PARTS OF SPEECH
There are several different kinds of words, or parts of speech that you use every day:
Nouns Pronouns Verbs Adjectives Adverbs Prepositions
NOUNS
- A noun is a word that names a person, a place, a thing, or an idea.
- A noun can name something that occupies space :
Example: baby, balloon, plane,
- A noun can name something that does not occupy space:
Example: Wednesday, health, happiness
Activity
Underline the 20 nouns that appear in the following passage.
The British queen, Victoria, the very symbol of the empire for over sixty years, died in the first year of this century. Gradually, the British colonies gained independence and formed a federation of nations united under the merely symbolic powers of the monarchy. The national wealth and international influence that had been a British way of life were quickly becoming memories of the past. This decline was hastened by the two great wars.
PROPER AND COMMON NOUNS
Proper noun - this is the name of a particular person, place, thing , or idea.
Example : Aunt Shirley, Atlantic Ocean, Thanksgiving Day,
Common noun - this is the general -- not particular -- name of a person, place, thing, or idea.
Example: Car, Bank, Dancer, Newspaper
Activity- Label the following words either C for common noun or P for proper noun.
1. Houston 8. Empire State Building
2. National Geographic 9. State
3. Magazine 10. Mrs. Fisher
5. Singer 11. Car
6. City 12. Happiness
7. Africa 13. Kleenex
Collective Noun - A collective noun names a group.
Example: army, team, school (of fish), Boy Scouts, choir, public
Activity
Underline the 5 collective nouns in the following paragraph.
After the crew of the merchant ship had finished their chores, they loved to watch the sea. Once at night a swarm of plankton made the ocean glow softly. A young sailor watched in amazement as a pod of feeding whales suddenly broke the calm surface. At another time, along the coast of California, the sailor spotted a herd of sea lions frolicking in the waves. The varied population of the sea never ceased to delight the young sailor.
Compound Noun - a noun that is made up of more than one word.
Example: housekeeper, ice cream, bookmark, high school, necklace, dining room
Concrete Nouns - name an object that occupies space or that can be recognized by any of the senses.
Example: thorn, gas, stars, milk, Florida
Abstract Nouns - names an idea, a quality, or a characteristic.
Example: softness, harmony, excitement, innocence
Activity
For each concrete noun below, write an abstract noun that names an idea with which the concrete noun can be associated.
1. Quarterback ______4. Test ______
2. Scream ______5. Puppy ______
3. Perfume ______6. Chocolate ______
VERBS
A verb is a word that expresses action or a state of being and that is necessary to make a statement. There are many types of verbs:
ACTION VERB - tells what someone or something does
Activity 1 - Circle the action verb that appears in each sentence.
1. Frisbee disks soar through the air as gracefully as birds.
2. Their path and speed depend on the player’s grip, the force of the throw, and the wind.
3. The lighter disks fly farther and faster than the heavier ones.
4. Players still prefer the heavier ones for team sports.
5. Ordinarily players set their own rules.
TRANSITIVE VERB - action verb that is followed by a word or words that answer the question what? who? or whom? (The what, who, and whoms are called direct objects)
Ex - Fleas bite people. Hawks see their prey from far away.
(D.O.) (D.O.)
INTRANSITIVE VERB - an action verb that does not have a direct object.
Ex - Fleas bite. Hawks see well in most weather conditions.
Activity 2 - Circle the action verb in each sentence and indicate if it is transitive or intransitive.
1. Anteaters prefer the warmer regions of the world.
2. Anteaters posses no teeth whatsoever.
3. On the whole, anteaters live rather peacefully.
4. Like other toothless animals, anteaters often hide from their enemies for protection.
5. When fearful, though, anteaters react fiercely.
6. In general, they attack only insects.
LINKING VERB - links the subject of a sentence with a word or expression that identifies or describes that subject.
The most common linking verbs - is, are, am, was, were, will be, has been, was being
Other possible linking verbs - look, grow, feel, remain, appear, seem, sound, become, taste, stay, smell
HINT - If you are unsure whether a word is a linking verb, substitute the word SEEM in the sentence. If the sentence still makes sense, the word is probably a linking verb.
Ex - Small airplanes grow (seem) more popular every year.
Activity 4 - Circle the verb in each sentence. Indicate whether it is an action or linking verb.
1. People outdoors often grow sick of insects.
2. Insect colonies grow quite quickly.
3. The noises of insects sound an alarm to other insects.
4. To Chinese people, crickets sound cheerful.
5. Many insects feel through their antennae.
6. Insects appear in all corners of the world.
ADJECTIVES & ADVERBS
ADJECTIVE - a word that modifies (changes) the meaning of a noun or pronoun by making it more specific. Adjectives may do 4 things:
1. Describe: a rainy afternoon, a smooth surface CLEAN BABY!
2. Classify: female spiders, Alaskan winters
3. Identify: this book, those horses, our party, his car
4. Quantify: an apple, three cents, no water
Activity: Complete the following sentences by
replacing each blank with the kind of adjective
named in the parentheses.
1. There are _____basic kinds of stereo systems: the component and the compact. (quantifying)
2. In the component system each part can be bought separately, and the sound is very ______. (describing)
3. Some people prefer the component system because they can buy the best parts from ______manufacturers or American manufacturers. (classifying)
Activity: Underline the adjectives in the following paragraph.
Hawaii consists of a chain of 132 islands. These islands extend northwest for 1,523 miles. Main islands of Hawaii include Maui, Lanai, Nihau, and Hawaii, an island that is quite large and famous for active volcanoes. Although there are a number of islands, Hawaiian people live only on major ones. Kahoolawe, for example, had no inhabitants and is used only for naval purposes. Minor islands, only as big as great rocks, are too small and infertile to support human life.
ADVERB - A word that modifies (changes) a verb, an adjective, or another adverb by making it more specific.
Example : Extremely few eagles now nest very successfully in the area.
ADVERBS also answer the questions of time (when?), place (where?), manner (how?), and degree of intensity (to what degree?)
When: The baby cried now .
Where: The baby cried there.
How: The baby cried loudly.
To what degree: She was completely cried out.
Activity: Underline the adverbs in the following sentences. There may be more than one in each sentence.
1. Very intense heat and pressure crystallize carbon into diamonds underground.
2. Diamonds vary rather widely in value.
3. Experts usually determine diamond value quite simply by evaluating the cut.
4. A high weight in carats definitely raises a diamond’s value.
5. The carat weight of a rough diamond may be greatly reduced when the diamond is cut
6. If a diamond is polished and shaped expertly, it is more valuable than a diamond of the same weight that is not polished.
7. Fifty-eight facets sparkle brilliantly from the most popular diamond cut.
8. Well-cut diamonds are breathtakingly beautiful.
9. Diamonds that are heavily flawed almost always cost less than flawless stones.
10. Colorless diamonds are the most highly valued for use in precious jewelry.
CHOOSING ADVERBS AND ADJECTIVES
When choosing a modifier, you must often decide if you need an adjective or an adverb. There are two pairs of words which often cause confusion:
Good vs. Well & Bad vs. Badly
GOOD vs WELL: Always use good as an adjective.
The child is a good speaker. The soup was good and hot.
Well may be used as an adverb of manner telling how ably something was done or as an adjective meaning “in good health.”
The child speaks well. The child is not well right now.
BAD vs BADLY: Always use bad as an adjective.
The machine made a bad copy. The potato was bad.
Use badly as an adverb (it usually follows action verbs)
Activity: Chose the correct modifier by filling the blank with either good, well, bad, or badly.
1. A person who can speak ______can make a
lasting impression on the audience.
2. ______organization is important in a speech.
3. A speech that is ______written will usually
confuse the audience.
4. A ______delivery is just as important as the content of the speech.
5. Even a speaker who is not feeling ______
should speak forcefully.
6. If a speech begins ______, an audience may
immediately lose interest.
7. A speaker can promote a ______relationship with
an audience by making eye contact.
8. A speaker must know the content of a speech very
______in order to be effective.
NOUN OR ADJECTIVE?
Many words commonly listed as nouns in a dictionary may act as adjectives by modifying other nouns.
NOUNS The couple pledged their love to each other.
The wall was made of concrete.
ADJECTIVES They read a love poem.
The built a concrete wall.
ACTIVITY
Use each noun below as an adjective by having it modify another noun.
EX: Noun = Shirt Adjective = shirt button
1. Kitchen = ______2. Beach = ______
3. Flower = ______4. Telephone = ______
Prepositions & Prepositional Phrases
A PREPOSITION is a word that shows the relationship of a noun or pronoun to another word. It usually tells where or when.
EXAMPLE: The squirrel ran (to, up, on, down, over, toward, under,) the tree.
A prepositional phrase includes a
preposition the object of the preposition
and any modifiers of that object.
EXAMPLES:
Arlene climbed up the ladder.
[The preposition is up and the object of the preposition is ladder.]
The picture on the cover is mine. [The preposition is on and the object of the
preposition is cover.]
EXERCISE A Underline the prepositional phrase in each of the following sentences.
1 She found her jacket in the closet.
2. An enormous picture was painted on one wall.
3. The picture reached above the second story.
4. It showed an eighteenth-century man in a white shirt.
5. The picture was painted by a local artist.
EXERCISE B In each of the following sentences underline the preposition once and the object of the preposition twice.
6. Spike Lee was born in Georgia.
7. He studied at a New York university.
8. The video store near my house carries his films.
9. Lee appears in some films.
10. His father wrote the music for this movie.
11. She lived just one mile down the road.
12. The director wore a hat with a large X.
13. During a recent newscast I heard Lee speak.
14. He talked about a film he had just finished.
15. In fifteen minutes, I’ll need to go to class.
Common Prepositions
about beside inside through
across between like to
after beyond near toward
along by off underneath
around down onto up
before from over with
Common Compound Prepositions
according to because of instead of next to
ahead of by means of in front of on account of
along with in addition to in spite of on top of
PRONOUNS
Pronouns - These are words that take the place of nouns, groups of nouns, or other pronouns. Pronouns allow you to avoid unnecessary repetitions when you speak or write.
Examples: When Sylvia Plath was a young girl, she decided to become a writer.
George Orwell wrote Animal Farm. It remains very popular today.
Antecedent- the word or group of words to which a pronoun refers
Examples: The apple, because of its texture, is used for filling in pies.
Personal Pronoun - This refers to a specific person or thing by indicating the person speaking, the person being addressed, or any other person being discussed.
Examples: I, me, we, us, you, he, him, they, them, she, her, it
“My Doll”
Possessive Pronoun - a personal pronoun that indicates
ownership or possession.
Examples : My, mine, our, ours, your, yours, his, hers, theirs, its
ACTIVITY:
Replace the underlined words or groups of words with personal or possessive pronouns.
In the late twentieth century eight riders and the riders’ horses retraced the Santa Fe Trail, once a major route for pioneers going west. The trip’s leader, Allan Maybee, made sure that the riders planned carefully. Maybee asked Maybee’s friend, Ms. Evelyn Vinogradov, to drive Vinogradov’s truck ahead of the riders. The truck carried groceries, and Vinogradov had filled the truck with jugs of water as well.
Vinogradov also arranged for places where the group could stay overnight. Would the reader of this passage be interested in planning the reader’s own trip along the Santa Fe Trail?
Reflexive Pronouns - refers to a noun or another pronoun and indicates that the same person or thing is involved. These always end with -self or -selves.
Ex: Today, for the first time in months, she is herself.
As cooks they have no faith in themselves.
Intensive Pronoun - Adds emphasis to another noun or pronoun. These also end with -self or -selves.