Linguistics - for every teacher

Noun is a word used as the name of a person, place, thing or a quality.

Abstract noun is the name given to a quality, a state or a concept. It refers to things that we can neither touch nor see, though we can think of them.

Abstract noun is a type of common noun.

We can describe a person using qualities like, brave, strong or wise.

We can also think of these qualities like bravery, strength and wisdom independent of any particular person or thing.

Examples :

- Your sister is a smart girl.

- Salma Hayek has a strong personality.

- Mother Teresa was known for her kindness towards people.

- Honesty is the best policy.

- Diamond is known for its hardness.

Concrete noun refers to the name of something or someone that we experience through our senses, sight, hearing, smell, touch or taste. It is a type of common noun.

Examples :

- Tania likes to drink milk.

- She touched his arm and felt so good.

- He bought a car.

- Your computer is so fast.

- The cakes are decorated.

Material noun is a substance, a material or an ingredient we can see and touch which is used for making things.

Material noun can be grouped into the following categories :

- Metals : iron, gold, silver, platinum, …

- Products measured in bulk : tea, sugar, rice, wheat, …

- Geological bodies : mud, sand, rock, granite, …

- Natural phenomena : Rain, dew, cloud, mist, …

- Items manufactured : rubber, soap, paint, clothes, …

Examples :

- This window is made of glass.

- The rain makes me feel a little bit calm.

- This cupboard is made of iron.

- My mother made some delicious honey candies.

- I love silver rings even more than gold rings.

VOCABULARY: TRAVEL

VOCABULARY: TRAVEL

Word choice: travel, travelling, journey, trip, voyage, crossing, flight

TRAVEL AND TRAVELLING

the general activity of moving from place to place

Air travel is becoming cheaper.

Her work involves a lot of travelling.

form/means/mode of travel (=the type of vehicle you use)

rail/air/space travel

TRAVELS [plural] journeys to places that are far away, usually for pleasure

We met some very interesting people on our travels in Thailand.

JOURNEY

to talk about travelling a long distance or travelling regularly, when the emphasis is on the travelling itself

a long and difficult journey (NOT travel) through the mountains

I read during the train journey to work.

Did you have a good journey? (=Were you comfortable, was the train on time etc?) make a journey/go on a journey (=make a long journey)

break a journey (BrE) (=make a short stop in a journey)

return journey (=a journey home from a place) safe journey (=used especially to wish someone a good journey)

wasted journey (=one that did not achieve the result you wanted)

leg of a journey (=one part of a journey)

car/train/bus journey

CROSSING

a fairly short sea journey

The crossing takes 90 minutes.

a place where you can safely cross a road, railway, river etc:

You must give way to any pedestrians on the crossing.

level crossing (AmE) railroad crossing, pedestrian crossing (AmE crosswalk), pelican crossing, zebra crossing

a place where two lines, roads, tracks etc cross:

Turn left at the first crossing.

VOYAGE

a long sea journey

a voyage across the ocean

the Titanic's maiden voyage (=first journey)

These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise.

TRIP

when you go on a short journey, or a journey you do not usually make, and come back again

Use this when the emphasis is on where you are going or why you are going there :

my first trip to the States

a business trip

Was it a good trip? (=Did you achieve what you wanted to or have a good time there?) trip to Did you enjoy your trip to Disneyland?

trip from The Palace is only a short trip from here.

business/school/shopping etc trip

a business trip to Japan

Two lucky employees won a round-the-world trip.

coach/boat/bus trip a boat trip up the Thames

day trip (=a pleasure trip done in one day)

It's an 80-mile round trip (=a journey to a place and back again) to Exeter. return trip (=when you are travelling back to where you started)

I'm afraid you've had a wasted trip (=a trip in which you do not achieve your purpose), Mr Burgess has already left.

go on/take a trip

We're thinking of taking a trip to the mountains

FLIGHT

a journey by air Have a good flight! book a flight

catch a flight (=get on a plane to go somewhere)

miss a flight (=arrive too late to get on a plane)

cancel a flight

a long/short flight a domestic flight (=to another place in the

same country)

an international flight (=to another country)

a non-stop/direct flight

a connecting flight (=a flight to continue a journey, after a previous flight)

BRITISH AND AMERICAN ENGLISH...

American English

British English

subway

carry-on baggage

one way

freeway

rest room

elevator

coach class

downtown

round trip

schedule

parking lot

airplane

cab

call collect

check

first floor, second floor

gas(oline)

intersection

mail

railroad underground

hand luggage

single

motorway

public toilet

lift

economy class

city center

return

timetable

car park

aeroplane

taxi

reverse the charges

bill

ground floor, first floor

petrol

crossroads

post

railway

Common noun suffixes:

-er person who does an activity researcher

-or director

-ist chemist

-er things which do a particular job stirrer

-or projector

-er person who does something employer

-ee person who recieves or experiences employee

the action

-ity purity, density

-ing testing

-ment measurement

-ance appearance

-ence difference

-ation distillation

-ion discussion

-age passage

-hood childhood

-ness abstract nouns derived from adjectives bitterness

Common adjective suffixes

-al chemical, physical

-ous dangerous

-ic toxic, sulphuric

-ive relative

-y milky

-able,-ible means ´can be done´ washable, visible

-ful often means ˇfull ofˇ+the meaning careful, useful

of the adjective

-less means ˇwithoutˇ+ the meaning of the careless, hopeless

adjective

Common verb suffixes

-ify solidify, purify

-ize specialize

-ate separate, condensate

Common prefixes

Giving the adjective/adverb or verb negative or opposite meaning:

un- unusual

im- impossible

in- invisible

il- illegal

dis- disappear

mis- misunderstand

non- non-metal

de- decompose

Another frequent prefix used in technical language is

re- meaning again or back redestill, recycle