There are different patterns for nouns in Arabic with the most prominent ones being:

1. The generic noun / اِسْم الجِنْس
2. The collective noun / اِسْم الجَمْع
3. The noun of time and place / اسم الزمان واسم المكان
4. The noun of instrument / اسم الآلة
5. Diminutive / التصغير
6. Verbal noun / المَصْدَر
   • The original maṣdar / المصدر الأصلي
   • The mīm maṣdar / المَصْدَر المِيمي
   • The parent maṣdar / اِسْم المصدر 
   • The maṣdar of industry / المَصْدَر الصِناعي
   • The noun of one time / اسم المرة
   • The noun of manner / اسم الهَيْئة

Because the verbal noun has many patterns itself we won’t cover them in this lesson but in the following one, we’ve dedicated to it.

Generic noun / اِسْم الجِنْس

Not all nouns can be linked to an original verbal root, particularly those that we refer to as ‘generic nouns’ أَسْماء الجِنْس. Namely, these generic Arabic nouns don’t follow specific patterns and signify the presence of a current being or multiple objects having something in common and sharing similar attributes.

Note: Biliteral roots also belong to the category.

blood	دَمْ
mouth	فَه
hand	يَد

Collective noun / اِسْمُ الجَمْع

A collective noun اِسْمُ الجَمْعِ is a word that describes a group of individuals, objects, or creatures as one unified entity. They can be singular or plural depending on the context they are used in. Such terms are used when referring to large groups while still describing them all together. 

Types of collective nouns

Collective nouns are divided into three categories:

• What indicates an entity endowed with reason (عاقِل), i.e. a human being, so the difference between the singular and the plural is only the letter ya’ ي. 

Note: Those nouns are often considered masculine but can also be occasionally considered feminine as well.

• What indicates an entity not endowed with reason (جامِد), (i.e. usually animals and plants) so the difference between the singular and the plural is the feminine gender with the ta’ marbūṭa ة:

Note: Those nouns are often considered masculine but can also be occasionally considered feminine as well.

• Some collective nouns also do not have a corresponding singular: 

Collective nouns number agreement 

Certain collective nouns are always treated as singular while others are always as plurals:

• Words like قَوْم (people) are always treated as plural.

• Some words like شَعْب (people/nation) and أُمّة (community) are always treated as singular.

• Other words like ناس (people) or عَرَب (Arabs) are most of the times considered plural but can also be considered feminine singular.

Noun of time and place / اِسْمُ الزَمان وَاسْمُ المَكان