A1Nouns

Common and Proper Nouns

What is it?

Common nouns are GENERAL names for people, places, things, or ideas (dog, city, book, teacher). Proper nouns are SPECIFIC names and are ALWAYS CAPITALIZED (London, Sarah, Monday, English, Apple Inc.). Common nouns can have articles (a dog, the city), but proper nouns usually don't need articles (Sarah, not "the Sarah"). Knowing when to capitalize is essential: capitalize proper nouns (specific names) but NOT common nouns (general names).

How to form it

Subject	Positive	Negative	Question
Common (general)	I see a dog	I don't see a dog	Do you see a dog?
Proper (specific person)	I know Sarah	I don't know Sarah	Do you know Sarah?
Proper (specific place)	I live in London	I don't live in London	Do you live in London?
Proper (day/month)	Today is Monday	not common	Is today Monday?
Proper (language)	I speak English	I don't speak English	Do you speak English?
Proper (brand/company)	I use Apple products	I don't use Apple products	Do you use Apple products?

• Common nouns: general names (dog, city, teacher, book) — NOT capitalized
• Proper nouns: specific names (Sarah, London, Monday) — ALWAYS capitalized
• Proper nouns include: people's names, places, days, months, languages, nationalities, brands
• Common nouns use articles: a dog, the city | Proper nouns usually don't: Sarah (not 'the Sarah')
• Exception: some places use 'the' → the United States, the UK, the Netherlands
• Capitalize ALL words in proper names: New York, United States, North America
• Days/months capitalized: Monday, January | Seasons NOT: spring, summer

When to use it

1
Common nouns — general, not capitalized (unless starting sentence)
"I see a dog." / "The city is beautiful." / "I need a teacher." / "She reads books."
2
Proper nouns (people, places) — specific, always capitalized
"Sarah" (person), "London" (city), "France" (country), "Mount Everest" (mountain)"
3
Days, months, holidays — always capitalized
"Monday, Tuesday" (days), "January, February" (months), "Christmas, Easter" (holidays)"
4
Languages, nationalities — always capitalized
"English, Spanish, French" (languages), "American, British, Chinese" (nationalities)"
5
Brands, companies, titles — capitalized
"Apple Inc., Google, Microsoft" (companies), "Doctor Smith, President Biden" (titles + names)"

Common mistakes

I live in london.

I live in London.

Proper nouns (specific place names) must be capitalized.

I speak english and spanish.

I speak English and Spanish.

Languages are always capitalized.

Today is monday.

Today is Monday.

Days of the week are always capitalized.

My friend Sarah is a Teacher.

My friend Sarah is a teacher.

'Teacher' is a common noun (general), not capitalized unless starting sentence.

Quick reference

Common: general names (dog, city, teacher) — not capitalized
Proper: specific names — ALWAYS capitalized
Proper nouns include: people (Sarah), places (London), days (Monday), months (January)
Languages & nationalities: always capitalized (English, American)
Brands & companies: capitalized (Apple, Google)
Common use articles (a dog, the city) / Proper usually don't (Sarah, London)
Exception: the USA, the UK, the Netherlands use 'the'

Natural conversation example

Two students introducing themselves

Maria

Hi! I'm Maria. I'm from Spain.

Tom

Nice to meet you, Maria! I'm Tom, from London.

Maria

Do you speak Spanish?

Tom

No, but I'm learning. I study Spanish every Monday and Wednesday.

Maria

That's great! I can help you. I speak English and Spanish.

Tom

Perfect! Do you know my friend Sarah? She's from Mexico.

Maria

Yes! Sarah works at Google. We meet every Friday for coffee.

Practice Exercises

Write C (common) or P (proper).

1.
London
2.
city
3.
Monday
4.
dog
5.
Sarah
6.
teacher

Countable and Uncountable Nouns All Topics There Is / There Are

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