What part of speech is the word there is

The word there is a commonly used word that can be difficult to classify because of its various roles in a sentence. There can be used as an adverb, pronoun, adjective, and sometimes as an interjection. But in grammatical constructions like there is or there are, there is considered an expletive. This tiny word can create a lot of confusion because the context can be so varied.

Study the following guide to help you understand how to label and classify the various roles of the word there.

The chart can help, but also pay close attention to specific grammatical constructions when there is or there are start the sentence. In these contexts, the word there is classified as an expletive. An expletive is an “extra word” not grammatically related to the rest of the sentence. Mind you, starting a sentence with these constructions will lead to wordy sentence writing, and they’re usually too passive for most written compositions. This occurs because expletives are used to postpone the subject to build a little suspense for the reader. Authors like to use it like a bit of “seasoning” to keep readers tuned in. Here’s an example sentence demonstrating these structures:

There are explosives hidden under the railway bridge! (Delayed Subject — explosives)

                               vs.

Explosives are hidden under the railway bridge! (There is omitted to get to the point.)

You can tell the first example expresses more drama, right? Used sparingly, expletive constructions with there is or there are can be titillating. Just be careful!

Hint: If a sentence beginning with a there is or there are construction can be rewritten without the word there, you are working with the expletive form of the word.

In closing, there’s also the soothing phrase, “There, there…”, but we will save that for another time! Thanks for reading!

The word “there” have multiple functions. In verbal and written English, the word can be used as an adverb, a pronoun, a noun, an interjection, or an adjective.

1. Adverb

This word is classified as an adverb if it is used to modify a verb in the sentence. For example, in the sentence below:

They went there only to find out that it was postponed.

The word “there” is considered as an adverb because it describes the verb “went.”

Definition:

a. in or at that place

• Example:
• We went on to London and stayed there two weeks.

b. at that point or stage

• Example:
• Stop right there before you say something you’ll regret.

1. Pronoun

Sometimes, the word “there” is categorized under pronouns, if it is used to replace a noun in the sentence. For instance, in the sample sentence below:

Hello there!

The word “there” is considered as a pronoun because it substitutes the name of the person, in this case, You.

Definition:

a. used as an indefinite substitute for a name

• Example:
• Hi there!

1. Noun

There are also some cases wherein the word “there” is considered as a noun, which refers to a particular point or place. Take for example, the sentence below:

There is no there and no here in pure space.

The word “there” is used as a noun, which refers to a location.

Definition:

a. that place; that point

• Example:
• You take it from there.

1. Interjection

Other times, the word “there” is categorized as an interjection, when it is used to exclaim or emphasize something. In the sample sentence below:

There, it’s finished!

The word “there” is used for emphasis or to draw attention to a particular thing.

Definition:

a. used to focus attention on something and express satisfaction or annoyance at it

• Example:
• There, I told you my parents wouldn’t mind!

1. Adjective

In some cases, the word “there” is considered as an adjective when it is used to modify a noun or a pronoun, as seen in the sample sentence below:

She is there to answer any questions you might have.

The word “there” modifies the pronoun “she” and is therefore considered as an adjective.

Definition:

a. capable of being relied on for support or help

• Example:
  He is always there for her.

b. used for emphasis, especially after a demonstrative pronoun or a noun modified by a demonstrative adjective

• Example:
• Those guys there can tell you.

The word “there” is used as a noun, which refers to a location.

Is the word there an adverb?

The word “there” is a commonly used word that can be difficult to classify because of the various roles it can play in a sentence. There can be used as an adverb, pronoun, noun, or adjective, and sometimes as an interjection.

What type of word is here or there?

adverbs
Here and there are adverbs.

Which pronoun is there?

Other Types of Pronoun

Pronoun Type	Members of the Subclass
Possessive	mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs
Reflexive	myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, oneself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves
Reciprocal	each other, one another
Relative	that, which, who, whose, whom, where, when

Which type of adverb is there?

Since verbs are such integral parts of our everyday language, their modifiers are also multi-faceted. To start, there are five types of adverbs you should familiarize yourself with: adverbs of degree, frequency, manner, place, and time.

Is the word there an adjective?

In some cases, the word “there” is considered as an adjective when it is used to modify a noun or a pronoun, as seen in the sample sentence below: She is there to answer any questions you might have. The word “there” modifies the pronoun “she” and is therefore considered as an adjective.

What kind of adjective is there?

There are three degrees of adjectives: Positive, comparative, superlative. These degrees are applicable only for the descriptive adjectives.

Are Here and there adverbs?

Here and there are common adverbs of place. They give a location relative to the speaker. With verbs of movement, here means “towards or with the speaker” and there means “away from, or not with the speaker”.

Is there any or is there a?

We must use ‘a’ with singular countable nouns and ‘any’ with uncountable nouns. We use ‘is’ with both singular countable nouns and uncountable nouns.’ There is only one, so we have to use the singular form.

Is it on their way or on there way?

on the way
Also, on one’s way. In the process of coming, going, or traveling; also, about to come. For example, The mail plane is on the way, or She is on her way out the door, or Winter is on the way.

Is there an adverb of place?

The most common adverbs of place are ‘here’ and ‘there’. We use ‘here’ when the position is near the speaker, and ‘there’ when the position is further away.

How many kinds of pronouns are there?

There are four types of pronouns: subject pronouns, object pronouns, possessive pronouns, and demonstrative pronouns. Pronouns are one of the eight parts of speech. Pronouns take the place of a person, place, or thing in sentences once the context is understood.

Is some a word?

What type of word is ‘some’? Some can be a pronoun, an adverb or a determiner – Word Type.

What are the 3 types of adverbs?

Now, there are three kinds of adverbs, and they are as follows.

• Simple adverbs.
• Interrogative adverbs.
• Relative adverbs.

What are the adjectives words?

Adjectives are words that describe the qualities or states of being of nouns: enormous, doglike, silly, yellow, fun, fast. They can also describe the quantity of nouns: many, few, millions, eleven.

What are the 8 types of adverbs?

There are at least eight different kinds of adverbs and these are adverbs of manner, adverbs of frequency, adverbs of time and place, adverbs of relative time, adverbs of degree, adverbs of quantity, adverbs that focus, adverbs that function as attitude markers.

Is all an adjective or adverb?

In spoken and written English, the word “all” has several functions. It can be used as a adjective, an adverb, a noun, or a pronoun. This word can be categorized as an adjective if it is used to introduce a noun in the sentence. Generally, the word “all” expresses the entire quantity or extent of something.

Can there be a verb?

The most common verb used to express existence in English is the verb “be,” and sentences beginning with “there is” or “there are,” for example, are extremely common in English.

What are types of noun?

Types Of Nouns

• Common noun.
• Proper noun.
• Concrete noun.
• Abstract noun.
• Collective nouns.
• Count and mass nouns.

What is noun example of noun?

A noun is a word that refers to a thing (book), a person (Betty Crocker), an animal (cat), a place (Omaha), a quality (softness), an idea (justice), or an action (yodeling). It’s usually a single word, but not always: cake, shoes, school bus, and time and a half are all nouns.

What are the three types of adjectives?

Adjectives, depending on their function, are of three types: adjectives of quality, quantity, and number. These three types differ in their roles of describing what kind, how much, or how many.

It depends who you want to satisfy with your classification. If you must classify into the traditional eight parts of speech, there is considered a pronoun (Dictionary.com — see below), specifically a dummy subject (Wikipedia), usually termed «existential there» 1,2,3 — search term in Google Books.

there

pronoun
7.
(used to introduce a sentence or clause in which the verb comes before its subject or has no complement): There is no hope.

In the phrase «there is» there is grammatically unnecessary, but it has two uses. One, not to end an existential sentence with a being verb. For instance, see this dissertation, page 63 (though read Chapter IV, pp. 53-115 if you’re really interested):

For example, King Alfred could write “swae feawa hiora waeron” (so few of them were), but to translate this into more modern English, we need to supply a subject slot filler as in “so few of them there were” or more naturally “there were so few of them.”

The other use, as in your example, is to emphasize the existence of the subject. So «A book is on the table» is perfectly fine, but the existence of the book is underlined in the sentence «There is a book on the table.» (That’s why «there» is termed existential — it’s only used in existential clauses.)

However, classifying «there» as a pronoun is controversial since a pronoun is defined as a substitute for a noun. There is not a substitute for a more specific noun. Along these lines, in the 8-part scheme, you should logically call it a noun. I haven’t found a source to back this up, though, except for the definition of a noun.

But since even a noun must refer to an entity, and there does not, existential there is not either a noun or a pronoun.

If you’re still interested, you probably don’t mind transcending the artificial part-of-speech system. In fact, the reason I can’t find a direct refutation of there as pronoun is that every scholarly work I’ve come across does not refer to eight-parts-of-speech period. So, after getting rid of the clutter, there doesn’t have to be classified with either nouns or pronouns. It’s existential there. It’s a dummy subject. But it’s not a pronoun.

Because really, you can’t group it with any other word and call it a homogeneous category. It even presents differences from the dummy it.

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As to the punctuation problem, put the question mark outside of the quotes, and you’ll be fine:

What part of speech is there in the sentence «There is a book on the table»?

What part of speech is the word there?

adverb

Is now a preposition?

The word ‘now’ functions as an adverb, noun, adjective, or conjunction, depending on how it’s used, but it cannot function as a preposition.

Is now an adjective?

Now can be an adjective, a conjunction, an interjection, a noun or an adverb.

Is until now correct?

As for “until now,” yes it’s correct English. There are dozens of examples in the Oxford English Dictionary. The earliest one (using “til” instead of “until”) is from the Wycliffe Bible of 1382, the first English version of the Bible.

Is it up to now or up until now?

No. By the way, “up until now” is redundant. Use either “up to now” or “until now”.

Is there a comma after until now?

Since “until” is a subordinating conjunction, it does not need a comma so long as it comes after the main clause. In fact, it’s the same with almost all subordinating conjunctions. They don’t take a comma before them if they appear in the sentence after the main clause.

What is the difference between up till now and until now?

2 Answers. Till has the same meaning until has; it is just informal, and not used at the beginning of a sentence. “Till now” and “up until now” have the same meaning.

Can we use till with yet?

till yet is completely incorrect and never used. Hope this helps. Yet is not really a time expression, but rather a fuzzy duration expression, so you can’t use it after until (or the shortened form ’til, sometimes misspelled till).

How do you use up to now in a sentence?

1. The police haven’t got a clear clue up to now.
2. Up to now,I’ve read as far as the fifth chapter,the second volume of “The War and Peace”.
3. We’ve kept our meetings secret up to now.
4. Her life has run smoothly up to now.
5. Up to now he’s been quiet.
6. Up to now he’s been very quiet.
7. Up to now he’s still quiet.

How do you write until?

Till is not an abbreviation of until—it’s actually older than until—and it should not be written with an apostrophe. ‘Til turns up now and then, but major usage dictionaries and style guides consider it an error, so it’s best to avoid it.

Is it to this day or till this day?

‘To this day’ is a fixed expression in British English. It’s much more common than ’till this day’. Interact with native speakers around the world.

What is the meaning of to date?

phrase. To date means up until the present time. ‘Dottie’ is by far his best novel to date. To date we have spent eight thousand pounds between us. Synonyms: up to now, yet, so far, until now More Synonyms of to date.

Why is it called date?

The word data comes from the Latin word dare, “to give.” In later Latin, the word data came to be used alone to stand for the date, and it came into English as date.

What are the three meaning of dating?

Dating is a stage of romantic relationships in humans whereby two people meet socially with the aim of each assessing the other’s suitability. as a prospective partner in an intimate relationship. It is a form of courtship, consisting of social activities done by the couple, either alone or with others. 3.

Is dated or was dated?

“Were dated” refers to the process of placing a date on the documents, which took place in 1932, ergo it’s in past tense. “Are dated” refers to your observation of the date on the documents, which takes place right now, ergo it’s in present tense.

Does dated mean old?

Something that’s dated is very obviously old-fashioned or out of style.

Was dated in a sentence?

1. The memorandum was dated 23 August, 2001. 2. We have received your letter dated April 14, 1998.

Why we write dated instead of date?

As verbs the difference between date and dated is that date is to note the time of writing or executing; to express in an instrument the time of its execution while dated is (date).

Is dated as of?

Use of the phrase “as of” should be a red flag that the date is not necessarily the date on which the contract was signed. Rather, it is a date on which the parties have agreed that their contract will be effective. The “as of” date may be before or after the actual date of signature.

What is Dated this day of?

It’s a phrase to ensure that a document is properly dated. “Dated this” refers to the day of the month.

What dated date means?

The dated date is the date when interest starts to accrue on bonds and notes. An investor who purchases the bond pays the amount equal to the interest accrued from the dated date to the settlement date and is reimbursed for the additional interest when the issuer makes the first interest payment on the security.

What is first coupon date?

The date on which a bond makes its first interest payment to bondholders. The first coupon date sometimes occurs at an irregular time; that is, if the bond pays coupons every six months, the first coupon may be longer or shorter than six months.

What does accrual date mean?

Accrual Date means the Valuation Date on which a Contribution is deemed to be made to the Participant’s Account as specified by Section 3.1 or Section 3.2 or, with respect to Contributions credited under Section 3.3, as specified by the Committee action approving such Contribution.

What does Bond date mean?

A bond date is usually the closing date of the bond. It is the date in which the bond was issued and delivered. It is also the date when the exchange of the bond for the cash or property takes place.

This is an example of the existential there, which is grammatically the subject. (Sometimes called a dummy subject.)

«There» used this way is followed by a form of the verb «be» and then an indefinite noun. «There» is never stressed when it is used this way.

When «there» is an adverb at the beginning of a sentence, it gets stressed. It can be followed by a verb, noun, or prepositional phrase (and probably a few other things). You could substitute «here» for «there» and the sentence would still make sense. These are all adverbial uses of «there»:

There sat a funny little man.
There Dad had an accident years ago.
There under the table I found my shoe.

Here are similar sentences with the existential «there». Note the verb «be» in all of them:

There’s a funny little man sitting there.
There’s where Dad had an accident years ago.
There was my shoe under the table.

When you start breaking it down, the English language is pretty complicated—especially if you’re trying to learn it from scratch! One of the most important English words to understand is the.

But what part of speech is the word the, and when should it be used in a sentence? Is the word the a preposition? Is the a pronoun? Or is the word the considered a different part of speech?

To help you learn exactly how the word the works in the English language, we’re going to do the following in this article:

• Answer the question, «What part of speech is the?»
• Explain how to use the correctly in sentences, with examples
• Provide a full list of other words that are classified as the same part of speech as the in the English language

Okay, let’s get started learning about the word the!

In the English language the word the is classified as an article, which is a word used to define a noun. (More on that a little later.)

But an article isn’t one of the eight parts of speech. Articles are considered a type of adjective, so «the» is technically an adjective as well. However, «the» can also sometimes function as an adverb in certain instances, too.

In short, the word «the» is an article that functions as both an adjective and an adverb, depending on how it’s being used. Having said that, the is most commonly used as an article in the English language. So, if you were wondering, «Is the a pronoun, preposition, or conjunction,» the answer is no: it’s an article, adjective, and an adverb!

While we might think of an article as a story that appears in a newspaper or website, in English grammar, articles are words that help specify nouns.

The as an Article

So what are «articles» in the English language? Articles are words that identify nouns in order to demonstrate whether the noun is specific or nonspecific. Nouns (a person, place, thing, or idea) can be identified by two different types of articles in the English language: definite articles identify specific nouns, and indefinite articles identify nonspecific nouns.

The word the is considered a definite article because it defines the meaning of a noun as one particular thing. It’s an article that gives a noun a definite meaning: a definite article. Generally, definite articles are used to identify nouns that the audience already knows about. Here’s a few examples of how «the» works as a definite article:

We went to the rodeo on Saturday. Did you see the cowboy get trampled by the bull?

This (grisly!) sentence has three instances of «the» functioning as a definite article: the rodeo, the cowboy, and the bull. Notice that in each instance, the comes directly before the noun. That’s because it’s an article’s job to identify nouns.

In each of these three instances, the refers to a specific (or definite) person, place, or thing. When the speaker says the rodeo, they’re talking about one specific rodeo that happened at a certain place and time. The same goes for the cowboy and the bull: these are two specific people/animals that had one kinda terrible thing happen to them!

It can be a bit easier to see how definite articles work if you see them in the same sentence as an indefinite article (a or an). This sentence makes the difference a lot more clear:

A bat flew into the restaurant and made people panic.

Okay. This sentence has two articles in it: a and the. So what’s the difference? Well, you use a when you’re referring to a general, non-specific person, place, or thing because its an indefinite article. So in this case, using a tells us this isn’t a specific bat. It’s just a random bat from the wild that decided to go on an adventure.

Notice that in the example, the writer uses the to refer to the restaurant. That’s because the event happened at a specific time and at a specific place. A bat flew into one particular restaurant to cause havoc, which is why it’s referred to as the restaurant in the sentence.

The last thing to keep in mind is that the is the only definite article in the English language, and it can be used with both singular and plural nouns. This is probably one reason why people make the mistake of asking, «Is the a pronoun?» Since articles, including the, define the meaning of nouns, it seems like they could also be combined with pronouns. But that’s not the case. Just remember: articles only modify nouns.

Adjectives are words that help describe nouns. Because «the» can describe whether a noun is a specific object or not, «the» is also considered an adjective.

The as an Adjective

You know now that the is classified as a definite article and that the is used to refer to a specific person, place, or thing. But defining what part of speech articles are is a little bit tricky.

There are eight parts of speech in the English language: nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections. The thing about these eight parts of speech in English is that they contain smaller categories of types of words and phrases in the English language. Articles are considered a type of determiner, which is a type of adjective.

Let’s break down how articles fall under the umbrella of «determiners,» which fall under the umbrella of adjectives. In English, the category of «determiners» includes all words and phrases in the English language that are combined with a noun to express an aspect of what the noun is referring to. Some examples of determiners are the, a, an, this, that, my, their, many, few, several, each, and any. The is used in front of a noun to express that the noun refers to a specific thing, right? So that’s why «the» can be considered a determiner.

And here’s how determiners—including the article the—can be considered adjectives. Articles and other determiners are sometimes classified as adjectives because they describe the nouns that they precede. Technically, the describes the noun it precedes by communicating specificity and directness. When you say, «the duck,» you’re describing the noun «duck» as referring to a specific duck. This is different than saying a duck, which could mean any one duck anywhere in the world!

When «the» comes directly before a word that’s not a noun, then it’s operating as an adverb instead of an adjective.

The as an Adverb

Finally, we mentioned that the can also be used as an adverb, which is one of the eight main parts of speech we outlined above. Adverbs modify or describe verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs, but never modify nouns.

Sometimes, the can be used to modify adverbs or adjectives that occur in the comparative degree. Adverbs or adjectives that compare the amounts or intensity of a feeling, state of being, or action characterizing two or more things are in the comparative degree. Sometimes the appears before these adverbs or adjectives to help convey the comparison!

Here’s an example where the functions as an adverb instead of an article/adjective:

Lainey believes the most outrageous things.

Okay. We know that when the is functioning as an adjective, it comes before a noun in order to clarify whether it’s specific or non-specific. In this case, however, the precedes the word most, which isn’t a noun—it’s an adjective. And since an adverb modifies an adjective, adverb, or verb, that means the functions as an adverb in this sentence.

We know that can be a little complicated, so let’s dig into another example together:

Giovanni’s is the best pizza place in Montana.

The trick to figuring out whether the article the is functioning as an adjective or an adverb is pretty simple: just look at the word directly after the and figure out its part of speech. If that word is a noun, then the is functioning as an adjective. If that word isn’t a noun, then the is functioning like an adverb.

Now, reread the second example. The word the comes before the word best. Is best a noun? No, it isn’t. Best is an adjective, so we know that the is working like an adverb in this sentence.

How to Use The Correctly in Sentences

An important part of answering the question, «What part of speech is the word the?» includes explaining how to use the correctly in a sentence. Articles like the are some of the most common words used in the English language. So you need to know how and when to use it! And since using the as an adverb is less common, we’ll provide examples of how the can be used as an adverb as well.

Using The as an Article

In general, it is correct and appropriate to use the in front of a noun of any kind when you want to convey specificity. It’s often assumed that you use the to refer to a specific person, place, or thing that the person you’re speaking to will already be aware of. Oftentimes, this shared awareness of who, what, or where «the» is referring to is created by things already said in the conversation, or by context clues in a given social situation.

Let’s look at an example here:

Say you’re visiting a friend who just had a baby. You’re sitting in the kitchen at your friend’s house while your friend makes coffee. The baby, who has been peacefully dozing in a bassinet in the living room, begins crying. Your friend turns to you and asks, «Can you hold the baby while I finish doing this?»

Now, because of all of the context surrounding the social situation, you know which baby your friend is referring to when they say, the baby. There’s no need for further clarification, because in this case, the gives enough direct and specific meaning to the noun baby for you to know what to do!

In many cases, using the to define a noun requires less or no awareness of an immediate social situation because people have a shared common knowledge of the noun that the is referring to. Here are two examples:

Are you going to watch the eclipse tomorrow?

Did you hear what the President said this morning?

In the first example, the speaker is referring to a natural phenomenon that most people are aware of—eclipses are cool and rare! When there’s going to be an eclipse, everyone knows about it. If you started a conversation with someone by saying, «Are you going to watch the eclipse tomorrow?» it’s pretty likely they’d know which eclipse the is referring to.

In the second example, if an American speaking to another American mentions what the President said, the other American is likely going to assume that the refers to the President of the United States. Conversely, if two Canadians said this to one another, they would likely assume they’re talking about the Canadian prime minister!

So in many situations, using the before a noun gives that noun specific meaning in the context of a particular social situation.

Using The as an Adverb

Now let’s look at an example of how «the» can be used as an adverb. Take a look at this sample sentence:

The tornado warning made it all the more likely that the game would be canceled.

Remember how we explained that the can be combined with adverbs that are making a comparison of levels or amounts of something between two entities? The example above shows how the can be combined with an adverb in such a situation. The is combined with more and likely to form an adverbial phrase.

So how do you figure this out? Well, if the words immediately after the are adverbs, then the is functioning as an adverb, too!

Here’s another example of how the can be used as an adverb:

I had the worst day ever.

In this case, the is being combined with the adverb worst to compare the speaker’s day to the other days. Compared to all the other days ever, this person’s was the worst…period. Some other examples of adverbs that you might see the combined with include all the better, the best, the bigger, the shorter, and all the sooner.

One thing that can help clarify which adverbs the can be combined with is to check out a list of comparative and superlative adverbs and think about which ones the makes sense with!

3 Articles in the English Language

Now that we’ve answered the question, «What part of speech is the?», you know that the is classified as an article. To help you gain a better understanding of what articles are and how they function in the English language, here’s a handy list of 3 words in the English language that are also categorized as articles.

Article	Type of Article	What It Does	Example Sentence
The	Definite Article	Modifies nouns by giving them a specific meaning	Please fold the laundry. Do you want to go to the concert?
A	Indefinite Article	Modifies a noun that refers to a general idea; appears before nouns that begin with a consonant.	Do you want to go to a concert?
An	Indefinite Article	Modifies a noun that refers to a general idea; appears before nouns that begin with a vowel.	Do you want to go to an arcade? Let’s get an iguana.

What’s Next?

If you’re looking for more grammar resources, be sure to check out our guides on every grammar rule you need to know to ace the SAT (or the ACT)!

Learning more about English grammar can be really helpful when you’re studying a foreign language, too. We highly recommend that you study a foreign language in high school—not only is it great for you, it looks great on college applications, too. If you’re not sure which language to study, check out this helpful article that will make your decision a lot easier.

Speaking of applying for college…one of the most important parts of your application packet is your essay. Check out this expert guide to writing college essays that will help you get into your dream school.

Have friends who also need help with test prep? Share this article!

A part of speech is a term used in traditional grammar for one of the nine main categories into which words are classified according to their functions in sentences, such as nouns or verbs. Also known as word classes, these are the building blocks of grammar.

Every sentence you write or speak in English includes words that fall into some of the nine parts of speech. These include nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, articles/determiners, and interjections. (Some sources include only eight parts of speech and leave interjections in their own category.)

Learning the names of the parts of speech probably won’t make you witty, healthy, wealthy, or wise. In fact, learning just the names of the parts of speech won’t even make you a better writer. However, you will gain a basic understanding of sentence structure and the English language by familiarizing yourself with these labels.

Open and Closed Word Classes

The parts of speech are commonly divided into open classes (nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs) and closed classes (pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions, articles/determiners, and interjections). The idea is that open classes can be altered and added to as language develops and closed classes are pretty much set in stone. For example, new nouns are created every day, but conjunctions never change.

In contemporary linguistics, the label part of speech has generally been discarded in favor of the term word class or syntactic category. These terms make words easier to qualify objectively based on word construction rather than context. Within word classes, there is the lexical or open class and the function or closed class.

Read about each part of speech below and get started practicing identifying each.

Noun

Nouns are a person, place, thing, or idea. They can take on a myriad of roles in a sentence, from the subject of it all to the object of an action. They are capitalized when they’re the official name of something or someone, called proper nouns in these cases. Examples: pirate, Caribbean, ship, freedom, Captain Jack Sparrow.

Pronoun

Pronouns stand in for nouns in a sentence. They are more generic versions of nouns that refer only to people. Examples:​ I, you, he, she, it, ours, them, who, which, anybody, ourselves.

Verb

Verbs are action words that tell what happens in a sentence. They can also show a sentence subject’s state of being (is, was). Verbs change form based on tense (present, past) and count distinction (singular or plural). Examples: sing, dance, believes, seemed, finish, eat, drink, be, became

Adjective

Adjectives describe nouns and pronouns. They specify which one, how much, what kind, and more. Adjectives allow readers and listeners to use their senses to imagine something more clearly. Examples: hot, lazy, funny, unique, bright, beautiful, poor, smooth.

Adverb

Adverbs describe verbs, adjectives, and even other adverbs. They specify when, where, how, and why something happened and to what extent or how often. Examples: softly, lazily, often, only, hopefully, softly, sometimes.

Preposition

Prepositions show spacial, temporal, and role relations between a noun or pronoun and the other words in a sentence. They come at the start of a prepositional phrase, which contains a preposition and its object. Examples: up, over, against, by, for, into, close to, out of, apart from.

Conjunction

Conjunctions join words, phrases, and clauses in a sentence. There are coordinating, subordinating, and correlative conjunctions. Examples: and, but, or, so, yet, with.

Articles and Determiners

Articles and determiners function like adjectives by modifying nouns, but they are different than adjectives in that they are necessary for a sentence to have proper syntax. Articles and determiners specify and identify nouns, and there are indefinite and definite articles. Examples: articles: a, an, the; determiners: these, that, those, enough, much, few, which, what.

Some traditional grammars have treated articles as a distinct part of speech. Modern grammars, however, more often include articles in the category of determiners, which identify or quantify a noun. Even though they modify nouns like adjectives, articles are different in that they are essential to the proper syntax of a sentence, just as determiners are necessary to convey the meaning of a sentence, while adjectives are optional.

Interjection

Interjections are expressions that can stand on their own or be contained within sentences. These words and phrases often carry strong emotions and convey reactions. Examples: ah, whoops, ouch, yabba dabba do!

How to Determine the Part of Speech

Only interjections (Hooray!) have a habit of standing alone; every other part of speech must be contained within a sentence and some are even required in sentences (nouns and verbs). Other parts of speech come in many varieties and may appear just about anywhere in a sentence.

To know for sure what part of speech a word falls into, look not only at the word itself but also at its meaning, position, and use in a sentence.

For example, in the first sentence below, work functions as a noun; in the second sentence, a verb; and in the third sentence, an adjective:

• Bosco showed up for work two hours late.
  • The noun work is the thing Bosco shows up for.
• He will have to work until midnight.
  • The verb work is the action he must perform.
• His work permit expires next month.
  • The attributive noun [or converted adjective] work modifies the noun permit.

Learning the names and uses of the basic parts of speech is just one way to understand how sentences are constructed.

Dissecting Basic Sentences

To form a basic complete sentence, you only need two elements: a noun (or pronoun standing in for a noun) and a verb. The noun acts as a subject and the verb, by telling what action the subject is taking, acts as the predicate. 

• Birds fly.

In the short sentence above, birds is the noun and fly is the verb. The sentence makes sense and gets the point across.

You can have a sentence with just one word without breaking any sentence formation rules. The short sentence below is complete because it’s a command to an understood «you».

• Go!

Here, the pronoun, standing in for a noun, is implied and acts as the subject. The sentence is really saying, «(You) go!»

Constructing More Complex Sentences

Use more parts of speech to add additional information about what’s happening in a sentence to make it more complex. Take the first sentence from above, for example, and incorporate more information about how and why birds fly.

• Birds fly when migrating before winter.

Birds and fly remain the noun and the verb, but now there is more description. 

When is an adverb that modifies the verb fly. The word before is a little tricky because it can be either a conjunction, preposition, or adverb depending on the context. In this case, it’s a preposition because it’s followed by a noun. This preposition begins an adverbial phrase of time (before winter) that answers the question of when the birds migrate. Before is not a conjunction because it does not connect two clauses.