interjection

noun

in·ter·jec·tion | \ ˌin-tər-ˈjek-shən

Definition of interjection

1a : the act of uttering exclamations : ejaculation

b : the act of putting in between : interposition

2 : 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

3 : something that is interjected or that interrupts

Synonyms What is an interjection? Example Sentences Learn More about interjection

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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.

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

The interjection set a tone that Judge Ellis has kept throughout the first week of Mr. Manafort’s trial on tax-and bank-fraud charges. — Aruna Viswanatha, WSJ, "‘Move It Along’: Manafort Judge Sets a Brisk Pace for Prosecutors," 5 Aug. 2018 Like ew, there's another interjection now in play, yowza, along with a word some might have thought was already allowed: zen. — Leanne Italie, Fox News, "Scrabble dictionary adds 'OK,' 'ew' to official play along with hundreds of other new words," 24 Sep. 2018 Like ew, there’s another interjection now in play, yowza, along with a word some might have thought was already allowed: zen. — Leanne Itali, The Seattle Times, "Yowza! Scrabble dictionary update adds ‘OK,’ ‘ew’ to official play," 24 Sep. 2018 Mbappe plays up front so his interjections are by nature more occasional, yet also more instantly destructive. — Martin Rogers, USA TODAY, "After World Cup, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi may lose best player tags," 13 July 2018 There are no pauses, few adverbs, and, most notably, few interjections by Faye. — Josephine Livingstone, The New Republic, "The Empty Space of Rachel Cusk," 15 June 2018 The group’s distinctive bird-like interjections — scerrrrrl! — still accent most songs. — John Adamian, courant.com, "Migos To Perform At Hot Jam At Xfinity Theatre," 12 May 2018 The orchestra also faces technical hurdles, from the unusual tuning asked of the concertmaster and principal viola, to melodic interjections from a quartet of ocarinas that produce a sound similar to an ensemble of treble voices. — Elaine Schmidt, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Program change makes for an effective blend in Milwaukee Symphony performance," 2 Feb. 2018 Franz’s fate unfurls around the Weimar era’s famously down-at-the-heels Alexanderplatz, and Döblin intersperses his story with overheard conversations, weather reports, advertisements, parallel mini-narratives and interjections by the narrator. — Amanda Demarco, WSJ, "‘Berlin Alexanderplatz’ Review: A Low-Life for the Ages," 23 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'interjection.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.