What is an Interjection?
An interjection is one of the eight parts of speech used to convey emotions. Interjections are often followed by an exclamation mark (!) or a comma (,).
They are a prominent feature of creative writing and can be used at the beginning, middle or at the end of sentences.
The best way to understand interjections is to examine sentences which use them.
- Aww! Your baby sister is really adorable! (Cuteness)
- Can you show me how to use the ATM, eh? (Questioning)
- Eww! That store was in such a mess! (Disgust)
- Yikes! Mother will scold me if she sees the broken vase. (Fear/Concern)
- I have a dollar…hmmm…wait…I have two! (Thinking)
- I know who wrote My Last Duchess…um…it is Robert Browning. (Pause)
- Ahh! Now, I remember which day you were talking about. (Realisation)
In the above examples, the underlined words are interjections, while the ones in the brackets describe the feelings or the emotions expressed by the interjections.
Simple words can also function as interjections such as the words underlined in the examples below:
- Chitra said, “Of course! We have a plan B if plan A fails.”
- “No! I don’t want to go to a boarding school,” Rahim begged his parents.
- “Indeed! He is the Director of this company,” Roshan said looking at Mr Chandran.
- “Yes!” said Reema to the customer on the phone, “We do have loyalty cards.”
Sometimes, interjections can be used as stand-alone sentences as shown in the example above.
From the examples, it is clear that not only conventional interjections but also simple words can be used to emphasise a point. It depends solely on how words are used in a sentence.
Interjections are not required to complete the given sentences. They only add more flavour to your writing.
The following examples will help you understand how interjections are used.
- Sigh! The old country house was warmer and nice.
- Phew! These stairs are already making me tired.
- Yowza! That is a fine looking car.
- Whoops! I broke the thermometer.
- Boo! I scared you!
- Ugh! The beggar was wearing soiled clothes.
- Ah! The delicious aroma of freshly ground coffee.
- Gosh! I didn’t know that Zubin was coming.
- Yeah! The furniture in that store is very expensive.
- Really! You want me to believe that Jonathan won a lottery?
- Blah! I missed my school bus today and had to walk to school.
- Argh! The elevator is out of order again!
- Goodness! Look at the gold hidden in this dungeon!
- Aha! There you are hiding under the table!
- What! The security guard himself was the burglar?