Parts of Speech

Nouns

• Def. A word that names a person, place, thing, or idea.

• Identify the nouns in the following sentences.

1. World War I began as a local conflict between Austria-Hungary and Serbia.2. The conflict escalated when war was declared on Russia.3. Tension created by strong nationalism drew in other groups.4. World War I eventually involved thirty-two nations.5. On one side were the Allies; on the other side, the Central Powers.

PronounsDef. A word used in place of a noun or more than one noun. It’s a substitution so that the nouns don’t get too tired.

The ANTECEDENT is the word that the pronoun is replacing.

6 Types of Pronouns…• TYPE 1: Personal

Personal pronouns refer to 1) the person speaking, 2) the person spoken to, or 3) the person, place, or thing spoken about.

Personal Pronouns

• Identify the personal pronouns in the following sentences:

1. My name is not George.2. When you left for camp, you forgot your

raincoat.3. Don’t judge a book by its cover.

2. Reflexive/Intensive Pronouns• Def. these end in –self or –selves and adds information to a

sentence by pointing back to a noun or pronoun used earlier or it adds emphasis.

Reflexive/Intensive Pronouns

• Identify the reflexive/intensive pronouns in these sentences.

1. Michael taught himself to play the guitar.2. Gloria bought herself a new pair of jeans.3. The President himself attended that gala

opening.4. We spliced the cable ourselves.

Practice Perfect Pronouns

With your partner, write 5 sentences using pronouns. You must use at least two reflexive/intensive and three personal pronouns. Highlight them with markers or circle them.

3. Demonstrative Pronouns• Def. directs attention to specific people, places, or things.

Demonstrative Pronouns

4. Interrogative Pronouns• Def. These are pronouns used to begin a question. They come

at the BEGINNING of the sentence.

With your partner, write 5 questions that begin with an interrogative pronoun.

5. Indefinite Pronouns• Def. These are pronouns that refer to people, places, or

things, often without specifying which ones. They often lack specific antecedents.

SPECIFIC ANTECEDENT: Several of the guests were late.

NO SPECIFIC ANTECEDENT: Everyone ate everything offered.

Indefinite Pronouns

• THESE CAN BE TRICKY!

Sometimes they function as adjectives. SAY WHAT?EXAMPLE:• Prounoun: Few are as famous as the Cleveland

Orchestra.• Adjective : Few orchestras are as famous as this

one.

HERE’S a TIP….if the word that follows it is a noun or another pronoun, it is probably an adjective.

Practice Perfect Pronouns• Identify the indefinite pronouns in these sentences.

1. Everybody will enjoy the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.2. The museum is open for most of the year.3. Something to remember is that admission is free on

Wednesday evenings in the summer.4. Anyone joining the museum receives unlimited free

admission.5. Many of the artists with exhibits at the museum do not

allow their items to be photographed.6. More of the Cleveland’s cultural attractions are in University

Circle.

Who Whose Which

Whom That

Def. begins a subordinate clause and connects it to the rest of the sentence.

Includes the “---ever” version of these too!

Relative Pronouns

Relative Pronouns

1. Pizza, which most people love, is not very healthy.

2. The people whose names are on the list will go to camp.

3. Fruit that is grown organically is expensive.4. Students, who are intelligent, get good grades.5. Eco-friendly cars that run on electricity save

gas.6. The kids who were called first will have the best

chance of getting a seat.