Parts of speech
1)
Nouns- Person, place, things, living creature, or idea
ex:
Mickael, Liege, Table
Nouns can be common or proper so some may be capitalized while others may not
a)
Pronouns- takes the place of or stands in for the noun
ex:
I, his, her, it
9 categories of Pronouns
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Subject pronouns: Always function as the subject of the sentence
ex:
I, you, she, he, it, you, they
-
Objective pronouns: Always function as objects in the sentence
ex:
Me, you, him, her, it, us , you, them
-
Indefinite pronouns: Can function as the subject or objects & can be both plural or singular (which will determine the if the verb will be singular or plural)
-
Relative pronouns: Introduce Relative clauses
ex:
that, which, who, whom, whoever, whomever, where
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Demonstrative pronouns: Can function as the subject, object or adjective
ex:
This, That, These those
-
Possessive pronouns:
Possessive pronouns function as subjects, objects, and adjectives.
ex: mine, my, yours, his, hers, ours, yours, theirs
-
Interrogative pronouns: Used to ask questions, can stand for subjects
ex:
who, what, which, whose
-
Reflexive pronouns: functions as objects in a sentence
-
Intensive pronouns: emphasizes another noun or pronoun
examples for both:
Myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves
2)
Adjective- Describes a noun, modifies the noun or pronoun
ex:
pink, big, fat
There are 3 types
-
Descriptive adjectives: describes the quality of the noun the adjective modifies
ex:
Large house, purple plum
-
Proper adjectives: formed by using a proper noun or from a proper noun
ex:
French pastry, African dance
-
Predicate adjectives: follow the noun and are connected to the noun by a linking verb
ex:
She seems brave. He looks bored
The 3 articles in English,
a,
an, and
the always functions as adjectives in a sentence
3)
Verbs- show what the subject of a sentence does
3 types
-
Action verbs: show/demonstrate and action
ex:
The phone rang loudly
-
Linking or state of being verbs: Don't show an action, explains the condition someone or something is in
ex:
The teacher is ill
-
Helping or Auxiliary verbs: help describe the main verb
ex:
may, might, must, could, would, should, can, will, shall
be, do, have
4)
Adverb- modify and describe verbs, adjectives and other adverbs
most end in -ly
examples:
lovely, lonely, friendly, ugly, womanly
Some don't end in -ly
examples:
Quite, so, not, never, often, well, soon, always, less, very, also
5)
Prepositions- words that connect nouns and pronouns to other words & show the relationship between those words
about along behind beyond during inside off over to up | above among below but except into on since toward upon | across around beneath by for like onto through under with | after at beside despite from near out throughout underneath within | against before between down in of outside till until without
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Prepositional phases are more commonly used
These are phrases that begin with a preposition and end with a noun or pronoun & include any words in between.
ex: near him, with her, between you and me, in the village
6)
Conjunctions- words that link other words in a sentence & indicate the relationship between those words
4 types
-
Coordinating conjunctions- join word or word groups of equal importance
only 7 use
FANBOYS to help remember them
For,
And,
Nor,
But,
Or,
Yet,
So
ex:
The boy was crying, for he had fallen and scraped both knees.
She likes tea but not coffee.
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Correlative conjunctions- word pairs that join word or word groups of equal importance
- not only . . . but also
- whether . . . or
- both . . . and
- not . . . but
- either . . . or
- as . . . as
- neither . . . nor
-
Adverbial conjunctions- join independent clauses, tell the reader the relationship between the two main clauses.
| Addition | Emphasis | Comparison or Contrast | Cause or Effect | Time |
in addition furthermore moreover further | in fact indeed | however nevertheless nonetheless otherwise in contrast in comparison | as a result consequently hence therefore thus | finally meanwhile next |
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Subordinating conjunctions- A word or group of words that introduce a subordinate clause
Cause or Effect | Concession | Condition | Comparison or Contrast | Purpose | Space or Time |
as because since | though although even though even if | if since unless when whenever | while as rather than | in order that so that | before since once after while when until |
7)
Interjections- express surprise, emotion or demand attention
ex: Amen! Wow! Hey! Absolutely! Bless you! Ouch!
you should avoid interjections in formal writing
Symbols for parts of speech
| Part of Speech/Sentence | Symbol |
| Subject | S |
| Verb | V |
| Noun | N |
| Pronoun | P |
| Adjective/determiner | ADJ |
| Adverb | ADV |
| Prepositional Phrase | Prep P |
| Conjunction | C |
| Interjection | INT
|
What each part of speech does
| Parts of Speech | Jobs They Perform in Sentences |
| Nouns, pronouns | Subjects (the actor/who/what) and Objects (receive the action of the actor) |
| Verbs | Verbs (describe the action of the actor) |
| Adjectives, adverbs, prepositions | Modifiers (add details and description) |
| Conjunctions | Conjunctions (link sentences, words) |
| Interjections | Interjections (exclamations) |
Also many words can multitask and be used as several different parts of speech