In everything we do involving other people, we make use of communication in some form. Of the different forms of communication, language – either spoken or written – is the most common. We use words to do things. We use words to say hello, to ask a favour, to give directions. We use them to apply for a job, to request a loan, to get married, to take an oath. Regardless of the size or importance of the job, however, the words we use all fall into one of the eight basic categories or classes of English called parts of speech, mainly known nowadays as word classes. This series will expose you to the different word classes and how they function; that is, the kind of work they do. This is important because it will help you learn to use words in their right contexts and thus communicate effectively.
We will begin with nouns. Nearly everyone can give a simple definition of the noun. It is a word used as a name of a person, place, thing, or idea. In the following sentences, the words in single quotations are nouns. Example 1: The ‘view’ from the ‘sit-out’ of his ‘flat’ gave Opemipo a constant ‘source of inspiration’ for his new ‘book’ about ‘Ekiti’. Example 2: The ‘couple’ got a renowned ‘caterer’ and an eloquent ‘master of ceremonies’ in ‘time’ for their ‘wedding’ in ‘June’. Could you easily identify the nouns in the sentences? Some of them are concrete; that is, they name things (sit-out, book, caterer, master of ceremonies) which are real and definite and can be touched or measured. Others are abstract, naming things (view, inspiration, time) which cannot be touched or measured. Abstract nouns name ideas, sensations, emotions, beliefs, and so on.
Let’s look at more examples and the answers. The figure in parentheses shows how many nouns are in a sentence.
1. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. (4)
Answer: ‘ounce’, ‘prevention’, ‘pound’, ‘cure’
2. Changes in your schedule must be approved by the principal. (3)
Answer: ‘changes’, ‘schedule’, ‘principal’
3. My older brother helps cook the meals, and my younger brother sets the table and helps with the dishes. (5)
Answer: ‘brother’, ‘meals’, ‘brother’, ‘table’, ‘dishes’
4. From the start of her story, I was suspicious of her motives for telling us such a tall tale. (4)
Answer: ‘start’, ‘story’, ‘motives’, ‘tale’
5. Temi feared rejection more than ridicule or indifference. (4)
Answer: ‘Temi’, ‘rejection’, ‘ridicule’, ‘indifference’
6. Vicky and Sam inspected the old house from top to bottom. (5)
Answer: ‘Vicky’, ‘Sam’, ‘house’, ‘top’, ‘bottom’
Would you like to try an exercise at this point? In the following sentences there are several nouns. List them. Note that the figure in parentheses reveals how many nouns there are in that sentence.
1. The rain coming in the window interrupted my concentration. (3)
2. Christie drew on memories of her childhood in Ajah when she wrote that story. (5)
3. At noon we ate our lunch of sandwiches, boiled eggs, cookies, and milk. (6)
4. Her uncle is going to buy another Toyota when he goes back to Japan next month. (4)
5. It’s no exaggeration to say that a sense of humour can help a person through many troubles. (5)
Now, let’s talk about proper and common nouns. A proper noun is the name of a specific person, place, or thing. Proper nouns always begin with a capital letter. A common noun, on the other hand, is the name of a group or class of people, places, or things. Let’s put them side by side:
Proper nouns Common nouns
Lagos, Nigeria state, country
Third Mainland Bridge, Mars, bridge, planet
Albert Einstein, Vasco da Gama scientist, explorer
Shay’s Rebellion, Yoruba, Accenture battle, language, organisation
Please note that names and titles of more than one word are generally regarded as one noun. There are also certain combinations of words and compound nouns that are often regarded as one common noun; for example, ‘ice cream’, ‘master of ceremonies’, ’20 percent’, ‘per diem’.
Let’s now try some exercises to differentiate between common and proper nouns, and you will have some later to try yourself. We are going to list the nouns in the sentences and write in parentheses ‘common’ or ‘proper’.
1. On September 19, 1974, Hurricane Fifi struck the Republic of Honduras, killing about 8,000 persons.
Answer: September 19, 1974 (proper); Hurricane Fifi (proper); Republic of Honduras (proper); persons (common).
2. A hurricane is made up of stormy clouds and violent winds swirling around an area of low air pressure.
Answer: hurricane (common); clouds (common); winds (common); area (common); pressure (common)
3. To qualify as a hurricane, a tropical storm must have winds of at least 75 miles (120 kilometres) per hour.
Answer: hurricane (common); storm (common); winds (common); miles (common); kilometres (common); hour (common)
4. This velocity is termed ‘Force 12’ on the Beaufort scale, a standard for the comparison of wind velocities.
Answer: velocity (common); Force 12 (proper); scale (common) [note that Beaufort here is a proper adjective, not a noun – more on adjectives in the coming weeks]; standard (common); comparison (common); velocities (common) [note that ‘wind’ before ‘velocities’ is functioning as an adjective – more on that soon]
5. The scale was developed in 1805 when Sir Francis Beaufort described the force of winds on the sails of a ship.
Answer: scale (common); 1805 (proper); Sir Francis Beaufort (proper); force (common); winds (common); sails (common); ship (common).
Would you like to try out the following exercises? Simply follow the format above.
1. The clouds of a hurricane spiral in a counter-clockwise direction in the Northern Hemisphere, but clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.
2. At the storm centre, called the ‘eye’, rain ceases, the temperature rises, the wind drops, and sunshine may appear.
3. The season for hurricanes in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the United States runs mostly from June to October, with a peak of activity in September.
4. During these months, weather experts, called ‘meteorologists’, keep an especially close watch on the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico and issue warnings to communities in danger.
Next will have us treat the topic of the pronoun. Hope you had a good read!