Here is a list of some of the most important words which belong to different parts of speech. Note that it is the function or use which determines which part of speech a particular word belongs to.
About
About can be used as an adverb or a preposition. As an adverb, about modifies the verb. As a preposition, it connects a noun or pronoun with some other word in the sentence. Study the examples given below.
They wandered about the town. (Here the word about modifies the verb wandered and hence it acts as an adverb.)
There was something affable about him. (Preposition)
Above
The word above can be used as an adverb, a preposition, an adjective or a noun.
Study the examples given below.
The heavens are above. (Adverb)
The moral code of conduct is above the civil code of conduct. (Preposition)
Read the sentence given above. (Adjective)
Our blessings come from above. (Noun)
After
The word after can be used as an adverb, a preposition, an adjective and a conjunction.
He left soon after. (Adverb)
She takes after her mother. (Preposition)
I went to bed after I had dinner. (Conjunction)
All
All children need love. (Adjective)
She lives all alone in a small hut. (Adverb)
She lost all she owned. (Noun)
Any
Have you got any pens? (Adjective)
Is he any better? (Adverb)
‘Did you get any strawberries?’ ‘There wasn’t any left.’ (Pronoun)
As
We walked as fast as we could. (Adverb)
As he was late, we went without him. (Conjunction)
She likes the same color as I do. (Relative pronoun)
The Same Word as Different Parts of Speech :
The meaning of a word in the sentence determines to what part of speech it belongs.
The same word may be sometimes one part of speech, sometimes another.
Words of entirely separate origin, meaning and use sometimes look and sound alike such as in…
The minstrel sang a plaintive lay.
He lay on the ground.
But the following examples show that the same word may have more than one kind of grammatical office (or function). It is the meaning which we give to a word in the sentence that determines its classification as a part of speech.
The chief classes of words thus variously used are
(1) nouns and adjectives
(2) nouns and verbs
(3) adjectives and adverbs
(4) adjectives and pronouns
(5) adverbs and prepositions
1. Nouns and Adjectives
The same word can be used as noun as well as adjective.
Noun : Rubber comes from South America.
Adjective : This wheel has a rubber tire.
Noun : That brick is yellow.
Adjective : Here is a brick house.
Noun : The rich have a grave responsibility.
Adjective : A rich merchant lives here.
The first two examples show how words that are commonly nouns may be used as adjectives.
The third shows how words that are commonly adjectives.
2. Nouns and Verbs
The same word can be used as noun as well as verb.
Noun : Hear the wash of the tide.
Verb :Wash those windows.
Noun : Give me a stamp.
Verb :Stamp this envelope.
Noun : It is the call of the sea.
Verb :Ye call me chief.
Other examples are : act, address, ally, answer, boast, care, cause, close, defeat, doubt, drop, heap, hope, mark, offer, pile, place, rest, rule, sail, shape, sleep, spur, test, watch, wound.
3. Adjectives and Adverbs
The same word can be used as adjective as well as adverb.
Adjective : That is a fast boat.
Adverb : The snow is melting fast.
Adjective : Draw a straight line.
Adverb : The arrow flew straight.
Adjective : Early comers get good seats.
Adverb : Tom awoke early.
Some adverbs have the same form as the corresponding adjectives.
You have guessed right.
How fast the tide ebbs!
The horse was sold cheap.
Tired men sleep sound.
Other examples are wrong, straight, early, late, quick, hard, far, near, slow, high, low, loud, ill, well, deep, close, just, very, much, little.
4. Adjectives and Pronouns
The same word can be used as adjective as well as pronoun.
Adjective : This man looks unhappy.
Pronoun : This is the sergeant.
Adjective : That book is a dictionary.
Pronoun : That is a kangaroo.
Adjective : Each day brings its opportunity.
Pronoun : I received a dollar from each.
5. Adverbs and Prepositions
The same word can be used as adverb as well as preposition.
Adverb : Jill came tumbling after.
Preposition : He returned after the accident.
Adverb : We went below.
Preposition : Below us lay the valley.
Adverb : The weeds sprang up.
Preposition : We walked up the hill.
Other examples are aboard, before, beyond, down, inside, underneath.
Miscellaneous examples of variation are the following.
Noun : The calm lasted for three days.
Adjective : Calm words show quiet minds.
Verb : Calm your angry friend.
Other examples are iron, stone, paper, sugar, salt, bark, quiet, black, light, head, wet, round, square, winter, spring.
Noun….Wrong seldom prospers.
Adjective….You have taken the wrong road.
Adverb….Edward often spells words wrong.
Verb….You wrong me by your suspicions.
Noun….The outside of the castle is gloomy.
Adjective….We have an outside stateroom.
Adverb….The messenger is waiting outside.
Preposition….I shall ride outside the coach.
Adjective…..That boat is a sloop.
Pronoun…..That is my uncle.
Conjunction….You said that you would help me.
Adjective…..Neither road leads to Utica.
Pronoun…..Neither of us arrived in time.
Conjunction…..Neither Tom nor I was late.
Preposition…..I am waiting for the train.
Conjunction…..You have plenty of time, for the train is late.
Interjection…..Hurrah! The battle is won.
Noun….I heard a loud hurrah.
Verb….The enemy flees. Our men hurrah.
The Same Word as Different Parts of Speech :
Grammar Index
The Same Word as Different Parts of Speech To HOME PAGE
The Same Word as Different Parts of Speech — The Same Word as Different Parts of Speech
The Same Word Used as Different Parts of Speech :
Some words belong to more than one part of sppech. We can’t know what part ofspeech a word is until we see what work it is doing in a sentiece. A word can do different jobs in diffenrt sentences.
Look at the following sentences.
1. Give me some water.
2. They water the plants daily.
In the first sentence the word WATER names something. So it is a noun.
In the second sentnce the same word WATER expresses an action. It tells what they do. Hre it is a verb.
Study the word FAST in the following sentences.
1. He didn’t take anything during the fast. (It names something. So it is a noun.)
2. Muslims FAST during Ramazan. (It expressess an action. It tells what Muslims do. So, it is a verb.)
3. I missed the FAST train. (It adds to the meaning of the noun train. What kind of a train? A fast train. So, it is an adjecyive.)
4. She speaks fast. (It adds to the meaning of the verb SPEAKS and tells how she speaks. So, it is an adverb.)
The word FAST is a noun in 1, a verb in 2, an adjective in 3 and an adverb in 4.
Here are futher examples.
Above :
We flew above the clouds. (Preposition)
Have you read the above sentce? (Adjective)
See above. (Adverb)
Back :
I have a pain in the back. (Noun)
I will come back in five minutes. (Adverb)
Have you closed the back door? (Adjective)
He backed his car throguth the gate. (Verb)
Better :
This watch is better than that. (Adjective)
He singes better than you. (Adverb)
You should respect your betters. (Noun)
Living conditions have bettered a great deal. (Verb)
Down :
The little girl feels down. (Adverb)
He ran down the hill. (Preposition)
We caught the down train. (Adjective)
The government downed the opposition. (Verb)
Like :
Children like sweets. (Verb)
He climbs like a cat. (Preposition)
You won’t see his like again. (Noun)
Ravindra and his brother are very like. (Adjective)
Near :
He lives near the station. (Preposition)
Most of my near relatives live abroad. (Adjective)
He got nervous as the examinations neared. (Verb)
I went near enough to see over it. (Adverb)
Right :
You are quite right. (Adjective)
Keep to the right. (Noun)
Go right to the end of the road. (Adverb)
They were able to right the boat. (Verb)
Round :
The earth is round. (Adjective)
The boys ran round the tree. (Preposition)
Will you come round to our house this evening? (Adverb)
We won the first round of the tennis cup. (Noun)
The child’s eyes rounded with excitment. (Verb)
Up :
You should stand up when the teacher comes in. (adverb)
He climbed up the hill. (Preposition)
What time is the next up train? (Adjective)
He hit the ball on the up. (noun)
Business English Index
Business English Exercises Index
From
The Same Word Used as Different Parts of Speech
to HOME PAGE
Your examples above are all homonyms. Homonyms are words that are spelled and pronounced the same but have different meanings.
Taking «top» as a single example; as a noun it can be used to describe an item of clothing (in UK English anyway) and obviously that is something entirely different to a «spinning top». So what you have are two different things that are spelled and pronounced the same. The fact they have the same root meaning is certainly relevant, but doesn’t make them the same.
One comment suggested that they are «homophones», but that isn’t completely accurate if they are spelled the same. True, a homonym is also by definition a homophone, but two words can be considered homophones if they simply sound the same (for example sea and see). If they are spelled and sound the same they are homonyms.
- Homophone — words that sound the same but have different meanings. (eg «sea» and «see»)
- Homograph — words that are spelled the same but have different meanings. (eg «wind» as in windmill, and «wind» as in the long and winding road)
- Homonym — words that are spelled and sound the same but have different meanings. (eg «fly» as in insect, or to travel by air)
The reason I feel this is the most appropriate answer is because «homonym» accurately describes the words above regardless of whether or not they are different word classes (what you call «parts of speech», eg nouns, adjectives, etc).
Also two words can be described as homonyms whether or not the words have the same derivation. For example, «mine» as a noun for an underground excavation is of French or possibly Celtic origin. The adjective «mine» meaning to dig such an excavation is clearly derived from it. However, «mine» as a possessive pronoun is of Germanic origin, so it cannot be referred to as a derivation. However, all three are homonyms.
Homonyms
(from Greek homos
– “the same” and onoma
– “name”) are the words, different in meaning and either
identical both in sound and spelling or identical only in spelling or
sound, for example
ball
as a round object used in game, and ball
as a gathering of people for dancing.
The most widely accepted
classification of them is as following:
1.
homonyms proper (or perfect homonyms);
2.
homophones;
3.
homographs.
Proper
homonyms (perfect
homonyms)
are words identical both in spelling and in sound-form but different
in meaning, for example, case
– ‘something that has happened’ and case
– ‘a box, a container’.
Homophones
are words identical in sound-form but different both in spelling and
in meaning: scent,
cent – sent,
son – sun,
father
– farther,
discreet (благоразумный)
– discrete (дискретный),
for – fore (нос
корабля).
Homographs
are words identical in spelling but different both in their
sound-form and meaning: tear
[tiә]
–
‘a drop of water that comes from the eyes’, tear
[tεә]
–
‘to pull apart by force’;
row
[rευ] – ‘an arrangement of persons or things in a line’, row
[rаυ]
– ‘a noisy quarrel or dispute’.
The
traditional classification is far from being a perfect one as it
doesn’t take into consideration the part of speech words belong to
Professor A.I. Smirnitsky classified homonyms into two large
classes with respect to part of speech status of words: 1) full
homonyms; 2) partial homonyms.
I.
Full
homonyms
– words which represent the same part of speech category and have
the same paradigm, e.g. match
– ‘a
game, a contest’ and ‘a short piece of wood used for producing
fire’; pit
‘a
large, usually deep opening in the ground’ and chiefly US and
Canadian ‘the stone of a cherry, plum, etc’, key
‘a metal instrument to fit a lock’ and ‘a small low island or
bank composed of sand and coral fragments’. The
difference is confined to the lexical meaning only.
II.
Partial
homonyms
– words which coincide in some of their forms, but have different
paradigms. There are three groups of them.
1.
Partial
lexical homonyms
are words which belong to the same part of speech, are identical in
form but differ in lexical meaning and paradigms. E.g. to
lie (lay,
lain)
:
:
to lie (lied,
lied);
to hang (hung,
hung)
:
:
to hang (hanged,
hanged).
Lexico-grammatical
homonyms
are words which belong to different parts of speech and differ in
lexical meaning and grammatical meanings.
А.
Simple
lexico-grammatical homonyms
are words which belong to one and the same part of speech and differ
in lexical meaning and grammatical paradigm, e.g. to
found :
:
found (past
indefinite, past participle of “to find”);
to lay :
:
lay (past
indefinite of “to lie”), etc.
B.
Complex
lexico-grammatical homonyms
are words which belong different parts of speech and differ in
lexical meaning and grammatical paradigm, e.g., rose
(n)
:
:
rose (past
indefinite of “to rise”);
left (adj)
:
:
left (past
indefinite of “to leave”),
bit (n)
:
:
bit
(past
indefinite of “to bite”).
Grammatical
homonyms
are homonymous word-forms of one and the same word which are
different in grammatical meaning only: asked
(Past
Indefinite) –
asked (Past
Participle),
learned
(v)
– learned (adj.)
[‘lɜ:nɪd];
brother’s
(Possesive
Case)
– brothers’ (Possesive
Case) –
brothers (Plural),
going (Participle
I)
– going
(Gerund)
– going (Noun).
The
English vocabulary is rich in such pairs and even groups of words.
If synonyms and antonyms can
be regarded as the treasury of the language’s expressive resources
and they are created by the vocabulary system with a particular
purpose, homonyms are accidental creations and therefore purposeless.
Sources
of homonyms are as follows.
1) Homonymy
can be caused by phonetic
changes
(convergent sound development) which words undergo in the course of
their historical development. As a result of such changes, two or
more words which were formerly pronounced differently may develop
identical sound forms and thus become homonyms. For example
night
and knight
were not homonyms in Old English as the initial k
in the second word was pronounced and not dropped as it is in its
Modern sound form: OE kniht.
2)
Borrowing
is another source of homonyms. A borrowed word in its last stage of
adaptation can become identical in pronunciation or spelling to a
native one or another borrowing, e.g. race
(a
group of people of common ancestry – French)
:
:
race (a
contest of speed – Scandinavian);
match (a
game,
a contest of skill,
strength – native)
:
:
match (a
slender short piece of wood used for producing fire – French).
3) Word-building
also can be one of sources of homonyms, e.g. liner
I. ‘a large luxurious passenger ship’ is homonimous with liner
II.
‘a plastic bag used for lining a rubbish bin’ though having
different derivational history – liner
I
is derived from the noun line while liner
II
has a verbal derivational base to
line.
The most important type in this respect is conversion
(the formation of a lexico-grammatical homonym by shifting a word
from one part of speech to another), for instance, pale
(adj)
– to pale (v),
to make (v)
– make (n),
ice
(n) – to
ice
(v), pride
(n) – to
pride
(v).
Shortening
is a further type of word-building which increases the number of
homonyms, e.g. fan
(n) – as ‘an enthusiastic admirer of some kind of sport or of an
actor, singer, etc.’ is a shortening produced from fanatic.
Its homonym is a Latin borrowing fan
which denotes ‘an implement for waving lightly to produce a cool
current of air.’
4)
A further course of homonyms is called split
polysemy
(divergent meaning development). Two or more homonyms can originate
from different meanings of the same word when for some reason, the
semantic structure of the word breaks into several parts. For
example, flower
and flour
originally were one word which had the meanings ‘the flower’,
‘the finest part of wheat’.
This
process also takes place in those cases when one of the intermediate
meanings of a polysemantic word falls out, and the remaining meanings
lose connections with each other and start separate existence, that
is become homonyms. The classic example is board.
It had four meanings: 1) ‘a long, thin piece of timber’; 2)
‘table’; 3) ‘daily meals provided for pay’; 4) ‘an official
group of persons who direct and supervise some activity’. When the
word table
was borrowed from French, it ousted the second meaning of the word
board
from common speech. So the word board
lost a link between its other meanings and they became three separate
homonymous words.
Homonyms
differ in their word-formation activity, e.g. affect1
“have
an effect on; make a difference to”
has
eight derivatives (affect,
affective,
affected,
affectedly,
affectedness,
affectation,
affection,
affectational,
affectionally)
whereas, affect2
“pretend
to have or feel (something)”
has
three derivatives (affect,
affection,
affecting,
affected).
Paronyms
are
words
very identical in sound form and spelling but having some differences
in them and different meanings, e.g. loose
– lose;
farther
– further;
model
– modal;
quite
– quiet;
Polish
– polish;
decent
(respectable,
suitable)
– descend (downward
motion);
to
contend (бороться)
–
content
(довольный,
удовлетворенный);
historic
– historical
(имеющий
историческое
значение
a
historic speech
– связанный
с
историей
a
historical novel);
classic
–
classical
(классический,
образцовый
classic
example,
classic suit
– классический,
традиционный
classical
music,
classical art).
Translator’s
false friends
– interlanguage paronyms, pseudo-international words, e.g.
accord
– аккорд,
apartment – апартаменты,
herb – герб,
scallop – эскалоп,
lunatic – лунатик,
Hispanic – испанский,
pretence – претензия.
Paronomasia
is a stylistic device based on the contextual use of paronyms. For
example:
It
is not my principle to pay the interest,
it’s not my interest to pay the principal.
Your
children need your presence more than your presents
(Jesse
Jackson).
Соседние файлы в предмете [НЕСОРТИРОВАННОЕ]
- #
- #
- #
- #
- #
- #
- #
- #
01.05.201512.56 Mб51ENLISH GRAMMAR (Understanding & Using).pdf
- #
- #
- #