Nouns name people, places, and things:
As Smith, New York, potatoes, wings.
Pronouns are used in the place of nouns:
I think, she sings, they work, he frowns.
Adjectives add something to the nouns,
As old New York and little towns.
And don’t forget that many, few,
And numbers and articles are adjectives too.
Verbs come next - the words that tell
Of action, being, and state as well;
To work, become, exist, and curb -
Each one of these is called a verb.
Adverbs add something to the meaning
Of adjectives, as brightly gleaming.
To verbs they also add a thought,
As when we say “was nearly caught.”
And last, an adverb has the chore
Of making other adverbs tell us more
Than one alone could hope to tell,
As in, “She sang that very well.”
To find an adverb this test try:
Ask How? Or When? Or Where? Or Why?
Pepositions show relation,
As with affection, in our nation.
Conjunctions, as their name implies,
are joining words; they are the ties
That bind together day and night,
Calm but cold, dull or bright.
Interjections are words that show
Sudden emotion, as Alas! Ah! Oh!
Thus briefly does this jingle state
The parts of speech, which total eight.
(Anonymous)
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