Random Noun Generator
Pick random nouns for writing prompts, drawing ideas, grammar practice and word games. Start with common nouns or go rare, and filter by letter, length and syllables.
- 14,000+ nouns
- Common or rare
- Filter by letter and length
- Syllable counts
lighthouse
Every word comes up once before any repeats.
What is a random noun generator?
A noun is a word for a person, place, thing or idea, such as teacher, island, hammer or courage. This generator picks nouns at random from more than 14,000 English nouns and gives you as many as you ask for, with no repeats in a set. Common nouns are the everyday words children learn first; rare nouns are the ones you meet in novels and newspapers. You can narrow the list to nouns that start or end with certain letters, have a set number of letters or a set number of syllables. Want only things you can picture? Switch the word list to Objects or Animals.
How to use the random noun generator
- Word type is already set to Nouns. Choose how common they should be, from Common to Rare.
- Add a first letter, an ending or a length if you need nouns that fit a pattern, such as 2-syllable nouns starting with B.
- Set how many nouns you want and press Generate.
- Tap a noun to copy it, or copy all of them as a list separated by lines, commas or spaces.
- Turn on Show word type and syllables to see whether a noun can also be used as a verb or an adjective.
Why use this noun generator
- Large, tagged listMore than 14,000 nouns with syllable counts, so you can pick exactly the shape of word you need.
- Everyday or advancedCommon nouns for early readers and English learners, rare nouns for spelling bees and creative writing.
- Concrete topics one click awaySwap to Objects, Animals or Food when you need nouns that can be drawn or guessed.
- Copy in any formatOne noun per line for a spreadsheet, commas for a worksheet, or spaces for a game.
Ways to use random nouns
- Grammar lessons. Sort nouns into concrete and abstract, or turn them into plurals and possessives.
- Story starters. Draw three nouns and write a story that links them.
- Naming ideas. Put two random nouns together for a band, team, project or username idea.
- Drawing practice. Sketch whatever noun comes up in two minutes.
- Word games. Play twenty questions, Hangman or Pictionary with fresh nouns each round.
Examples of common nouns by syllables
A few common nouns from the list for each syllable count. Set Syllables in the generator to get as many as you need.
1-syllable nouns
cake, glass, norm, street, grave, bite, dawn, haul, pain, school, stream, calm
2-syllable nouns
basis, cotton, football, lawyer, paper, screening, tourist, honey, blanket, feather, power, triumph
3-syllable nouns
apartment, charity, counterpart, emphasis, gentleman, legacy, origin, protocol, senator, transmission, notable, interview
4-syllable nouns
ambassador, coalition, correlation, distribution, expectation, infrastructure, legislature, opposition, publicity, significance, videotape, superior
Where the words come from
The dictionary list was built from three free, openly licensed sources. Word frequency comes from the 12dicts word lists by Alan Beale (public domain), which sort English words into frequency classes. Parts of speech come from WordNet 3.0 from Princeton University, keeping only the word types each word is actually used as. Syllable counts come from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary from Carnegie Mellon University. Rude, hateful and adult words were then removed. Licence texts are in this file.
| Level | Words | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Common | 4,950 | prior, odds, cigarette, academic, regret, become |
| Less common | 8,310 | wiry, fir, nighttime, melody, grotesque, misguide |
| Rare | 10,295 | Loaded only when you choose Rare or All levels |
Example: nouns for a classroom sorting game
Choose Common, set Syllables to 1 and How many to 12, and press Generate. You get a dozen short, familiar nouns. Ask students to sort them into people, places, things and ideas on the board, then press Generate again for the next group. For a harder round, choose Less common and 3 syllables.
What to expect from the result
Nouns are listed in the singular, so you will not see plurals like "mice" or "geese". Proper nouns such as names, cities and brands are left out. Many English words work as more than one part of speech, so a word like "plant" or "watch" appears here because it is a noun, even though it is also a verb. Abstract nouns like "freedom" are included; pick the Objects list if you only want things you can touch.
Random noun generator questions
What is a noun?
A noun names a person (pilot), a place (garden), a thing (umbrella) or an idea (honesty). Most nouns can be made plural and can follow "a", "an" or "the".
Can I get only concrete nouns, like objects or animals?
Yes. Change Word list to Objects, Animals, Food, Places or Jobs. Those lists only hold things you can see, draw or point at.
How do I get nouns that start with a certain letter?
Type the letter, or a few letters such as "st", in Starts with. The line under the Generate button shows how many nouns match before you press it.
Does the list include plural nouns and names?
No. Each noun appears once in its singular form, and names of people, places and brands are not included.
Is the word list safe for kids and classrooms?
Yes. Swear words, slurs, sexual terms and other words that would be awkward on a classroom screen are removed from the list before it reaches your browser.
Is it free, and is anything sent to a server?
It is free with no sign-up, no limits and nothing to install. The word lists load into your browser and every pick happens on your device, so nothing you choose or type is sent anywhere. Once the page has loaded, it keeps working without a connection.
More random tools and party games
Draw a single random letter for a categories game, split players into random teams or spin a wheel of names to choose who goes first. For the holidays, print Christmas bingo cards, draw names for Secret Santa or run a White Elephant gift swap.