Parts of speech are categories that describe how words function in a sentence. A word may name something, express an action, describe another word, connect ideas, show a relationship, or perform another grammatical role.
Start with The 8 Parts of Speech for an overview of the main word classes and their functions. You can then explore detailed lessons on nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections.
Past participles appear in familiar structures such as has written, was repaired, a broken window, and the documents signed yesterday. The same form can help build a verb phrase or add information about a noun, depending on the sentence around…
The -ing form appears throughout English. You see it in is reading, the woman reading by the window, and I heard someone calling my name. The form looks the same, but its role changes with the structure around it. In…
Why can both It may rain tonight and It might rain tonight be correct? The common explanation that may means “more likely” and might means “less likely” sounds simple, but it does not explain how these modal verbs actually work.…
Modal verbs such as can, might, should, and must are easy to recognize, but their meanings are not always as simple as the usual one-word labels suggest. Can does more than show ability, must does more than express obligation, and…
The verb have appears in some of the most common sentence patterns in English. You can have a car, have lunch, have a problem, have your hair cut, or have finished your work. The word looks familiar in each case,…
A conjunction is a word that connects ideas, words, or clauses in a sentence. This page gives you a clear list of conjunctions used in English, along with short meanings and examples to help you see how each one works…
Two things do not have to be different for us to compare them. Sometimes the point is that they are equal, nearly equal, or not equal at all. English commonly uses as…as for this kind of comparison: The second route…
A conjunctive adverb is a word or adverbial expression that shows how one sentence or independent clause relates to another. Common examples include however, therefore, moreover, meanwhile, and otherwise. Unlike a coordinating conjunction, a conjunctive adverb does not grammatically join…
Every sentence needs balance. Some ideas can stand on their own, while others rely on something else to feel complete. Subordinating conjunctions are the words that make this connection possible. They link an idea that cannot stand alone to an idea that…
Coordinating conjunctions connect words, phrases, or clauses that have equal grammatical status. The seven commonly taught coordinating conjunctions are for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so, remembered through the acronym FANBOYS. These words are short, but the conjunction you…
Comparative and superlative adjectives do not all follow the same pattern. Some take -er/-est, others use more/most, and a few have irregular forms. This reference groups common adjectives by formation pattern, followed by an alphabetical list of more than 100…
The same comparison can often be expressed in more than one way. You might say that one building is taller than any other building nearby, call it the tallest building nearby, or say that no other building nearby is as…