Ask the Editor

Jane Mairs,
Editor

Parts of Speech: Noun, Pronoun, Verb

Thursday, August 02, 2012

Question

A recent reader asked for descriptions of the different parts of speech. Below are three, with some examples of each. We'll look at others next week.

Answer

Nouns     Nouns are words that name things, people, animals, places, qualities, actions, and ideas.

• Examples: letter, man, Virginia, information, news, phones, Saturn

Pronouns     A pronoun is a word that can be used instead of a noun or noun phrase.

• Examples: I, you, we, them, hers, which

Verbs     Verbs are words that show actions, occurrences, or states of being. Each verb has many different forms.

• Examples: call, love, like, playing, votes, went, has been beaten