Learn more.Ī conjunction joins words or groups of words. Prepositions are commonly used to indicate direction, location, time, reason, purpose, etc. These are mostly single words ( of, to, for, with, on, at), but can be short phrases ( as far as, in front of, according to). Learn more.Ī preposition precedes a noun or noun phrase and connects it to other parts of the sentence. Adverbs answer these questions: How? Where? Why? When? To what extent? In what way? Under what condition? They can appear before or after the word they modify.

Learn more.Īn adverb describes or modifies verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. It is commonly used to address these types of questions: Which one? What kind? How many? What condition or quality? What size or color? Whose? Adjectives usually appear just before the nouns they modify. There are three main types of verbs: action verb, linking verb, and helping verb.Īn adjective modifies or describes a noun or pronoun. These actions can be tangible (write, eat, sleep), intangible (become, occur, happen), or in a state of being (be, seem, been). Learn more.Ī verb conveys action by a noun (person, animal, place, thing, or idea). Two of the most common groups are personal pronouns and indefinite pronouns. There are a number of different pronoun groups. Pronouns can take the place of people, places, ideas, or things. Learn more.Ī pronoun ( I, me, it, she, he, you, they, that, those, etc.) takes the place of a noun, which is then referred to as the antecedent. Nouns are typically used as subjects, objects, and modifiers. To learn more, go to each individual page.Ī noun can be a person, animal, place, object, idea, or any other thing that’s tangible or intangible.

Below is a breakdown of these parts and the basic function they serve.

The building blocks of English grammar are the eight parts of speech. Grammar consists of standard rules and conventions writers adhere to in order to communicate their ideas clearly.

What are the eight parts of speech