Mr.Maru: What do you have there?
Sparky: I bought a doghouse.
Mr.Maru: I see that. It's pretty big.
Sparky: Yes, it's a two stories house.
Mr.Maru: I see the balcony. It's very nice.
Sparky: It's a 5 rooms place.
Mr.Maru: How did you get the money?
Sparky: I've been working hard!
Mr.Maru: um, Sparky, where is my car?
Sparky: You weren't really using it.

What is a noun modifier, an attributive noun, adjunct noun, and noun + noun?

They are all the same grammar point.  However, I will use the term 'noun modifier' for this article.  A noun modifier is a noun that modifies another noun. In other words, a noun is acting like or performing like an adjective.  They are usually used to talk about a category or type of something.

For example, a garage opener vs. a can opener.

A garage opener is a type of opener that opens a garage.
A can opener is a type of opener that opens cans.

Noun modifiers with plurals

If the noun modifier is a plural (-s) we usually delete the 's'. For example,

I lifted a weight. It was 20 kilograms.

We can join these two sentences:

I lifted a 20 kilogram weight. (NOT I lifted a 20 kilograms weight.)

Here's another example:

Benjamin Franklin is on a bill. It is worth one hundred dollars.
Benjamin Franklin is on the hundred dollar bill. (NOT Benjamin Franklin is on the hundreds dollar bill.)

There are some exceptions to this rule. Please see this list for lots more examples under 'plural exceptions'.

Do you think you understand?  Let's take a short quiz.

Grammar Quiz

1) I bought a ruler.  It is two meters long. I bought a ________ ruler.

A) two meters

B) two meter

C) two-meters

2) He went to the ______ festival.

A) sports

B) sport

C) sport's

3) Mark is an ________ activist.

A) equal rights

B) equal right

C) equal-right

Answers

1) B) - When talking about measurements we usually delete the 's' at the end.

2) A) is more common - Although answer B) is sometimes used especially in British English, sports festival is more often used.

3) A) - When we are talking about a social issue we use the plural.

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope this helps.  These terms are fairly confusing.  If you are a student, what noun modifiers have you heard or seen recently?  If you are a teacher, what do you call this grammar point?  I'd like to know.  Please leave a comment.  And if you have a grammar question, please email me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it