1. Parts of Speech
Or, how I learned to stop worrying and began to love writing complete sentences

2. Eight Parts There are eight major PARTS OF SPEECH:
NOUN
PRONOUN
VERB
ADVERB
ADJECTIVE
CONJUNCTION
PREPOSITION
INTERJECTION
In the English language, words have specific functions, or PARTS to play in a sentence. We put these words into categories based on these functions.

3. Nouns *Nouns are italicized below*
Nouns are words that are used to name persons, things, animals, places, ideas, or events. Nouns (or pronouns) are the SUBJECT of a sentence (the who or what the sentence is about).
Here are some examples:
Love makes the world go around.
Tom gave his brother a hug before he left for vacation.
The house creaked with age, and the children were frightened.

4. Types of Nouns *Note: a noun can be in one or more categories*
Proper Nouns always start with a capital letter and refers to specific names of persons, places, or things.
Common Nouns are the opposite of proper nouns. These are just generic names of persons, things, or places.
What types of NOUNS are listed below?
Game of Thrones
movie
happiness
sand
puppies
President Obama
truck
MHCC
schools
Concrete Nouns you can perceive through your five senses.
Abstract Nouns are those which you can’t perceive through your five senses.
Singular Nouns names one person, place, thing, idea or event.
Plural Nouns names more than one person, place, thing, idea or event.

5. Pronouns *Pronouns are italicized below*
A pronoun is a part of a speech which functions as a replacement for a noun.
Some examples of pronouns are: I, it, he, she, mine, his, hers, we, they, theirs, and ours.

6. Examples of PRONOUNS *Pronouns are italicized below*
Janice is a very stubborn child. She just stared at me when I told her to stop.
The largest slice is mine.
We are number one.
Jim had a difficult time with math, so he took the class again.
Can you write a sentence using a pronoun? Please try one now and be prepared to share your idea with the class.

7. Verbs *Verbs are italicized below*
Verbs are one of the most important parts of speech, for without a verb, a sentence would not exist.
Simply put, this is a word that shows an action (physical or mental) or state of being of the subject in a sentence.
Here are some examples of verbs:
Jan talked a lot about her trip to Costa Rica. (*Action verb)
Bobby and Juan ran as fast as they could to win the relay race. (*Action*)
The classroom is a bit cool today. (*Linking verbs = state of being*)
She will be the first female president. (*Helping & Linking verbs*)

8. Types of Verbs

9. Verb Identification Practice
Read each sentence. Determine what type of verb(s) are being used.
Joan walked to work every day because she liked the exercise.
There will be a four week break between summer and fall term.
The book is a great read, so you should check it out!
We have a large family.
Maria makes the best tortillas in our family; she learned from her abuela.

10. Adverbs *Adverbs are italicized below*
Adverbs are used to describe verbs, adjectives (we’ll get to these next) or another adverb. They tell us HOW, WHEN, WHERE and TO WHAT DEGREE something happened.
Some examples of adverbs:
The child is very talented.
Annie danced gracefully.
Of course, I looked everywhere!
We took the quiz yesterday.
She ran very quickly.

11. Adverb practice Emphasizers Amplifiers: Downtoners:
I really don't believe him.
Amplifiers:
The teacher completely supported her proposal.
Downtoners:
I kind of like this college.
We often use more and most, less and least to show degree with adverbs:
With sneakers on, she could move more quickly among the patients.

12. Adjectives *Adjectives are italicized below*
Adjectives are PARTS OF SPEECH that are used to describe a noun or a pronoun.
Here are some examples:
The carvings are intricate.
(The italicized word describes the appearance of the noun “carvings.”)
I have two cats.
(The italicized word “two,” is an adjective which describes the number of the noun “cats.”)
Wow! That doughnut is huge!
(The italicized word is an adjective which describes the size of the noun “doughnut.)”

14. Conjunctions
The conjunction is a part of a speech which joins words, phrases, or clauses together.
Here are some examples:
This cup of tea is delicious and very soothing.
Kiyoko has to start all over again because she didn’t follow the professor’s instructions.
Homer always wanted to join the play, but he didn’t have the guts to audition.

15. Prepositions *Italicized below*
This part of a speech basically refers to words that specify location or a location in time.
Examples of Prepositions: above, below, throughout, outside, before, near, and since
Sample Sentences:
Micah is hiding under the bed.
The italicized preposition introduces the prepositional phrase “under the bed,” and tells where Micah is hiding.
During the game, the audience never stopped cheering for their team.
The italicized preposition introduces the prepositional phrase “during the game,” and tells when the audience cheered.

16. Interjections *Interjections IN BOLD below*
This part of a speech refers to words which express emotions. Since interjections are commonly used to convey strong emotions, they are usually followed by an exclamation point.
Here are some examples:
Ouch! That must have hurt.
Hurray, we won!
Hey! I said enough!

17. Understanding the parts of speech will help you create interesting (and grammatically correct) sentences that will wow your teacher and make writing solid paragraphs and essays so much easier!