interjection

noun

in·​ter·​jec·​tion ˌin-tər-ˈjek-shən 

1

: an ejaculatory utterance usually lacking grammatical connection: such as

a

: a word or phrase used in exclamation (such as Heavens! Dear me!)

b

: a cry or inarticulate utterance (such as Alas! ouch! phooey! ugh!) expressing an emotion

2

a

: the act of uttering exclamations : ejaculation

b

: the act of putting in between : interposition

3

: something that is interjected or that interrupts

Did you know?

What is an interjection?

An interjection is a word or phrase that is grammatically independent from the words around it, and mainly expresses feeling rather than meaning.

Oh, what a beautiful house!

Uh-oh, this looks bad.

Well, it's time to say good night.

Actually, um, it's not my dog.

Shoot. I thought I'd fixed that.

I can't believe I lost the key! Ugh!

Interjections are common in speech and are much more common in electronic messages than in other types of writing.

Synonyms

• cry
• ejaculation
• exclamation

Examples of interjection in a Sentence

interjections such as “oh,” “alas,” and “wow”

a chorus of angry interjections greeted the announcement that our flight would be delayed

Recent Examples on the Web

Further, our species uses interjections to express emotions. —Katarzyna Pisanski, Scientific American, 21 Feb. 2025

Emotional vocalizations and interjections have been observed in every human culture studied to date. —Katarzyna Pisanski, Scientific American, 21 Feb. 2025

This suggests that pain interjections may have originated from nonlinguistic vocalizations. —Katarzyna Pisanski, Scientific American, 21 Feb. 2025

Those harsh, swelling wails of warning become the film’s punctuating sonic motif — in stark contrast to the buoyant, babbling vocal interjections of Alexey Shmurak’s unexpected a cappella score, a literal chorus of humanity amid the chaos. —Guy Lodge, Variety, 20 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for interjection

• circumspection
• disaffection
• disconnection
• disinfection
• dorsiflexion
• imperfection
• indirection
• insurrection
• intellection
• intersection
• introjection
• introspection

Kids Definition

interjection

noun

in·​ter·​jec·​tion ˌint-ər-ˈjek-shən 

1

: an interjecting of something

2

: something interjected

3

: a word or cry expressing sudden or strong feeling

interjectional

-shnəl

-shən-ᵊl

adjective

interjectionally

-shnəl-ē

-shən-ᵊl-ē

adverb