1. N OUNS : WORD THAT NAMES A PERSON, PLACE OR THING Common – general name for person, place, thing River, mountain, pilot Proper – particular person, place, thing Nile, Mt. Kenya, Charles Lindbergh Concrete – names an object that can be seen, heard, smelled, touched, or tasted Shoe, car, perfume, thorn Abstract – names an idea, quality or characteristic Simplicity, beauty, truth, intention Compound – formed from two or more words – some are written as single words, some as hyphenated, some as separate words Toothbrush, self-knowledge, duffel bag

2. V ERBS : EXPRESS AN ACTION, CONDITION OR STATE OF BEING Action – expresses an action – may be physical or mental My family and I drove 500 miles to Ohio. (action) We wanted good weather for our vacation. (mental) Linking – links a word in the predicate to the subject. Two groups: forms of be (is, am, are, was, were, been, being) and verbs that express conditions (look, smell, feel, sound, taste, grow, appear, become, seem, remain). We were happy to see the sign for Cleveland. The campsite appeared tiny beside the mountain. Auxiliary (Helping) – are combined with other verbs to form verb phrases. Small scraps of birch bark are crackling in the fire. Our muscles will be sore from chopping wood. At last all the wood has been chopped.

3. A DJECTIVES : DESCRIBE OR GIVE MORE SPECIFIC INFO ABOUT NOUNS Answers the question: What kind? Fast ponies, green field, steamy afternoon Which one? This seat, that goal, these friends How many? Four players, most fans, both teams How much? No time, more noise, enough speed

4. A RTICLES ARE THE MOST COMMON ADJECTIVES … Indefinite articles: A, an Used to refer to unspecified members of groups of people, places, things, ideas A fan yelled as we looked for an exit. Definite article: The Used to refer to a specific person, place, thing, idea The coach yelled as we left through the exit. Proper adjectives are formed from proper nouns. They are capitalized. Persian players originated the sport of polo. Shakespearean actors are very talented.

5. A DVERBS MODIFY VERBS, ADJECTIVES, OTHER ADVERBS Mike scrambled quickly from the icy pond. (verb) He was extremely cold. (adjective) He had fallen into the pond quite accidentally. (adverb) Answer the following questions: Where? There, here, downstairs, northward When? Yesterday, soon, daily, never, again How? Slowly, happily, well, brightly To what extent? Almost, nearly, completely, somewhat What is an intensifier ? An adverb that defines the degree of an adjective or another adverb. Always precede the adj or adv they modify. Fortunately, Mike was an extremely fast thinker.