Interjections are short words and phrases that express sudden feelings or reactions —
Wow! Ouch! Hey! Oh no!. This ESL guide covers the main categories of common
interjections, multi-word phrases, hesitation fillers (um, uh, well), punctuation
rules, and when to use them (and when to avoid them). With click-to-hear audio.
📝 Interjections unit · the guide + 7 more lessons·🔊 click any example to hear it
What is an interjection?
An interjection is a word or short phrase that shows a strong feeling, a
sudden reaction, or a quick comment. It’s the part of speech we use to express emotion:
surprise, pain, joy, disgust, hesitation, and so on.
Interjections usually stand alone or are separated from the rest of the sentence with a
comma or an exclamation mark.
Examples in sentences
Wow! That sunset is amazing!(surprise)
Ouch! That really hurt.(pain)
Hey! Come over here!(calling attention)
Oh no, I forgot my keys.(sudden realization)
Key features
Interjections don’t change the grammar of a sentence — they add emotion or emphasis.
They can be a single word (Wow!, Oops!) or a
short phrase (Oh my gosh!, Goodness me!).
They are very common in speech and informal writing, but rare in
formal writing like essays or business reports.
The same word can express different feelings depending on tone of voice
— Oh. can mean surprise, sadness, understanding, or boredom.
Interjections cluster around different kinds of feelings or speech functions. Here are the
most common groups, each with words and a sample sentence you can hear.
1. Surprise & amazement
Common words: Wow!, Whoa!, Oh!, Goodness!
Wow! That’s incredible!
Whoa, slow down a bit!
Oh! I didn’t expect that.
2. Realization & understanding
Common words: Aha!, Oh!, Ah!, I see!
Aha! I found the answer!
Ah, now I understand.
Oh, so that’s how it works!
3. Pain & discomfort
Common words: Ouch!, Ow!, Ugh!, Argh!
Ouch! That was sharp.
Ow! My knee hurts.
Argh, I hit my finger again.
4. Happiness & excitement
Common words: Yay!, Hooray!, Awesome!, Yes!, Woo-hoo!
Yay! We won the game!
Hooray! It’s finally Friday!
Woo-hoo! I passed the test!
5. Disgust
Common words: Ew!, Yuck!, Gross!, Eww!, Bleh!
Ew! There’s a spider in my drink.
Yuck, this milk has gone bad.
Gross! Don’t show me that.
6. Sympathy & pity
Common words: Aww, Oh dear, Oh no, Poor thing
Aww, the puppy looks so sad.
Oh dear, I’m sorry to hear that.
Oh no, your phone is broken!
7. Disapproval & annoyance
Common words: Ugh!, Hmm, Eh, Sheesh, Tsk-tsk
Ugh! I don’t like this at all.
Hmm, I’m not sure about that.
Sheesh, that’s a lot of work.
8. Calling attention & greeting
Common words: Hey!, Yo!, Hi!, Hello!, Hiya!
Hey! Watch out!
Yo! What’s up?
Hi! Nice to see you!
9. Agreement & approval
Common words: Yes!, Yeah, Sure!, Okay!, Right!, Indeed!
Yes! That’s exactly what I meant.
Sure, let’s do it!
Okay, sounds good to me.
10. Disagreement & refusal
Common words: No!, Nope, Nah, No way!
No way! I don’t believe it.
Nope, I haven’t seen him today.
Nah, I’m not hungry.
11. Hesitation & filler words
These are the “thinking sounds” we use in conversation when we’re deciding what to say.
Native speakers use them constantly.
Common words: Um, Uh, Er, Well, Hmm, So…
Um, I’m not really sure.
Well, that depends on what you mean.
Uh, what was the question again?
12. Warning & alert
Common phrases: Watch out!, Look out!, Heads up!, Careful!
Grammarians sometimes split interjections into two groups:
Primary interjections — words that are only used as
interjections. They have no other meaning or grammatical role:
Wow!, Ouch!, Ugh!, Oops!, Ah!, Phew!, Hmm!, Aha!
Secondary interjections — words that normally belong to another part of
speech (noun, adjective, verb) but are used as interjections:
Well!, Right!, Boy!, Indeed!, Cool!, Awesome!
Examples of secondary interjections:
Well, I guess we can try again.(well is normally an adverb)
Right, let’s start the meeting.(right is normally an adjective)
Wow! The results of our study were quite surprising.
The results of our study were unexpectedly significant.
Save interjections for conversation, texts, social media, and informal emails.
2. Translating fillers directly from your own language
Each language has its own “thinking sounds.” Using your native filler in English sounds odd:
I think, este, we should go now.
I think, um, we should go now.
3. Stacking exclamation marks
That was amazing!!!
That was amazing!
One exclamation mark is enough. Multiple marks are fine in casual texting but not in
writing for school or work.
4. Confusing tone
Some interjections sound impolite or even offensive depending on the situation. Be careful
with religious ones (Oh my God!, Jesus!, Christ!) and strong language. Use milder
alternatives in polite company.
5. Using Oh! when you mean Aw! (or vice versa)
These small differences matter:
Oh! — surprise or mild realization
Aw! (or Aww) — sympathy or sweetness (often for cute things)
