PARTS OF SPEECH IN CONTEXTS
Objectives / Learning Outcomes
By the end of the session, the student should be able to:
• define the concept of parts of speech
• identify the parts of speech
• discuss the parts of speech in contexts
• examine the open and closed parts of speech and their functions in context
Introduction
• A speech or a sentence is made up of units of words which form a complete
idea.
• The units of words have their names and distinctive roles they play in the
speech or sentence.
• Some of the units are nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives,
prepositions, conjunctions, interjections
• The units derive their names and roles according to their forms and functions
in the speech or sentence.
Defining Parts of Speech
• The concept of parts of speech refers to the classification of words based on
their forms and functions in a sentence (Quagie, 2012).
• Each part of speech serves a different purpose because of its syntactic and
semantic roles.
• The parts of speech support sentence structure analysis.
• They contribute to text comprehension and quality writing.
Perspectives of the Parts of Speech – The Student’s Voice
• Nouns
• Pronouns
• Verbs
• Adverbs
• Adjectives
• Prepositions – Simple and Complex Prepositions or Multi Prepositions
• Conjunctions
• Interjections
(Quagie, 2012; Jungk, 2005)
Classification of the Parts of Speech
Classification of the Parts of Speech in two Forms:
Open Parts of Speech – Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives etc.
Closed Parts of Speech – Prepositions, Conjunctions etc.
Identification of Open and Closed Parts of Speech in Contexts
• Write four sentences and ensure that a sentence each represents a simple
sentence, compound sentence, complex sentence, and compound-complex
sentence.
• Underline the open parts of speech in the sentences and circle the closed
parts of speech in the sentences.
Conclusion
• A speech comprises units that form part of the speech to make meaningful
speech. The units are the open and the closed units.
• The open word classes can be transformed from one unit to the other, but the
closed ones cannot.
• Each unit constitutes a unique role in discourse.
References
• Jungk, D. (2005). Applied Writing for Technicians. New York: McGraw-Hill
Companies, Inc..
• Quagie, J.K. (2012). English: A Tool for Communication for Universities and
Tertiary Institutions. 2nd ed. Accra: Hybrid Publications.
Thank you.