Compound Nouns for English Language Learners
This is the second of two courses designed to be simple to learn English for Chinese students.
This article explains compound nouns.
Compound noun worksheet – phrasal verb worksheet – click to download pdf
What are Compound Nouns
A compound noun is a term made of two or more nouns together. For example:
- break + fast = breakfast
- football
- ice cream
- peanut butter
- living room
- sunflower
- swimming pool
- classroom
- hot dog
Try to enter the missing letters to complete these common compound nouns.
- birth _ _ _
- _ _ _ plane
- base _ _ _ _
- s _ _ food
- _ _ _ _ coat
- cup _ _ _ _
Check your answers at the bottom of the page
Types of Compound Nouns
| Compound elements | Examples |
|---|---|
| noun + noun | bedroom water tank motorcycle printer cartridge |
| noun + verb | rainfall haircut train-spotting |
| noun + adverb | hanger-on passer-by |
| verb + noun | washing machine driving licence swimming pool |
| verb + adverb | lookout take-off drawback |
| adverb + noun | onlooker bystander |
| adjective + verb | dry-cleaning public speaking |
| adjective + noun | greenhouse software redhead |
| adverb + verb | output overthrow upturn input |
Adapted from https://www.ef.com/wwen/english-resources/english-grammar/compound-nouns/
Compound Noun Exercise #1
match these simple examples to form compound nouns:
- box
- bus
- film
- income
- mother
- science
- traffic
- travel
- a) agent
- b) driver
- c) fiction
- d) jam
- e) office
- f) star
- g) tax
- h) tongue
Exercise #2
Exercise 2 Fill in the blanks to form compound words with the words below.
light police sewing moon gold
tooth sky water under down life
- A steamship has got a paddle wheel on its side.
- These three horses have got only one overcoat
- Do you want to see the Detain ……… fall?
- People use a ……… brush to clean their teeth.
- David works as a ……… guard at the beach.
- There aren’t any houses near the ………
- Mum, shall we buy a …fish from the pets hop?
- My parents like having dinner under the ……… light
- The man is running ……… stairs because he is late.
- Which one do you prefer? ground or taxi?
- Look! The … scraper in the middle is on fire.
- I want to buy a ….machine for my mum.
- The ……… man is riding his horse in the city centre
Exercise #3
order these sentence whilst completing the compound nouns
Example Answer: Kevin Costner played a bodyguard in a movie with Whitney Houston.
- Kevin / Houston / guard / played / . / movie / a / Whitney / body / in / a / Costner / with
- was / Shergar / a / horse / famous / 1980s / . / in / race / the
- the / outside / found / foot / a / house / large / . / print / police / the / victim’s
- my / like / has / and / a / new / ! / style / hair / really / mother / I / it
- lost / I / can’t / phones / . / music / listen / to / head / my / because / I / my
- there / coast / very / house / . / is / a / light / dangerous / the / is / because
- it / light / was / enough / . / night / see / was / but / there / moon / to
- will / put / burn / this / your / better / . / cream / on / tomorrow / sun / and / it / be
Exercise #4
use the words below to fill the blanks to form compound nouns:
road flood news head jelly dead bow sky check key chair lid fly
- after + math = aftermath
- _______ + board = ______
- _______ + fish = ______
- _______ + scraper = ______
- eye + _______ = ______
- fire + _______ = ______
- _______ + light = ______
- _______ + up = ______
- over + coat = overcoat
- _______ + paper = ______
- rain + _______ = ______
- _______ + quarters = ______
- _______ + lock = ______
- cross + _______ = ______
- wheel + _______ = ______
Conclusion
If you want to learn more about nouns visit the nouns page, or visit the parts of speech page.
Return to the The APC 2 course page – improve your English
Common Compound Nouns
- birthday
- airplane
- baseball
- seafood
- overcoat
- cupcake
Compound Noun Meanings
- Box office: The place where tickets for movies are sold.
- Bus driver: A person who drives a bus.
- Film star: An actor or actress who is famous for their roles in movies.
- Income tax: A percentage of a person’s wages or salary that is paid to the government.
- Mother tongue: The first language a person learns, spoken by parents and used at home.
- Science fiction: A type of book or film based on or related to science, that is not based on facts.
- Traffic jam: A situation where a large number of vehicles are unable to move freely on a road, normally causing delays.
- Travel agent: A person or business that helps plan and arrange travel, including booking flights and hotels.
Compound Noun Explained
- Toothbrush: A small brush used for cleaning teeth.
- Policeman: A male police officer.
- Moonlight: The light from the moon.
- Overcoat: A heavy coat worn over regular clothing for warmth.
- Skyscraper: A very tall building with many floors.
- Goldfish: A small fish often kept as a pet that is gold colored.
- Downstairs: The lower floor in a building, opposite of upstairs.
- Underground: under the surface or the subway system.
- Waterfall: A natural shower of water falling from a height.
- Lifeguard: A person trained to ensure the safety of swimmers at a beach or pool.
- Steamship: A ship powered by steam engines.
- Lighthouse: A tall tower with a light at the top, located at coastlines to guide ships.
- Sewing Machine: A device used for stitching fabric together.
Compound Noun List
- Blackboard: A classroom board used for writing on in schools.
- Aftermath: The following period and result of a bad event.
- Jellyfish: A soft sea animal with a umbrella-shaped body and trailing tentacles.
- Skyscraper: A very tall building with many floors.
- Eyelid: The thin skin covering and protecting the eye.
- Firefly: A small insect that produces light, especially at night.
- Floodlight: A bright light, often used outdoors, that lights a wide area.
- Check-up: A medical examination to assess a person’s health or progress.
- Newspaper: A printed publication containing news, articles, and advertisements, usually published daily or weekly.
- Overcoat: A large, heavy coat worn over regular clothing, especially in cold weather.
- Rainbow: A arc in the sky with a range of beautiful colors appearing when it is sunny and raining.
- Headquarters: The main office or center of an organization.
- Deadlock: A situation where two sides can’t agree.
- Crossroad: A point where two or more roads cross over each other.
- Wheelchair: A chair with wheels for people who have walking difficult.