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There are eight parts of speech in the English language: noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, and interjection. The part of speech indicates how the word functions in meaning as well as grammatically within the sentence. An individual word can function as more than one part of speech when used in different circumstances. Understanding parts of speech is essential for determining the correct definition of a word when using the dictionary.
1. NOUN

A noun is the name of a person, place, thing, or idea.
man... Butte College... house... happiness
A noun is a word for a person, place, thing, or idea. Nouns are often used with an article ( the, a, an), but not always. Proper nouns always start with a capital letter; common nouns do not. Nouns can be singular or plural, concrete or abstract. Nouns show possession by adding 's. Nouns can function in different roles within a sentence; for example, a noun can be a subject, direct object, indirect object, subject complement, or object of a preposition.
The young brought me a very long from the , and then she quickly disappeared. Oh my!
See the TIP Sheet on "Nouns" for further information.
2. PRONOUN

A pronoun is a word used in place of a noun.
She... we... they... it
A pronoun is a word used in place of a noun. A pronoun is usually substituted for a specific noun, which is called its antecedent. In the sentence above, the antecedent for the pronoun she is the girl. Pronouns are further defined by type: personal pronouns refer to specific persons or things; possessive pronouns indicate ownership; reflexive pronouns are used to emphasize another noun or pronoun; relative pronouns introduce a subordinate clause; and demonstrative pronouns identify, point to, or refer to nouns.
The young girl brought a very long letter from the teacher, and then quickly disappeared. Oh my!
See the TIP Sheet on "Pronouns" for further information.
3. VERB jump... is... write... become
The verb in a sentence expresses action or being. There is a main verb and sometimes one or more helping verbs. (" She can sing." Sing is the main verb; can is the helping verb.) A verb must agree with its subject in number (both are singular or both are plural). Verbs also take different forms to express tense.
The young girl me a very long letter from the teacher, and then she quickly disappeared . Oh my!
See the TIP Sheet on "Verbs" for more information.
4. ADJECTIVE

An adjective modifies or describes a noun or pronoun.
pretty... old... blue... smart
An adjective is a word used to modify or describe a noun or a pronoun. It usually answers the question of which one, what kind, or how many. (Articles [a, an, the] are usually classified as adjectives.)
The girl brought me a very letter from the teacher, and then she quickly disappeared. Oh my!
See the TIP Sheet on "Adjectives" for more information.
5. ADVERB

An adverb modifies or describes a verb, an adjective, or another adverb.
gently... extremely... carefully... well
An adverb describes or modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb, but never a noun. It usually answers the questions of when, where, how, why, under what conditions, or to what degree. Adverbs often end in -ly.
The young girl brought me a long letter from the teacher, and she disappeared. Oh my!
See the TIP Sheet on "Adverbs" for more information.
6. PREPOSITION

A preposition is a word placed before a noun or pronoun to form a phrase modifying another word in the sentence.
by... with.... about... until
(by the tree, with our friends, about the book, until tomorrow)

A preposition is a word placed before a noun or pronoun to form a phrase modifying another word in the sentence. Therefore a preposition is always part of a prepositional phrase. The prepositional phrase almost always functions as an adjective or as an adverb. The following list includes the most common prepositions:
The young girl brought me a very long letter from the teacher, and then she quickly disappeared. Oh my!
See the TIP Sheet on "Prepositions" for more information.
7. CONJUNCTION

A conjunction joins words, phrases, or clauses.
and... but... or... while... because
A conjunction joins words, phrases, or clauses, and indicates the relationship between the elements joined. Coordinating conjunctions connect grammatically equal elements: and, but, or, nor, for, so, yet. Subordinating conjunctions connect clauses that are not equal: because, although, while, since, etc. There are other types of conjunctions as well.
The young girl brought me a very long letter from the teacher, and then she quickly disappeared. Oh my!
See the TIP Sheet on "Conjunctions" for more information.
8. INTERJECTION

An interjection is a word used to express emotion.
Oh!... Wow!... Oops!
An interjection is a word used to express emotion. It is often followed by an exclamation point.
The young girl brought me a very long letter from the teacher, and then she quickly disappeared. Oh my!
See the TIP Sheet on "Interjections" for more information.

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The Eight Parts of Speech - TIP Sheets - Butte College

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There are eight parts of speech in the English language: noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, and interjection. The part of speech indicates how the word functions in meaning as well as grammatically within the sentence. An individual word can function as more than one part of speech when used in different circumstances.

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A part of speech (also called a word class) is a category that describes the role a word plays in a sentence. Understanding the different parts of speech can help you analyze how words function in a sentence and improve your writing.

The parts of speech are classified differently in different grammars, but most traditional grammars list eight parts of speech in English: nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections. Some modern grammars add others, such as determiners and articles.

Many words can function as different parts of speech depending on how they are used. For example, "laugh" can be a noun (e.g., "I like your laugh") or a verb (e.g., "don't laugh").

Nouns

A noun is a word that refers to a person, concept, place, or thing. Nouns can act as the subject of a sentence (i.e., the person or thing performing the action) or as the object of a verb (i.e., the person or thing affected by the action).

Examples: Nouns in a sentence
I've never read that book .
Ella lives in France .

The band played only new songs .

Other types of nouns include countable and uncountable nouns, concrete and abstract nouns, and gerunds.

Note
Proper nouns (e.g., "New York") are always capitalized. Common nouns (e.g., "city") are only capitalized when they're used at the start of a sentence.

Pronouns

A pronoun is a word used in place of a noun. Pronouns typically refer back to an antecedent (a previously mentioned noun). Like nouns, pronouns can refer to people, places, concepts, and things.

Examples: Pronouns in a sentence
I don't really know her .
That is a horrible painting!

Who owns the nice car?

Verbs

A verb is a word that describes an action (e.g., "jump"), occurrence (e.g., "become"), or state of being (e.g., "exist"). Verbs indicate what the subject of a sentence is doing. Every complete sentence must contain at least one verb.

Verbs can change form depending on subject (e.g., first person singular), tense (e.g., past simple), mood (e.g., interrogative), and voice (e.g., passive voice).

Regular verbs are verbs whose simple past and past participle are formed by adding"-ed" to the end of the word (or "-d" if the word already ends in "e"). Irregular verbs are verbs whose simple past and past participles are formed in some other way.

Examples: Regular and irregular verbs
"Will you check if this book is in stock?"
"I've already checked twice."

"I heard that you used to sing ."

"Yes! I sang in a choir for 10 years."

Other types of verbs include auxiliary verbs, linking verbs, modal verbs, and phrasal verbs.

Adjectives

An adjective is a word that describes a noun or pronoun. Adjectives can be attributive, appearing before a noun (e.g., "a red hat"), or predicative, appearing after a noun with the use of a linking verb like "to be" (e.g., "the hat is red ").

Adjectives can also have a comparative function. Comparative adjectives compare two or more things. Superlative adjectives describe something as having the most or least of a specific characteristic.

Examples: Adjectives in a sentence
The dog is bigger than the cat.
He is the laziest person I know

Other types of adjectives include coordinate adjectives, participial adjectives, and denominal adjectives.

Adverbs

An adverb is a word that can modify a verb, adjective, adverb, or sentence. Adverbs are often formed by adding "-ly" to the end of an adjective (e.g., "slow" becomes "slowly"), although not all adverbs have this ending, and not all words with this ending are adverbs.

Examples: Adverbs in a sentence
Ray acted rudely .
Talia writes quite quickly.

Let's go outside !

Other types of adverbs include adverbs of frequency, adverbs of purpose, focusing adverbs, and adverbial phrases.

Prepositions

A preposition is a word (e.g., "at") or phrase (e.g., "on top of") used to show the relationship between the different parts of a sentence. Prepositions can be used to indicate aspects such as time , place , and direction .

Examples: Prepositions in a sentence
Hasan is coming for dinner at 6 p.m.
I left the cup on the kitchen counter.

Carey walked to the shop.

NoteA single preposition can often describe many different relationships, depending upon how it's used. For example, "in" can indicate time ("in January"), location ("in the garage"), purpose ("in reply"), and so on.

Conjunctions

A conjunction is a word used to connect different parts of a sentence (e.g., words, phrases, or clauses).

Examples: Conjunctions in a sentence
Daria likes swimming and hiking.
You can choose what movie we watch because I chose the last time.

We can either go out for dinner or go to the theater.

Interjections

An interjection is a word or phrase used to express a feeling, give a command, or greet someone. Interjections are a grammatically independent part of speech, so they can often be excluded from a sentence without affecting the meaning.

Types of interjections include volitive interjections (used to make a demand or request), emotive interjections (used to express a feeling or reaction), cognitive interjections (used to indicate thoughts), and greetings and parting words (used at the beginning and end of a conversation).

Examples: Interjections in a sentence
Psst . What time is it?
Ouch ! I hurt my arm.

I'm, um , not sure.

Hey ! How are you doing?

Other parts of speech

The traditional classification of English words into eight parts of speech is by no means the only one or the objective truth. Grammarians have often divided them into more or fewer classes. Other commonly mentioned parts of speech include determiners and articles.

Determiners

A determiner is a word that describes a noun by indicating quantity, possession, or relative position.

Examples: Determiners in a sentence
This chair is more comfortable than that one.
My brother is selling his old car.

Many friends of mine have part-time jobs.

Other types of determiners include distributive determiners, determiners of difference, and numbers.

NoteIn the traditional eight parts of speech, these words are usually classed as adjectives, or in some cases as pronouns.

Articles

An article is a word that modifies a noun by indicating whether it is specific or general.

The definite article the is used to refer to a specific version of a noun. The can be used with all countable and uncountable nouns (e.g., "the door," "the energy," "the mountains").

The indefinite articles a and an refer to general or unspecific nouns. The indefinite articles can only be used with singular countable nouns (e.g., "a poster," "an engine").

Examples: Definite and indefinite articles in a sentence
I live just outside of the town.
There's a concert this weekend.

Karl made an offensive gesture.

NoteWhile articles are often considered their own part of speech, they are also frequently classed as a type of determiner (or, in some grammars, as a type of adjective).

Interesting language articles

If you want to know more about nouns, pronouns, verbs, and other parts of speech, make sure to check out some of our language articles with explanations and examples.

Frequently asked questions

What part of speech is "in"?

In is primarily classed as a preposition, but it can be classed as various other parts of speech, depending on how it is used:

Preposition (e.g., "in the field")

Noun (e.g., "I have an in with that company")

Adjective (e.g., "Tim is part of the in crowd")

Adverb (e.g., "Will you be in this evening?")

What part of speech is "and"?

As a part of speech, and is classed as a conjunction. Specifically, it's a coordinating conjunction.

And can be used to connect grammatically equal parts of a sentence, such as two nouns (e.g., "a cup and plate"), or two adjectives (e.g., "strong and smart"). And can also be used to connect phrases and clauses.

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The 8 Parts of Speech | Chart, Definition & Examples

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A part of speech (also called a word class) is a category that describes the role a word plays in a sentence. Understanding the different parts of speech can help you analyze how words function in a sentence and improve your writing.