Two or more clauses combined with subordinating conjunctions are called a complex sentence. The less important clause is called a subordinate clause. When we connect clauses using subordinating conjunctions, we are giving one clause more importance than the other. You can remember them with the acronym FANBOYS: f or, a nd, n or, b ut, o r, y et, s o. There are not many coordinating conjunctions. Coordinating ConjunctionsĬoordinating conjunctions connect two clauses of equal importance into what we call a compound sentence. There are two types of conjunctions: coordinating conjunctions and subordinating conjunctions. But most of the time, when we are talking about conjunctions, we are talking about connecting one clause to another clause in the same sentence. They can connect, for example, a list of nouns in a series. This is only to give a general sense of the proportions.Ĭonjunctions are words that connect. (Note that the percentages are approximate and may not total 100% because the original categorization was slightly different from ours. Take a look at the following table showing the proportion of the different parts of speech in conversational English and academic prose.

So understanding the general frequency of the different parts of speech is helpful.

Frequency of Different Parts of SpeechĪt Ginseng English, we believe in taking a research-informed, strategic approach to learning English. If you are looking for an in-depth guide to English grammar, our complete English grammar guide might be more helpful. They can help you to understand the structure of the language to guide your studying.

If you’re looking for the parts of speech in English grammar, you’ve come to the right place! If you’re trying to learn English online by yourself, understanding the parts of speech is a good place to start. Read on for a brief explanation of each! Why Learn about Parts of Speech? There are a total of 9 parts of speech in English: nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives, articles, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections. We also sometimes group parts of speech into lexical words, which carry a lot of meaning, and function words, which help us make sentences and show the relationship between things.

Parts of speech tell us what a word does, how it functions and makes meaning. Every word in a language can be categorized by its part of speech.

The is what part of speech