Parts of Speech Worksheets

These free parts of speech worksheets help children in grades 2 and 3 tell nouns, verbs and adjectives apart. Print a sheet where they circle all three parts of speech in different colors, a cut-and-glue sort of 18 words, or a find-the-nouns, find-the-verbs or find-the-adjectives page. Every worksheet comes from a bank of 60 original sentences, with an answer key on every download, in color or black and white.

Parts of speech worksheets to print (PDF)

The pages below show a cut-and-glue noun, verb and adjective sort, a sheet where children circle all three kinds of word, and single-focus pages for nouns and verbs. Use the maker at the top of this page to change the number of pages, the font, black and white ink or the paper size, then press New sentences for a fresh set. Every sheet has an answer key.

Parts of speech: the eight kinds of word

English words are usually sorted into eight parts of speech. These worksheets teach the first three, which carry the most meaning in a sentence, and the others follow in later grades. Wikipedia’s part of speech article explains how the groups came about.

Noun verb adjective worksheet: a worked example

Take the sentence The little puppy chased a red ball. Children circle nouns in blue, verbs in red and adjectives in green:

Across all 60 sentences in the bank there are 226 circled words: 113 nouns (50%), 66 verbs (29%) and 47 adjectives (21%). Nouns are the biggest group, which is true of most English text.

Noun verb adjective sort: how to use the cut-and-glue page

1. Cut out the 18 words along the dotted lines.
2. Read each word and decide whether it names something, shows action or describes.
3. Glue each one under Nouns, Verbs or Adjectives.
4. Check with the answer key, then say a short sentence with three of the words.

Parts of speech sort: what is on the page

The parts of speech sort page prints eighteen cards, six of each kind, so every column ends up full. Words are drawn from banks of nouns, verbs and adjectives that children meet in the sentence pages, such as puppy, climbed and gentle, so the sort reinforces the sentences they already know. Because the words change on every print, a class can use the same page again and again.

Parts of speech chart for kids: a quick reference

Print or copy this chart and keep it beside the worksheets. It gives one question for each part of speech that children can ask themselves:

Parts of speech worksheets grade 3: the eight parts of speech

By grade 3 children are ready to see that there are eight parts of speech in all. The eight parts of speech are noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction and interjection. Start with the three on these sheets, add pronouns and adverbs as children read longer texts, and keep the chart above for reference. Each new part of speech can be added to the same sentence pages by asking one more question.

The same word can be different parts of speech

A word’s job depends on its sentence. This is a useful idea for grade 3 children, who are expected to explain what words do in sentences (L.3.1.a). The word run is a verb in “We run to school” and a noun in “She went for a run.”

Teaching parts of speech step by step

1. Start with nouns, using things children can see and touch.
2. Add verbs by acting them out.
3. Add adjectives by describing objects.
4. Mix them on the sort page, then the sentence page.
5. Write a sentence that has one of each, such as “The tiny dog climbs.”

The Common Core grade 3 language standards ask children to explain the function of nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs in sentences.

Common mistakes when sorting parts of speech

• Calling a describing word a noun: in “the red ball,” red tells what kind, so it is an adjective.
• Calling an action noun a verb: a word such as race can be either, so look at the sentence.
• Forgetting helping verbs: words like is and will are verbs too.

Parts of speech worksheets: frequently asked questions

What grade learns parts of speech? Grammar worksheets 3rd grade

Grade 1 meets nouns, verbs and adjectives. By grade 3, children are expected to explain how each part of speech works in a sentence.

How many parts of speech are there?

There are eight in the traditional grammar: noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction and interjection. These worksheets cover the first three that children learn.

Why are articles not circled?

Words such as the and a are articles, a kind of adjective in some grammars. They are left out so that children focus on the three main parts of speech.

Do the worksheets have answer keys?

Yes. Every download includes an answer key page.

More grammar practice

• nouns worksheets
• verbs worksheets
• adjectives worksheets
• Play the nouns, verbs and adjectives game
• The grammar worksheets hub