Every word in a sentence has a job. Nouns name things. Pronouns (he, she, it, they) replace nouns so we do not repeat them. Verbs show actions or states. Adjectives describe nouns, and adverbs describe verbs.
Prepositions show where or when something is: under, behind, during, after. Determiners come before nouns and tell us which one: the, a, this, those, some.
A word can change class depending on how it is used. In “a fast car”, fast is an adjective. In “she runs fast”, it is an adverb.
Worked example
What word class is “under” in “The cat hid under the table”?
- Under shows where the cat hid in relation to the table.
- Words that show position are prepositions.
Answer:preposition
Key words
- pronoun
- a word that replaces a noun
- preposition
- a word showing where or when
- determiner
- a word before a noun, like the or this
Practise this
New questions every time.
Common Core-referenced: L.3.1a