MTEL Communication Literacy Skills : Writing Practice Test

What part of speech is "well" when it describes health?

1. Adverb

2. Adjective

3. Noun

4. Pronoun

The correct answer is: Adjective

When "well" is used to describe health, it functions as an adjective. In this context, it describes a state of being, indicating that someone is in good health. For instance, in the sentence "She is well," the word "well" provides information about the subject's health status, serving to modify the subject by indicating a positive condition. Using "well" in this way contrasts with its common role as an adverb, where it often modifies verbs or adjectives to describe the manner in which an action is performed. In the case of health, "well" gives a quality of the noun it's describing, which aligns it clearly with the role of an adjective. The other parts of speech listed, such as noun and pronoun, do not fit because they serve different grammatical functions that do not pertain to describing a state of health.