Here in this article we are going to provide common noun examples with explanations.
Common nouns are those nouns which are general to any one of a class of people, places, or things. They are typically used to reference things that are commonly found and are very broad in nature.
For example, the word “girl” is a common noun, because there are many girls across the world—and the word could be representative of any of them. However, the word “Anisha” is a proper noun because it talks about a specific girl—and therefore, it should be capitalised.
Common noun sentences-
- My favourite author is J.R.R Tolkein, because he writes about fantastical worlds that I wish I could be a part of.
- Mumbai is the capital of Maharashtra, and is a coastal city that is at risk of facing negative repercussions as sea levels continue to rise due to global warming.
- India is one of the most multilingual countries in the world—just behind Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and Nigeria. Therefore, it isn’t uncommon for Indians to have fluency in two or more languages.
- There are many different types of black tea in the world, with most of it being produced in China and India. Popular varieties of black tea include Darjeeling tea and English Breakfast tea.
- Lata Mangeshkar is widely regarded as being one of the greatest and most influential singers to have come out of India.
- There are both benefits and drawbacks to social media sites like Twitter and Instagram, depending on how you use them.
- While the origin of Hinduism cannot be determined exactly, it is considered to be one of the oldest religions in the world.
- Two of the most successful actresses in Bollywood today are Deepika Padukone and Alia Bhatt.
- Siddharth’s favourite subject is mathematics, but he is finding it difficult to remember how to use Pythagoras’ Theorem.
- Sanjay Leela Bhansali is a popular Indian film director.
- My mother is vegetarian on Tuesdays, but on all other days of the week she eats everything.
- Jai has climbed many mountains, but he has never climbed Mount Everest.
- Shreya’s mother is a trained doctor.
- The restaurant chains Starbucks and McDonalds are very successful and popular across the world.
- Bose sells many different types of audio equipment, including earphones, speakers, noise cancelling headphones, and more.
Now, let use look at detailed explanations of the 15+ common noun examples.
My favourite author is J.R.R Tolkein, because he writes about fantastical worlds that I wish I could be a part of.
In this example, the word “author” is a common noun because it represents a type of person, and because the word is not specific—because there are many authors in the world. Similarly, “worlds” is a common noun because it represents a type of place that isn’t unique to itself.
Mumbai is the capital of Maharashtra, and is a coastal city that is at risk of facing negative repercussions as sea levels continue to rise due to global warming.
In this example, the word “capital” and “city” are common nouns because they represent a category of places. In contrast, the word Mumbai is a proper noun because it represents a specific place.
India is one of the most multilingual countries in the world—just behind Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and Nigeria. Therefore, it isn’t uncommon for Indians to have fluency in two or more languages.
In this example, the words “countries” and “world” are common nouns because they represent categories of places. Likewise, the word “languages” is a common noun because it represents a general category of things (there are many languages in the world—such as Hindi, French, Korean, and so on). In contrast, the words India, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and Nigeria are proper nouns because they represent specific places.
There are many different types of black tea in the world, with most of it being produced in China and India. Popular varieties of black tea include Darjeeling tea and English Breakfast tea.
In this example, the noun phrase “black tea” is a common noun because it represents a general category of things (specifically, teas that are black). In contrast, the words “Darjeeling tea” and “English Breakfast tea” are proper nouns (and need to be capitalised) because they represent specific types of black tea.
Lata Mangeshkar is widely regarded as being one of the greatest and most influential singers to have come out of India.
Here, “singers” is a common noun because it represents a general category of people (all singers), and “Lata Mangeshkar” is a proper noun (and thus capitalised) because it is the name of a specific singer.
There are both benefits and drawbacks to social media sites like Twitter and Instagram, depending on how you use them.
Here, the noun phrase “social media sites” is a common noun because it represents all social media sites. Meanwhile, “Twitter” and “Instagram” are proper nouns because they represent specific social media sites.
While the origin of Hinduism cannot be determined exactly, it is considered to be one of the oldest religions in the world.
Here, “religions” is a common noun because it represents the general category of all religions (such as Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, etc.). Meanwhile, “Hinduism” is a proper noun because it represents a specific type of religion.
Two of the most successful actresses in Bollywood today are Deepika Padukone and Alia Bhatt.
Here, “actresses” is a common noun because it is general to all people whose profession is acting. Meanwhile, “Deepika Padukone” and “Alia Bhatt” are proper nouns because they are the name of specific actresses.
Siddharth’s favourite subject is mathematics, but he is finding it difficult to remember how to use Pythagoras’ Theorem.
In this sentence, “mathematics” is a common noun because it represents a general subject area (within mathematics, one studies many distinct things—such as geometry, algebra, and so on). In contrast, “Pythagoras’ Theorem” is a proper noun because it represents a specific, standalone theory in mathematics.
Sanjay Leela Bhansali is a popular Indian film director.
Here, director is a common noun because it represents a general category of all people who direct movies for a living. Meanwhile, “Sanjay Leela Bhansali” is a proper noun because it is the name of a specific director.
My mother is vegetarian on Tuesdays, but on all other days of the week she eats everything.
Here, “days” is a common noun because it represents a general category of all days of the week. Meanwhile, “Tuesday” is a proper noun because it is the name given to the second day of the week.
Jai has climbed many mountains, but he has never climbed Mount Everest.
Here, “mountains” is a common noun because it is a general category that represents all the mountains in the world. Meanwhile, “Mount Everest” is a proper noun because it is the name of a specific mountain.
Shreya’s mother is a trained doctor.
Here, the words “mother” and “doctor” are both common nouns because there are many mothers and doctors in the world.
The restaurant chains Starbucks and McDonalds are very successful and popular across the world.
Here, the noun phrase “restaurant chains” is a common noun because it represents the general category of all the restaurant chains in the world (which include places like Dominoes, Starbucks, McDonalds, and so on).
Bose sells many different types of audio equipment, including earphones, speakers, noise cancelling headphones, and more.
Here, “audio equipment” is a common noun because it represents the general category of all things related to audio. Interestingly, the words “earphones,” “speakers,” and “noise cancelling headphones” are also common nouns despite being a subcategory of “audio equipment”—because they are still too vague for us to know exactly what is being spoken about (since there are many different types, brands, and models of earphones and other audio equipment in the world).
Common noun use–
- It should not be capitalised, unless it is written towards the beginning of a sentence or is a part of a title.
- It should be a noun. That is, it shouldn’t be either a verb or an adjective—and it should reference either a name, place, animal, or thing.
- Ask yourself whether the word is vague or very specific. If it is vague—and does not reference a particular person, place, or thing—then you can assume that it is a common noun.
