Parts of speech worksheets
Aligned with Common Core L.3.1a
Printable third-grade parts of speech worksheets: nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs, with color-coding, sorting, adjective or adverb, pronoun swaps and concrete and abstract nouns.
The worksheets
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Parts of Speech Chart
Nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs, each with a color, a meaning and examples.
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Concrete and Abstract Nouns Chart
Concrete nouns like dog and river and abstract nouns like bravery and friendship, with a quick test to tell them apart.
Color the Parts of Speech
Sentences to color word by word as nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs.
Sort the Words
A word bank to sort into noun, pronoun, verb, adjective and adverb columns.
Adjective or Adverb?
Sentences like "the quiet cat" and "walked quietly" to sort as adjective or adverb.
Pronoun Swap
Replace underlined nouns, like "Mia" or "the boys," with he, she, it, we, they, him, her or them.
Concrete or Abstract?
Nouns like dog, river, bravery and friendship to sort as concrete or abstract.
Print the whole packet
One copy of every sheet above, in order. Tap + for more copies (up to 10).
For the parent or teacher
What it is
Every word in a sentence has a job. Nouns name people, places, things and ideas. Pronouns take the place of nouns. Verbs show action or being. Adjectives describe nouns, and adverbs tell how, when or where. Third graders learn to name these jobs and to tell concrete nouns (things you can touch) from abstract nouns (ideas and feelings).
What comes next
Subject and verb agreement.
How to teach it
- Give each part of speech a color and use the same colors every time.
- Act out verbs and adverbs, like "walk slowly" and "walk quickly."
- Ask "Can I touch it?" to sort concrete and abstract nouns.
- Swap nouns for pronouns in everyday talk, like "Mom made dinner. She made pasta."
- Notice that many adverbs end in -ly, but not all do, like soon and here.
Common mistakes
- Thinking every word ending in -ly is an adverb, like friendly or lovely.
- Calling a word an adjective just because it comes before a noun, like "the."
- Missing abstract nouns, because they aren't things you can see.