Know the differences between countable, non-countable and collective nouns. Since a countable noun can be counted, it can exist both in singular and plural, whereas non-countable and collective nouns have already a plural meaning and are not altered. For example, "car" is countable because its plural form is "cars," but "information" is non-countable, is used in the singular form only and cannot be changed, while "jury" signifies a unit or group of people and is used in the singular form.
Learn the Greek and Latin roots of words. Many words of the English language have stems originating from those languages. By knowing and memorizing them you can guess the meaning of words. For example, the root "fid" means "faith" and is reflected in nouns like "confidence" or "fidelity," and "spect" relates to "looking" and "seeing," such as "spectator," "inspection" and "spectacle."
Review irregular plural nouns in the English language since many nouns do not end in the plural "-s." For example, "foot" changes its spelling and becomes "feet" in its plural, while others remain unchanged, such as "sheep." Sometimes there may be more than one option for the plural form, in nouns like "octopus," which can be either "octopuses" or "octopi" in its plural form.
Prefixes and suffixes are also helpful tools. By recognizing a particular prefix or suffix, you already have some vital information about the noun's meaning. Prefixes like "pre-" and "post-" mean "before" and "after," respectively. For instance, "prenatal" means "before birth." In fact, suffixes are useful in determining the part of speech. The adjective "kind" changes into the noun "kindness" by adding the derivational suffix "-ness."
Rudimentary knowledge of etymology is also helpful when teaching and learning nouns. Etymology is the study of the origin of words and give facts about its usage in the past. Etymology gives you additional historical background information and insight into the English language. In fact, words change meaning over time. For example, research into the noun "salary" offers an interesting surprise about workers being paid in "salt" in the ancient past.