Yukon River vs the States

Yukon River and the States both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
Yukon River	Yes	No	No	No
the States	Yes	No	No	No

Yukon River (noun)	the States (noun)
a North American river that flows westward from the Yukon Territory through central Alaska to the Bering Sea	North American republic containing 50 states - 48 conterminous states in North America plus Alaska in northwest North America and the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean; achieved independence in 1776