THE SOLITARY REAPER
BEHOLD her, single in the field,
Yon solitary Highland Lass!
Reaping and singing by herself:
Stop here, or gently pass!
Alone she cuts and binds the grain,
And sings a melancholy strain:
O' listen! for the Vale profound
Is overflowing with the sound.
No Nightingale did ever chaunt
More welcome notes to weary bands
Of travellers in some shady haunt.
Among Arabian sands:
A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard
In spring-time from the Cuckoo-bird,
Breaking the silence of the seas
Among the farthest Hebrides.
Read the given sentence and answer the following question from the options given below. 'Stop here, OR gently pass!'
The part of speech for 'OR' is :
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Conjunction
Conjunction:
- A conjunction joins words, phrases or clauses (and, but, or, because).
- Or joins two alternatives.
- In "Stop here, or gently pass!" it links two commands, "stop here" and "gently pass", and offers the reader a choice between them.
Example: You can have tea or coffee.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: Noun — Incorrect. A noun names a person, place or thing (field, grain, Lass); "or" names nothing.
Option 3: Interjection — Incorrect. An interjection is a word that expresses sudden feeling, such as "O" in "O listen!"; "or" expresses no feeling.
Option 4: Preposition — Incorrect. A preposition shows the relation of a noun or pronoun to another word (in the field); here "or" is not followed by a noun but joins two commands.