Kinds of Noun Common noun: boy, girl, man, woman, dog, horse, city, etc Proper noun: Ahmed,

Lahore, Tales of Shakspeare, etc. Collective noun: family, committee, jury, staff, crowd, flock, cattle, class, company, herd, crew, swarm,
people, gentry, poultry, public, police, vermin, folk, clergy, cluster, gang, head, etc

Material noun: milk, water, iron, gold, sand, butter, air, etc. Abstract noun: Cleverness, honesty, wisdom, pleasure, poverty, laughter, movement. Countable nouns: table, book, chair, boy, class, student, etc. Uncountable: milk, water, rice, wheat, air, oxygen, smoke, etc. they are preceded by a lot, any, no, a little.

1: Some nouns are singular but look plural:

Politics, mathematics, innings, physics, statistics, mechanics, summons, gallows, wages, ethics, mumps, measles, billiards,
Politics is a dirty game. We received a summons from the court. The wages of sin is death. Mathematics is a difficult subject. They fixed up a gallows. 2: The words ending in ICS have plural form when they are used as skills:

His mathematics are weak. Mechanics of trade are not easy to follow. His politics are progressive. 3: Words which retain their S and used as plural and singular some fixed plural nouns Trousers, pants, glasses, scissors, spectacles, glasses, scales, shears, binoculars, tongs can be plural and singular arms, alms, damages, particulars, riches, goods, savings, greens, ( vegetables) plastics factory, surroundings, valuables, grounds, thanks, odds and ends ( difficult circumstances) congratulations, sometimes, as follows, belongings, now-a-days, customs department. My trousers are at laundry. The scissors are lying on the table. A pair of trousers is for sale. A pair of shoes is lost. She always takes pains to speak well. Whose belongings are these? His spectacles are old. His father is in customs department. His particulars are given below. Alms are given to the poor.

4: No S please Scenery, information, vacation, poetry, furniture, machinery, offspring, bread, rice, knowledge, luggage, clothing, traffic, corn, abuse, fruit, hair, alphabet, apparatus, advice, mischief, dirt, fish, sheep. The scenery of Kashmir is very beautiful. I have lost my furniture. I went to home during summer vacation. These five children are her offspring. His hair has turned white. Some plural forms: words of advice or pieces of advice, Pieces of poetry, Acts of mischief, Words of abuse, Articles of furniture, Items of information, A great deal of troubles, A few of hairs, different kinds of fruits or fishes.
1 Complied by: Prof. Atif Javed Stars Academy Lahore: 37800293

5: Some nouns are plural but look singular: Cattle, people, gentry, poultry, public, vermin, clergy, These cattle are mine. The vermin are swarming. A collective noun takes a singular verb when the collection is thought of as a whole and plural verb when the individuals are thought of . The committee are divided on the issue. The committee has decided the issue. The jury has decided the case in his favour. The crowd were dispersed. 6: Some nouns have same form in Plural and singular: This deer. These deer. This sheep. Those sheep. This fish. Those fish. 7: Some nouns with number are singular and without number are plural. Head, pair, brace ( a pair of birds ) gross, yoke, foot, dozen, score, hundred, thousand, stone ( unit of measurement equal to 14 pound ), rupee. Year with noun and years without noun. I have five head of cattle. He bought two dozen of eggs. He bought two pair of shoes. Hundreds of people have gathered to see the match. He gave me a ten rupee note. I like six year old horse. He is six years old. 8: After an amount of money, a distance, a weight or length of time, we normally use a singular verb. Eight pounds seems a fair price. A hundred meters is not far to swim. Ninety kilos is too heavy for me to lift. Five minutes does not seem long to wait. Five miles is a long distance. 9: Correct some common pitfalls in the use of nouns: This house is built of bricks and stones. The officer passed order against him. Put your sign here. She cooks a hot meals in the evening. The whole family meets at meal. Punjab exports grains and cotton. We have many works to do. He is true to words. I enjoy seasonal vegetable. He is out of sort these days. 10: Some important expressions: He served me with fruit. He reaped the fruits of his labour. The people have come to see the match. The peoples of the world suffer from poverty. He is looking for work. I have much work to do. The works of Shakespeare are worth reading. Room is used for place, time and space. There is no room to sit in the class. I have got a pain in my back. I took great pains to pass the examination, 11: The use of modifier: Few, fewer, many, a lot of , some, several, plenty of are used with countable nouns. There are a few books on the table. We have a lot of cakes. He broke several glasses. A lot of, plenty of, less, much, a little, are used with uncountable nouns. The boys make a lot of noise. He has very little experience in teaching. How much milk do you drink daily. Means as method or source is singular and as resources plural: This means of transport saves energy. His means to support his children are limited.

Complied by: Prof. Atif Javed

Stars Academy Lahore: 37800293