A noun is the name of any person, place, or thing; as, _man, Charleston,
knowledge_.
Nouns are often improperly called _substantives_. A substantive is the
name of a _substance_ only; but a noun is the name either of a
_substance_ or a _quality_.
_Noun_, derived from the Latin word _nomen_, signifies _name_. The name
of any thing [1] that exists, whether animate or inanimate, or
which we can see, hear, feel, taste, smell, or think of, is a noun.
_Animal, bird, creature, paper, pen, apple, fold, house, modesty,
virtue, danger_, are all nouns. In order that you may easily distinguish
this part of speech from others, I will give you a _sign_, which will be
useful to you when you cannot tell it by the _sense_. Any word that will
make sense with _the_ before it, is a noun. Try the following words by
this sign, and see if they are nouns: tree, mountain, soul, mind,
conscience, understanding. _The_ tree, _the_ mountain, _the_ soul, and
so on. You perceive, that they will make sense with _the_ prefixed;
therefore you know they are _nouns_. There are, however, exceptions to
this rule, for some nouns will not make sense with _the_ prefixed. These
you will be able to distinguish, if you exercise your mind, by their
_making sense of themselves_; as, _goodness, sobriety, hope,
immortality_.
[1] The word _thing_, from the Saxon verb _thingian_, to think, is
almost unlimited in its meaning. It may be applied to every animal
and creature in the universe. By the term creature, I mean that
which has been created; as, a dog, water, dirt. This word is also
frequently applied to actions; as, "To get drunk is a beastly
_thing_." In this phrase, it signifies neither animal nor creature;
but it denotes merely an action; therefore this action is the thing.
Nouns are used to denote the nonentity or absence of a thing, as well as
its reality; as, _nothing, naught, vacancy, non-existence,
invisibility_.
Nouns are sometimes used as verbs, and verbs, as nouns, according to
their _manner_ of meaning; and nouns are sometimes used as adjectives,
and adjectives, as nouns. This matter will be explained in the
concluding part of this lecture, where you will be better prepared to
comprehend it.
NOUNS are of two kinds, common and proper.
A _Common noun_ is the name of a sort or species of things; as, _man,
tree, river_.
A _Proper noun_ is the name of an individual; as, _Charles, Ithaca,
Ganges_.
A noun signifying many, is called a _collective noun_, or _noun of
multitude_; as, the _people_, the _army_.
The distinction between a common and a proper noun, is very obvious. For
example: _boy_ is a common noun, because it is a name applied to _all_
boys; but _Charles_ is a proper noun, because it is the name of an
_individual_ boy. Although many boys may have the same name, yet you
know it is not a common noun, for the name Charles is _not_ given to all
boys. _Mississippi_ is a proper noun, because it is the name of an
individual river; but _river_ is a common noun, because it is the name
of a _species_ of things, and the name _river_ is common to _all_
rivers.
Nouns which denote the genus, species, or variety of beings or things,
are always common; as, _tree_, the genus; _oak, ash, chestnut, poplar_,
different species; and red _oak_, white _oak_, black _oak_, varieties.
The word earth, when it signifies a kind or quantity of dirt, is a
common noun; but when it denotes the planet we inhabit, it is a proper
noun. The _words_ person, place, river, mountain, lake, &c. are _common
nouns_, because they are the names of whole _species_, or classes of
things containing many sorts; but the _names_ of persons, places,
rivers, mountains, lakes, &c. are _proper nouns_, because they denote
_individuals_; as, Augustus, Baltimore, Alps, Huron.
_Physician, lawyer, merchant_, and _shoemaker_, are common nouns,
because these names are common to classes of men. _God_ and _Lord_, when
applied to Jehovah or Jesus Christ, are proper; but when employed to
denote heathen or false _gods_, or temporal _lords_, they are common.
The Notes and remarks throughout the work, though of minor importance,
demand your attentive and careful perusal.