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What are
nouns?
A noun is a word used as the name of a person,
place or thing. There are different kinds of nouns. Read the following
sentence:
·
Solomon was a wise
king.
Here the noun Solomon refers
to a particular king, but the nounking may refer to any other king
as well. Here Solomon is a proper noun and king is a common
noun.
Similarly, Alice is a proper
noun and girl is a common noun.
France is a proper noun and country is a common noun.
France is a proper noun and country is a common noun.
A proper noun is the name of a particular person or
thing. A common noun is a name given in common to every person
or thing of the same class or kind.
Note that proper nouns always begin with a
capital letter. Common nouns include what are called collective nouns and abstract
nouns.
Collective nouns
A collective noun is the name of a collection of persons
or things taken together and spoken of as one whole.
Examples are: jury, committe, class,
family, team, folk, fleet, nation etc.
An abstract noun is the name of a quality, action or
state which we can only think of. Examples are: kindness, goodness,
honesty, bravery, ignorance, stupidity, wisdom, laughter etc.
Note that the names of arts and sciences are
also considered abstract nouns.
Abstract nouns are formed from adjectives,
verbs or common nouns. For example, the abstract noun kindness is
formed from the adjective kind whereas the abstract noun obedience is
formed from the verb obey.
Countable and
uncountable nouns
Nouns are also classified as countable
and uncountable. Countable nouns are the names of objects that we can count.
Examples are:book, pen, apple, doctor, sister, boy etc. Uncountable
nouns are the names of things which we cannot count. Examples
are: rice, gold, wheat, honesty, beauty, oil etc.
Note that countable nouns have plural forms and can be used with the indefinite article a/an. Uncountable nouns do not have plural forms and cannot be used with the indefinite articles.
Note that countable nouns have plural forms and can be used with the indefinite article a/an. Uncountable nouns do not have plural forms and cannot be used with the indefinite articles.
What are
verbs?
Read the following sentences:
·
Mother cooks dinner.
·
Children play in
the park.
·
Barking dogs
seldom bite.
In the sentences given above, the words in
bold text are used to say something about a person or a thing. They say what a
person or a thing does. These words are called verbs.
Now read the following sentences.
·
We have two
hands and two legs.
·
She is a
good girl.
Here the verbs have and is show
what a person has or is. These words are also called verbs. Thus we have seen
that a verb is a word which shows what a person or a thing is, has or does. The
verb may also express what happens or is done to the person or thing.
The thief was beaten. (Here the
verb was beaten shows what happens to the thief.)
A verb may consist of more than one word. Some
verbs may consist of as many as four words.
·
It is raining.
·
It has been
raining.
·
It rains.
Transitive and
intransitive verbs
Verbs that take an object are called transitive
verbs.
·
She heard a noise.
(subject – she, verb – heard, object – a noise)
·
He saw a pigeon.
(Subject – he, verb – saw, object – a pigeon)
·
The girl plucked
the flower. (Subject – the girl, verb – plucked, object – the flower)
·
The master beat the
dog. (subject – the master, verb – beat, object – the dog)
Some verbs do not take an object after them.
These are calledintransitive verbs. Examples are: smile, sit, sleep,
cry, laugh, dance etc.
·
The baby smiled.
(Here the verb smiled is intransitive because it has no object.)
·
The child cried.
(Here the verb cried is intransitive because it has no object.)
·
He sat on
the bed. (Here the verb sat is intransitive because it has no object.)
Note that most verbs can be used both
transitively and intransitively
What are
adjectives?
An adjective is a word like kind, happy,
smart and intelligent. An adjective typically modifies a
noun and denotes a temporary or permanent quality associated with that noun.
For example, a smart boy is a boy who is distinguished from
other boys by being smart.
Not all adjectives are used to denote a
quality associated with a noun. For example, the adjective mere in
‘a mere child’ does not denote a quality of the child.
Kinds of adjectives
Adjectives may be divided into the following
classes:
Adjectives of quality
Adjectives of quality refer to the kind or
quality of a person or thing. They answer the question: ‘of what kind?’
·
Tokyo is a large city.
(Here the adjective large shows a certain quality associated with the city
Tokyo.)
·
Alice is a brilliant student.
(Here the adjective brilliant shows a quality associated with the noun Alice.)
Note that adjectives formed from proper nouns
are generally considered as adjectives of quality. Examples are: Persian
carpets, French wines etc.
Adjectives of quantity
Adjectives of quantity answer the question
‘how much?’. Examples are: some, any, much, little, enough, all, no,
half, whole etc.
·
We need some rice.
·
You have little patience.
·
He has lost all his
wealth.
·
He did not eat any rice.
Adjectives of number
Adjectives of number answer the question ‘how
many’. Examples are: many, one, two, first, tenth, all etc.
·
Each hand has five fingers.
·
Sunday is the first day
of the week.
·
All men must die.
·
There are several mistakes
in your essay.
Demonstrative
adjectives
Demonstrative adjectives answer the question
‘which?’. Examples are: this, that, these, those and such.
·
That boy is industrious.
·
This bag is made of expensive leather.
·
Those mangoes were very sweet.
·
I hate such people.
Note that this and that are
used with singular nouns. These andthose are used
with plural nouns.
Interrogative
adjectives
When they are used with nouns to ask
questions, the questions words what, which and whose are
called interrogative adjectives.
·
Whose bag is this?
·
Which way shall we go?
Adjectives
used without nouns
Adjectives are often used without nouns.
To refer to some
well-known groups of people
The structure the + adjective is
used to talk about some well-known groups of people. Examples are: the
blind, the deaf, the unemployed, the rich, the poor, the young, the old, the
dead etc.
·
He is collecting money
for the blind. (= He is collecting money for blind people.)
·
Blessed are the
meek.
·
The government should
do something for the poor.
Note that these expressions are always
plural. The blind means all blind people.
Similarly, the dead means all dead people. Adjectives
are not normally used in this way without the.
Blessed are the meek. (NOT Blessed
are meek.)
These expressions cannot be used with a possessive
‘s.
The problems of the
blind should be
properly addressed. OR Blind people’s problems should be
properly addressed. (NOT The blind’s problems should be properly addressed.)
In a few fixed phrases, the +
adjective can have a singular meaning. Examples include: the
accused, the former, the latter, the deceased etc.
·
The
accused was released
on bail.
Note that plural meanings are also possible.
Abstract ideas
An adjective can be used after the to
refer to some abstract quality or idea.
She doesn’t believe in the
supernatural.
The future (= futurity) is unknown to us.
Adjectives of
nationality
Some adjectives of nationality ending in -sh
or -ch can be used afterthe without nouns. These
adjectives include Irish, Welsh, English, British, Spanish, French etc.
The Irish are proud of their sense of humor.
Note that the expressions the Irish,
the English etc., are plural.The singular equivalents are for example
an Irishman or an Englishwoman.
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