NOUNS and PRONOUNS Chapter 13

Nouns Nouns are naming words. A noun names something. Most nouns fall into four main groups: People Places Things Ideas

Examples People Places Things Ideas Veterinarian Lake Mead Bumblebee Strength Dr. Robinson Classroom Collar Honesty Americans Kennel Motorcycle Willingness Leader Bunker Hill Notebook obedience

Collective nouns A few nouns name groups of people or things. A pack, for example is “a group of dogs or other animals that travel together.” A collective noun names a group of people or things. Club Herd Army Troop Orchestra Committee Class Team group

Compound nouns A compound noun is one noun made by joining two or more words. They are written in three different ways: Single words Hyphenated words Separated words

Cont. Single words Hyphenated words Separated words Crossbar By-product Dinner jacket Firefighter Right-hander Pole vault Thunderstorm Middle-distance Pen pal Classroom Mother-in-law Chief justice

Common and Proper Nouns All nouns can be divided into two large groups: Common nouns and proper nouns A common noun names any one of a class of people, places, things, or ideas. Common nouns are not capitalized. A proper noun names a specific person, place, thing, or idea. Proper nouns are always capitalized.

Common nouns Proper nouns Inventor Alexander Graham Bell Village Tarrytown Story “The Tell-Tale Story” Organization American Red Cross Idea Germ Theory of Disease

Pronouns Pronouns are words that take the place of nouns. A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun or a group of words acting as a noun. Ex) Aunt Bonnie was late because Aunt Bonnie had waited for Aunt Bonnie’s book to arrive. (with Nouns) Aunt Bonnie was late because she had waited for her book to arrive. (with pronouns)

Cont. Sometimes a pronoun takes the place of a noun in the same sentence. Ex) My mother ate her salad. Many people say eating well has helped them. A pronoun can also take the place of a noun used in an earlier sentence. My mother opened her package first. She was curious about it. College students must take a language class. They can choose from Spanish or Italian.

Cont. A pronoun may take the place of an entire group of words. Ex) Trying to paint can be very hard work. It takes practicing on a daily basis.

Antecedents of pronouns The word or group of words that a pronoun replaces or refers to is called an antecedent. An antecedent is the noun (or group of words acting as a noun) to which a pronoun refers. Ex) The police officers describe how they did their jobs. Finally, the police officer arrived; he took control of the problem. How Amy was saved is incredible. It is an event that she’ll speak about often. Although he was a pastry chef, Mike also enjoyed cooking meals.

Cont. Some kinds of pronouns do not have an antecedent. Ex) Everyone in the room knew the truth. Who broke the antique lamp? The pronouns everyone and who do not have a specific antecedent because their meaning is clear without one.

Recognizing Personal Pronouns The pronouns used most often are personal pronouns. Personal pronouns refer to (1) the person speaking or writing, (2) the person listening or reading, or (3) the topic (person, place, thing, or idea) being discussed or written about. The first-person pronouns I, me, my, mine, we, us, our, and ours refer to the person or persons speaking or writing. Ex) I like the new magazine layout. Please give us a taste.

Cont. The second-person pronouns you, your, and yours refer to the person or persons spoken or written to. Ex) You will see it later. Your dog is barking at me.

Cont. The third-person pronouns he, him, she, her, hers, it, its, they, they, them, their, and theirs refer to the person, place, things, or idea being spoken or written about. Ex) He wants to watch the news at 6:00 P.M. They wrote to the author of the book. Some personal pronouns show possession.