Common and Proper Nouns Test 2 | Reading Level 2 | Preview - Free Printable

Let's solve this worksheet step by step. The goal is to identify the common noun in each sentence from the given options.

🔹 What are Common Nouns?

- Common nouns name general people, places, things, or ideas (not specific).
- They are not capitalized unless at the beginning of a sentence.
- Examples: *dog, city, book, teacher, animal*

🔹 What are Proper Nouns?

- Proper nouns name specific people, places, or things.
- They are always capitalized.
- Examples: *John, New York, PETA, Niagara Falls*

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Now, let’s go through each question:

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1. My family and I went to the circus yesterday.

Options:
a) and
b) family ✔
c) went
d) to

- "family" refers to a general group of people — it's a common noun.
- "circus" is also a common noun, but "family" is listed as an option and is correct.
- ✔️ Answer: b) family

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2. John Bill Ricketts staged the first circus performance in the US on April 3, 1793.

Options:
a) circus ✔
b) April
c) staged
d) U.S.

- "circus" is a general place/event — common noun.
- "April" is a month — proper noun (but not capitalized here? Wait — actually, it's capitalized in the sentence). But even if it were lowercase, months are proper nouns.
- "U.S." is an abbreviation for United States — proper noun.
- "staged" is a verb.
- ✔️ Answer: a) circus

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3. Isaac Van Amburgh began the tradition of taming jungle cats in 1830.

Options:
a) of
b) Isaac Van Amburgh
c) tradition ✔
d) began

- "Isaac Van Amburgh" is a person's name → proper noun
- "tradition" is a general concept → common noun
- "of" is a preposition
- "began" is a verb
- ✔️ Answer: c) tradition

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4. PETA is a group that believes that circus animals are treated cruelly.

Options:
a) group ✔
b) PETA
c) cruelly
d) treated

- "PETA" is an acronym for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals — proper noun
- "group" is a general category → common noun
- "cruelly" is an adverb
- "treated" is a verb
- ✔️ Answer: a) group

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5. The static or fixed trapeze act is performed on bars and ropes that mainly stay in place.

Options:
a) mainly
b) is
c) performed
d) bars ✔

- "bars" refers to physical objects used in the act — common noun
- "mainly", "is", "performed" are adverbs/verbs
- ✔️ Answer: d) bars

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6. Albert Petrovski set the record for juggling eleven rings at the same time.

Options:
a) Albert
b) same
c) record ✔
d) performed

- "Albert" is a person's name → proper noun
- "record" is a general thing (like a world record) → common noun
- "same" is an adjective
- "performed" is a verb (not in original sentence — typo? It should be "time")
- ✔️ Answer: c) record

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7. A tightrope walker known as The Great Farini crossed the Niagara Falls.

Options:
a) known
b) Farini
c) Niagara
d) walker ✔

- "Farini" is part of a stage name → proper noun ("The Great Farini")
- "Niagara Falls" is a specific place → proper noun
- "known" is a past participle (verb)
- "walker" is a general person doing an action → common noun
- ✔️ Answer: d) walker

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✔ Final Answers:

1. b) family
2. a) circus
3. c) tradition
4. a) group
5. d) bars
6. c) record
7. d) walker

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📝 Summary Explanation:

We identified common nouns by looking for general names of things, people, or ideas that aren't specific or capitalized. We avoided proper nouns (like names of people, places, organizations), verbs, adverbs, and prepositions.

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