
Hong Kong	Dubai			Pike's Peak
The days of the week and *months of the year* are proper nouns.
Days	Sunday			Monday			Tuesday
Wednesday	Thursday			Friday			Saturday
Months	January			February			March
April	May			June			July
August	September			October			November
December
The names of *mountains, seas, rivers* and *lakes* are proper nouns.
the Thames		Mount Everest			Niagara Falls
Lake Michigan		the Alps			the Dead Sea
Mount Fuji		the Himalayas			the Pacific Ocean
the Yellow River		Mount St. Helens
The names of *festivals, some special events* and holidays are proper nouns.
Independence Day		New Year's Day			Christmas
Valentine's Day		Halloween			Father's Day
Mother’s Day		Memorial Day			April Fool's Day
Thanksgiving Day		St. Patrick's Day

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