250+ Abstract Noun Example Sentences on Feelings

An abstract noun is a type of noun that names something you cannot see or touch, such as an idea, a feeling or a quality, as in her courage saved the crew. Most abstract noun example sentences turn on words such as love, honesty and freedom, which name what people feel and value.

What Is an Abstract Noun?

An abstract noun names a quality, emotion, state or belief that has no physical form and reaches the mind rather than the five senses. A concrete noun names something the senses meet, so chair and rain are concrete, while patience and fear are not.

Adjective, verb or noun + -ness, -ity, -ment, -tion, -hood = abstract noun

Everyone in the room admired her patience during the long meeting.

Common Abstract Noun Example Sentences

Love, courage, freedom and honesty are the abstract nouns that turn up most in classroom exercises, and each one names something a person feels, believes or becomes rather than anything visible.

• Her courage surprised everyone in the rescue team.
• Honesty meant more to my grandmother than winning.
• The children shouted with joy when the snow began to fall.
• Nobody doubted his loyalty to the club after fifteen years of service.
• Freedom of speech is protected by the constitution of India.
• We waited in complete silence until the ceremony ended.
• Her kindness toward the new student changed his first week at school.
• Patience is exactly what my driving instructor asked for during the very first lesson on a busy road.
• Marco lost his temper when the referee ignored the foul.
• The old letters left her with nostalgia for a small village in Poland.
• Truth was the only defence the young lawyer had left.
• His ambition took him from a village school to a laboratory in Tokyo.
• They celebrated their friendship with a trip across Scotland.
• Fear kept the puppy under the sofa for two hours.
• A sudden doubt crossed her mind as she signed the contract.
• The prisoner begged for mercy in front of the judge.
• Wisdom comes to some people late, and to others never.
• Rahul spoke about the poverty he had seen in the northern districts.
• Her beauty was never the reason people trusted her.
• Hope returned to the village after the first rain in June.

Abstract Nouns for Feelings

Love that survives an argument, anger at a broken promise and joy at a birth are the emotions named in this group, each one felt inside a person rather than seen by anyone else.

• Love kept the couple together through two long separations.
• His anger faded once he heard the whole story from her side.
• A wave of fear ran through the crowd when the lights went out.
• Joy spread across the hospital corridor when the twins were born.
• Deep sadness settled over the team after their captain retired.
• Jealousy ruined a friendship that had lasted since primary school.
• Nadia felt a strange excitement the night before her first flight to Cairo, and she barely slept.
• Grief takes a different form in every family.
• Tom hid his disappointment when the letter from the university arrived.
• Anxiety kept her awake until three in the morning.
• Pure relief showed on the driver’s face after the brakes finally worked.
• The crowd roared with delight as the final goal went in.
• Shame stopped him from telling his parents about the broken window.
• Does guilt ever leave a person who lied to a friend?

Abstract Nouns for Qualities

Honesty over a lost sale, patience with a slow learner and courage in a burning flat are the traits named in this group, the qualities people praise in a person and never in an object.

• Honesty cost him the sale, and he never regretted it.
• Her patience with the youngest pupils made her the favourite teacher in the school.
• Courage is what the firefighter showed when she entered the burning flat.
• Everyone admired the generosity of the shopkeeper who fed the striking workers for a whole month without payment.
• Humility kept the champion from boasting after her third gold medal.
• Amir’s determination took him through six years of night classes.
• Cruelty to animals is punished by law in most European countries.
• We respected his integrity even when the truth hurt.
• Laziness is the one fault my father never forgave.
• The young doctor’s calmness reassured every patient in the waiting room.
• Curiosity led the boy to open every drawer in the attic.
• Does modesty ever hurt a person’s career in a competitive office?

Abstract Nouns for States and Conditions

Freedom after a prison sentence, a childhood spent on a farm and the sleep a night nurse gives up are the states named in this group, conditions with nothing solid to show.

• Freedom felt strange to the prisoner after eleven years inside.
• Her childhood on a farm in Kenya gave her a love of early mornings and a fear of thunderstorms.
• Sleep is the first comfort a night nurse gives up.
• Long years of poverty ended when the cooperative bought their coffee harvest.
• Health improved across the district once the new water pipes were finished.
• Nobody expected such silence from a class of thirty seven year olds.
• Peace returned to the two villages after the elders met.
• Hunger drove the family to leave their home province.
• Her retirement began with a month of walking in the Alps.
• Adulthood arrived early for children who raised their own brothers and sisters.
• The darkness in the tunnel lasted four minutes.
• Illness kept Diego away from the pitch for the whole season.

Abstract Nouns for Beliefs and Principles

Justice in a courtroom, democracy at a polling station and faith practised in a temple are the beliefs named in this group, principles that people vote on, argue over and write into constitutions.

• Justice came too late for the families who waited nineteen years for the inquiry to report.
• Democracy depends on citizens who vote in local elections as well as national ones.
• Her faith gave her something to say at every funeral she attended.
• Equality before the law is written into the constitution of South Africa.
• Sami defends capitalism in every debate, and his sister attacks it.
• Tradition decides who speaks first at a family wedding in Punjab.
• Morality was the theme of the philosophy course in the second term.
• Political liberty meant little to people with no bread.
• Superstition stopped the sailors from leaving harbour on a Friday.
• The nation’s patriotism rose sharply during the Olympic final.
• Honour mattered more to the old soldier than a pension.
• Are loyalty and blind obedience ever the same?

Abstract Nouns for Events and Processes

Education paid for by a scholarship, the growth of a small bakery and a movement born in church basements are the processes named in this group, each one unfolding over time with nothing to photograph.

• Education changed everything for the first girl in her family to finish school.
• The growth of the bakery forced the owners to rent a second kitchen.
• A civil rights movement grew out of meetings in church basements.
• Development of the vaccine took eleven months.
• Her marriage in 2019 brought two large families together for the first time in twenty years.
• Progress on the bridge stopped when the funding ran out.
• Farmers welcomed the arrival of the monsoon after four months of dust.
• Treatment lasted six weeks and left him very tired.
• His sudden departure from the company puzzled the whole department.
• The death of the old chief was announced by drums at dawn.

Abstract Nouns Formed From Other Words

Kind becomes kindness, decide becomes decision, and child becomes childhood, which is how English builds most abstract nouns out of adjectives, verbs and other nouns.

Abstract Nouns Formed From Adjectives With -ness, -ity, and -ce

Kindness from kind, sincerity from sincere and patience from patient are the words behind these sentences, endings that turn a describing word into the name of a quality.

• Her kindness during the funeral week was remembered for years.
• The sincerity in his apology convinced even his older brother.
• Patience ran out at the fourth delayed train.
• Darkness covered the valley by half past four in December.
• His generosity paid the school fees of nine children.
• Loneliness is the hardest part of working on a lighthouse.
• Great happiness followed the birth of their first grandchild.
• Curiosity about beetles turned a quiet schoolboy into a biologist with a museum named after him.
• Stupidity, not bad luck, lost them the match.
• The silence after the verdict lasted a full minute.

Abstract Nouns Formed From Verbs With -ment, -tion, and -ance

Agree gives agreement, educate gives education and perform gives performance, the endings that turn an action word into the name of the action itself.

• Agreement between the two unions ended the strike on Friday.
• Her education was paid for by an aunt in Manchester.
• Movement along the border was restricted for a week.
• The decision of the referee angered both sets of supporters.
• Performance improved once the team trained in the mornings.
• His retirement party lasted until two in the morning.
• Acceptance into the academy took Leila three attempts and two years of Saturday classes at a college in Leeds.
• Payment arrives on the last working day of each month.
• Public reaction to the new tax was furious.
• Guidance from her old professor shaped the second half of her career.

Abstract Nouns Formed From Other Nouns With -hood, -ship, and -dom

Childhood from child, friendship from friend and stardom from star are the words at work in these sentences, endings that name a state or a relationship rather than a person.

• Childhood in a small fishing town taught her to read the weather from the colour of the sky.
• Their friendship began at a bus stop in Warsaw.
• Motherhood changed her working hours and nothing else.
• Leadership of the party passed to a former teacher.
• Stardom arrived too early for the young singer.
• Brotherhood among the miners survived the closure of the pit.
• Ownership of the land was disputed by three families.
• Membership of the club costs forty pounds a year.
• Adulthood brings bills that nobody warns you about.
• Martyrdom was never the aim of the protest leaders.

Abstract Nouns as Sentence Openers

Hope, silence and jealousy open these sentences, taking the place where the name of a person or an object normally goes.

• Hope kept the search party going for a fifth night.
• Silence followed the announcement of the closure.
• Jealousy destroyed a partnership that had earned millions.
• Curiosity about her grandfather’s letters led Ana to a village in Sicily.
• Anger rarely improves a negotiation.
• Loyalty among the older staff kept the restaurant open through the worst winter of the crisis.
• Trust takes years to build and one afternoon to lose.
• Laughter filled the corridor long after the bell had rung.
• Fatigue ended his race at the thirty second kilometre.
• Success in the first year surprised the founders more than anyone.

Abstract Nouns as Objects of Verbs

Lost patience, gained confidence, denied responsibility and demanded an explanation are the pairings here, where the abstract noun names whatever the verb acts on.

• The nurse lost her patience with the visitor at midnight.
• Six months abroad gave Yusuf real confidence in his English.
• Students owe their teachers a certain respect, even when they disagree with everything said in the lesson.
• Everyone needs rest after a week of examinations.
• She demanded an explanation from the airline.
• The company denied any responsibility for the leak.
• Rafael showed unusual bravery during the operation.
• We value reliability more than talent in this workshop.
• Marta gained enormous experience during two summers in a Berlin hospital.
• Nobody expected such generosity from a rival team.

Abstract Nouns After Prepositions

In anger, with patience, without fear and out of curiosity are the phrases behind these sentences, where a preposition introduces the abstract noun.

• He slammed the door in anger and regretted it within a minute.
• The surgeon worked with great patience for nine hours.
• Sara walked onto the stage without fear.
• Out of curiosity, Ben opened the old trunk in the cellar.
• They stayed together for the sake of friendship rather than profit, and the business survived.
• Miners returned to work under protest after the vote.
• She spoke about the accident with complete honesty.
• Every family in the village lived in poverty until the road was built.
• Aid arrived after months of delay.
• Dr Chen worked in total obscurity until she was seventy.

Countable and Uncountable Abstract Nouns

Uncountable knowledge and courage never take a plural, while a doubt, a belief and an objection each take one, and these sentences pair both kinds.

• Knowledge has no plural, so nobody writes knowledges in English.
• She had two doubts about the plan and voiced both.
• Nobody says two courages, because the word stays uncountable in every use.
• The committee raised three objections to the design.
• Advice from three doctors said the same thing.
• The referee gave the captain a final warning.
• Happiness takes no plural, even when several people feel it at once.
• Their hopes rose and fell with every announcement.
• Progress stayed uncountable even as the projects multiplied.
• A sudden realisation made him stop in the doorway.
• Experience is uncountable in general use, though we speak of two bad experiences in one week.
• Several beliefs about the illness turned out to be false.

Abstract Nouns in Proverbs and Sayings

Patience is a virtue, honesty is the best policy and knowledge is power are the sayings quoted here, each one built on an abstract noun that names whatever the proverb praises.

• Patience is a virtue, as my grandmother reminded me every winter.
• Honesty is the best policy, even when the truth costs a customer.
• Knowledge is power, and the village library proved it.
• Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, according to the old saying.
• Practice makes perfect, which is why the pianist repeated one bar for an hour.
• Silence is golden in a house with a sleeping baby.
• Curiosity killed the cat, though nobody has ever warned the cat about that particular proverb.
• Ignorance is bliss until the bill arrives.
• Charity begins at home, said the priest at the collection.
• Laughter is the best medicine, and the whole ward believed it.

Abstract Nouns at School

Discipline in the corridors, concentration during a test and pride at a prize giving are the school moments named in this group, and every one of them is a word a teacher uses daily.

• Discipline in the corridors improved after the new head arrived.
• Her concentration broke when a bee entered the classroom.
• Pride filled the hall as the youngest pupil collected the science prize.
• Teachers noticed a change in his behaviour after the holidays.
• Attendance fell sharply during the flu outbreak.
• The school rewards effort rather than raw talent.
• Confidence grew in the girls’ debating team after their first win against a much older school.
• Knowledge of two languages gave Paulo an advantage in geography.
• Motivation disappeared in the last week of term.
• Does fear of mathematics begin with a teacher or a parent?

Abstract Nouns at Work

Promotion after eleven years, stress before a quarterly deadline and trust broken by an unpaid invoice are the office moments named here, felt by everyone in the building and visible to nobody.

• Promotion came after eleven years and two failed interviews.
• Stress before the quarterly deadline emptied the office fridge and kept three people awake all night.
• Her efficiency saved the department two working days a month.
• The manager praised the team’s cooperation during the merger.
• Ambition took Dmitri from the warehouse to the boardroom.
• Trust between the partners disappeared over one unpaid invoice.
• Nobody questioned her authority after the first meeting.
• Responsibility for the error was accepted by the supplier.
• Teamwork rescued the launch when two engineers fell ill.
• Burnout ended a thirty year career.

Abstract Nouns in Relationships

Love that survives two continents, jealousy over a single message and forgiveness after nine silent years are the family moments named in this group, all of them arguments about words nobody sees.

• Love survived three years and two continents.
• Jealousy over a single message ruined their holiday.
• Forgiveness came slowly, and the brothers spoke again after nine years.
• Their marriage grew stronger after the illness.
• Respect between the two families made the wedding a pleasure to arrange in a single afternoon.
• Loneliness pushed him to join the walking club.
• Affection showed in small acts rather than speeches.
• Honesty about money prevented most of their arguments.
• Commitment meant more to her than any ring.
• Does friendship survive when one friend moves abroad?

Abstract Nouns in News and Politics

Corruption in a ministry, inflation in the headlines and negotiation between two governments are the news stories named here, each one reported daily and impossible to photograph.

• Corruption in the ministry was exposed by two young reporters working from a rented flat.
• Inflation reached nine percent before the central bank acted.
• Negotiation between the two governments lasted eleven days.
• Democracy was tested by the closest election in the country’s history.
• Unemployment fell for the sixth month in a row.
• Public opinion turned against the pipeline after the spill.
• Censorship of the student newspaper caused protests in three cities.
• Security around the summit cost millions.
• Poverty in the coastal districts doubled after the storm.
• Reform of the pension system divided the governing party.

Abstract Nouns in Literature

Macbeth’s ambition, Hamlet’s revenge and the justice Harper Lee puts on trial in Maycomb are the literary cases named in this group, where a whole plot turns on one abstract noun.

• Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice names two abstract nouns in its title, pride and prejudice.
• Ambition destroys Macbeth in Shakespeare’s tragedy.
• Revenge drives Hamlet through Shakespeare’s play.
• Charles Dickens gives hope to Pip in Great Expectations.
• Loneliness marks George and Lennie in Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men.
• Harper Lee builds To Kill a Mockingbird around justice in a small Alabama town.
• Freedom is what Winston loses in Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty Four.
• Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein turns on the isolation of a creature nobody accepts.
• Fear rules the boys on the island in Golding’s Lord of the Flies.
• Guilt follows Raskolnikov through Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment.

Abstract and Concrete Nouns in One Sentence

A letter and the relief it brings, a medal and the pride behind it, warm bread and the hunger it ends: each sentence pairs something touchable in italics with an abstract noun in bold.

• The letter arrived on Tuesday and brought enormous relief.
• Her medal hangs in the hallway, but the pride is what she remembers.
• Warm bread ended the hunger of everyone at the shelter.
• A cracked phone screen caused more anger than the accident itself.
• Steady rain on the roof gave the room a strange peace.
• His old guitar is a reminder of a friendship that ended badly over money and a broken promise.
• Two suitcases held everything they owned, and fear took up the rest of the car.
• Nobody sat in the judge’s chair, yet justice arrived that afternoon.
• Fresh flowers on the desk changed the mood of the whole office.
• A cheap ring meant nothing next to her happiness.

Abstract Noun Examples for Kids

Fun at a birthday party, kindness to a new classmate and bravery in the dentist’s chair are the everyday moments here, written for primary pupils learning to name a word they cannot touch.

• Kindness means sharing your snack with a new classmate.
• Bravery is sitting still in the dentist’s chair.
• Birthday parties are full of fun and noise.
• Friendship grows when you play together every day.
• My little sister has no patience at all.
• Honesty means telling Mum about the broken cup.
• Love for a puppy makes a child feed it before breakfast.
• Laughter spread across the playground after the joke.
• Anger goes away faster after a glass of water.
• Do you feel happiness when it snows on a school day and the buses stop running?

Short Abstract Noun Sentences for Young Learners

Three and four word lines about hope, fear, sleep and joy give beginners a pattern short enough to copy onto one line and read aloud in a single breath.

• Hope never dies.
• Fear makes us careful.
• Sleep repairs a tired body.
• Joy is loud.
• Anger never wins.
• Truth is enough.
• Patience wins races.
• Courage grows slowly.
• Kindness costs nothing.

Abstract Noun Examples for Students

Exam answers about determination, independence and sacrifice need longer sentences, and these ten give secondary students a model to adapt in an essay or a speech.

• Determination, rather than talent, explains why Rania passed the entrance examination at the third attempt.
• The independence of the judiciary protects citizens from the government of the day.
• Sacrifice by an older generation paid for the schools the country now takes for granted.
• Her dedication to research earned a place at a laboratory in Uppsala.
• Tolerance of other opinions is what the debating society teaches first.
• Ignorance of the rules is no defence in an examination hall.
• Economic growth without fairness creates resentment in the long run.
• Imagination counts as much as memory.
• Persistence turned a weak student into a county champion in two seasons.
• Integrity in research protects a scientist’s reputation for a lifetime.

Abstract Nouns in a Short Paragraph

Eight connected lines about Amina, a nurse in Mombasa, use fear, exhaustion, kindness and gratitude, so learners meet abstract nouns inside continuous writing rather than one at a time.

• Fear was Amina’s first feeling on the morning of her nursing examination.
• Her confidence returned once the first patient thanked her.
• Exhaustion followed three night shifts in a row.
• The kindness of an older nurse kept her at the hospital.
• Patience with frightened children became her reputation on the ward.
• By December her anxiety had turned into something closer to pride.
• Gratitude from one family arrived as a letter she still keeps.
• Ambition now takes her toward a degree in Nairobi.

Related

• Parts of Speech Example Sentences
• Compound Noun Example Sentences
• Possessive Noun Example Sentences

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