proper nouns

proper nouns
 Many writers stumble when confronted with finding a plural form for a proper noun, as in the two following examples, both from The Times of London and both wrong: "The Cox’s were said by neighbors to be . . . happily married"; "This is the first of a new series about the Rush’s." The rule for making plurals of proper nouns is precisely the same as for any other nouns. If you have no trouble turning "one fox" into "two foxes" or "one church" into "two churches," you should have no trouble making "the Rush family" into "the Rushes" and "the Cox couple" into "the Coxes." In short, for names ending in s, sh, ch, or x, add es: Lewises, Lennoxes, Clemenses. For all others, simply add s: Smiths, Browns, Greens, the two Koreas. The rule is invariable for Anglo-Saxon names. For others, there are a few exceptions, among them Rockies, Ptolemies, Alleghenies, Mercuries, and (in some publications) Germanies. At all events, the addition of an apostrophe to make any noun plural is always wrong.

Bryson’s dictionary for writers and editors. 2013.

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  • proper nouns —    Many writers stumble when confronted with finding a plural form for a proper noun, as in the two following examples, both from The Times of London and both wrong: The Cox s were said by neighbors to be . . . happily married ; This is the first …   Dictionary of troublesome word

  • Proper noun — Proper name and common noun redirect here. For the philosophy of language concept, see Proper name (philosophy). For the counterpart to scientific names for species, see Common name. A proper noun or proper name is a noun representing a unique… …   Wikipedia

  • proper noun — proper nouns also proper name N COUNT A proper noun is the name of a particular person, place, organization, or thing. Proper nouns begin with a capital letter. Examples are Margaret , London , and the United Nations . Compare common noun …   English dictionary

  • proper — [präp′ər] adj. [ME propre < OFr < L proprius, one s own] 1. specially adapted or suitable to a specific purpose or specific conditions; appropriate [the proper tool for a job] 2. naturally belonging or peculiar (to) [weather proper to… …   English World dictionary

  • proper noun — noun count a noun that names a particular person, place, or thing and begins with a CAPITAL letter. Jane, Africa, and New Year are proper nouns. ─ compare COMMON NOUN …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • Proper adjective — In English usage, a proper adjective is an adjective that takes an initial capital letter. A common adjective is an adjective that is not a proper adjective. The term is used informally only; it is not used by grammarians or linguists. Contents 1 …   Wikipedia

  • proper noun — UK / US noun [countable] Word forms proper noun : singular proper noun plural proper nouns linguistics a noun that names a particular person, place, or thing and begins with a capital letter. Jane , Africa , and New Year are proper nouns. • See:… …   English dictionary

  • proper — adj. VERBS ▪ be, seem ▪ It seemed proper to pay tribute to her in this way. ▪ consider sth, deem sth, think sth ▪ It was not considered proper for young …   Collocations dictionary

  • proper noun — noun a noun that denotes a particular thing; usually capitalized • Syn: ↑proper name • Ant: ↑common noun • Hypernyms: ↑noun * * * noun, pl ⋯ nouns [count] : a word or group of words (such as “No …   Useful english dictionary

  • Romanian nouns — This article on Romanian nouns is related to the Romanian grammar and belongs to a series of articles on the Romanian language. It describes the morphology of the noun in this language, and includes details about its declension according to… …   Wikipedia

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