Hi, I'm Ashley, and this is Mia! Today we're going to learn about more types of nouns:
concrete and abstract. You ready? Let's go!
You already know that a noun is a word that names a person, place, or thing, like a doctor,
the desert, or a scooter. People, places, and things are examples of concrete nouns.
Concrete nouns have physical properties and can be perceived by one or more of our five senses. That
means we can see, hear, smell, taste, or touch concrete nouns. You may have heard nouns defined
as words that name a person, place, thing, or idea. That word 'idea' is often added to refer to
abstract nouns like courage, truth, or happiness. Things that are ideas are called abstract nouns.
Abstract nouns do not have physical properties and cannot be perceived by any of our five senses.
Instead, these nouns name ideas and feelings that exist
in our thoughts and emotions. We cannot see, taste, smell, hear, or touch them.
Words like justice, honor, pride, and creativity are abstract nouns. They are ideas
or concepts. They don't have physical properties that we can see, hear, taste, smell, or touch.
Let's look at a couple of nouns and put them to the test. How about table?
Is table concrete or abstract? You're right! Table is a concrete noun. You can definitely see
and touch a table. How about the word hope? Hmm, that's a little harder. Hope is a thing, but it
doesn't have physical properties. Hope is an idea, so it's an abstract noun. Let's try a couple more.
What about the word time? Well, sometimes I can use a watch or a clock to tell time,
but time itself is not something I can see or touch or experience with any of my five senses,
so time is an abstract noun. Okay, one more. This is a tough one!
What about the word wind? We can't really see wind, but we can feel it,
so that means wind has physical properties. I know the answer! Wind is a concrete noun.
So nouns that name a person, place, or thing like
a doctor, the desert, or a scooter are examples of concrete nouns.
But now we know that some nouns name an idea, like freedom, and those are called abstract nouns.
Let's review what we've learned. Many nouns are concrete,
which means they have physical properties and can be perceived with our five senses.
Other nouns are abstract. Abstract nouns do not have physical properties and we cannot
perceive them with our five senses. Abstract nouns are ideas. Now you're ready to practice
concrete and abstract nouns with some games and activities, and remember to always be clever!