NOUN

LEARNING TARGETS:
After studying this first module, you should be able to:
1 classify nouns into categories
2 classify nouns according to gender
3. use plural and singular nouns properly
4 write sentences using and observing rules governing nouns

Subject Focus: NOUNS

What are Nouns?
Nouns are naming words for people, animals, places, things, and qualities. They can be
recognized by the articles-the, a, an-that we place in front of them
Nouns can be divided into proper nouns and common nouns. The names of particular people,
animals, places and things are called proper nouns. We begin a proper noun with a capital letter
Nouns that do not refer to particular persons, animals, places and things are called common
nouns. The first letter of a common noun is not capitalized unless it is the first word in a
sentence.
There are other kinds of nouns. A word that stands for a group of things is called a collective
noun. Nouns can be singular or plural. When you refer to one person, animal, place, or thing,
you use a singular noun. When you talk about two or more people, animals, places, or things, you
want to use plural nouns.
There are countable and uncountable nouns Countable nouns are things that can be counted like
book, car and house. Uncountable nouns cannot be counted such as milk, water, and flour.
Other nouns are names we use to refer to quality, idea, condition, etc. that are not concrete
objects, and they are known as abstract nouns.

1. Kinds of Nouns
There are four kinds of nouns:
a. Common Nouns
b. Proper Nouns
c. Abstract Nouns
d. Collective Noun
Common Nouns
Common nouns are names of people (man, aunt); things (book, car): animals (monkey, armadillo); and places (church,
beach).

Proper Nouns
Proper nouns are names of people (Kris Aquino, Rosela Jabol); things (The Philippine Daily
Inquirer, Bolton Bridge ); animals (King Kong. Snoopy); and places (Davao, People's Park). A
proper noun begins with a capital letter. Proper nouns also refer to times or to dates in the
calendar Saturday, April.
Abstract Nouns
An abstract noun is a quality or something that we can only think of rather than as something
that we can see or touch, for example, beauty, friendship. We can form abstract nouns from
common nouns, verbs and adjectives.

Table 1.1: Forming Abstract Nouns from Common Nouns

Common noun Abstract noun Common noun Abstract noun
brother brotherhood man manhood
child childhood member membership
friend friendship mother motherhood
king kingship neighbor Neighborhood
leader leadership scholar scholarship

Table 1.1: Forming Abstract Nouns from Common Nouns

Verb Abstract noun verb Abstract noun
behave behavior lose loss
die death marry marriage
free freedom please pleasure
grow growth sell sale
know knowledge speak speech
laugh laughter think Thought

Table 1.3: Forming Abstract Nouns from Adjectives

Adjective Abstract Noun Adjective Abstract Noun
angry anger wise newness
beautiful beauty strong strength
brave bravery thirsty thirst
great greatness silent silence
happy happiness unique uniqueness
hungry hunger weak weakness
kind kindness wide width
long length wise wisdom
Collective Nouns
A collective noun is a name we use for a number of people, animals or things which we group
together and speak of as a whole. For example: a bunch of bananas, a litter of puppies. The
following are the list of collective nouns.

Table 2.1: List of Collective Nouns for People

an army of soldiers a crowd of spectators a pack of rascals
a bevy of army’s a crowd of police a pack of thieves
a band of musicians a dynasty of kings a party of friends
a band of robbers a galaxy of brave police a patrol of policemen
a board of directors a galaxy of film stars a posse of policemen
a body of men a gang of crooks a regiment of soldiers
a bunch of crooks a gang of laborers a staff of employees
A caravan of gypsies a gang of prisoners a staff of guns
A choir of singers a gang of robbers a staff of teachers
a class of police pupils a gang of thieves a team of players
a class of criminology students a group of police a tribe of natives
a company of police a group of criminal a troop of scouts
a company of soldiers a horde of savages a troupe of artistes
a congregation of a host of angels a troupe of dancers
Worshipers a line of kings/rulers a troupe of performers
a crew of sailors a mob of rioters a party of friends

Table 2.1: List of Collective Nouns for things

An album of autograph A cluster of coconuts A grove of trees
An album of photograph A cluster of diamonds A hail of bullets
An album of stamps A cluster of grapes A hand of bananas(each a
finger)
An anthology of poems A cluster of stars
A harvest of achievements
An archipelago of A clutch of eggs
headquarters A heap of rubbish
A collection of coins
A bale of cotton A heap of ruins
A collection of evidences
A bale of wool A hedge of brushes
A collection of pictures
A basket of fruit A heap of stones
A collection of relics
A batch of bread A layer of soil/dirt
A collection of stamps
A battery of guns A library of books
A column of smoke
A block of flats A line of cars
A comb of bananas
A book of exercises A list of names
A compendium of games
 A book of notes A constellation of stars A mass of ruins/hair
A bouquet of flowers A cluster of diamond A necklace of pearls
A bowl of rice A cluster of stars An outfit of clothes
A bunch of bullets A clutch of eggs An orchard of fruit trees
A bunch of flowers A crate of fruit A pack of cards
A bunch of grapes A crop of apples A pack of police uniforms
A bunch of criminals A fall of blood A packet of cigarette
A bundle of rags/old A fall of snow A packet of letters
Clothes A fleet of motor-cars/taxis A pair of police boots
A bundle of fire woods/sticks A fleet of ships A pencil of rays
A bundle of hay A flight of airplanes A quiver of arrows
A catalogue of prices/goods A flight of police vehicles A range of hills
Goods A forest of trees A range of mountains
A chain of events A galaxy of stars A ream of paper
A chain of mountains A garland of flowers A reel of thread/film
A chest of drawers A glossary of difficult A roll of film/cloth
A cloud of dust Words/phrases A rope of pearls
A clump of bushes A group of islands A rows of houses
A clump of trees

Table 2.3: List of Collective Nouns for creatures

an army of ants a herd of cattle a school of herrings/other
a bevy of quail a herd of deer Small fish
a brood/flock of chicks/ a herd of elephants a school of porpoises
chickens a herd of goats a school of criminology
a catch of criminals a herd of swine a shoal of fish
a cloud of evidences a hive of bees a skein of wild geese in
a cloud of cases a host of sparrows Flight
a cloud of locusts a kindle of kittens a string of horses
a colony of gulls a litter of cubs a stud of horses
a drove of cattle a litter of piglets a swarm of ants
a drove of horses a litter of kittens a swarm of bees
a flight of birds a litter of puppies a swarm of insects
a flight of doves a menagerie of wild animals a swarm of locusts
a flight of locusts a muster of peacocks a team of horses
 a flight of swallows a nest of ants a team of oxen
a flock of birds a nest of mice a train of camels
a flock of geese a nest of rabbits a tribe of goats
a flock of sheep a pack of hounds a troop of lions
a flock of chickens a pack of wolves a troop of monkeys
a gaggle of geese a plague of insects a zoo of wild animals
a haul of fish a plague of locusts
a herd of buffaloes a pride of lions

In the following sentences, the highlighted words are also collective nouns.
a. The jury is dining on take-out chicken tonight.
b. The steering committee meets every Wednesday afternoon.
c. The class was startled by the bursting light bulb.

Exercise #1: Common Nouns

Direction: Underline the common nouns in the following sentences.
1.They arrived early but at the wrong station.
2.We counted only six different colors in the rainbow.
3. The man was trying to steal a horse with a cart full of apples.
4. They have gone to the zoo to see the black sheep.
5.She put her head on her arms and cried loudly.
6.My mother is singing a religious song in the kitchen.
7.He threw some salted nuts to the monkeys.
8.The children are kicking a ball around the field.
9. That temple was built before my grandfather was born.
10.He bought balloons for his children and their friends.
11. My father swims like a turtle.
12.She won a trophy for best dancer in the street.
13. Simply point your camera at the camel and press the button.
14.We watched seabirds flocking above our heads
15. He went to visit his homesick uncle at the hospital
16.My brother want to play hide-and-seek with us.
17.Let me look at your puppies and kittens.
18. The taxi broke down in front of my gate.
19.The boys are quarreling noisily on the beach.
20. The monkey was hanging by its tail from a branch
Exercise #1: Common Nouns
Direction: Underline the common nouns in the following sentences.
They arrived early but at the wrong station.
2. We counted only six different guns in the garage.
3. The man was trying to steal a horse with a cart full of apples.
4. They have gone to the barangay to see the criminals.
5.She put her head on her arms and cried loudly.
6.My mother is singing a police song in the kitchen.
7.He threw some salted nuts to the monkeys.
8.The children are kicking a ball around the field.
9. That temple was built before my grandfather was born.
10.He bought a guns for his comrade and their teams.
11. My father swims like a turtle.
12.She won a trophy for best police officer in the team.
13. Simply point your camera at the criminal and press the button.
14.We watched seabirds flocking above our heads
15. He went to visit his homesick uncle at the jail.
16.My brother want to play hide-and-seek with us.
17.Let me look at your puppies and kittens.
18. The taxi broke down in front of my gate.
19.The boys are quarreling noisily on the beach.
20. The monkey was hanging by its tail from a branch

Exercise #2: Proper Nouns

Direction: Use capital letters for Proper Nouns in the following sentences. Write the corrected
sentences in the space provided.
1. miss dizon told me that Paris is the capital of France.
2. William shakespeare was a famous English author.
3. war and peace' was written by leo tolstoy
4 jun and marycris had so much fun at police training.
5. Roberto will travel to italy next week.
6. Suez canal joins the red sea and the mediterranean
7. republic of liberia is on the west coast of africa.
8. Ely buendia is the lead singer of eraserheads.
9. Jun's two police dogs are named Adam and eve
10 Mt. apo is the highest mountain in the philippines.
Exercise #3: Abstract Nouns
Direction: Fill in each blank with the noun of the adjective as given in the first sentence.
Example: She is beautiful.
She has beauty
1.The library is a completely silent place. The library is a place of complete_______
2. She was a famous police. She first solve________as a police.
3. I heard the joyful news. I could have shouted for___________
4. How deep is the wound? What_____is, the wound?
5.The door is three feet wide. The______ of the door is three feet wide.
6. That really is a high wall. I think it is at least three meters in_______
7. I hope you wont think me rude if I leave now. Excuse my_______ but I have to leave now.
8. Why is she jealous? She'd never felt________before.
9. They were polite to accept the food. They accepted the food out of_________
10. Megs and Ornel find enjoyment in being together. Megs and Ornel find____ in being
together.
11. You made a rather careless mistake. It was a mistake of_________
12. Michael did it because he believed it would work. Michael did it in the________that it would
work.
13. You and I agree to always tell each other the truth about everything. You and I have
an_________ to always tell each other the truth about everything.
14. The patient refused to accept the recommended treatment. It was a_______ by the patient
to accept the recommended treatment.
15.Many people doubt his statement is accurate. They begin to question the_________ of his
statement.

Exercise #4: Collective Nouns

Direction: Complete each sentence by choosing the correct collective noun from the box.
pod swarm pride flight school herd litter bunch
Gaggle band brood pack troop flock shoal

1.Swimming in the shallow water was a________of herrings.

2A.___________of police was happily grazing in the field.
3.All night we could hear the_______of wolves howling.
4.Looking out to sea, we noticed a_________of police swimming.
5.The______ions slept all day on the African plains.
6. A long______of steps led to the top of the tower.
7.Our cat has just had a____________of seven kittens.
8.We each picked a__________of juicy grapes from the vine.
9. The hen waddled by with her__________-of chicks.
10.A______________of thieves stole the precious diamonds.
11.In the jungle, we could see a_____of monkeys swinging in the trees.
12.An enormous__________of locusts ate all the crops.
13. The_____of elephants stomped through the water hole.
14.The_______of geese made a terrible squawking sound.
15. We were in awe as we watched the__________of whales swimming.

2.Singular and Plural Nouns

A noun that represents one person, animal, thing or place is called a singular noun. A noun that
represents more than one person, animal, thing or place is called a plural noun.
Example: girl-girls; goat-goats: glass-glasses; garden-gardens
Most nouns are either singular or plural. Plural nouns are easily recognized by their ending with
an lists below show what different endings or suffixes are added to the words to make them
plural nouns.
Table 3.1: Making Plural Nouns by Adding-s
Singular Plural Singular Plural
gun guns lock locks
bicycle bicycles Evidence Evidences
cop cops nose noses
daughter daughters orange oranges
bullet bullets picture pictures
flower flowers rose roses
grape grapes spoonful spoonful
house houses toy toys
jug jugs vase vases
king kings well well

Table 3.2: Making Plural Nouns by Adding -es to Nouns Ending in-ch, -s, -sh, -ss, and -x
Singular Plural Singular plural
beach beaches dish dishes
inch beaches thrush thrushes
match matches boss bosses
watch watches dress dresses
bus buses glass glasses
octopus octopus kiss kisses
syllabus syllabuses box boxes

Singular Plural Singular Plural

virus viruses fox foxes
brush brushes ax axes
bush bushes tax taxes

Table 3.3: Making Plural Nouns by Adding -s to Nouns Ending in -o

Singular Plural Singular Plural
dynamo dynamos studio studios
photo photos tattoo tattoos
piano pianos torso torsos
radio radios trio trios
solo solos zero zeros

Table 3.4: Making Plural Nouns by Adding -es to Nouns Ending in -o-
Singular Plural Singular Plural
buffalo buffaloes potato potatoes
echo echoes tomato tomatoes
hero heroes tornado tornadoes
mosquito mosquitoes veto vetoes
negro negro

Table 3.5: Making Plural Nouns by adding -s or -es to Nouns Ending in -o

Singular Plural Singular Plural
banjo banjos/banjoes memento mementos/es
archipelago archipelagos/es peccadillo peccadillos/es
cargo cargos/cargoes lasso lassos/lassoes
mango mangos/mangoes indigo indigos/indigo
motto mottos/mottoes volcano volcanos/volcanoes

Table 3.6: Making Plural Nouns by Changing-y into-ies if a Noun Ends in a Consonant Before the-y
Singular Plural Singular Plural
beauty beauties fairy fairies
cherry cherries family families
curry curries nappy nappies
diary diaries spy spies
duty duties theory theories

Table 3.7: Making Plural Nouns by Adding -s if there is a Vowel Before the -y
Singular Plural Singular Plural
chimney chimneys kidney kidneys
donkey donkeys monkey monkeys
guy guys toy toys
jersey jerseys trolley trolleys
key keys valley valleys

Table 3.8: Making Plural Nouns by Changing -f or-fe to ves

Singular Plural Singular Plural
calf calves life lives
elf elves loaf loaves
half halves sheaf sheaves
knife knives thief thieves
leaf leaves wife wives

Table 3.9: Making Plural Nouns by Adding -s to Nouns Ending in -for-fe

Singular Plural Singular Plural
chef chefs handcuff handcuffs
chief chiefs reef reefs
cliff cliffs roof giraffe
giraffe giraffes sheriff sheriffs

Table 3. 10: Making Plural Nouns by Adding -s or Changing -f to-ves

Singular Plural
dwart dwarts/dwarves
handkerchief handkerchiefs/
handkerchieves
hoof hoofs/hooves
scarf scarfs/scarves
 turf turfs/turves
wharf wharts/wharves

Table 3.11: Making Plural Nouns by Changing the Vowels

Singular Plural Singular Plural
axis axes goose geese
cactus cacti louse lice
crisis crises mouse mice
emporium emporia oasis cases
fungus fungi tooth teeth

Table 3.12: Making Plural Nouns by Adding -en or ren

Singular Plural Singular Plural
advice advice knowledge knowledge
aircraft aircraft knowledge music
baggage baggage news news
cattle cattle offspring offspring
cod cod scenery scenery
furniture furniture sheep sheep
deer deer species species

Exercise #1: Singular and Plural Nouns

Direction: Rewrite the following sentences making them plural.
1. The child asks for a toy gun.
___________________________________________
2. The baby cries: but its mother is missing.
____________________________________________
3.I look up, and a leaf falls from a branch and lands on my head.
_____________________________________________
3. The lady uses a knife to cut a potato and a chili.
_____________________________________________
4. The man is sure a mouse bit his foot while he was asleep.
_____________________________________________
6.I took this photo of a case that is not mine.
_____________________________________________
7. That guns belongs to his wife.
_____________________________________________
8 My loaf of bread is enough to feed the fish.
_____________________________________________
8. His lorry nearly collided with the boy's bicycle.
_____________________________________________
9. He lost a right eye in a fight with a terrorist.
_____________________________________________
10. A passerby stops to watch a dwarf performs a dance
_____________________________________________.
11. She likes to cook spicy octopus with tomato.
_____________________________________________
12. My mother-in-law owns a police dog.
_____________________________________________
14. The trio has been playing a piano for an hour
_____________________________________________

Exercise #2: Singular and Plural Nouns

Direction: Give the plural form of the following nouns. Write your answers at the blanks.

11. _________________
1. antithesis 11.genius
_
1. _________________
2. equipment 12. _________________ 12. wharf
2. _________________
_
3. sheep 13. loaf
3. _________________
13. _________________
4. furniture _ 4. _________________ 14.machinery
5. baggage 14. _________________ 5. _________________ 15.sugar
_
6. soliloquy 6. _________________ 16. Attorney-at-law
15. _________________
7. _________________
7. memorandum _ 17.legislation
16. _________________ 8. _________________
8. phenomenon 18. goose
_ 9. _________________
9. graffito 17. _________________ 19. formula
10. _________________
_
10.Chinese 20. alumnus
18. _________________
Countable and Uncountable Nouns
Countable nouns are nouns that can be counted (eg. oranges). Uncountable nouns are those that
cannot be counted (e.g. smoke). So how do we know whether or not a noun is countable or
uncountable?
The noun is countable:
 if we can use a/an before it.
Example: I own a gun. /I play with an ostrich.
 if we can use the word 'many' (and not 'much') to describe it.
Example: She has many victims. (It's wrong to say: She has much victims.)
 if we can express its quantity by using a number before it.
Example: I have five apples.
 if it takes on singular as well as plural forms
Countable nouns are used with the following:

Countable Nouns
a, an, a few, several, many, some, plenty of, a
lot of, a large number of

The noun is uncountable:

 if a/an is not normally used in front of it.
Example: He is eating some rice. (NOT: He is eating a rice.) Rice is treated as not countable so
'some' (which can be used for both countable and uncountable nouns) is used with it.
 if the word 'much' can be correctly used with it
Example: How much rice have you eaten? (NOT: How many rice have you eaten?)
 if it is not possible to be counted. However, we can make it countable by having a quantity for
it.
Example: I have just bought two cartons or liters/liters of milk. (NOT: I have just bought two
milk.)
 if it takes only a singular form.
Uncountable nouns are used with the following:

Uncountable Nouns
a little, much, some, plenty of, a lot of, large amount
of, a great deal of

Exercise #1: Countable and Uncountable Nouns

Direction: Complete each sentence by choosing the correct word.
1. There is so_____________gun shot coming out of the chimney. 1. many, much
2. Mrs. Martizano keeps____________a gun on her bed.
2. plenty of, a large
3. Mr. Lim takes only a_________minutes to warm up. amount of
4. 4.The postman put________ guns into the bag
3. little, few
5. He threw__________bullets at the monkeys 7. A large amount of,
4. a great deal of, a lot of
several
6. She uses only_______cooking oil in her cooking.
7. My hens lay______eggs every morning. 5.
8. much,
A greatsome
deal of, a large
8. ___________dust was collected on the unused desk. amount
6. A few,of
a little
9. A large amount of,
many
9. We saw______cows grazing in the field.
10. Those butchers eat__________meat everyday.

4. Noun Gender
The noun gender tells us about the sex of the noun. There are four genders in the English
language.
1. Masculine gender
2. Feminine gender
3. Common gender
4. Neuter gender
Masculine gender
A noun is said to be in the masculine gender if it refers to a male character or member of a
species.
EXAMPLES: A boy is playing in the play-ground.
The hero of the movie is not a native of this country

Feminine gender
A noun is said to be in the feminine gender if it refers to a female member of a species.
EXAMPLES: A girl is playing in the playground.
The heroine of the movie is not a native of this country
Common gender
A noun is said to be in common gender if it refers to a member of species which can be a male or
a female.
EXAMPLES: A child is playing in the play-ground.
A debater should have command over the language used in the debate.
Neuter gender
A noun is said to be in the neuter gender if it refers to a member of a species which is neither a
male nor a female. Normally nouns referring to lifeless objects are in neuter nouns.
EXAMPLES: Computers have brought about drastic changes in our lives.
Trees are cleansing the air
Stars are not visible in the day-time.
Books are our best friends.

Exercise #1: Noun Gender

Direction: Change the nouns in bold from the feminine to the masculine and from masculine to
feminine. Rewrite each sentence at the space provided.
1. My aunt visits her niece every weekend.
___________________________________
2. The lady has several police dogs on her farm.
___________________________________
3. The daughter is more talkative than her mother.
___________________________________
4. Does any police like to play the role of the criminals?
___________________________________
5. Their queen is a widow.
___________________________________
6. The manageress is still a spinster.
___________________________________
7. In the movie, the tigress was killed by the heroine.
___________________________________
8. His daughter-in-law is a postmistress.
___________________________________
9. The countess has one sister.
___________________________________
10. The authoress is writing a book about the empress.
___________________________________
11. The bridegroom thanked the priest.
___________________________________
12. His brother works as a police man
___________________________________
13. The dog barked at the milkman
___________________________________
14. A cock was killed by a police.
___________________________________
15. The manservant has worked many years for the duke.
___________________________________
16. Her husband is a police.
___________________________________

17. He was a postman before he became a police.

___________________________________
18. The lad wants to be a police.
___________________________________
19. The sultan owns a stallion.
___________________________________
20. Her father-in-law is a police.
___________________________________

Exercise #2: Noun Gender

Direction:Classify the following nouns inside the box into masculine. feminine, common or
neuter.
Actress princess master heir bride landlord

Lawyer viscount monk prince empress employee

Mistress orchid doctor table bridegroom computer

Nurse teacher landlady dean actor goddess

COMMON NEUTER
MASCULINE FEMININE

Subject Focus: PRONOUNS

What is a pronoun?
A Pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun. It refers to a person or thing without giving
the name.
EXAMPLE: Ornel has a car. He rides it every day
The words He and it referred to in the second sentence are used for Ornel and car. Th words He
used for Ornel and it used for car are called Pronouns. We use pronouns to av repetition of the
same words, which in this case are Ornel and car.
Most of the pronouns must be used independently, that is, without a noun following them.
EXAMPLE: This is a big house. (This is a pronoun as it occurs independently.)
But when a noun follows them, they are no longer pronouns.
EXAMPLE: This house is big. (This is followed by the noun, house. Here, this, as determiner,
describes the noun, and so is not a pronoun.)mere
Grammarians classify pronouns into several types, including the personal pronoun, the
demonstrative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun, the indefinite pronoun, the relative pronoun
possessive pronoun, and the reflexive pronoun
1. Personal Pronouns
These pronouns refer to people and so are called Personal Pronouns. However, the pronoun it is
included in personal pronouns although it does not usually refer to a person. What then are
personal pronouns? Personal pronouns are best explained by the table below:
Table 1.1: Personal Pronouns
Singular plural
Subject Object Subject object
First Person I Me you We us
Second You You you
Person
Third He Him They Them
Person
She Her They Them
It it They them

In the above table, Personal Pronouns stand for three persons: First Person; Person, Third Person

There are two types of Personal Pronouns

a. those used as subjects;
b. those used as objects
 The Personal Pronoun must be of the same Number, Gender and Person as the Noun for
which it represents.
If the Noun is in the Singular Number, the Pronoun also must be in the Singular Number
EXAMPLES: The boy is playing with his gun. He has a red gun.
The boys are playing with their guns. They have guns of various colors
If the Noun is in the Feminine Gender, the Pronoun too must be in the Feminine Gender
EXAMPLES: The girl is playing with her dog. She has a small dog.
John's sister likes to eat pizza. She eats it almost every day.
Donna has a boyfriend. He loves her very much.
2. Demonstrative Pronouns
Demonstrative pronouns point to and identify a noun or a pronoun. The demonstrative
pronouns are this, that, these, and those.
 This (singular) and "These" (plural) refer to an object or person near the speaker.
 "That (singular) and "Those" (plural) refer to an object or person further away
EXAMPLES:
This is unbelievable.
(In this example, this can refer to an object or situation close in space or in time to the speaker.)
That is unbelievable.
("In this example, that can refer to an object or situation farther in space or in time to the
speaker.)
These are unbelievable.
(* In this example, 'these' can refer to some objects close in space or in time to the speaker.)
Those are unbelievable.
("In this example, "those can refer to some objects farther in space or in time to the speaker.)
One has to exercise care, however, when using demonstrative pronouns. The words this and that
when used alone, are pronouns; when used with nouns they are adjectives.
EXAMPLES: This is what I heard from him. (Pronoun)
This car is still new. (Adjective, used before the noun, car)
EXAMPLES:That is not something I like. (Pronoun)
That girl does look familiar. (Adjective, used before the noun, girl)

3. Interrogative Pronouns
Interrogative pronouns are used to ask questions. The interrogative pronoun represents the thing
that we don't know (what we are asking the question about)
There are four main interrogative pronouns: who, whom, what, which. The possessive pronoun
whose can also be an interrogative pronoun. Interrogative pronouns are best explained by the
table below:
Table 1:2 Interrogative Pronouns
QUESTION ANSWER
Who told you? John told me.
Whom did you tell? I told Yolly.
What has happened? An accident has happened
What do you want? I want coffee
Which came first? The Mitsubishi came first.
Which will the doctor see first? The doctor will see the patient in blue shirt first
There's one car missing. Whose hasn't arrived? John's car has not arrived.
We've found everyone's keys. Whose did you I found John's keys.
find?
Look at the example questions above. In the sample answers, the noun phrase that the
interrogative pronoun represents is shown in bold.
Who and whom are used for persons, what for things, which for persons or things, an whose for
persons.

Exercise #1: Personal Pronouns

Direction: Fill the blanks with suitable pronouns. They should agree with the nouns in the
sentences.
1.He thought one of the police was hungry, so he fed_______
2. We spoke to Michael and John when we met__________
3.The police can swim because______has been trained for it.
4. I looked for Maria Cristina Falls, but could not find______
5. "These old boots aren't mine. Are___________ yours?"
6.I like you______are best friends, aren't________?
7. When you have finished your work, please pass_______up to____
8. The dog barked at Alice and it ran after__________
9. I met Marycris with her police dog parrot yesterday. I took a walk with________
10.I met Marl yesterday_______invited____to his house.
11.They are going to Hong Kong_______is a long journey and____will make___tired.
12. I have many relatives. Some of_____ often come to see_____ and sometimes___ go to visit
13. I am looking for April and Karla.____want to remind____that____must come for the police
meeting this afternoon.
14. Paolo said the bullets was no good.________was bought at a shop when_____was going
home yesterday. The man told____that______Iwas a new one.
15.Mr. Lim wrote the sum on the blackboard for the students. Then_______asked one
of______to come out and do it.

Common Nouns
Common nouns are names of people (man, aunt); things (book, car); animals (monkey.
armadillo); and places (church, beach).
Proper Nouns
Proper nouns are names of people (Kris Aquino, Rosela Jabol): things (The Philippine Daily
Inquirer, Bolton Bridge); animals (King Kong. Snoopy), and places (Davao, People's Park). A proper
noun begins with a capital letter. Proper nouns also refer to times or to dates in the calendar:
Saturday, April.
Abstract Nouns
An abstract noun is a quality or something that we can only think of rather than as something
that we can see or touch, example, beauty, friendship. We can form abstract nouns from
common nouns, verbs and adjectives.
Table 1.1: Forming Abstract Nouns from Common Nouns
Common Noun Abstract Noun Common Noun Abstract Noun
brother brotherhood man manhood
child childhood member membership
friend friendship mother motherhood
king kingship neighbor neighborhood
leader leadership scholar scholarship

Table 1.2: Forming Abstract Nouns from Verbs

Verb Abstract Noun Verb Abstract Noun
behave behavior lose loss
die death marry marriage
free freedom please pleasure
grow growth sell sale
know knowledge speak speech
laugh laughter think thought