Interjections
Darn! It’s the last of the major parts of speech: the interjection.
Interjection (i.)
An interjection is a word or group of words that express strong or sudden emotions. When something is “interjected” into a conversation, it interrupts the exchange. It is easy to understand the appeal of interjections, since most of us use them throughout the day. Then again, many interjections are words not fit for most publications.
Interjections can be weak, mild, or strong. This scale applies in two ways: intensity of emotion and intensity of language. Profanity is “strong language” but for some people a profane word is used to express weak emotional intensity. Interjections have to be judged by their speakers, not by the words alone.
Some Interjections
Examples of single-word interjections:
aha, bad, cool, darn, fiddlesticks, fudge, help, hey, hot, huh, oh, oops, wow, and yeah.
A phrase acting as an interjection:
Great Caesar’s ghost!
Warning! Danger Ahead!
As students, we are advised to use exclamation points with interjections. Writers should learn to stifle the urge and use periods when possible. This does not mean interjections themselves should be artificially avoided. If a character or narrator (also a character, do not forget) would use an interjection, then write it.
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