Lesson 12 - Abstract Nouns

Abstract Nouns

Abstract nouns are nouns that name concepts, ideas, and qualities. Many abstract nouns are created by adding suffixes to verbs and adjectives. Common suffixes include ing, ness, hood, ship, sion, tion, ity, and ment.

The suffix ing

The suffix ing is added to a verb to indicate the concept of doing the action or the result of an action. The suffix ing is also added to a verb to create the present participle that is used in forming the present and past continuous tenses.

The suffix ness

The suffix ness is added to an adjective to create an abstract noun that means the state of. For example the noun sadness means the state of being sad. If the adjective ends in the letter y, the y is changed to an i before adding the suffix ness.

The suffix th

The suffix th is added to adjectives to create abstract nouns that mean the condition or quality of the adjective. Note that the vowel sound of some adjectives is changed when th is added.

The suffix ity

The suffix ity is added to adjectives to create abstract nouns that mean the condition or quality of the adjective. The plural form of ity is ities.

The suffixes sion, ion, and ation

The suffixes sion and ion are added to verbs to describe a state, condition, action, or process. These words have been borrowed into English from French, so will be very familiar to speakers of French, Spanish, and Portuguese. In some cases, only the noun and not the verb form have been borrowed into English.

The suffix hood

The suffix hood is added to another noun to indicate a state or condition.