LECTURE X.
OF INTERJECTIONS.—CASES OF NOUNS.
INTERJECTIONS are words which express the sudden emotions of the speaker; as, "Alas! I fear for life;" "O death! where is thy sting?"
Interjections are not so much the signs of thought, as of feeling. Almost any word may be used as an interjection; but when so employed, it is not the representative of a distinct, idea. A word which denotes a distinct conception of the mind, must necessarily belong to some other part of speech. They who wish to speak often, or rather, to make noises, when they have no useful information to communicate, are apt to use words very freely in this way; such as the following expressions, la, la me, my, O my, O dear, dear me, surprising, astonishing, and the like.
Interjections not included in the following list, are generally known by their taking an exclamation point after them.
A LIST OF THE PRINCIPAL INTERJECTIONS.
- Of earnestness or grief; as, O! oh! ah! alas!
- Contempt; as, Pish! tush!
- Wonder; as, Heigh! really! strange!
- Calling; as, Hem! ho! halloo!
- Disgust or aversion; as, Foh! fy! fudge! away!
- Attention; as, Lo! behold! hark!
- Requesting silence; as, Hush! hist!
- Salutation; as, Welcome! hail! all hail!
NOTE. We frequently meet with what some call an interjective phrase; such as, Ungrateful wretch! impudence of hope! folly in the extreme! what ingratitude! away with him!
As the interjection is the least important part of speech in the English language, it will require but little attention. You may, however, make yourself well acquainted with what has been said respecting it, and then commit the