Forming Compound Nouns

As mentioned, compound nouns are formed by combining two or more words, with the most common combinations being noun + noun or adjective + noun.

However, combinations using other parts of speech are also possible. Below are

the various combinations used to create compound nouns.

Noun + noun

There are a great number of compound nouns formed using the noun + noun

combination. For example:

• backpack

• bathroom

• bathtub

• bedroom

• bus stop

• fish tank

• football

• handbag

• motorcycle

• shopkeeper

• tablecloth

• toothpaste

• wallpaper

• water bottle

• website

• wristwatch

Adjective + noun

There are also many compound nouns that are formed using the adjective +

noun combination. For example:

• full moon

• blackberry

• blackbird

• blackboard

• cell(ular) phone

• mobile phone

• hardware

• highway

• greenhouse

• redhead

• six-pack

• small talk

• software

• whiteboard

Other combinations

Although the noun + noun and adjective + noun combinations are the most common, there are also plenty of other possibilities for forming compound nouns. For example:

noun + verb

haircut, rainfall, sunrise, sunset

noun + preposition

hanger-on, passerby

noun + prepositional

phrase

brother-in-law, mother-in-law

noun + adjective

cupful, spoonful

verb + noun

breakfast, washing machine, runway, pickpocket,

swimming pool

preposition + noun

bystander, influx, onlooker, underpants, upstairs

verb + preposition

check-in, checkout/check-out, drawback, lookout,

makeup

adjective + verb

dry cleaning, public speaking

preposition + verb

input, output, overthrow, upturn

Writing compound nouns

Compound nouns are very common, both in written and spoken English, and there are spelling, punctuation, and pronunciation norms that we must be aware of if we want to use them correctly.

The three written forms of compound nouns

Writing compound nouns is a bit complicated due to the fact that they can take three different forms.

First, open compound nouns (or spaced compound nouns) are those that are written as two separate words, such as washing machine, swimming pool, and water bottle.

Second, there are hyphenated compound nouns, as in check-in, hanger-on, and mother-in-law.

Third, there are closed compound nouns (or solid compound nouns)—those that are written as one word, such as rainfall, drawback, and toothpaste.

Unfortunately, there aren’t any rules that tell us which of the three forms is acceptable for a particular compound noun. Some compound nouns are commonly written in two forms, as in website / web site or checkout / check-out, while others, such as bus stop, are strictly used in one form. Where more than one is possible, the form that is more commonly used may depend on the variety of English (American English vs. British English, for example), the style guide of a publication, or the personal preference of the writer.

If you’re not sure which of the three forms to use, it’s important to check a good, up-to-date dictionary. If you are relying on the spellchecker in a word processor, remember that this has its limits. For example, spellcheck is good for checking whether a particular compound noun can be written as one word (closed); however, if we write a compound noun as two words (open) and it should be written as one word (closed), or if we write it with a hyphen and it should be written without a hyphen, spellcheck will not catch the mistakes.

Finally, remember that, no matter which way the compound noun is written, it always functions grammatically as a single unit. 

Pluralizing compound nouns

We usually pluralize a compound noun by adding an “-s” or “-es” to the main word, or the defining word, of the compound noun. This is usually the second word, but not always. For example:

Singular

Plural

bedroom

bedrooms

football

footballs

water bottle /water bottles

full moon

full moons

Singular/Plural

secretary general

secretaries general

mother-in-law

mothers-in-law

passerby / passer-by passersby / passers-by

When it’s not obvious which of the words is the defining word, we pluralize the end of it. For example:

Singular

Plural

haircut

haircuts

check-in

check-in

checkout / check-out checkouts / check-outs

upturn

upturn.

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