noun

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noun

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | 2008 | The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright 2008 Columbia University Press. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

noun [Lat.,=name], in English, part of speech of vast semantic range. It can be used to name a person, place, thing, idea, or time. It generally functions as subject, object, or indirect object of the verb in the sentence, and may be distinguished by a number of formal criteria. A noun may be recognized by inflection (e.g., -' s and - s ) or by derivation (e.g., - ness, - ity, and - tion ). Most languages have a major form class composed of words referring to persons, animals, and objects; but the Latin type of noun declension, with its case system, is unusual outside a few families of languages.

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noun

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English | 2009 | © The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English 2009, originally published by Oxford University Press 2009. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

noun / noun/ • n. Gram. a word (other than a pronoun) used to identify any of a class of people, places, or things (common noun) , or to name a particular one of these (proper noun) . DERIVATIVES: noun·al / ˈnounəl/ adj. ORIGIN: late Middle English: from Anglo-Norman French, from Latin nomen ‘name.’

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noun

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology | 1996 | | © The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology 1996, originally published by Oxford University Press 1996. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

noun XIV. — AN. noun = OF. nun, num (mod. nom):- L. nōmen NAME.

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T. F. HOAD. "noun." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "noun." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (November 10, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-noun.html

T. F. HOAD. "noun." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved November 10, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-noun.html

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