Parts of Speech: The Correct Way of Using Them While Writing Content

Whatever comes out of your mouth that’s meaningful is a part of speech. What’s not meaningful is a nonsense word or gibberish.

The meaningful words or parts of speech are of 8 types. Different combinations of these parts of speech create sentence structures and deliver messages.

They are like the ingredients of a meal; you cannot make anything without them. Scientists say that a human baby starts differentiating words at the age of 6 months.

Parts of speech are that important in meaningful communication! That’s why I am dedicating this article to the parts of speech and the correct way of using them.

What are the parts of speech?

Parts of speech are simply the role a word plays in a sentence. Each word plays a different function, and using them correctly makes your sentences clear and meaningful.

Basically, during our developmental stages, our brain learns to break down a sentence into different parts. It categorizes what word is an action (verb), what word is doing that action (subject), what word is receiving that action (object), and what words are playing the supporting role.

Then it generates a meaning based on that categorization. An ancient Greek grammarian, Dionysius Thrax, came up with this concept for the first time.

He categorized words into 8 parts of speech to make a language easier to learn for non-native speakers.

So, let’s have a look at how each part of speech works in a sentence.

Correct use of parts of speech in content

Not knowing the parts of speech can create meaningful speech. Like how native English speakers do. They do not learn grammar. Their brain absorbs it through listening.

But not using parts of speech correctly does create meaningless sentences. That’s what we are going to learn next: correct use of all the parts of speech.

1. Nouns are naming words

Nouns are the words that represent a person, place, thing, or idea in a sentence. They help us recognize the doer of an action. In writing, they help you establish the subject of your content. For example:

• Adam is riding the bicycle (person)
• I am going to Copenhagen (place)
• Bring me my laptop (thing)
• Happiness is a choice (idea)

You can see some nouns start with a capital letter in the above examples. That’s because they are proper nouns. This means they represent a very specific thing. Like Copenhagen, a specific city, in the second example.

Nouns that represent general things or categories are called common nouns. Like in the above example: laptop and happiness. No need to capitalize their first letter. Unless they come at the start of the sentence.

2. Pronouns help simplify paragraphs

When we write more than one sentence on a single topic, we use a noun multiple times. Like in paragraphs or essays. That sounds awkward.

So, we use pronouns in place of nouns to avoid repetition and make writing smoother. They ensure your content flows naturally without overusing a single term. For example:

• Adam is riding the bicycle. He is enjoying it.

In this sentence, “he” replaces “Adam,” and “it” replaces “bicycle.” Without pronouns, writing feels clunky and repetitive. Using them correctly keeps your paragraphs concise.

You might be thinking, why “he” for “Adam” and “it” for the “bicycle?” Well! That’s because there are a total of 7 pronouns, and we use a different one according to the noun. Like:

• He is used for singular male nouns in the third person
• She is used for singular female nouns in the third person
• It is used for singular non-human things in the third person

• I replace singular first-person nouns

• We replace multiple first-person nouns

• They is for multiple third-person nouns

• You is to replace second-person nouns from a sentence

Nouns are observed first, then a pronoun is used accordingly.

3. Verbs show action in writing

Verbs tell us what a noun is doing in the sentence. Like an action, state of being, or what it is. Without verbs, sentences lose their purpose and meaning. For example:

• The dog barks loudly.
• She is writing a book.
• They will attend the meeting tomorrow.

In these examples, verbs like barks, is writing, and will attend describe actions or states of being. They are the backbone of your sentences, making them purposeful.

Now, verbs come in various types based on their function:

• Action Verbs: These verbs describe physical or mental actions. For example: run, think, jump.
• Linking Verbs: They connect the subject to additional information about it. For example: is, seems, becomes.
• Helping Verbs: These verbs assist the main verb in forming tenses or moods. For example: has, will, can.

In writing, verbs are important for the quality of the content. Strong, active verbs make your content lively and engaging, while passive or weak verbs make it feel dull.

For example:

• Weak: The article was written by Adam.
• Strong: Adam wrote the article.

The second sentence feels more direct, right?

4. Adjectives add descriptions

These words define something about a noun or pronoun, like a quality or emotion. They provide more detail, creating a picture in our minds. For example:

• The tall building stood on the busy street.
• She wore a beautiful dress.
• We had an amazing experience.

Notice how adjectives like tall, beautiful, and amazing add depth to these sentences. Without them, the sentences would be complete but bland.

Writing tip: When writing, use adjectives in balance. Overusing them will not make your sentence any better. It will get worse instead. For example:

• Overloaded: The big, fluffy, soft, white, and incredibly cute dog jumped on the couch.
• Balanced: The fluffy, white dog jumped on the couch.

5. Adverbs further define actions

We learned adjectives that modify nouns and pronouns. Now adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. They explain how, when, where, or to what extent something happens. This detail adds clarity to the sentences. For example:

• She speaks softly. (how)
• He arrived late. (when)
• The cat sat outside. (where)
• They almost finished the project. (to what extent)

Adverbs often end in -ly, but not always.

Writing tip: When writing something, adverbs create a storytelling effect by providing more context. However, like adjectives, overusing adverbs makes your writing dull. For example:

• Overused: She very quickly and excitedly ran to the extremely big, beautiful house.
• Balanced: She quickly ran to the beautiful house.

Focus on choosing strong verbs first, as I explained, and use adverbs only when necessary to add emphasis.

6. Prepositions show relationships

Remember I mentioned the supporting role of some words. Prepositions are one of those words that support a sentence structure.

They link nouns, pronouns, or phrases to other parts of the sentence, showing relationships in time, place, direction, or cause. For example:

• The keys are on the table. (place)
• We will meet after lunch. (time)
• He walked toward the park. (direction)

Without prepositions, your sentences become disjointed or confusing. They maintain the flow and coherence of a sentence in writing.

Writing tip: Misusing prepositions changes the meaning of your sentences or makes them grammatically incorrect. For example:

• He is in the hospital (admitted to hospital)
• He is at the hospital (he works at the hospital)

So, always double-check your prepositions to ensure clarity and correctness.

7. Conjunctions connect ideas

Conjunctions are the connectors of your sentences. They join words, phrases, or clauses to create a proper structure. These are of three types:

• Coordinating Conjunctions: Connect equal elements (e.g., and, but, or).
• I wanted to go out, but it started raining.
• Subordinating Conjunctions: Connects a dependent clause to an independent one (e.g., because, although).
• She stayed home because it was raining.
• Correlative Conjunctions: Work in pairs (e.g., either…or, neither…nor).
• Either you study, or you fail the test.

In content writing, conjunctions maintain the flow of ideas. They make complex sentences (with multiple clauses) easy to understand.

8. Interjections describe feelings

Interjections express your emotions in a written form. When talking to someone, your tone indicates your feelings. Interjections define them on paper.

They can be used alone or in a sentence; they will not change the meaning. Sentences with interjections are known as exclamatory sentences. They may or may not have an exclamation mark (!). For example: 

• Wow! That’s amazing.
• Oh no, I forgot my wallet.
• Hurray! We won the match.

They play a great role in content writing. Using interjections gives your writing a storytelling effect and adds your personality to it.

Writing tip: Do not use them in formal or professional writing. They will make your tone overly casual or less professional. Use the AI sentence rewriter to see how parts of speech are used in different writing styles. You will learn to write in first person, formal, fluent, creative, casual, professional, academic, and informal styles of writing.

Other parts of speech

Dionysius Thrax categorized words into 8 parts of speech. That was back in the 2nd century BCE. We still use that categorization in the English grammar. But some modern grammarians define other words too. The determiners and articles.

Determiners to further describe nouns

Determiners come before nouns or pronouns to specify which noun is being referred to. They provide extra context to ensure a reader gets exactly what you are talking about. For example:

• This car is mine. (“This” specifies a particular car.)
• Every child deserves an education. (“Every” refers to all children.)
• My phone is charging. (“My” shows possession of the phone.)

Determiners are of many different types. Most commonly used determiners are:

1. Demonstratives: These point to specific items (e.g., this, that, these, those).

• That house is beautiful.

1. Possessives: Show ownership or relationship (e.g., my, your, his, her, our, their).

• Her bag is on the table.

1. Quantifiers: Indicate the quantity or amount (e.g., some, many, few, several, all).

• Some students didn’t attend the class.

Articles to specify or generalize nouns

Articles are a type of determiner, but special. They define if a noun is specific or general. There are only three types of articles in English grammar: a, an, and the.

1. Definite article: “The” refers to a specific noun that is already known to the reader or listener. For example:

• The book on the table is mine. (A specific book is mentioned.)

1. Indefinite articles: “A” and “an” refer to nonspecific nouns. Use “a” before words starting with consonant sounds and “an” before words starting with vowel sounds. For example:

• I saw a crow in the garden. (Any crow, not a specific one.)
• She ate an avocado for lunch. (Any avocado, not a specific one.)

Conclusion

Learning parts of speech is like learning to cook. You learn how much to use, when to use, and how. Like cooking, using something extra or less ruins the taste and makes the outcome feel bland.

By learning how parts of speech function and how to apply them, you improve your grammar. Plus, it improves your ability to connect with readers effectively.

So, the next time you write, think about the parts of speech as your toolkit—use them wisely, and your content will shine.

Additional resources

• The Parts of Speech Family Story
• 8 Parts of Speech in English Grammar Overview + Example
• Parts of Speech | Learn English