A part of speech, also known as a word class, tells us the job a word does in a sentence. Knowing these different roles helps you understand how words work together and improve your writing.
In English, there are typically eight recognized parts of speech: nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections. Some modern grammar may introduce additional categories such as determiners and articles.
Each part of speech explains not what the word is but the usage of the word. Consider these examples:-
Round:
- Noun: The plate is a perfect round.
- Verb: Let’s round up the numbers.
- Adjective: She has a round face.
Change:
- Noun: I need some change for the vending machine.
- Verb: Please don’t change the channel.
- Adjective: We experienced a change in weather.
Noun
Noun is a word which denotes a person, any living being, a place, a thing or an idea. Nouns serve as the basic building blocks of sentences and can function as subjects, objects, or possessive elements. Examples of nouns include “cat,” “Delhi,” “book,” “love,” and “idea.”
Nouns can be singular (referring to one item) or plural (referring to more than one item), and they can also be categorized into common nouns (generic) and proper nouns (specific names).
Examples: Noun in a sentence
- Kamal saw a Park.
- Tomorrow never comes.
- The train reached the station.
- Honesty is the best policy.
- Suman killed a rabbit.
Pronoun
Pronouns are words which are used as substitutes for nouns. It helps to avoid the repetitive use of nouns in sentences and contributes to clearer and more concise communication. Examples of pronouns include He, she, it, They, we etc.
There are different types of Pronouns which include personal pronouns (used as a subject of the sentence. It relates to a person ), demonstrative pronouns (used to refer to specific things and indicate their relative position), and interrogative pronouns (used to introduce questions).
Examples: Pronoun in a sentence
- You are a girl.
- Ram scolded them.
- He is a man.
- He has a cat. It is very healthy.
- Who is he?
Adjective
An adjective is a word which qualifies or modifies a noun or pronoun. Adjectives provide additional information about the qualities, characteristics, or attributes of the noun or pronoun they modify. Some examples of adjectives include good, beautiful, quick, fast etc.
There are numerous types of adjectives like proper adjectives, Interrogative adjectives, possessive adjectives etc.
Examples: Adjective in a sentence
- She is a good girl.
- Priya wore a nice dress.
- The movie was interesting.
- She has bad health.
- I have some coloured pencils.
Verb
Verbs are words that express action or state of being or conditions. Verbs indicate what the subject of a sentence is doing. Every complete sentence must contain at least one verb. examples of verbs are Run, eat, write, think etc.
Examples: Verb in a sentence
- They are playing.
- Shyam speaks loudly.
- The students rang the bell.
- Rina is eating.
- He flies kites.
Adverb
An adverb is a part of speech that modifies or describes a verb, adjective, or another adverb. Adverbs typically provide information about the manner, degree, time, frequency, or place of the action or state expressed by the verb. Some examples of adverbs are quickly, very, daily, often, etc.
There are numerous types of adverbs, including adverbs of manner (used to describe how something occurs), adverbs of degree (used to indicate extent or degree), and adverbs of place (used to describe the location of an action or event).
Examples: Adverb in a sentence
- She sang well.
- Kindly pay the bill.
- He speaks very loudly.
- He speaks English fluently.
- I read my book carefully.
Preposition
Preposition is a word which links nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs and phrases to other words in a sentence to form a proper sentence. They often come before a noun or pronoun, forming prepositional phrases. Prepositions can indicate aspects such as time, place, and direction.
Some examples of prepositions are in, on, over, under, beside, from, to, beneath etc.
Examples: Preposition in a sentence
- She is at home
- The cat is on the wall.
- There are three students in the class
- He will go to Spain.
- He was sitting beside Ana.
Interjection
An interjection is a part of speech that expresses strong emotions, sudden exclamations, or brief remarks. Interjections are stand-alone words or phrases often used to convey feelings such as surprise, joy, frustration, or excitement. They can add emotional intensity or emphasis to a sentence. Some examples of interjections include hurrah, wow, bravo, etc
Examples: Interjection in a sentence
- Hurrah! Our team has won.
- Bravo! Well played my boys.
- What! She failed?
- Hush! Don’t talk here.
Conjunction
A conjunction is a word or a group of words which joins together sentences or clauses, and sometimes words. Some examples of conjunctions are and, or, either…or, neither…nor, but etc.
There are two main types of conjunction- coordinate conjunction and Sub-ordinate Conjunction.
Examples: Conjunction in a sentence
- He came and he worked.
- Both Ram and Shyam will attend the Party.
- Either obey the orders or leave the job.
- Neither he nor she was present at the party.
Test your understanding of Parts of speech
Here’s an exercise on parts of speech. Identify the part of speech for each bold word in the sentences provided:
- Running is a good exercise.
- The colourful balloons filled the sky during the festival.
- They recruit highly expert personnel.
- She is really happy.
- She is sure that her brother will succeed.
- Shikha saw Rahul in the class.
- She sang a song.
- Riya married Varun who was my classmate.
Now, let us see if you got it right. Check your answers.
- Noun.
- Adjective.
- Adverb
- Adjective
- Conjunction.
- Preposition.
- Verb.
- pronoun.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What are parts of speech?
A part of speech, also known as a word class, tells us the job a word does in a sentence. Knowing these different roles helps you understand how words work together and improve your writing.
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Why are parts of speech important?
Parts of speech are essential for understanding the structure of sentences, analyzing how words function, and improving language skills. They provide a framework for constructing grammatically correct and meaningful sentences.
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What are the 8 parts of speech?
Nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives, prepositions, conjunctions and interjections are the 8 parts of speech.
