Proper Nouns vs Common Nouns
What is the difference between proper nouns and common nouns? This is a very common question that is created in everyone’s mind. Whenever we see or hear the words proper noun and common noun, such a question is created in our minds. Similarly, the phrase ‘proper nouns vs common nouns’ is also circulated in our minds.
To answer this question, we focus
on some points that differentiate one from the other. These are the points to
be discussed: definitions, capitalization rules, the relationship between proper
and common nouns, their identification, and comparison through examples.
Definitions
Proper Nouns
Proper nouns are naming words
that are used for persons, things, places, ideas, etc. Proper nouns are names
of particular things or they are personal names.
- The Smart School, Ali, Pakistan, John Clare, etc.
Common Nouns
Common nouns are also naming
words that are used for persons, things, places, ideas, etc. They are names of
general things that are shared with a large class of persons, things, or
places.
- School, boy, country, poet, etc.
Capitalization Rules
Proper Nouns
Proper nouns are always
capitalized whether they are at the beginning of the sentence or in the middle.
Some marketers don’t capitalize brands’ names. In fact, brand names are proper
nouns but this is just an exceptional case.
- They live in New York.
- I have studied John Clare’s poems.
- iPad is a proper noun; marketers don’t capitalize.
Common Nouns
Generally, we don’t capitalize common
nouns. We just capitalize them at the beginning of the sentence, in the title, or in the name of something.
- Rooms are
available in every hotel these days.
- There are fifty rooms in our school.
- I want to be a captain.
- I have heard about Captain Hook.
Remember that we capitalize some
nouns in some instances and don’t capitalize in other instances. When they are
a part of a proper noun, then we capitalize them. Otherwise, we don’t do that. Nouns
that we use to talk about families, directions, or seasons are the best
examples to illustrate.
- Can I go out the west exit of the house?
- I want to get higher education in the West.
In the first example, the noun ‘west’ is not in the capital. Here it is used generally. In the second example, the noun ‘West’ is capitalized because it is used as a specific region and it becomes a proper noun.
Relationship between Proper Nouns and Common Nouns
There is a close relationship
between proper nouns and common nouns. If we look at the proper nouns, they are
specific examples of common nouns. On the other hand, common nouns are in the
generalized form of the proper nouns.
|
Common noun |
Proper noun |
|
Country |
England |
|
Company |
Toyota |
|
Grammarian |
Betty Schrampfer Azar |
|
Poet |
John Clare |
|
Captain |
Hook |
Identification of Proper Nouns and Common Nouns
On the Basis of Capitalization
If you want to identify a noun
whether it is a proper noun or a common noun, just look at its capitalization. If
a noun is capitalized in the middle of the sentence, you can call it a proper
noun because proper nouns are always capitalized.
- We visited many buildings in the USA.
The noun ‘buildings’ is not capitalized and the noun USA is capitalized. The first one is a common noun and the second one is a proper noun.
- We visited The White House last year.
The noun in this example is capitalized in the middle, so The White House is a proper noun.
Whether it is Generic or Particular
If the noun is at the beginning
of the sentence, then check if it refers to a specific thing or a general thing.
The specific one is called a proper noun and the general one is called a common
noun. Exceptional cases must be in your mind.
- Mobile is the
thing that played a key role in globalization.
Here the noun mobile is capitalized and used at the beginning of the sentence. Now we check whether it refers to a general thing or a particular thing. If you look at the noun mobile, it is a name for a general thing. Therefore, we call it a common noun.
- Switzerland is the
most beautiful country so I have visited it many times.
In this example, the noun Switzerland is capitalized and it refers to a particular country. It is a proper noun. On the other hand, the noun country is not capitalized, so we call it a common noun.
Comparison through Examples
- In fact, there are many search engines but I always search on Google.
In this example, we have two nouns. Search engines and Google. The noun ‘search engines’ is shared with a large class and used in generic form. It is also not capitalized in the sentence, so it is called a common noun. On the other hand, the noun ‘Google’ is the name of a specific thing. It is also capitalized, so we call it a proper noun.
- I wanted to fly on an airline, so I flew on Emirates Airlines.
There are two nouns in this example. One is the airline and the other is Emirates Airlines. The airline is used in generic form and shared with a large class of airlines. It is not specified which airline. That’s why is not capitalized. The noun airline is a common noun. Emirates Airlines is the name of a specific airline company. It is the personal name of just one company that gives air services. According to the capitalization rule, it is also capitalized. The noun Emirates Airlines is a proper noun.
- My father will buy a new car.
The noun car is a common noun. It is shared with a large class of cars. He will buy a car but it is not specified which car he will buy. Will he buy a Suzuki Swift? Will he buy a Land Rover Discovery Sport? Will he buy BMW? The second thing is capitalization. It is not capitalized in the example. We call this a common noun.
- My father will buy Land Rover Discovery Sport.
In this example, the noun Land Rover Discovery Sport is a proper noun because it is the name of a particular car and it is the personal name of that specified car. The noun is not at the beginning of the sentence, but again it is capitalized.
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