All About Interjections: Examples of English Interjections and How to Use Them

So you’re looking for examples of English interjections?

Cool! Awesome! Wow!

This guide can definitely help with that.

Here’s what we’ll be covering:

• What are interjections?

• Key types of interjections

• How to use interjections in grammar

• List of the most common interjections

There are tons of great reasons to spend time learning English interjections. Interjections – think words like “Yay!” “Oops!” and “Ugh!” – are very commonly used in the English language. Understanding them and using them correctly can help you feel and sound more fluent and participate in conversations more smoothly.

Continue reading to find the answers to all your interjection questions. Woohoo!

All about English interjections

Now, where were we?

Oh! That’s right! Interjections.

Interjections are most commonly used in casual, spoken English – though, as you can see, you can use them in writing too. They can be especially useful to add personality and emotion. Written interjections are more common in electronic communications, like text and email, and in written dialogue, as in a book or screenplay.

But wait! We’re getting ahead of ourselves.

What are interjections?

Let’s start with a quick interjections definition. An interjection is a word or phrase used to express feeling as opposed to meaning. Interjections are grammatically independent, meaning they can stand on their own in a sentence.

English interjections often express a sudden change in emotion or feeling, as in surprise, pain or joy. There are several types of interjections, including emotionally neutral ones simply used to give you time to think of what to say or to express that you’re listening.

Interjections frequently have no set meaning but instead can be used flexibly to indicate different things based on context and tone.

Let’s start with a few interjection examples to take a closer look:

• Wow (surprise)

• Oops (an accident)

• Um (neutral pause word)

• Yay (joy)

Here they are used in a sentence:

* Wow! What an unusual hat you have there. Oops, I spilled tea on your hat. _ I, um, could take that to the cleaner for you… _* You think your hat looks even better with a tea stain? Yay!

Key types of interjections

There are many, many interjections in the English language, and more are added through slang and cultural exchange every year. That makes it difficult to put together a complete list of all the possible types of interjections, but here are a few of the most common categories:

Interjections to express surprise

These include words, sounds and phrases that express general surprise, good or bad.

Examples: Wow, what, huh, oh my, really

Positive exclamations

These are words, sounds and phrases that express enthusiasm.

Examples: Yay, woohoo, sweet, awesome, nice

Negative exclamations

These interjections express negative emotions like pain, disgust, disappointment or fear.

Examples: Ouch, ugh, yikes, ew, oh man

Neutral pause words and linking words

This type of interjection doesn’t necessarily add any meaning but is used to show that you are thinking or trying to find the right words. They can also express uncertainty.

Examples: Like, so, um, uh, hmm

Interjections to show you are listening during conversation

Use these interjections in a conversation to show that you are listening and understand what the other person is saying.

Examples: Ahh, uh-huh, ok, cool, ha, yup, gotcha

Interjections to seek affirmation

Use these interjections to ask the listener to confirm what you are saying.

Examples: Eh? Right? Yeah? Yes?

How to use interjections in grammar

With the exceptions of pause words (such as ‘like’ or ‘um’), English interjections typically come either at the beginning or end of a sentence. They can also stand on their own as an exclamatory sentence. The table below shows examples of how interjections can appear in a sentence.

Examples of how to use interjections in a sentence

The table above shows the primary ways interjections are used. It would be very unusual to use an emotional interjection in the middle of a sentence – that is, unless you were surprised by something and reacting in real time in spoken English:

Hey, what do you want at the grocery… Ouch! I stubbed my toe!

As you can see, interjections are easy to use once you understand their general meaning.

English interjections are very flexible and can be used in many different ways. They can even be used sarcastically to convey an opposite meaning. A person can express their level of enthusiasm and a more nuanced meaning based on the context and their tone of voice. So listen carefully to make sure you get the full meaning of what’s being said.

List of interjections in English

Now that you know what interjections are and how to use them, it’s time to start learning some!

While listing every interjection used by English speakers would be almost impossible, this list covers 26 of the most common English interjections.

The most common interjections in English

See something missing? English swear words are also often used as interjections, but that’s a guide for another day!

Interjection pro tip for informal writing

You may have already noticed this, but some interjections are essentially just sounds. These can be lengthened to create emphasis. This is true in speech and in writing. A longer ‘shhhhh’ or ‘ummmm’ still means ‘be quiet’ or ‘I’m not sure,’ but they feel stronger than the shorter version.

Here’s a quick cheat sheet to help you draw out your interjections when you want to. The longer versions aren’t appropriate for formal writing, but can be useful in text and email to show stronger emotions. Usually, we lengthen the same letter in a written interjection as in a spoken one, but not always. There are no rules about the number of times a letter is repeated – the more you add, the more drawn out the word is.

Lengthening interjections for emphasis

Master English interjections

We’ve covered what interjections are, the key types of interjections, how to use them and some of the most common English interjections.

Interjections are a great help when it comes to expressing emotions in English. Master these interjections and you’ll be well on your way to better understanding English speakers and being understood in English. Hurray!