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Definitions of Basic Sentence Parts
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| THE PARTS OF SPEECH |
| The eight parts of speech — verbs, nouns, pronouns, adverbs, adjectives, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections — are defined on the pages hyperlinked below. (Some authorities would not list interjections, but would list determiners or articles, instead.) In addition, you can use the Powerpoint presentation on the Parts of Speech. Visit the page on Powerpoint for further information. The terms below — and over 300 others — are also listed in the Guide's INDEX. |
Here's a little rhyme — by David B. Tower & Benjamin F. Tweed —that teachers used in days gone by to help students learn the parts of speech. (We include it here in response to popular demand. Why the song leaves out pronouns is a mystery. A writer from Richland, Washington, suggests "A PRONOUN replaces any noun: / he, she, it, and you are found. ) It has been set to music, but we'll leave that up to you to discover or create for yourself:
Three little words you often see
Are ARTICLES: a, an, and the.
A NOUN's the name of anything,
As: school or garden, toy, or swing.
ADJECTIVES tell the kind of noun,
As: great, small, pretty, white, or brown.
VERBS tell of something being done:
To read, write, count, sing, jump, or run.
How things are done the ADVERBS tell,
As: slowly, quickly, badly, well.
CONJUNCTIONS join the words together,
As: men and women, wind or weather.
The PREPOSITION stands before
A noun as: in or through a door.
The INTERJECTION shows surprise
As: Oh, how pretty! Ah! how wise!
The whole are called the PARTS of SPEECH,
Which reading, writing, speaking teach.
Are ARTICLES: a, an, and the.
A NOUN's the name of anything,
As: school or garden, toy, or swing.
ADJECTIVES tell the kind of noun,
As: great, small, pretty, white, or brown.
VERBS tell of something being done:
To read, write, count, sing, jump, or run.
How things are done the ADVERBS tell,
As: slowly, quickly, badly, well.
CONJUNCTIONS join the words together,
As: men and women, wind or weather.
The PREPOSITION stands before
A noun as: in or through a door.
The INTERJECTION shows surprise
As: Oh, how pretty! Ah! how wise!
The whole are called the PARTS of SPEECH,
Which reading, writing, speaking teach.
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Guide to Grammar and Writing |
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Principles of Composition |
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Index |
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For more about giving to Capital, write to CCC Foundation, 950 Main Street, Hartford, CT 06103. Phone (860) 906-5102 or email: jmcnamara@ccc.commnet.edu. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
Identifying Sentence Parts
Sentence Parts: Part One
Sentence Parts: Part Two
Identifying Simple and Compound Subjects
absolute phrases || adjectives || adverbs || articles || conjunctions || direct and indirect objects || interjections || modifiers || nouns || predicates || prepositions || pronouns || subjects || verbals || verbs
