PARTS OF SPEECH

Study the following sentences.

1. If you drive too fast, you are likely to encounter an accident ahead of you.
2. Students who are fast learners tend to be successful in their studies.
3. It is a tradition for all Muslims to fast for a few days during Ramadan.
4. Gandhi drank some orange juice to break his three-week fast.

What does the word fast in each sentence mean? What do you think their parts of speech are?

Words are divided into different kinds or classes, called Parts of Speech, according to their use; that
is, according to the work they do in a sentence. The parts of speech are classified as follows:

I. NOUNS
A noun is a word that names a person, a place, a thing, or an idea.
Examples:
 Person: aunt, ecologist, Thida, father-in-law, child, students, mother, manager, …
 Place: playground, city, living room, Arizons, school, valley, hotel, …
 Thing: moon, whale, chipmunk, Empire State Building, apple, books, …
 Idea: democracy, hope, century, impatience, goodness, virtue, reincarnation, atrocity, …

II. PRONOUNS
A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun, a group of words acting as a noun, or another
pronoun. The word or group of words to which a pronoun refers is called its antecedent. Study the
following sentence.

When Jack was seven years old, he could play Mozart’s Symphony No. 31.

In this sentence, the pronoun “he” takes the place of the noun “Jack”.

Examples: I, you, he, she, it, they, we, us, them, mine, my*, your*, his*, her*, its, myself, ourselves, this, that,
these, those, who, whom, which, whoever, whose, what, anyone, anything, everything, somebody, everyone, …
*Note: my, your, his, and her may also be classified as possessive adjectives.

III. VERBS
A verb is a word that expresses an action or a state of being and is necessary to make a statement.
Study the following sentences.
 My grandfather is a government officer in the Ministry of Education.
 The author summarized his story.
The verbs in the sentences are “is” and “summarized”.

Examples: go, walk, say, speak, tell, sat, built, forgotten, is, looks, smell, held, read, will, could, might, have, …

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IV. ADJECTIVES
An adjective is a word that modifies a noun or a pronoun by limiting its meaning. In other words,
adjectives are used to describe nouns. They may answer the questions: What kind? Which one? How
much? Study the following sentences.
 The old mansion at the corner of the street belongs to the Smith.
 My teacher is so beautiful today.
 That was the most interesting film I have ever seen.
The adjectives in the sentences are “old”, “beautiful”, and “interesting”.

Examples: fashionable, happy, excited, third, blue, spicy, horrible, fast, Chinese, …

V. DETERMINERS*
Determiners are words that determine or limit the meaning of the nouns that follow. Study the
following sentences.
 Those tables need to be repaired.
 The family has three daughters and one son.
 Do you have some money?
The determiners in these sentences are “those”, “the”, “three”, “one”, and “some”.

Examples: a, an, the, this, that, these, those, every, each, some, any, my, his, one, two, …

*Note: In many traditional grammars, all determiners are classed among adjectives.

VI. ADVERBS
An adverb is a word that modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb by making its meaning
more specific. Study the following sentences.
 They ran quickly. [The adverb “quickly” modifies the verb.]
 She is very talented and extremely diligent.
[The adverbs “very” and “extremely” modify the adjectives.]
 Elizabeth almost always runs quite fast.
[The adverbs “almost” and “quite” modify other adverbs.]
 We received your letter yesterday.
[The adverb “yesterday” modifies the verb and tells us when the letter was received.]

Examples: easily, warmly, quickly, mainly, often, unfortunately, so, too, quite, definitely, generally, not, …

VII. PREPOSITIONS
A preposition is a word that shows the relationship of a noun or a pronoun to another word in a
sentence. Study the following sentences.
 My mother has just gone to the market.
 I will see you after lunch.
 She sang her song for them.
 The mother of the kittens lives here.
The prepositions in these sentences are “to”, “after”, “for”, and “of”.

Examples: on, up, down, of, with, from, by, without, for, near, beside, as, during, into, like, in, between, except,
over, toward, under, opposite, behind, below, like, along, because of, next to, out of, in addition to, …

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VIII. CONJUNCTIONS
A conjunction is a word that joins words, sentences, or groups of words that have equal
grammatical weight in a sentence. Study the following sentences:
 Their skit includes a rabbit and a bird.
 Ms. Fernandez dresses fashionably but tastefully.
 Winter days are short, so house plants may need extra light.
 Either you or José can make the call.
 She was playing loud music while I was studying for my exam.
The conjunctions in these sentences are “and”, “but”, “so”, “or”, and “while”.

Examples: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so, while, when, because, after, since, whenever, so that, as if, as soon as,
either … or…, both … and…, not only … but also …, neither … nor …, …

IX. INTERJECTIONS
An interjection is a word or a phrase that expresses emotion or exclamation. An interjection has no
grammatical connection to other words in the sentence and is set off from the other words by an
exclamation point or a comma. Study the following examples.
 Oh, my! I had no idea.
 Ah, that’s good.
 Good grief! Is that true?

Examples: oh, ah, wow, ouch, good grief, ugh, eh, hurray, …

Practice 1
In your own words, find 10 examples of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions,
and interjections.

Practice 2
Circle all nouns in each of the following sentences.

1. The Rocky Mountains in Colorado are majestic.

2. Cats are frequently accused of mischief.
3. A spirit of good will pervades the Special Olympics.
4. John eats tomatoes in the summer.
5. Henry met my aunts in Paris.
6. The committee is concluding its report.
7. The jury sit to the left of the judge.
8. During periods of heavy rain, the traffic police wear their rain gear.
9. The orchestra is opening the concert with an overture.
10. The herd grazes on government grassland.
11. The audience show their appreciation with applause.
12. Each winter the family goes skiing in Utah.
13. The band are wearing their uniforms.
14. The volleyball team received medallions last week.
15. The crowd cheers when the team enters the field.

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Practice 3
Underline the adjectives in the each sentence and double underline the words they modify.

1. The apple pie is delicious.

2. Several large trees fell in the storm.
3. Strong winds radiate from the eye of a hurricane.
4. His left arm is in a soft cast.
5. Recycling makes good use of throwaway items.
6. The devastating poliovirus has been nearly eradicated in the United States.
7. I seldom wear old shabby dresses.
8. Quiet music is soothing to babies.
9. A good stylist could hide that stubborn cowlick.
10. Fifty years is a short time in history.
11. The best chef in town is the one of the French restaurant.
12. I am taller than my brother.
13. The broken glasses lie all over the kitchen floor.
14. Jane is beautiful enough to be a model or any kind of celebrity.
15. This is the last time that I will see you.

Practice 4
Circle the adverb in each sentence and then draw an arrow to the word it modifies.

1. Soraya often shops at outlet stores.

2. I am thoroughly disgusted!
3. Seldom can I select a good watermelon.
4. Please set the table properly.
5. A rather brisk wind is blowing.
6. The air conditioner is barely working.
7. In the spring, the grass grows too fast.
8. Lately, our math tests have been challenging.
9. My coach is somewhat dismayed by this year‟s schedules.
10. Dan is an unusually good driver.

Practice 5
Identify the part of speech of each of the underline words in each sentence.

1. You must read the contract thoroughly before signing it to accept this job.
2. Metal generally contracts when it is cooled down.
3. Do you happen to know Susan‟s address? I need to see her now.
4. The government needs to address this land issues as soon as possible before matters get worse.
5. How can I address your uncle? Should I call him „Sir‟, „Professor‟, or „Uncle‟?
6. In Japanese culture, people bow when they meet each other as a sign of respect.
7. She wore a bow in her hair.
8. Bows and arrows are the most common forms of weapons in the ancient times.
9. What is the form of present perfect tenses? Can anyone tell?
10. The wide ranges of mountains form a natural boundary between the two countries.

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 11. Please complete the following application form before paying your fee.
12. After I finish school, I usually spend around 30 minutes at the gym.
13. After staying at the hospital for three months, she finally recovered and was allowed to leave.
14. Johnny ran off as fast as his legs could carry him.
15. The rain forests are being chopped down at an alarmingly fast rate.
16. The wind is blowing hard today.
17. Can you wind the video back a little so that I can see the early parts?
18. My parents have been working so hard to provide me the best education ever.
19. After months without rain, the ground was too hard to plough.
20. Ever since her lover departed, she has hardly eaten anything.

Practice 6
Underline all the conjunctions in each sentence below.

1. Do you want the apple or the pear?

2. I‟ll serve your eggs either scrambled or poached.
3. Neither the attorney nor the client wanted to appeal the case.
4. The bride‟s family hired a caterer to prepare the food and serve it.
5. Both Ricardo and Jessica won prizes for their writing.
6. She is allergic not only to cats but also to dogs.
7. Rain was forecast for today, but the skies are perfectly clear.
8. Whether a person is six or sixty, she can enjoy the beach.
9. I do not like the taste of squid, nor do I like the appearance of it.
10. If Sue calls, give her my message.
11. The bell will ring in one minute unless I am mistaken.
12. Because there has been no rain, I am watering the lawn.
13. When you are finished, please hand your paper to the proctor.

Practice 7
Read the paragraph and identify the parts of speech of the underlined words below.

The end1 of2 each3 school4 year5 is6 a joyous7 time8 for9 most10 students. They11 feel a sense of
completion12, and13 closure is14 coupled15 with16 anticipation17 of freedom18 from rigid19 schedules20
and the opportunity21 for relaxation. Vacation22 usually23 promises fun. The next24 year seems25 far
away. For just a short26 time27, the future looks rosy28 and all29 pressures are lifted. Alas30, a new
school year is just three short months away.

1. __________ 6. __________ 11. __________ 16. __________ 21. __________ 26. __________
2. __________ 7. __________ 12. __________ 17. __________ 22. __________ 27. __________
3. __________ 8. __________ 13. __________ 18. __________ 23. __________ 28. __________
4. __________ 9. __________ 14. __________ 19. __________ 24. __________ 29. __________
5. __________ 10. __________ 15. __________ 20. __________ 25. __________ 30. __________

Practice 8
Read the paragraph and identify the parts of speech of the underlined words below.
When I1 was a little2 kid3, my toys were4 my friends5. We played6 together7. I talked8 to them9.
My very10 favorite11 toy was my Big Wheel, a snazzy12 black and blue tricycle13 with14 big, black

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 plastic15 wheels16. Up17 and down18 the driveway19 I clacked20, feeling so very grown up and
powerful21. I would whisper22, “Go faster! 23 Go faster!” as24 my beauty25 sped downhill26. Alas27,
all28 of my pride was shattered when29 my plastic friend and I collided30 with the garbage can!

1. __________ 6. __________ 11. __________ 16. __________ 21. __________ 26. __________
2. __________ 7. __________ 12. __________ 17. __________ 22. __________ 27. __________
3. __________ 8. __________ 13. __________ 18. __________ 23. __________ 28. __________
4. __________ 9. __________ 14. __________ 19. __________ 24. __________ 29. __________
5. __________ 10. __________ 15. __________ 20. __________ 25. __________ 30. __________

Practice 9
Read the paragraph below and try to complete the sentences with a correct word.

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