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Lesson 6 NOUNS – 1

1.Parts of Speech – Nouns
2.Expressing Happiness
3.Vocabulary – Synonyms of “Happy”
4.Conversation Examples
5.Exercises

 

Lesson 6

NOUNS

1. PARTS OF SPEECH – NOUNS

 

There are eight different Parts of Speech in English, but before we continue any further…

 

WHAT IS A PART OF SPEECH?

It is a group of words that are used in a certain way. For example, run, jump, and be are all used to describe actions/ states. Therefore they belong to the VERBS group.

In other words, all words in the English language are divided into different categories. Each category has a different role/ function in the sentence.

In English grammar there are 8 parts of speech. They are:partofspeech

  1. Nouns
  2. Adjectives
  3. Pronouns
  4. Adverbs
  5. Verbs
  6. Prepositions
  7. Conjunctions
  8. Interjections

In this lesson, we are going to learn about NOUNS.

NOUNS

 This part of a speech refers to words that are used to name persons, things, animals, places, ideas, or events. Nouns are the simplest among the 8 parts of speech, which is why they are the first ones taught.

Examples:
  1. Mother Teresa was very kind-hearted.
  2. Dogs can be extremely cute.
  3. He is from India.
  4. It is my birthday.
  5. He was a man of honesty.
  6. It was a grand wedding.

 

TYPES OF NOUNS:
1.PROPER NOUNS

They always start with a capital letter and refer to specific names of persons, places or things.

Examples:
  1. Raj is an Indian.
  2. He has a Volkswagen car.
  3. Sheena is at the Domino’s.
  4. We are going to India.

 

2.COMMON NOUNS

They are the opposite of proper nouns. These are just generic names of persons, things, or places.

Examples:
  1. There is a new car in front of our house.
  2. She works in a beauty salon.
  3. How many students are writing the test?

 

3.CONCRETE NOUNS

This kind refers to nouns which you can perceive through your five senses. That means we can see, touch, smell, taste or hear them.

Examples:
  1. There was sand all over the place.
  2. Sally served food to the guest.
  3. The Taj Mahal is a lovely monument.
  4. There are droplets of water on the leaves after a rain.

 

4.ABSTRACT NOUNS

Unlike concrete nouns, abstract nouns are those which you can’t perceive through your five senses. Joy, love, anger, honesty, patience, punctuality, birthday, marriage, childhood, success, failure, hope, imagination etc. are some abstract nouns.

Examples:
  1. The whole place was filled with happiness.
  2. He has a passion for teaching.
  3. The soldier was a man of bravery.

 

5.COUNT NOUNS

It refers to anything that is countable, and has a singular and plural form.

Examples:  
  1. The cat has three kittens.
  2. He has a video on aquatic animals. Do you have such videos?
  3. Patty has a pet bird, whereas her sister has two birds.

 

6.MASS NOUNS

This is the opposite of count nouns. Mass nouns are also called non-countable nouns, and they need to have “counters” or measuring standards to quantify them.

Examples of Counters:
  1. Buy two kilos of rice.
  2. Pour a cup of water into it.
  3. I bought a meter of muslin cloth.
Examples of Mass Nouns:
  1. Add the rice to the boiling water.
  2. Take some flour from that jar.
  3. He drank all the milk.

 

7.COLLECTIVE NOUNS

This is a name given to a group of persons, animals, or things.

Examples:
  1. Faculty (group of teachers)
  2. Class (group of students)
  3. Pride (group of lions)
  4. Team (group of players/ participants)
  5. Bunch (collection of keys, flowers, grapes etc.)

 

IDENTIFY – TYPES OF NOUNS:
  1. Miss Jane is our neighbor.
  2. I plan to watch a movie today.
  3. Kumar ate a bunch of bananas.
  4. I saw the Charminar at Hyderabad.
  5. China is a big country.
  6. That cat drank a litre of milk.
  7. My dad is a man of honesty.
  8. Add a pinch of salt to the mixture.

 

TODAY’S TONGUE TWISTER

 

Tin coffee pots and iron coffee pots
They’re no use to me –
If I can’t have a proper cup of coffee
In a proper copper coffee pot
I’ll have a cup of tea.

 

2.EXPRESSING HAPPINESS

 

Expressing feelings like joy and happiness is a fundamental function of English communication competency. To be a good speaker of English and a good communicator, one needs to equip oneself with tools, which means words and phrases to mean the right amount of happiness.

Grammatically, words that express happiness are interjections. So to begin, we are going to learn some interjections and then there are certain phrases which are also used to express happiness.

It is important to be careful about these differences as that will help you clearly communicate happiness in the right context and to the degree you intend to express. The best way to master the usage is to use them in your communication and not be afraid of making mistakes.

INTERJECTIONS
  1. Yeah/ Yes!
  2. Hurray!
  3. Yippee/ Yay!
  4. Thank God!
  5. Cheers!
  6. Wow!

And many more…….

Examples:
  1. Yes! You did it!
  2. Hurray! We won the match!
  3. Thank God! You made it!
  4. Wow! I just love it!

 

HAPPY – PHRASES
1.Pleased as punch

When you are pleased as punch, you are very happy and delighted.

Examples:
  1. I was pleased as punch to see my old friend.
  2. Sonu was pleased as punch when he cleared his class X exams.
  3. Father was pleased as punch when he learnt about his son getting the highest marks.

 

2.On cloud nine

You are on cloud nine when you are very happy. You feel your feet light and you feel the air in your lungs and your heart expands. It is an expression of great happiness and excitement.

Examples:
  1. I was on cloud nine when I learnt of my promotion.
  2. Sudhir was on cloud nine when Sudha accepted his proposal.
  3. Rahul was on cloud nine when he received his appointment letter for a new job.

 

3.Jump for joy

You jump for joy when you are so happy and excited you punch in the air, jump up, and generally laugh and smile. It’s an expression for excited happiness and joy.

Examples:
  1. The bowler jumped for joy as the ball hit the middle stump.
  2. Chintu jumped for joy as his name was announced as the school topper.

 

 4.On top of the world

A general state of happiness. You are on top of the world when something good has happened and you are basking in the warmth of it, enjoying the feeling, letting it sink in.

Examples:
  1. Suresh Babu is on top of the world ever since his son got a permanent position at the bank where he worked.
  2. He is on top of the world. He is getting married to his childhood sweetheart next week.

 

5.In seventh heaven

Again, a general state of happiness when something good happens or you meet a good friend or you achieve a goal or someone you love achieves a goal.

Examples:
  1. I am in seventh heaven ever since I heard of my promotion.
  2. Shyam is in seventh heaven since he got his transfer letter. He always wanted to leave Mumbai.
  3. Rahul is in seventh heaven. His book is getting published next month.

 

6.Over the moon

Over the moon again expresses a general state of happiness. Something good happens to you or someone close to you and you are over the moon.

Examples:
  1. I am over the moon. My son stood first in his class.
  2. Suman is over the moon ever since she booked her tickets for her vacation.
  3. Lakhan is over the moon because he is going to Dubai next week.

 

7.Grin from ear to ear

Grinning from ear to ear means you are smiling so big that your mouth has literally expanded, as if all that happiness in you is finding newer ways to come out. It expresses great happiness.

Examples:
  1. My boss praised me this morning. I am grinning from ear to ear
  2. He is grinning from ear to ear as his child got admission in DPS.

 

3.VOCABULARY – SYNONYMS OF “HAPPY”

 

To help improve your writing and speaking skills, it is important not to repeat words in your essays or narrations. Below is a list of words that you can use instead of happy. Try pronouncing them with the help of your teacher.

blissful, cheerful, cheery, gleeful, joyful, jovial, jolly, jocular, carefree, untroubled, delighted, smiling, beaming, beatific, grinning, lighthearted, content, satisfied, sunny, pleased, gratified, buoyant, radiant, blithe, flying high, joyous, thrilled, elated, exhilarated, excited, ecstatic, euphoric, merry, overjoyed, peaceful, in good spirits, in a good mood.

 

4.CONVERSATION EXAMPLES

 

Example 1: 

Player1:   Yes! We did it again.

Player2: Hurray! We won!

Player3: Yes. We’re on top of the world.

Player1:  Yeah!

Man 1:     Those boys are jumping for joy. They have won the championship for this year.

Man 2:     Sure it is a great day for the boys!

 

 

 

Example 2:

 Nurse:            It’s a boy, Mr. Sekhar!

Mr. Sekhar: Yes! No one could be happier than me!

Nurse:           You seem to be grinning from ear to ear. Your first-born?

Mr. Sekhar: No, I have three daughters; and he is my first son.

 

Example 3:

Friend1:     Hey! John seems to be on cloud nine!

Friend2:     Yes. He’s got a reason to be so.

Friend1:     And what is that?

Friend2:     Do you remember Ravina, his school-mate? She has agreed to go out with him for dinner.

Friend1:     Wow! Is it true?

Friend2:     Yes! He’s over the moon, because he is going out for the dinner tonight.

 

Example 4: 

Noris:       Hey folks! We made it!

Sheetal:   I just can’t hold my happiness. We are going to Sydney for the next project.

Danny:    Really? This is news! Yeah!

Franie:     I am in seventh heaven! Yeah!

5.EXERCISES

 

FILL IN – WITH SYNONYMS OF “HAPPY”:
  1. Anne is a ________ girl.
  2. He was _______ about his exam scores.
  3. The bride was _______ with happiness.
  4. My dad seems to be _________.
  5. The scenery was a __________ sight.
  6. The teacher was ________ by his students’ actions.

 

FILL IN – WITH ARTICLES:
  1. Rahul is _____ honest person. He works in _____ bank. It is _____ European bank. He is _____ efficient worker and _____ intelligent banker. He is _____ keen observer of latest trends in banking.  His colleagues consider him ____ valuable guide.
  2. Sheetal is _____ secretary of _____ boss of this firm. She is _____ citizen of England. She is _____  jovial person and loves to help _____ employees when she is free. She has _____ open mind. She owns _____ apartment and _____ car. Her mom was crowned as _____ Beauty Queen of London, in 1962.

 

FILL IN – WITH ARTICLES (A/ AN) WHEREVER NECESSARY:
  1. He is looking for _____ atlas.
  2. She delivered _____ interesting lecture.
  3. He visited _____ university in Delhi.
  4. My brother found _____ UAE flag.
  5. That boy is _____ hour late for school.
  6. India is _____ independent country.
  7. He saw _____ one-eyed man on the road.
  8. Rahim is _____ energetic boy.
  9. I met _____ princess.
  10. He saw _____ Englishman on his way.
  11. John’s brother is _____ MP (Member of Parliament).
  12. Haven’t you seen _____ European?
  13. I would love to travel on _____ US ship.
  14. The doctor ordered me to take _____ X-ray.
  15. I met _____ Princess Jane.

 

BUILDING A CONVERSATION
  1. fathers
  1. Imagine you are celebrating Father’s day. You are the son. Express your happiness to your dad. Also try to tell your dad how grateful you are.
  2. Imagine it is Father’s day. You are the dad. Express your love for your son/ daughter. Tell him/ her how happy you are about them.

 

TOPICS TO DISCUSS
  1. My favorite movie – Describe its plot and your favourite scene in the movie.
  2. My favourite movie character – Describe your favourite movie character and explain why you like him/ her.
  3. My dream career – What is your favourite profession and why?