GRE

Parts of Speech

Understanding parts of speech forms the foundation of effective writing. English has eight primary parts of speech, each serving distinct grammatical functions.

Partofspeech	Function	Examples
Noun	Namesaperson place thing idea orquality , , , ,	city freedom committee , ,
Pronoun	Replacesanoun	she whom themselves , ,
Verb	Expressesaction stateofbeing oroccurrence , ,	run seem have , ,
Adjective	Modifiesanounorpronoun	ancient taller several , ,
Adverb	Modifiesaverb adjective adverb orclause , , ,	quickly very however , ,
Preposition	Relatesanounorpronountootherwords	under during between , ,
Conjunction	Connectswords phrases orclauses , ,	and because either/or , ,
Interjection	Expressesemotion;grammaticallyindependent	Wow!Well ,

Nouns name persons, places, things, ideas, or qualities. Common nouns refer to general items (city, book, emotion) while proper nouns name specific entities and require capitalization (Chicago, Shakespeare, Buddhism). Abstract nouns represent intangible concepts (freedom, intelligence, happiness) whereas concrete nouns denote physical objects perceivable through the senses (table, music, perfume). Collective nouns name groups (committee, flock, jury) and can take singular or plural verbs depending on whether the group acts as one unit or as individuals.

Compound nouns combine two or more words to create a single noun. These may be written as one word (bookshelf, sunflower), hyphenated (mother-in-law, editor-in-chief), or as separate words (high school, ice cream). Possessive nouns show ownership and are formed by adding an apostrophe and s to singular nouns (student's paper) or just an apostrophe to plural nouns ending in s (students' papers).

Pronouns

Pronouns replace nouns to avoid repetition. Personal pronouns indicate person and number: first person (I, we), second person (you), and third person (he, she, it, they). These change form based on case: subjective (I, he, she, we, they), objective (me, him, her, us, them), and possessive (my/mine, his, her/hers, our/ours, their/theirs).

Relative pronouns (who, whom, whose, which, that) introduce dependent clauses and connect them to nouns. Use who and whom for people, which for things, and that for either. Interrogative pronouns (who, whom, what, which, whose) begin questions. Demonstrative pronouns (this, that, these, those) point to specific things. Indefinite pronouns refer to nonspecific persons or things (anyone, everybody, something, few, many, several). Reflexive pronouns end in -self or - selves and refer back to the subject (myself, himself, themselves). Intensive pronouns have the same form but emphasize a noun or pronoun.

Verbs

Verbs express actions, states of being, or occurrences. Action verbs describe physical or mental activities (run, think, create). Linking verbs connect subjects to subject complements that describe or rename them; the most common is "be" in its various forms (am, is, are, was, were, been, being). Other linking verbs include seem, appear, become, feel, look, smell, sound, taste, grow, remain, and stay.

Helping verbs (also called auxiliary verbs) combine with main verbs to create verb phrases. Primary helping verbs include forms of be, have, and do. Modal helping verbs express possibility, necessity, permission, or ability: can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, would.

Transitive verbs require direct objects to complete their meaning (She threw the ball). Intransitive verbs do not take direct objects (The sun rises). Many verbs function as both depending on context.

Verb tenses indicate when actions occur. Simple tenses (present, past, future) show basic time relationships. Progressive tenses (present progressive, past progressive, future progressive) indicate ongoing actions. Perfect tenses (present perfect, past perfect, future perfect) show completed actions relative to other times. Perfect progressive tenses combine these aspects for actions that were ongoing until a certain point.

Adjectives

Adjectives modify nouns and pronouns by describing, limiting, or specifying them. Descriptive adjectives indicate qualities (beautiful, intelligent, ancient). Limiting adjectives include articles (a, an, the), demonstratives (this, that, these, those), possessives (my, your, his, her, its, our, their), numbers (one, first, several), and indefinites (some, any, few, many).

Adjectives have three degrees of comparison. The positive degree describes without comparison (tall). The comparative degree compares two items (taller). The superlative degree compares three or more items (tallest). Most one-syllable and some two-syllable adjectives add -er and -est. Longer adjectives use more and most. Irregular adjectives have unique comparative and superlative forms (good, better, best; bad, worse, worst).

Coordinate adjectives independently modify a noun and are separated by commas (a long, difficult examination). Cumulative adjectives build upon each other in a specific order and do not require commas (a brilliant young American scientist).

Adverbs

Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, other adverbs, phrases, clauses, or entire sentences. They answer questions of how, when, where, why, and to what extent. Many adverbs are formed by adding -ly to adjectives (quickly, carefully, significantly), but many common adverbs do not follow this pattern (very, well, always, never, here, there, soon).

Adverbs of manner describe how actions occur (gracefully, loudly). Adverbs of time indicate when (yesterday, soon, already). Adverbs of place show where (here, everywhere, outside). Adverbs of frequency tell how often (always, rarely, sometimes). Adverbs of degree indicate intensity (very, quite, extremely, barely). Conjunctive adverbs connect independent clauses and show relationships between ideas: however, therefore, consequently, furthermore, meanwhile, nevertheless, otherwise, thus, accordingly, moreover. These require semicolons before them and commas after when joining independent clauses.

Prepositions

Prepositions show relationships between nouns or pronouns and other words in sentences. They typically indicate position (in, on, at, under, above, beside, between, among), direction (to, toward, into, through, across), time (at, on, in, during, before, after, until, since), or other relationships (of, for, with, by, about, except).

Prepositional phrases consist of prepositions, their objects, and any modifiers. These phrases function as adjectives (the book on the table) or adverbs (She arrived before noon). Object pronouns must follow prepositions (between you and me, not between you and I).

Some words function as prepositions in certain contexts and as other parts of speech in others. Compare: "She walked up the stairs" (preposition) with "She looked up" (adverb).

Conjunctions

Conjunctions connect words, phrases, or clauses. Coordinating conjunctions (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so— remembered as FANBOYS) join grammatically equal elements. When joining independent clauses, place a comma before the coordinating conjunction.

Subordinating conjunctions introduce dependent clauses and show relationships such as cause (because, since, as), time (when, while, before, after, until, as soon as), condition (if, unless, provided that), contrast (although, though, even though, whereas), purpose (so that, in order that), and comparison (as, than).

Correlative conjunctions work in pairs: both/and, either/or, neither/nor, not only/but also, whether/or. Elements joined by correlative conjunctions should be parallel in structure.

Interjections

Interjections express emotion or reaction and are grammatically independent from sentences. Strong interjections are followed by exclamation points (Wow! Ouch!). Mild interjections are set off by commas (Well, that was unexpected. Oh, I understand now.).

Agreement and Sentence Structure