Which part of speech is "each" in this sentence?
They each gave me a kiss.
Some thoughts:
The dictionary says "each" can be an adjective, pronoun or adverb.
Adverb? That sounds plausible by analogy from:
They together gave me some money.
But the dictionary's examples for adverbial usage are only things like "ten cents each." So maybe not.
Adjective? The dictionary says:
usage: When the adjective each follows a plural subject, the verb agrees with the subject: The houses each have central heating.
But does that mean "each" is modifying "They"? That sounds weird.
Pronoun? According to this view, "They" and "each" would form an apposition. This "apposition" theory may get support from something like:
They could none of them say anything useful.
if you are (a) inclined to see an apposition of "they : none of them" because "none" is not a dictionary adverb and (b) big on consistent treatment of similar structures.
In sum, the question is on standard treatment by traditional grammar of "They each." (I am adding this remark here after receiving some answers that were very valuable but not a reference to traditional grammar on the exact typographic form "They each.")
Please give me your source or authority for the answer if at all possible.
Best Answer
Each is a Quantifier. Quantifiers, like Articles, are a kind of Determiner.
The quantifiers each and all (but not some or every) can undergo Quantifier-Float,
for example Each/All of them kissed her ==> They each/all kissed her.
but not Every man/Some men kissed her ==> *The men every/some kissed her.
In other words, while quantifiers normally occur before the noun phrase they determine,
in some cases they can occur before the verb phrase, like an adverb or a negative.
This does not mean they are adverbs; it just means they're acting like adverbs.
Just like the fact that a gerund may be acting like a noun in some cases doesn't make it a noun.