Interjections
Hi! That's an interjection. :-)
Interjection is a big name for a little word.
Interjections are short exclamations like Oh!,
Um or Ah! They have no real grammatical
value but we use them quite often, usually more in speaking
than in writing. When interjections are inserted into
a sentence, they have no grammatical connection to the
sentence. An interjection is sometimes followed by an
exclamation mark (!) when written.
The table shows some interjections with examples.
 |
| Interjections like er
and um are also known as "hesitation
devices". They are extremely common
in English. People use them when they
don't know what to say, or to indicate
that they are thinking about what to
say. You should learn to recognize them
when you hear them and realize that
they have no real meaning. |
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| interjection |
meaning |
example |
| ah |
expressing pleasure |
"Ah, that feels good." |
| expressing realization |
"Ah, now I understand." |
| expressing resignation |
"Ah well, it can't be heped." |
| expressing surprise |
"Ah! I've won!" |
| alas |
expressing grief or pity |
"Alas, she's dead now." |
| dear |
expressing pity |
"Oh dear! Does it hurt?" |
| expressing surprise |
"Dear me! That's a surprise!" |
| eh |
asking for repetition |
"It's hot today." "Eh?" "I said it's hot
today." |
| expressing enquiry |
"What do you think of that, eh?" |
| expressing surprise |
"Eh! Really?" |
| inviting agreement |
"Let's go, eh?" |
| er |
expressing hesitation |
"Lima is the capital of...er...Peru." |
| hello, hullo |
expressing greeting |
"Hello John. How are you today?" |
| expressing surprise |
"Hello! My car's gone!" |
| hey |
calling attention |
"Hey! look at that!" |
| expressing surprise, joy etc |
"Hey! What a good idea!" |
| hi |
expressing greeting |
"Hi! What's new?" |
| hmm |
expressing hesitation, doubt or disagreement |
"Hmm. I'm not so sure." |
| oh, o |
expressing surprise |
"Oh! You're here!" |
| expressing pain |
"Oh! I've got a toothache." |
| expressing pleading |
"Oh, please say 'yes'!" |
| ouch |
expressing pain |
"Ouch! That hurts!" |
| uh |
expressing hesitation |
"Uh...I don't know the answer to that." |
| uh-huh |
expressing agreement |
"Shall we go?" "Uh-huh." |
| um, umm |
expressing hesitation |
"85 divided by 5 is...um...17." |
| well |
expressing surprise |
"Well I never!" |
| introducing a remark |
"Well, what did he say?" |
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