Common and Proper Nouns worksheet for sorting words into correct categories.

Let's solve the "Common and Proper Nouns" sorting task step by step.

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🔹 Definitions Recap:

- Common Noun: A general name for a person, place, or thing (not specific).
Example: *teacher*, *boy*, *shoes*

- Proper Noun: A specific name of a person, place, or thing. It is always capitalized.
Example: *Mrs. Smith*, *Virginia*, *Walmart*

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🔹 Word Bank:

1. flowers
2. teacher
3. Mrs. Smith
4. boy
5. Thomas
6. state
7. Virginia
8. market
9. coach
10. Mr. Leonard
11. Memphis, TN
12. Walmart
13. shoes
14. Nike

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🔹 Step-by-Step Sorting:

We’ll go through each word:

1. flowers → General thing → ✔ Common
2. teacher → General job → ✔ Common
3. Mrs. Smith → Specific person → ✔ Proper
4. boy → General person → ✔ Common
5. Thomas → Specific person’s name → ✔ Proper
6. state → General place → ✔ Common
7. Virginia → Name of a specific U.S. state → ✔ Proper
8. market → General place → ✔ Common
9. coach → General job → ✔ Common
10. Mr. Leonard → Specific person → ✔ Proper
11. Memphis, TN → Specific city and state → ✔ Proper
12. Walmart → Specific store name → ✔ Proper
13. shoes → General item → ✔ Common
14. Nike → Specific brand name → ✔ Proper

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✔ Final Answer:

#### Common Nouns:
- flowers
- teacher
- boy
- state
- market
- coach
- shoes

#### Proper Nouns:
- Mrs. Smith
- Thomas
- Virginia
- Mr. Leonard
- Memphis, TN
- Walmart
- Nike

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📝 Explanation:

- Words like "teacher", "boy", or "shoes" are general categories — they are common nouns.
- Names like "Mrs. Smith", "Thomas", "Virginia", "Walmart", and "Nike" refer to specific people, places, or brands — they are proper nouns and are capitalized accordingly.

This sorting helps students understand how to distinguish between general and specific names in English grammar.

✔ All words have been correctly sorted!