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The 8 PARTS OF
SPEECH
An Overview
Parts of Speech
 Determining parts of speech is nothing more than
determining the function/job a particular word has in
a sentence. They all play a role in the sentence, and
one word might be a noun one time and a verb the
next.
 Let’s take the word run for example.
 Let’s go on a RUN after school. (NOUN)
 I will RUN to the cafeteria to be first in line (VERB)
NOUNS
person, place, thing, idea
Common: chair, pencil, school
Proper: Woodward Academy
Concrete: desk, Aunt Lulu
Abstract: freedom, love
Compound: firefighter
Collective: class, herd
PRONOUNS
Pronouns, for the most part, take
the place of nouns.
There are actually several different
kinds of pronouns, and they are
used much more than most people
realize.
PERSONAL PRONOUNS the basics
FIRST PERSON: I, me, my, mine,
we, our, ours, us
SECOND PERSON: you, your, yours
THIRD PERSON: he, she, it, its, his,
him, her, hers, they, their, theirs,
them
DEMONSTRATIVE
THIS, THAT, THESE, and THOSE
ONLY used in place of nouns (be
aware of Demonstrative Adjectives - don’t use
them before a noun).
THIS is my book.
THAT is yours.
THESE are my pickles.
THOSE are his shoes.
INTERROGATIVE
WHAT, WHICH, WHO, WHOM, AND
WHOSE
And like all interrogatives, they
start questions:
WHAT are you doing?
WHO do you think you are?
RELATIVE
 WHO, WHOM, WHOSE, WHICH, THAT
 These look like interrogative pronouns,
but they do NOT ask questions.
 They begin clauses that add more info to
a sentence:
 My students, WHO are the best and brightest,
love relative pronouns.
 The vegetables THAT are the healthiest are the
green ones.
INDEFINITE
An indefinite pronoun refers to
something that is not definite or
specific or exact.
The indefinite pronouns include but
are not limited to the following:
all, another, any, each, everybody, everyone,
everything, few, many, nobody, none, one,
several, some, somebody, either, neither
ADJECTIVES
Adjectives modify nouns & pronouns
They tell WHICH ONE, WHAT KIND,
and HOW MANY
WHICH ONE: this book or that one
WHAT KIND: the red ball, the tall kid
HOW MANY: two kids, several moments
DEMONSTRATIVE
ADJECTIVES:
this, that, these, and those
They are also pronouns - so be
careful how you use them.
To use them as an adjective, place
them directly before a noun:
THIS book is so good.
THOSE pencils should be put away.
VERBS
Express ACTION or a STATE OF
BEING (linking).
ACTION: cry, leap, laugh, run
STATE OF BEING: is, seems, looks,
appears
HELPING VERBS
 Many people are confused about the
difference between LINKING and HELPING
verbs - and for good reason: many of the
words are the same (is, are, can, could…).
 HELPING verbs help both ACTION &
LINKING verbs, while LINKING stand alone.
 HELPING: I WILL walk to my class.
 LINKING: I AM a teacher.
ADVERBS
 Adverbs modify verbs, adverbs, and
adjectives.
 They answer the questions how, why,
when, where, to what extent, and under
what condition.
 They often end in -LY (badly, gracefully),
but they do not have to.
 Words like soon, there, & very are
common adverbs that do not end in -ly.
PREPOSITIONS
 Prepositions express relationships
between other words.
 They are ALWAYS in a phrase (hint: if you
see one alone, it’s an adverb).
 In the pool, near the school, over the roof,
around the fence
 COMPOUND PREPS include because of, in
addition to, instead of
CONJUNCTIONS
Conjunction, junction, what’s your
function?
TO CONNECT words, phrases, &
clauses
There are two main kinds:
coordinating & correlative
COORDINATING &
CORRELATIVE
COORDINATING are the FANBOYS:
or, and, nor, but, or yet, so
CORRELATIVE work with a partner
either… or
neither… nor
not only… but also
INTERJECTIONS
 Words used to add feeling or emphasis
to (usually) the beginning of a sentence.
They can be followed by a comma or a
conjunction.
 Wow!
 Hey!
 Awww,