NOUNS

COMMON AND PROPER NOUNS

We use common nouns in sentences to denote a class of person, place, or thing whereas proper
nouns are used for a specific person, place, or thing. Example: Dogs, Cats, Streets, Cities are
common nouns whereas Peter, Rani, London, Frido my pet are examples of Proper nouns.
More examples of the difference between common and proper nouns:
è My favourite newspaper (common noun) is the Washington Post (proper noun).
Note that a sentence can have more than one Common and/or Proper Noun.

Exercise 1: Write “Common” or “Proper” next to each noun

1. Boy

2. Girl

3. Paul

4. James

5. The Taj Hotel

6. Toyota

7. Student

Exercise 2: Identify the type of noun

Read the following sentences and identify the common or proper nouns in them

1. I gave my book to Riya to read.

2. The Taj Mahal in India is very beautiful.

3. Red Riding Hood met the fox in the forest.

4. Did you know that Tony Stark walks his dog every day even though he’s Iron Man?
5. The boy ran to his mother.

6. The flat was in the middle of Lenin Street.

7. The reporter went to Noida to collect news.

8. This milk tastes sour.

9. Rose’ is a beautiful girl.

10. I have read the novel by Emily Bronte.

11. King Arthur was a noble king.

12. The author wrote a crime novel.

13. The captain steered the ship from hitting the iceberg.

14. The old judge passed a unique judgement.

15. The Milky Way is a big galaxy.

16. The Indian Express is the newspaper I read regularly.

17. Sheldon is an intelligent physicist.

18. The Ganga is an important river of India.

19. J.K Rowling wrote the famous novels on Harry Potter.

20. My uncle works in the Reserve Bank of India.

Exercise – 3

Underline the common nouns and circle the proper nouns in the sentences for the
common noun exercises with answers

1. Sam will go to Australia in February.

2. She belongs to Patna.

3. Maya and Vinu play chess in the park.

4. The cat has a black stripe on its body.

5. His birthday is in December.

6. The school remains closed on Saturdays and Sundays.

7. William Shakespeare wrote the ‘Merchant of Venice’.

8. My family is addicted to ‘The Times of India’.

Exercise – 4

Match the common nouns of the column – A with the proper noun in column – B for
the common noun exercises with answers.

Column A Column B

Boy South Korea

Continent Asia

Girl Nile

Mobile phone Sam

River RaK’s Pallikkoodam

Country Apple

School Reenu
Think of a proper noun for each of the common nouns