Common and Proper Nouns: Difference With Examples

Hello learners! Today we are going to learn about the difference between common and proper nouns. How common and proper nouns differ from each other with their examples, exercises, and worksheets for you to practice to increase your level and get to know about your understanding.

What is the Difference Between Common and Proper Nouns?

Common Nouns

A common noun is a general term used to name a category of people, places, objects, or ideas. These nouns are not capitalized unless they begin a sentence. Common nouns do not refer to a specific entity but rather to a type or class of something.

Examples of common nouns:

• City: Refers to any city, not a specific one.
• Dog: Refers to any dog, regardless of breed or name.
• Book: Can refer to any book, not a particular title.

Proper Nouns

On the other hand, a proper noun is the specific name of a particular person, place, thing, or idea. These nouns are always capitalized, no matter where they appear in a sentence.

Examples of proper nouns:

• New York City: A specific city.
• Golden Retriever: A breed of dog.
• Harry Potter: The title of a particular book or character.

Common Nouns vs Proper Nouns

1. Capitalization: Proper nouns are always capitalized, while common nouns are only capitalized at the beginning of a sentence.
2. Specificity: Proper nouns name specific people, places, or things, whereas common nouns are more general.
3. Examples: “Mountain” (common noun) vs. “Mount Everest” (proper noun); “Author” (common noun) vs. “J.K. Rowling” (proper noun).

Examples of Common and Proper Nouns in Sentences

Common noun: The teacher asked the students to bring their textbooks to class.

Proper noun: Ms. Smith asked Emma to bring “The Great Gatsby” to English class.

In the first sentence, “teacher,” “students,” and “textbooks” are common nouns, while in the second, “Ms. Smith” and “The Great Gatsby” are proper nouns.

More Examples of Common and Proper Noun in Sentences

1. Common Nouns: The boy is reading a book.
   Proper Nouns: John is reading Harry Potter.
2. Common Nouns: We visited a famous monument during our trip.
   Proper Nouns: We visited the Statue of Liberty during our trip.
3. Common Nouns: The teacher gave the students a homework assignment.
   Proper Nouns: Mr. Brown gave Tom a math assignment.
4. Common Nouns: They are going to the restaurant for dinner.
   Proper Nouns: They are going to Olive Garden for Thanksgiving dinner.
5. Common Nouns: The city has many parks and museums.
   Proper Nouns: Paris has many parks and the Louvre Museum.
6. Common Nouns: The woman likes to go for a run in the morning.
   Proper Nouns: Sarah likes to go for a run in Central Park.
7. Common Nouns: My sister works for a big company.
   Proper Nouns: Jessica works at Microsoft.
8. Common Nouns: The team won the game last night.
   Proper Nouns: The Lakers won the NBA Finals last night.
9. Common Nouns: The actor starred in several movies.
   Proper Nouns: Leonardo DiCaprio starred in Inception.
10. Common Nouns: The river flows through the valley.
    Proper Nouns: The Nile River flows through the Sahara Desert.

Common and Proper Noun Exercises with Answer

1. Rewrite the sentence by capitalizing the proper nouns:
   • john went to paris last summer to visit the eiffel tower.

   Answer: John went to Paris last summer to visit the Eiffel Tower.

2. Choose whether the following noun is common or proper:
   1. Chocolate
   2. Mars Bar

Answer: 

• Chocolate (Common)
• Mars Bar (Proper)

Common or Proper Noun Worksheet

Question 1: In the following sentences, identify whether the underlined word is a common noun or a proper noun.

1. The dog chased a squirrel up the tree.
2. Sarah visited Paris during the summer.
3. We ate pizza at Domino’s last night.
4. The teacher asked James to solve the problem.
5. Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.

Question 2: Rewrite the following sentences by capitalizing the proper nouns correctly.

1. john lives in london and loves the thames river.
2. my favorite book is to kill a mockingbird by harper lee.
3. we went to central park in new york for a picnic.
4. michael visited the louvre museum in paris.
5. dr. smith is going to give a lecture at harvard university.

Question 3: Match the common nouns with the correct proper nouns:

Question 4: Choose the correct proper noun to replace the common noun in each sentence.

1. The famous actor starred in Inception.
   (Choices: Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Cruise)
2. We visited the city of lights in France.
   (Choices: London, Paris, Rome)
3. She went to the university in Cambridge.
   (Choices: Oxford, MIT, Harvard)
4. The company launched a new product.
   (Choices: Apple, Google, Sony)
5. The book was written by J.K. Rowling.
   (Choices: Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Pride and Prejudice)

Question 5: Write your sentences using the following common nouns and proper nouns:

1. Common noun: city | Proper noun: Tokyo
2. Common noun: river | Proper noun: Mississippi River
3. Common noun: teacher | Proper noun: Ms. Johnson
4. Common noun: movie | Proper noun: The Lion King
5. Common noun: holiday | Proper noun: Christmas

Question 6: Determine if the following statements are true or false:

1. A proper noun always starts with a capital letter.
2. The word “cat” is a proper noun.
3. The name “Mount Everest” is a proper noun.
4. A common noun names specific people, places, or things.
5. “January” is a proper noun.

Question 7: Each of the sentences below contains a common noun and proper noun errors. Correct the mistakes by capitalizing the proper nouns.

1. last year, we visited italy and climbed mount vesuvius.
2. my sister went to harvard university after she graduated from high school.
3. william shakespeare wrote many famous plays.
4. the eiffel tower is located in paris.
5. they adopted a golden retriever named max from the animal shelter.

Question 8: Write the difference between common and proper nouns.

Question 9: Identify the common nouns and proper nouns in the following sentences and explain why they fall under each category.

1. The Nile River is the longest river in the world.
2. Disneyland is my favorite amusement park.
3. Tesla is a famous car manufacturer.
4. J.K. Rowling wrote many books.
5. Google is one of the largest companies in the world.

Question 10: Sort the following words into common nouns and proper nouns.

Words:
Dog, Mr. Johnson, River, Amazon River, School, New York, Pizza, Domino’s, Country, China

Also Read:

• What is Proper Noun with Examples, Exercise, and Activity Sheet
• What is Common Noun Examples, Sample, and Worksheet