I can't grasp the difference between a NOUN and a common noun. Are they not the same?

So if a noun is a word used to represent a person, place or thing. Then I would have thought that the word BOY is a noun, because BOY represents a person.

But ive been told im wrong because BOY is a common noun because it 'describes' the person, therefore it's a common noun.

It made me confused. What's the actual difference between nouns and common nouns?

Another question; apparently, TABLE is a common noun, why is it a common noun when it doesnt describe anything?

Reply 1

arunima_

Common noun is a type of noun. So, every common noun is a noun, but not every noun is a common noun.

To answer your question, yes, boy is a noun and a common noun.

Table is a common noun too. Because it describes the object. It is a table. Anything is common noun, book, pen, chair, house.

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If you mean to differentiate between proper noun and common noun, 2 types of nouns that are used to classify nouns in most occasions, then there is a very simple rule:

If it is a name, it it is proper noun, if it isn't it is a common noun.

Example:
Proper nouns: Bob, The Bible, Mount Everest, New York
Common nouns: boy, book, mountain, city