This lecture is going to
discuss eight parts of speech in a general way so that you can gain a general
understanding of them. However, each part of speech has been discussed in a
separate lecture through which you will be able to learn all the parts of
speech elaborately.
Each word in a sentence is a part of speech. So, if you can understand parts of speech, you can understand the relationships among words in a sentence. In other words, each part of speech has a definite function in a sentence; we cannot go wrong with their proper order. This is the importance of knowing parts of speech. Let’s start with the noun.
A. Noun
The noun refers
to naming words. It means that any name is a noun. It may be the name of a particular
thing, place, or person (Nasima, Rohit, Dhaka, Bangladesh, Earth, etc.); it may
refer to any general name (girl, boy, table, city, country, planet,
etc.); it may be the name of a group (bunch, army, flock, herd, crowd,
etc.); it may refer to a material name which cannot be counted but only
be measured (salt, sugar, iron, water, milk, etc.); It may point to the abstract
name (courage, love, affection, hate, frustration, etc.) which cannot be
experienced through our five senses but only be experienced or felt.
Based on five
types of names, a noun is of five types: proper noun, common noun, collective
noun, material noun, and abstract noun.
Proper noun
Proper noun indicates specific name such as Nasima, Rohit, Dhaka, Bangladesh, planet, etc. If I say ‘Rohit’, everybody will look at Rohit, not any other name. “Rohit” is a definite name.
Common Noun
‘Table’ is a general name. It refers to any table in the world. Similarly, if I say ‘city’, it is not any particular city like Dhaka or Kolkata. It is a general name. So, it is a common noun.
Collective
Noun
A collective noun indicates a group of people or animals or things. Bunch, herd, flock, and crowd, are some of the examples.
Material Noun
We cannot count material nouns but we can only measure them. We cannot count milk, water, sugar, rice, iron, etc. However, we can measure them. We can use an article before a material noun if this noun is preceded by measurement words. Look at the examples below:
- A glass of water.
- A tube of toothpaste
Here,
“glass” and “tube” are measurement words.
Abstract Noun
An abstract noun cannot be experienced through our five senses, but we can only feel them. Love, patriotism, hate, fate, affection, courage, etc. are some examples of abstract nouns.
B. Pronoun
A pronoun replaces a noun. It means a pronoun sits in the place of a noun. Look at the examples below:
- Noun: Karim is a good boy.
- Pronoun: However, he is a chain smoker.
In the first
sentence, “Karim” is a noun. Specifically, it is a proper noun because “Karim”
is a particular name. On the other hand, “he”, in the second sentence, is a
pronoun because it has replaced the noun “Karim”. This is the function of a
pronoun: a pronoun sits in the place of a noun.
A pronoun is of eight
types.
They are:
USAGE OF PRONOUN
The usage of pronouns is not limited to the clarity of speaking and writing. It is more than that. When we do not use someone’s name, we use pronouns to refer to him or her. Incorrect or careless use of pronouns may lead to feelings of disrespect, exclusion, and alienation. The chapter “Pronoun Explained in Details” will talk about the way pronoun has been divided and sub-divided into many groups.
C. Adjectives
An adjective qualifies a noun, noun phrase, and pronoun; an adjective gives us extra information about that particular noun and pronoun. For example, Karim is a boy. Here, we don’t know anything about the boy. Now, if you want to insert extra information about the boy, you can add an adjective. Look at the example below:
- Karim is a good boy. Karim is a bad boy.
- He is a generous and cooperative person.
- He is happy.
The
adjective has many types:
Look at the
diagram below and get a summary of what an adjective is. Later, in a separate
chapter, adjectives will be discussed thoroughly.
D. Verb
If I go to ask students what a verb is, some students will say that verb carries an action of the subject. This answer is partially right because verbs carry the actions and show the state of being and talk about the possession of the subject. Look at the examples below:
- I am speaking.
- He is playing cricket.
- He wrote a letter.
So, when we do
something, our doings are carried by the action verbs. In the examples given
above, the words in bold are action verbs because they are talking about what
subjects “I” and “He” are doing.
Verb also talks about the subject. The examples given below will surely clarify your understanding:
- I am happy.
- He is sad.
- She looks beautiful.
Verb also talks about possession or ownership of the subject. See the examples below and try to understand.
- I have a pen.
- He has a beautiful house.
- She had a nice backpack.
When the auxiliary verbs “have”, “has” and “had” are used as the main verb, they show possession or ownership of the subjects. The possession of a “pen”, “a beautiful house” and “a nice backpack has been expressed by the have verbs-- “have”, “has” and “had”.
A verb is classified
into two groups: finite and non-finite verbs. The finite verb has again been
classified into principal and auxiliary verbs. The principal verb has three
forms: transitive, intransitive, and linking verbs. The auxiliary verb has been
sub-divided into four types—be verbs, do verbs, have verbs, and modal auxiliary
verbs. On the other hand, the non-finite verb has been categorized into three
forms. They are infinitive, participle, and gerund. Look at the diagram below
and see how verb has been divided and subdivided into many categories. You will
get a comprehensive explanation about these divisions and sub-divisions of the
verb from a separate chapter.
E. Adverb
While an adjective describes or qualifies a noun or a pronoun, an adverb qualifies all other parts of speech except nouns, pronouns, and interjections. An adverb is a brilliant word that can even modify a complete sentence. Look at some examples:
- He works hard.
- She looks extremely beautiful.
- He runs very fast.
- The aircraft flew just over my head.
F. Preposition
Prepositions refer to such words which sit before nouns, pronouns, and noun phrases and make a relationship with other words in the sentence. For example:
- The pen is on the table.
Here, the preposition “on” has made a relationship between “Pen” and “the table.” This is the function of a preposition. The object of a preposition can be a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase. For example:
- I look at him.
“Him” is a pronoun and it is a pronoun object. An object of a preposition can be a noun phrase too. For example:
- The river Surma flows under the Kin Bridge.
“The Kin Bridge” is a noun phrase. Here we can see how a noun phrase can be the object of a preposition. So, the word or words which follow a preposition is called the object of a preposition. This object of a preposition can be a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase. Now, we can go to talk about the types of a preposition. There are seven types of prepositions:
- simple preposition,
- double preposition,
- compound preposition,
- phrasal preposition,
- participle preposition,
- disguise prepositions and
- detached preposition.
Dealing with
prepositions requires much space. A big chapter will be dedicated to explaining
prepositions.
G. Conjunction
A conjunction connects two words, phrases, and clauses. In other words, conjunction connects parts of a sentence. Keep in mind that the function of conjunction is limited to connecting parts of a sentence. The conjunction does not connect two sentences. It is the function of connectors. Examples:
- Rohan and Rohit are two friends.
- Rohan is a good boy, but he is a chain smoker.
- Not only Rohan but also Rohit played well
- If you work hard, you will succeed.
Later, in a
separate chapter, you will come across various types of connectors and linkers
(conjunction) and their usage in sentences.
Primarily
conjunction has been divided into two parts: subordinating and coordinating
conjunction. Coordinating conjunction has again been sub-divided into four groups.
On the other hand, subordinating conjunction has been sub-divided into many
types.
Understanding
conjunction thoroughly will help you understand the mechanism of a sentence. It
will help you understand the difference between complex and compound sentences.
It will help you transform a complex sentence into a compound sentence and a compound
into a complex sentence. So, it is high time you started knowing conjunction in
detail.
You can
comprehensively know about conjunction and the way it has been divided and
subdivided into many parts if you read the chapter called “Conjunction
Explained in Detail”.
H. Interjection
Interjection helps us express our sudden emotions. We use some noises or sounds or words to express our sudden emotions. These noises may consist of one or more than one actual words. An interjection is not associated with the sentence structure; if we exclude an interjection from that particular sentence, it will not affect the overall structure of the sentence. Let us have a couple of examples:
- Hurrah! We won the match.
- Alas! His friend died.
In these two
sentences, we have used two interjection expressions. The two
expressions—“Hurrah!” and “Alas”—are widely used worldwide to express our sense
of joy and grief.
However, if you
exclude these two expressions from the sentence, there will not be any impact
on the overall structure of these sentences. We’ll have the same subject and
predicate.
At the same
time, interjection can exist alone. We can use them in our writing without
connecting them to the sentences.
Now, it’s time to know the most commonly used expressions of interjection. You can learn about these common expressions from the separate chapter called “Interjection Explained in Detail”.
Answer
the following questions:
1.
What is a noun? How
many ways has the noun been classified? What are they?
2.
Give some examples of
the proper noun.
3.
What is the
difference between common and collective nouns? Make it clear with a couple of
examples.
4.
What do you mean by a
material noun? Give some examples.
5.
Define the abstract
noun and make us understand by giving some examples.
6.
What is the pronoun?
How many ways pronoun can be classified? What are they?
7.
Discuss each type of
pronoun briefly.
8.
What is a qualitative
adjective?
9.
Give some examples of
cardinal, ordinal and multiplicative adjectives.
10. Discuss what you know
about the pronominal and proper adjectives.
11. Define the verb and
discuss the classification of the verb briefly.
12. What is a linking
verb?
13. Mention the difference
between transitive and intransitive verbs.
14. What is the
infinitive verb? Can you differentiate the participle from the gerund?
15. Make us understand
with examples how an adverb modifies an adjective, verb, adverb, preposition, and
conjunction.
16. Mention what you know
about the preposition.
17. What is the
conjunction? How many types have the conjunction been classified?
18. What is an
interjection? Can we separate an interjection expression from a sentence
without harming the structure of the sentence?
Parts of Speech Noun Pronoun Adjective Verb Adverb Preposition Conjunction Interjection
Other Related Reading Materials