How to Spot Concrete Nouns

To some people, it may seem simple: concrete nouns are nouns that represent something specific and actual, not a noun for a feeling or general principle. Concrete nouns are often easy to spot, but sometimes, seeing whether a noun is a concrete or abstract noun takes a little more work. Here's how to test a noun to see if it is concrete.

Instructions

1. Use your five senses. Concrete nouns are nouns that you can experience through a sense, whether its sight, smell, hearing, taste, or touch (or more than one of the above). This is a pretty good rule for spotting concrete nouns in a sentence. If you can envision it, it's a concrete noun. If not, it's probably more abstract.

2. Identify proper nouns. Proper nouns (nouns that refer to a specific person or animal, or an inanimate object like a building) are always concrete. Because they refer to some specific physical body or thing, a proper noun is a concrete noun.

3. Look for nouns that are generally identifiable. This goes along with the last two steps, because the essential rule of concrete nouns is that they have boundaries. They are limited to a specific area, where free-floating abstract nouns are not.

4. Make lists of concrete versus abstract. This will help you see the difference. Write a list of concrete nouns like strawberry ice cream, fire hydrant or Bill Shakespeare. Then write a list of abstract nouns like audacity, bravery, intelligence and approval. Contrast them to see what makes up a concrete noun.

5. Evaluate borderline concrete nouns to see how they become abstract. The nouns "product line" and "inventory" are pretty much abstract nouns, even though they refer to something you MIGHT be able to visualize through imagination. The real concrete noun would be something like "box of sandwiches," where you know what that inventory or product is.