Identifying Nouns

Nouns: How do we identify them?

Because of the fact that adjectives can be considered as nouns, and that nouns can be considered adjectives, some still find it confusing to identify nouns in sentences. This, therefore, raises the question “how can one identify nouns as they appear in sentences?”

In a nutshell, nouns can be identified based on its location, on its appearance, and on its function. For this discussion, the bolded words pertain to the nouns in the sentences so as to aid the readers in locating the same. It bears stressing that the manner by which this discussion is presented was adopted from the MSA Comprehensive English Handbook (please refer to references). 

I.                 Identifying nouns based on its LOCATION.

A.    After determiners

Example: The women were called to support the troops.

B.    After prepositions

Example: Jose left his toy in the car.

C.    Before and after verbs

Example: Andres left the house yesterday.

D.    After adjectives

Example: The generous businessman

E.     After nouns and noun phrases (i.e. after appositives or appositive phrases)

Example: Bell’s invention, the telephone, was featured in last month’s issue of The Inquirer.

II.               Identifying nouns based on its APPEARANCE.

A word is a noun when it ends with suffixes such as –age (as in reportage), -ce (as in appearance), -cy (as in presidency), -dom (as in kingdom), -ion (as in association), -ism (as in federalism), -ity (as in infidelity), -ment (as in excitement), -ness (as in cleanliness), -or (as in executor), -ship (as in friendship), -sy (as in idiosyncrasy), -tion (as in generalization), -ty (as in realty), -ure (as in curvature).

A noun also has cases. The case nouns indicate how a particular nouns functions in a sentence (i.e. whether it is a subject or an object therein). The subjective case of nouns, on the one hand, indicates that the noun in the sentence is the subject therein and is, therefore, the doer or the one being talked about in the sentence. The objective case of nouns, on the other hand, indicates that the noun in the sentence is the receiver of the action. Lastly, the possessive case of nouns indicates (as its name suggests) possession and/or ownership.

III.             Identifying nouns based on its FUNCTION.

A.    As subject of a verb

Example: The saleslady introduced herself to the customer.

B.    As complement of a linking verb

Example: Manolo is the valedictorian of their class.

C.    As object of a transitive verb

Example: Gregorio hurled the ball towards the wall.

D.    As objective complement

Example: The members elected Teodora Hernandez as Chairperson.

E.     As object of a preposition

Example: They nominated Miriam for the party presidency.

F.     As nominative of a direct address (i.e. nouns used in direct quotations)

Example: Apolinario, take this.

G.    As appositive (i.e. a noun that renames the subject and/or object in the sentence. It is usually placed in between commas)

Example: Bell’s invention, the telephone, was featured in last month’s issue of The Inquirer.

The next time you read a sentence, try identifying the nouns therein using what you have learned in this discussion.

References

Brown, Anne Cole et al. English. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1990.

Celse-Murcia, Marianne and Diane Larsen-Freeman. The Grammar Book: An ESL/EFLTeacher’s Course (2^nd Edition). Singapore: Thomson Learning Asia, 2008.

Forlini, Gary et al. (ed.). Prentice Hall Grammar and Composition (4^th Edition). New Jersey:Englewood Cliffs, 2001.

Haley-James, Shirley et al. English. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1988.

Hosler, Mary Margaret. English Made Easy (5^th Edition). New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin, 2005.

Kahn, John Ellison et al. (ed.) “How to Write and Speak Better (3^rd Edition).” Toucan BooksLimited and WoodCraft Editing and Writing Limited. Hong Kong: The Reader’s Digest Association Ltd., 1993.  

Martin, Jerome. English. Lexington, Massachusetts: D.C. Heath and Company, 1984.

Rivero-Hernandez, Clarissa. et al. MSA Comprehensive English Handbook. Quezon City: MSAAcademic Advancement Institute, 2005.

Winterowd, W. Ross and Patricia Murray. English Writing and Skills. San Diego, CA: CoronadoPublishers, 1985.