Nouns Worksheets

These free nouns worksheets help children in grades 1 to 3 find the words that name a person, place, animal or thing. Each page has ten sentences taken from a bank of 60, such as “The hungry bear ate sweet honey,” and children circle every noun, so no two sheets are quite the same. There is also a cut-and-glue sort, plural noun practice and an answer key on every page, and everything prints as a PDF in color or black and white.

Quick answer: A noun is a word that names a person, place, animal or thing, such as teacher, park, dog or ball. This page has free printable nouns worksheets with answer keys for grades 1 to 3: find the nouns, sort words, plural nouns and common and proper nouns. Updated October 2026.

Nouns worksheets to print (PDF)

The four pages below show what the maker prints: a find-the-nouns sheet, a noun, verb and adjective sort to cut out and glue, a mixed sheet where children circle all three parts of speech, and a plural nouns page. Use the maker at the top of this page to change the number of pages, the font, black and white ink or the paper size, then press New sentences for a fresh set. Every sheet has an answer key.

Noun worksheets for 1st grade: what is a noun?

A noun names a person, a place, an animal or a thing. Young children find nouns most easily by asking: Can I see it, touch it or point to it? If so, it is probably a noun. Ideas such as kindness or morning are nouns too, but children usually meet those later. Wikipedia’s noun article gives the grown-up version.

The sentence bank has 105 different nouns, and 113 nouns appear in all across the 60 sentences. By our grouping, 20 name people, 17 name animals, 14 name places and the other 54 name things, which is the biggest group, so children meet lots of everyday objects.

Find the nouns worksheet: three tricks that work

1. The “the” test. Try putting the or a in front of the word. The puppy works and the chased does not, so puppy is a noun.
2. The “more than one” test. Can you make it plural? One ball, two balls. Verbs and adjectives do not change that way.
3. Find the verb first. In “The puppy chased a red ball,” the action is chased. Ask who did it (puppy) and what it was done to (ball): the answers are nouns.

Common nouns worksheet: common and proper nouns

Common and proper nouns worksheet: the capital letter rule

A common noun names any person, place or thing, and a proper noun names one special one and starts with a capital letter. Names of people and days of the week are proper nouns. The sentences use Sam, Maya, Leo, Ben, Saturday, Emma, Jack and Nina, and every other noun is common. Our capitalization and punctuation worksheets give extra practice with the capitals.

Singular and plural nouns

Many sentences use plurals, such as birds, trees, seeds, books and children. Counting how many are singular and how many are plural is a good extension: ask “How many of the nouns on this page mean more than one?” The plural nouns worksheets teach the rules for -s, -es, -ies and irregular plurals such as feet and mice.

Circle the nouns: how the sheets work

Each of the nouns worksheets asks children to circle the nouns in ten sentences. Some sentences hold two or three nouns, such as “Sam kicked the ball over the fence,” so a child cannot stop at the first one. After circling, they check with the answer key, which lists every noun in order, and then count how many they found. A good routine is to circle first with a pencil, check with a different color and fix any misses, so the sheet shows the learning as well as the answers.

Noun sort cut and paste: the word sort page

The noun sort cut and paste page gives children eighteen word cards, six nouns, six verbs and six adjectives, and three columns to glue them in. It is a gentler task than circling in a sentence, because each word stands alone, and it is a good first step for grade 1. The words are different on every print, so a child who masters one sheet can try another.

Nouns worksheets for grade 1: a five-day plan

Teaching nouns grade by grade

Using these nouns worksheets every week keeps the skill fresh. These expectations come from the Common Core grade 1 language standards and the grades that follow.

Ways to practice nouns at home or in class

• Noun hunt: give each child a clipboard and ask for ten nouns they can see in the room, then sort them into person, place and thing.
• Noun bingo: call out a noun and let children cover a matching picture on a bingo card.
• Mystery bag: pull an object out of a bag, name it and use it as a noun in a sentence.
• Play online: the nouns, verbs and adjectives game turns sorting into a quick race.

Find the noun in the sentence: five examples with answers

To find the noun in a sentence, ask who or what each word names. This noun identification worksheet has five sentences, with the nouns and a count. Cover the answer columns and try it first:

Notice that Tom, Mia, Sunday and Lake Erie are proper nouns, because they name one particular person, day or place, so they start with a capital letter. Proper noun worksheets practice exactly this.

Noun worksheets, noun activity sheets and noun handouts

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Nouns worksheets: frequently asked questions

What grade are nouns worksheets for?

Grade 1 is the main year for finding nouns, and grades 2 and 3 move on to irregular plurals and abstract nouns. Kindergarten children can circle nouns in simple sentences with a grown-up reading aloud.

How many sentences are on each page?

Ten. Each page is drawn from a bank of 60 sentences, and the New sentences button picks a different set.

Do the worksheets have answer keys?

Yes. Every download includes an answer key page that lists the nouns in each sentence.

How do I explain a noun to a young child?

Say that a noun is a naming word, then play a game of naming everything you can see. Use the “the” test to check.

Are the nouns worksheets free?

Yes. They are free to print for home and classroom use, with no sign-up.

Where can I download free noun worksheets?

Open any worksheet in the gallery above, choose US Letter or A4, then print or save the PDF. They are free, with answer keys.

More grammar practice

• verbs worksheets for the action words in the same sentences
• adjectives worksheets for describing words
• parts of speech worksheets for all three together
• plural nouns worksheets for singular and plural
• The grammar worksheets hub, with every grammar topic in one place