PART OF SPEECH

Part of speech

There are thousands of words in any language. But not all words have the same job. For example, some words express "action". Other words express a "thing". Other words "join" one word to another word. These are the "building blocks" of the language. Think of them like the parts of a house. When we want to build a house, we use concrete to make the foundations or base. We use bricks to make the walls. We use window frames to make the windows, and door frames to make the doorways. And we use cement to join them all together. Each part of the house has its own job. And when we want to build a sentence, we use the different types of word. Each type of word has its own job.

In the English language, words can be considered as the smallest elements that have distinctive meanings. Based on their use and functions, words are categorized into several types or parts of speech.

1.     Noun

This part of a speech refers to words that are used to name persons, things, animals, places, ideas, or events. Nouns are the simplest among the 8 parts of speech, which is why they are the first ones taught to students in primary school.

There are different types of nouns namely:

§  Proper– proper nouns always start with a capital letter and refers to specific names of persons, places, or things.

Examples: Volkswagen Beetle, Shakey’s Pizza, Game of Thrones

§  Common– common nouns are the opposite of proper nouns. These are just generic names of persons, things, or places.

Examples: car, pizza parlor, TV series

§  Concrete– this kind refers to nouns which you can perceive through your five senses.

Examples: folder, sand, board

§  Abstract- unlike concrete nouns, abstract nouns are those which you can’t perceive through your five senses.

Examples: happiness, grudge, bravery

§  Count– it refers to anything that is countable, and has a singular and plural form.

Examples:  kitten, video, ball

§  Mass– this is the opposite of count nouns. Mass nouns are also called non-countable nouns, and they need to have “counters” to quantify them.

Examples of Counters: kilo, cup, meter

Examples of Mass Nouns: rice, flour, garter

§  Collective– refers to a group of persons, animals, or things.

Example: faculty (group of teachers), class (group of students), pride (group of lions)

Examples:

©     It is my birthday

©     My name is Popy

©     Bukittinggi is my hometown

2.     Verb

This is the most important part of a 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.

Examples of “State of Being Verbs” : am, is, was, are, and were

Examples:

©     I wish you were here

©     I am waiting for you

©     Jam gadang is trademark of Bukittinggi

3.     Adjective

This part of  a speech is used to describe a noun or a pronoun. Adjectives can specify the quality, the size, and the number of nouns or pronouns.

Examples:

©     Pizza is the delicious food

©     You are the beautiful girl I’ve ever seen

©     It’s the cute bag!

4.     Adverb

Just like adjectives, adverbs are also used to describe words, but the difference is that adverbs describe adjectives, verbs, or another adverb.

The different types of adverbs are:

§  Adverb of Manner– this refers to how something happens or how an action is done.

Example: Cassie runs quickly.

The word “quickly” tells how Cassie run.

§  Adverb of Time- this states “when” something happens or “when” it is done.

Example: Shelly came yesterday.

The italicized word tells when shelly “came.”

§  Adverb of Place– this tells something about “where” something happens or ”where” something is done.

Example:  Of course, I looked everywhere!

The adverb “everywhere” tells where I “looked.”

§  Adverb of Degree– this states the intensity or the degree to which a specific thing happens or is done.

Example: you are very unpredictable.

5.     Pronoun

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.

Examples:

©     I am Indonesian

©     Look!! She is so talented!

©     Don’t steal that money! It is mine!

Part of speech summaries

part of speech	function or "job"	example words	example sentences
Verb	action or state	(to) be, have, do, like, work, sing, can, must	I wish you were here
Noun	thing or person	pen, dog, work, music, town, London, teacher, John	It is my birthday
Adjective	describes a noun	good, big, red, well, interesting	You are the beautiful girl I’ve ever seen.
Adverb	describes a verb, adjective or adverb	quickly, silently, well, badly, very, really	Cassie runs quickly.
Pronoun	replaces a noun	I, you, he, she, some	I am Indonesian