To parse a noun is to state the class to which it belongs, its gender, number, case, and its grammatical relation to other words in the sentence.
The changes in meaning and use which nouns undergo with or without a change in form, are called their inflections.
The inflections of the noun are number and case.
EXERCISE.
Parse all the nouns in the following sentences:—
| 1. | John lost his brother’s book on the street. | |
| 2. | The boys have bought a new boat. | |
| 3. | This little girl’s doll fell into the water. | |
| 4. | His son is an excellent writer. | |
| 5. | Mr. Wilson, the tailor, has a fine shop. | |
| 6. | James, take this book to your sister. | |
| 7. | My father gave that boy a beautiful pony. | |
| 8. | Our friends are fond of driving. | |
| 9. | Sympathy is the greatest power in the moral world. | |
| 10. | But the half of our heavy task was done, | |
| When the clock struck the hour for retiring; | ||
| And we heard the distant and random gun, | ||
| That the foe was sullenly firing.—Wolfe. |
Model.—John, a proper, concrete noun; masculine gender; singular number; nominative case, subject of lost.
Teacher’s, a common, concrete noun; masculine or feminine gender; singular number; possessive case, possessing book.
Book, a common, concrete noun; singular number; objective case, object of the verb lost.
Street, a common, concrete noun; singular number; objective case, object of the preposition on.