Concrete & Abstract Nouns
Learn how nouns can name things you experience through your senses and ideas, feelings or qualities that have no physical form.
Physical or non-physical?
Some nouns name things you can experience. Others name ideas you can only understand.
A concrete noun names something that can be experienced through one or more of the five senses. You may be able to see it, hear it, touch it, taste it or smell it.
An abstract noun names something without a physical form, such as a feeling, quality, state, relationship, idea or concept.
The difference is not about whether something is important or real. Love, confidence and freedom are real, but they are abstract because they do not exist as physical objects.
Before you begin
Both concrete and abstract nouns are still nouns.
These labels tell us what kind of thing the noun names. They do not change the noun’s basic role in a sentence.
If you would like to review what nouns are and how they work, begin with the Nouns lesson.
The central idea
Concrete nouns have a physical presence. Abstract nouns do not.
Compare the two categories and notice what each one names.
01
Concrete Nouns
Concrete nouns name people, places, animals, objects and other things that can be experienced through the senses.
teacher
music
coffee
rain
A concrete noun does not need to be solid. Sounds, smells and other sensory experiences can also be concrete.
02
Abstract Nouns
Abstract nouns name feelings, qualities, states, ideas, relationships and concepts.
happiness
honesty
childhood
freedom
You can understand or experience these ideas, but you cannot physically touch the ideas themselves.
The useful question is: Can I experience it through my senses?
bread → concrete
music → concrete
kindness → abstract
knowledge → abstract
If the noun names something you can see, hear, touch, taste or smell, it is usually concrete. If it names an idea, feeling, quality or state, it is usually abstract.
Concrete nouns
Concrete nouns can be experienced through one or more senses.
Things you can see
building
tree
car
cloud
A bird landed on the roof.
Things you can hear
music
laughter
thunder
voice
We heard music from the next room.
A sound can be concrete even though you cannot hold it. You can experience it through hearing.
Things you can touch
fabric
sand
water
phone
The water felt cold.
Things you can taste or smell
coffee
garlic
perfume
chocolate
The coffee smelled wonderful.
Abstract nouns
Abstract nouns name ideas that have no physical form.
Feelings and emotions
happiness
anger
fear
love
Her excitement was obvious.
Qualities and characteristics
honesty
kindness
patience
strength
Patience is important when learning a language.
States and conditions
childhood
health
poverty
sleep
Good health affects every part of life.
Ideas and concepts
freedom
justice
knowledge
education
Education can create new opportunities.
Relationships and experiences
friendship
marriage
success
failure
Their friendship lasted for many years.
A closer look
Something can be real without being concrete.
Abstract nouns often describe things people strongly experience, even though those things cannot be touched as physical objects.
01
Love
You can feel love and see actions that express it, but love itself is not a physical object.
02
Freedom
Freedom affects how people live, but it cannot be seen or touched in the same way as a building or a book.
03
Knowledge
Books and documents are concrete, but the knowledge they contain is abstract.
04
Beauty
A painting may be concrete, but beauty is the quality people recognise in it.
Forming abstract nouns
Many abstract nouns are formed from adjectives and verbs.
Word endings can help you recognise abstract nouns, but they are clues, not guarantees.
-ness
kind → kindness
happy → happiness
dark → darkness
-ity
possible → possibility
equal → equality
creative → creativity
-tion / -sion
educate → education
decide → decision
discuss → discussion
-ment and other endings
develop → development
friend → friendship
child → childhood
free → freedom
Not every abstract noun has a predictable ending, so meaning remains more important than form.
A useful decision guide
Ask how the noun can be experienced.
01
Can you see, hear, touch, taste or smell it?
The noun is probably concrete.
dog
music
bread
smoke
02
Does it name a feeling or emotion?
The noun is probably abstract.
joy
fear
anger
love
03
Does it name a quality, state or relationship?
The noun is probably abstract.
honesty
health
friendship
childhood
04
Are you confusing evidence with the idea itself?
You may see actions that show kindness or success, but the ideas of kindness and success remain abstract.
Common mistakes
Do not confuse physical evidence with the abstract idea.
Not everything you cannot hold is abstract.
music → concrete
thunder → concrete
perfume → concrete
You cannot hold these things, but you can hear or smell them.
Not every real experience is concrete.
pain → abstract
hope → abstract
confidence → abstract
These experiences are real, but they have no independent physical form.
Do not rely only on word endings.
movement → abstract
document → concrete
Both words end in -ment, but their meanings are different. Meaning must guide the decision.
Remember that one noun can have more than one classification.
London is both a proper noun and a concrete noun.
Freedom is both a common noun and an abstract noun.
Check your understanding
Concrete noun or abstract noun?
Choose the correct type for the highlighted noun.
The music was very loud.
✅ Exactly! Music can be experienced through hearing.
❎ Not quite. Ask whether you can experience the noun through one of your senses.
You cannot hold music, but you can hear it.
Her kindness made everyone feel welcome.
✅ Exactly! Kindness names a quality.
❎ Not quite. The sentence describes a quality, not a physical object.
The rain continued all afternoon.
✅ Exactly! Rain can be seen, heard and felt.
❎ Not quite. Think about how rain can be experienced through the senses.
They fought for freedom.
✅ Exactly! Freedom names an idea or condition.
❎ Not quite. Freedom is real, but it has no physical form.
Choose the best explanation
Select the sentence that explains the noun correctly.
Why is laughter a concrete noun?
✅ Exactly! A sound can be concrete because it is experienced through hearing.
❎ Not quite. Think about which sense allows you to experience laughter.
Why is friendship an abstract noun?
✅ Exactly! Friendship names the relationship, not the people themselves.
❎ Not quite. Separate the people from the connection between them.
Which pair contains one concrete noun and one abstract noun?
✅ Exactly! Teacher is concrete, while education is abstract.
❎ Not quite. Look for one physical person or thing and one idea or process.
Try it another way
Form the abstract noun.
Type the abstract noun that completes each sentence.
✅ Exactly! Kindness is the abstract noun formed from kind.
❎ Not quite. Add a common abstract-noun ending to kind.
✅ Exactly! Decision is the abstract noun formed from decide.
❎ Not quite. Think about the noun form of the verb decide.
✅ Exactly! Friendship names the relationship between friends.
❎ Not quite. Use the noun that names the relationship.
Edit the sentence
Replace the phrase with an abstract noun.
Rewrite each sentence using the noun in brackets.
The fact that she was kind impressed everyone. (kindness)
✅ Exactly! Kindness names the quality directly.
❎ Not quite. Begin with Her kindness and keep the rest of the meaning.
The fact that he succeeded surprised the whole team. (success)
✅ Exactly! Success names the result as an abstract idea.
❎ Not quite. Use His success as the subject.
The process of educating people creates opportunities. (education)
✅ Exactly! Education names the process as an abstract noun.
❎ Not quite. Replace the longer phrase with the single noun education.
Quick review
Physical experience or non-physical idea?
Concrete nouns name people, places, objects, sounds, smells and other things that can be experienced through the senses.
Abstract nouns name feelings, qualities, states, relationships, processes, ideas and concepts.
A noun does not need to be solid to be concrete. Music, thunder and perfume are concrete because they can be heard or smelled.
Something can be real without being concrete. Love, freedom and knowledge are real but abstract.
Common abstract-noun endings include -ness, -ity, -tion, -sion, -ment, -ship and -hood.
Word endings are clues, but meaning is more important.
A noun can belong to more than one category. London is proper and concrete; freedom is common and abstract.
Remember
Ask how the noun can be experienced.
If you can see, hear, touch, taste or smell what the noun names, it is usually concrete. If the noun names a feeling, quality, state, relationship or idea, it is usually abstract.