LI. CLASSES OF NOUNS

There are two classes of nouns: common and proper.

A common noun is a name that may be applied to any one of a kind or class of objects; as, boy, child, book, radiation.

A proper noun is the name of some particular person, place, people, or thing; as, Charles, Cincinnati, The French, The Herald.

Whenever a word, usually a common noun, is used to distinguish one individual from another of the same class, it becomes a proper noun; as, The Havana; The Falls; The Laurel Ridge.

When two or more words form but one name, they are taken together as one noun; as, New York; Niagara Falls; John Milion; Lord Bacon; Chief Justice Chase.

Common nouns may be divided into four classes: class nouns, abstract nouns, collective nouns, and participial nouns.

Class nouns are names which can be applied to each individual of a class or group of objects; as, horse, apple,

man.

An abstract noun is the name of a quality considered apart from the object in which it is found; as, brightness, cohesion.

A collective noun is a name which, when singular in form, denotes more than one; as, herd, jury, swarm, school, assembly.

A participial noun is a participle used as a noun; as, "The singing was bad," "I heard some good singing.”

Words, phrases, and clauses used as nouns, or in the relations in which nouns occur, are called substantives, and when thus used have many of the properties of nouns.

GENDER OF NOUNS

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LII. PROPERTIES OF NOUNS

The properties of the noun are gender, person, number, and case.

LIII. GENDER OF NOUNS

Gender is a distinction of nouns and pronouns with regard to sex.

There are four genders: masculine, feminine, common, and neuter.

The masculine gender denotes males; as, father, uncle, king, governor.

The feminine gender denotes females; as, mother, aunt, queen, governess.

The common gender denotes either males or females, or both; as, parent, children, bird, cattle.

The neuter gender denotes neither males nor females; as, stove, city, pen, ink, tree, house.

By a figure of speech, called personification, sex is sometimes ascribed to inanimate objects. The nouns denoting them are then regarded as either masculine or feminine.

Ex. "The ship has lost her rudder." "The meek-eyed morn appears, mother of dews." "The sun in his glory; the moon in her wane."

Names of animals are regarded as either masculine or feminine according to the qualities ascribed to them.

Ex.-"The nightingale sings her song." "The lion meets his foe boldly." "The for made his escape."

Nouns used to denote both genders, though strictly applicable to males only, or females only, are usually regarded as masculine.

Ex..

-"Heirs are often disappointed." "The English are a proud people." "The poets of America."

ADV. GRAM. 5

The distinction of sex is not observed in speaking of inferior animals, or sometimes even of children.

Ex. -"The bee on its wing."

"The child in its cradle."

There are three ways of distinguishing the masculine and feminine genders: -

(1) By using different words:

Ex. — Bachelor, maid, spinster; bridegroom, bride; brother, sister; boy, girl; cock, hen; drake, duck; earl, countess; father, mother; gentleman, lady; hart, roe; male, female; man, woman; Mr., Mrs.; Sir, Madam; nephew, niece; son, daughter; uncle, aunt; Charles, Caroline; Augustus, Augusta.

(2) By different terminations:

Ex.

Abbot, abbess; baron, baroness; host, hostess; actor, actress ; prior, prioress; benefactor, benefactress; executor, executrix; murderer, murderess; sorcerer, sorceress.

Ex. - Man-servant, maid-servant; he-bear, she-bear; male descendant, female descendant; cock sparrow, hen sparrow; Mr. Smith, Mrs. Smith, Miss Smith; peacock, peahen.

LIV. PERSON OF NOUNS

Person is that property of a noun or a pronoun which distinguishes the speaker, the person spoken to, and the person or object spoken of.

There are three persons: first, second, and third.

The first person denotes the speaker; as, “I, John, was in the isle that is called Patmos." "Many evils beset us mortals."

The second person denotes the person addressed; as, "James, be more careful." Fellow-citizens, the crisis

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demands the utmost vigilance."

FORMATION OF THE PLURAL

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The third person denotes the person or object spoken

of; as, "Milton was a poet." "Rome was an ocean of

flame." "I am reading Tennyson's Poems."

The writer or speaker often speaks of himself, or the person he addresses, in the third person; as, “Mr. Johnson has the pleasure of informing Mr. Mason that he has been elected Honorary Member of the Oriental Society."

A noun in the predicate is of the third person, though the subject may be of the first or second.

Ex. "You are the man wanted." "We are strangers." he whom you saw."

LV. NUMBER IN NOUNS

"I am

Number is that property of a noun which distinguishes one from more than one.

There are two numbers: singular and plural.

The singular number denotes but one; as, apple, flower, boy, girl.

The plural number denotes more than one; as, apples, flowers, boys, girls.

LVI. FORMATION OF THE PLURAL

I. Nouns whose last sound will unite with the sound represented by s, form their plurals by adding s only to the singular; as, book, books; boy, boys; desk, desks.

2. Nouns whose last sound will not unite with the sound represented by s, form their plurals by adding es to the singular; as, church, churches; box, boxes; witness, witnesses.

3. Nouns ending in y preceded by a consonant, change y into i, and add es; as, glory, glories; mercy, mercies.

4. Most nouns ending in ƒ change ƒ to v, and add es; those ending in fe change f to v, and add s; as, beef, beeves; wife, wives.

5. Most nouns ending in o preceded by a consonant, add es; as,

cargo, cargoes. Nouns ending in o preceded by a vowel, add s; as, folio, folios.

6. Some nouns form their plurals irregularly; as, man, men; ox, oxen; tooth, teeth; mouse, mice.

7. Letters, figures, marks, and signs add 's; as, Mind your p's and q's; the 9's and 11's; the 's; the +'s; Those 3's and 's.

8. In compound words, the part which is described by the rest is generally pluralized; as, brothers-in-law, courts-martial; wagon-loads,

ox-carts.

9. Compound words from foreign languages form their plurals according to 1 and 2; as, tête-à-têtes, piano-fortes, ipse-dixits, scirefaciases.

10. Some compound words have both parts made plural; as, manservant, men-servants; knight-templar, knights-templars; ignis-fatuus, ignes-fatui.

11. Compound terms composed of a proper noun and a title, may be pluralized by adding a plural termination to either the name or the title, but not to both; as, the Miss Browns, the Misses Brown; the Messrs. Thompson; "May there be Sir Isaac Newtons in every science!"

12. When the title is preceded by a numeral, the name is always pluralized; as, the three Miss Johnsons; the two Dr. Bensons; the two Mrs. Kendricks.

13. Some nouns have two plurals, but with a difference in meaning; as, brother, brothers (of the same family), brethren (of the same society); die, dies (stamps for coining), dice (for gaming); fish, fishes (individuals), fish (quantity, or the species); genius, geniuses (men of genius), genii (spirits); index, indexes (table of contents), indices (algebraic signs); penny, pennies (pieces of money), pence (how much in value); pea, peas (individuals), pease (in distinction from other vegetables).

14. Proper nouns, and words generally used as other parts of speech, are changed as little as possible, and usually add s only in forming their plurals; as, Mary, Marys; Sarah, Sarahs; Nero, Neros; The novel is full of ohs, bys, whys, alsos, and nos.

15. Many nouns from foreign languages retain their original plurals,