Download Syntax - English sentence structure

Grammer - Subject and Predicate
What is a subject?
The subject is the person, place, or thing that acts, is acted on, or is described in the
sentence.
There are three types of subjects:1). Simple subject - a noun or a pronoun
she
he
cat
city
2). Complete subject - a noun or a pronoun plus any modifiers
the black cat
the clouds in the sky
his big house
the hungary lion
3). Compound subject - two or more subjects joined by a conjunction
Peter or Harry
the cat and the mouse
she and I
a bat and a ball
What is a predicate?
The predicate usually follows the subject , tells what the subject does, has, or is, what
is done to it, or where it is.It is the action or description that occurs in the sentence.
Like subjects, there are three types of predicates:1). Simple predicate - a complete verb (a verb and any helping verbs)
stand
was dancing
could have sung
is sleeping
2). Complete predicate - a simple predicate plus all modifiers
sit on the couch
was singing sweetly
could have danced across the floor
was reading loudly
3). Compound predicate – two or more predicates with the same subject
was singing quietly and sweetly
could have danced across the floor and stayed awake all night
sit on the couch or sit on the floor
play cards or watch television
Generally all sentences need a subject and a predicate.
Simple
Subject Peter
Complete
Subject My friend Peter------Compound
Subject Peter and I
Simple
Predicate jumped
Complete
Predicate jumped on the bed
Compound
Predicate jumped on the bed and fell on the floor
Subject + Predicate
1).
2).
3).
4).
5).
Peter jumped.
Peter and I jumped.
My friend Peter jumped on the bed.
Peter jumped on the bed and fell on the floor.
Peter and I jumped on the bed.
NOTE :- A command is the only type of sentence that has no subject. The subject
(“you”) is implied. E.g
1). Stop.
Implied subject - you
Predicate - stop
2). Read the book.
Implied subject - you
Predicate - read the book
3). Stand up
Implied subject - you
Predicate – stand up
Lesson 3: Grammar Terms and Sentence
Parts
What is GRAMMAR? Grammar is the set of rules for using a language.
What is a SENTENCE? A sentence is a group of words that express a complete
thought or idea. A sentence always begins with a CAPITAL letter and ends with a
Period ( . ), a Question mark ( ? ) or an Exclamation point ( ! ).
SENTENCE PARTS
Every sentence has two main parts: a SUBJECT, and a PREDICATE.
SUBJECTS
I
The boy
All the women
PREDICATES
He
fell.
is lazy.
chased the mailman
Those dogs
kicked the ball.
away.
pulled the carts into
Six white horses and went to the store and
town and around the
four black ones
bought new gloves.
square.
By looking at the examples above, can you tell what a Subject and a Predicate are?
Subject: Who or what a sentence is about; who or what does something in a sentence;
any words that tell about or describe the main subject.
Predicate: What happens in a sentence; who or what it happens to; words that tell
when, where, why or how the action happens; words that describe who or what the
action happens to.
NOTE: There are words called Linking Verbs that are always part of the Predicate but
do not show any action. The most common ones are AM, IS, ARE, WAS, WERE, BE,
BEING, BEEN. They tell about the existence of something or someone, not what
someone or something does. They are called Linking Verbs because they link the
subject to a word or words in the predicate that mean the same as the subject or that
describe the subject. To learn more about Linking Verbs, click HERE.
What are Subjects made of?
ARTICLES
ADJECTIVES
NOUNS
PRONOUNS
PREPOSITIONAL
PHRASES
a, an
large, small, tiny
man, boy,
woman, family
I, you, we
of the family
the
green, yellow,
horse, dog, cat
he, she, it
in the choir
blue
old, young,
building, tree,
with a long
they
ancient
road
beard
this, that, these,
truck, car,
who, which,
from the office
those
bicycle
what
staff
happiness,
this, that, these,
one, five, twenty
on the corner
sadness
those
naked, wealthy,
one, anyone,
without a spare
freedom, slavery
tired, great
nobody
tire
Articles: Point out nouns; signal that a noun is close ahead in a sentence. Nouns can
be used without an article, but articles can never be used without a noun.
Adjectives: Describe nouns. They tell what kind, which one, how many, what size,
what color a noun is.
Nouns: Any word that names something is a noun. The name of a person, a place, a
thing, an idea, an emotion, or an activity is a noun. If it is a particular person, place or
thing (George, New York, Cadillac), it is a Proper Noun and must be written with a
capital letter. If it is a general name (man, city, automobile), it is a common noun with
no capital letter.
Pronouns: Pronouns take the place of nouns when we write or speak. (Tom did not
come to work today. He was sick.)
Prepositional Phrases: These small groups of words tell us which one or what kind the
sentence is referring to. (The building on the corner is tall. Which building? Not the
one across the street or the one in the middle of the block, but the one "on the
corner".)
Not all of these parts need to be in a subject, but all of them may be. This is how,
using parts from the box above... (predicates will be in parentheses ).
He (was sick.)
The man (was sick.)
The wealthy old man (was sick.)
That ancient yellow truck without a spare tire (drove down the street.)
The great sadness of the large family in the choir (depressed me.)
What are Predicates made of?
VERBS
ADVERBS ARTICLES ADJECTIVES NOUNS PRONOUNS
am, is,
are
very, hardly
was,
were
quickly,
slowly
go, went,
come,
walked
run,
jump,
hide,
threw
like,
have,
take
a
this, that
girl,
boy,
dog,
ball
me, you
an
river,
these, those
car, fog
him, her
the
one, five, concert,
many, few, movie,
several
play
us, them
where,
everywhere,
home
big, little, running,
old, young, singing,
pretty, sad
day
anyone,
someone
when, until
blue, red,
dirty, clean,
disgusting
now, then,
here, there
pity,
cheer,
deer
PREPOSITIONAL
PHRASES
in the back seat,
to her teammate
under the pine
tree, before
halftime
between the
pages, on the
roof
after the party,
before dinner
nobody, during the class,
everybody
with difficulty
Verbs: Words that describe or name an action; words that describe a state of being or
existence. Every predicate must have a verb. Verbs also tell us when something
happens or exists - in the past, the present or the future.
Adverbs: Adverbs modify (add to the meaning of) verbs. They describe when, where,
why or how something happens. Adverbs can also modify adjectives and other
adverbs.
Pronouns: Different pronouns are used in the predicate than are used in the subject.
Subject Pronouns do it and Predicate Pronouns receive it. (They gave the balls to
them. He showed the book to him.)
Examples of Predicates. (Subjects are in parentheses ).
(I) am sad.
(He) walked.
(He) slowly walked home.
(She) threw the ball.
(She) quickly threw the ball to her teammate.
Before halftime, (she) quickly threw the ball to her teammate.
Sentences can have one word or one hundred words, but every one must have a
subject and a predicate. Here are several examples.
1. Stop! (This sentence would be spoken directly to one or more persons, so it
contains an understood but not written subject "You" with the predicate - stop! )
2. Mary dances. (Mary = subject, dances= predicate.)
3. The bear is sleeping. ( The bear = subject , is sleeping = predicate )
4. Last night, Mr. Thompson took his garbage out to the can. ( Mr. Thompson = subject
, Last night [adverb telling when the action happened] took his garbage out to the can
= predicate )
5. The little black kitten in the cardboard box meowed sadly when the lights were
turned off. ( The little black kitten in the cardboard box = subject , meowed sadly when
the lights were turned off = predicate )
Exercise A: Draw a circle around the subjects and underline the predicates in the
sentences below.
1. Yesterday, Harvey and Harriet took their children to the zoo.
2. The elephants, the lions, and all of the other animals were hungry.
3. The president of the bank looked everywhere for the combination to the vault.
4. They sat quietly.
5. The red race car with yellow stripes finished last in the race.
6. After his speech, the mayor shook hands with members of the crowd.
Exercise B: Match a subject with a predicate from the boxes below and write the
complete sentences on the lines.






Subjects
The dirty yellow cat
We
Tom and his brother
The taxi driver
Anna's elderly mother
The green tree snake






Predicates
stood outside the hotel all night.
prowled through the dark alley.
lived in the attic last winter.
baked delicious apple pies.
were late yesterday.
sold used cars.


The detective in the gray raincoat
Seven rats


was from the Middle East.
waited patiently for his victim.
1. ________________________________________________________________________
2. _______________________________________________________________________
3. ________________________________________________________________________
4. ________________________________________________________________________
5. ________________________________________________________________________
6. ________________________________________________________________________
7. ________________________________________________________________________
8. ________________________________________________________________________
Practice reading English with original, illustrated children's stories at
Order Basic English Set printed on paper
c. 2010, Mikie Metric Productions,
or recorded on a CD in both print and
Williamsport, PA 17701
Audio MP3 versions, or get the free
lessons by e-mail.
Answers to Exercises, Lesson 3:
Exercise A:
1. Yesterday, (Harvey and Harriet) took their children to the zoo.
2. (The elephants, the lions, and all of the other animals) were hungry.
3. (The president of the bank) looked everywhere for the combination to the vault.
4. (They) sat quietly.
5. (The red race car with yellow stripes) finished last in the race.
6. After his speech, (the mayor) shook hands with members of the crowd.
Exercise B: Answers will vary. Here are some possibilities.
1. The dirty yellow cat prowled through the dark alley. (waited patiently for his victim.
lived in the attic last winter. stood outside the hotel all night. was from the Middle
East.)
2. We were late yesterday. (stood outside the hotel all night. prowled through the dark
alley. baked delicious apple pies. sold used cars. lived in the attic last winter.)
3. Tom and his brother sold used cars. (stood outside the hotel all night. prowled
through the dark alley. lived in the attic last winter.)
4. The taxi driver was from the Middle East. (stood outside the hotel all night. prowled
through the dark alley. lived in the attic last winter. baked delicious apple pies. sold
used cars. waited patiently for his victim.)
5. Anna's elderly mother baked delicious apple pies. (stood outside the hotel all night.
prowled through the dark alley. lived in the attic last winter. sold used cars. was from
the Middle East.)
6. The green tree snake waited patiently for his victim. (prowled through the dark
alley. lived in the attic last winter. was from the Middle East.)
7. The detective in the gray raincoat stood outside the hotel all night. (prowled through
the dark alley. lived in the attic last winter. baked delicious apple pies. sold used
cars. waited patiently for his victim.)
8. Seven rats lived in the attic last winter. (prowled through the dark alley.)
Syntax - English sentence structure
Introduction: This page contains some basic information about sentence structure (syntax) and
sentence types. It also includes examples of common sentence problems in written English. ESL
students who understand the information on this page and follow the advice have a better chance of
Definition: Linguists have problems in agreeing how to define the word sentence. For this web page,
sentence will be taken to mean: 'a sequence of words whose first word starts with a capital letter and
whose last word is followed by an end punctuation mark (period/full stop or question mark or
exclamamtion mark)'. On the basis of this definition, some of the sentences written by ESL students
(indeed by all writers) will be correct, and other sentences will be problematic. Good readers (English
teachers, for example!) can quickly see the difference between a correct and a problematic sentence.
Subject/predicate: All sentences are about something or someone. The something or someone that the
sentence is about is called the subject of the sentence. In the following sentences the subjects are shown
in red. Note how the subject is often, but not always, the first thing in the sentence.




John often comes late to class.
My friend and I both have a dog named Spot.
Many parts of the Asian coastline were destroyed by a tsunami in 2004.
The old hotel at the end of the street is going to be knocked down to make way for a new
supermarket.
Sitting in a tree at the bottom of the garden was a huge black bird with long blue tail feathers.




The grade 7 Korean boy who has just started at FIS speaks excellent English.
On Saturdays I never get up before 9 o'clock.
Before giving a test the teacher should make sure that the students are well-prepared.
Lying on the sofa watching old films is my favourite hobby.
The predicate contains information about the someone or something that is the subject. The example
sentences above are shown again, this time with the predicate marked in green.








John often comes late to class.
My friend and I both have a dog named Spot.
Many parts of the Asian coastline were destroyed by a tsunami in 2004.
The old hotel at the end of the street is going to be knocked down to make way for a new
supermarket.
Sitting in a tree at the bottom of the garden was a huge black bird with long blue tail feathers.
The grade 7 Korean boy who has just started at FIS speaks excellent English.
On Saturdays I never get up before 9 o'clock.
Before giving a test the teacher should make sure that the students are well-prepared.
Lying on the sofa watching old films is my favourite hobby.
Simple subject/predicate: As you can see from the example sentences above both the subject and the
predicate can consist of many words. The simple subject is the main word in the subject, and the simple
predicate is the main word in the predicate. The simple subject is always a noun/pronoun and the simple
predicate is always a verb.
In the following sentences the simple subject is shown in red and the simple predicate is shown in green.






My ESL teacher speaks a little Russian.
The young girl with the long black hair fell from her bike yesterday in heavy rain.
At the back of the line in the cafeteria yesterday was a large brown dog with a yellow collar
around its neck!
My friend and I are going on holiday together this year.
Your mother or your father must come to the meeting.
Sitting in a tree at the bottom of the garden was a huge black bird with long blue tail feathers.
From the last three examples sentences above you will notice that the simple subjects and simple
predicates can be more than one word.
Advice: To write strong, clear sentences you must know who or what you are writing about (subject)
and what you want to say about them or it (predicate). Your writing will be more interesting if the
subject is not the first thing in every sentence you write.
Do a quiz to identify simple subjects and predicates.
Sentence types: One way to categorize sentences is by the clauses they contain. (A clause is a part of a
sentence containing a subject and a predicate.) Here are the 4 sentence types:

Simple: Contains a single, independent clause.
o I don't like dogs.
o Our school basketball team lost their last game of the season 75-68.
o The old hotel opposite the bus station in the center of the town is probably going to be
knocked down at the end of next year.

Compound: Contains two independent clauses that are joined by a coordinating conjunction.
(The most common coordinating conjunctions are: but, or, and, so. Remember: boas.)
o I don't like dogs, and my sister doesn't like cats.
o You can write on paper, or you can use a computer.
o A tree fell onto the school roof in a storm, but none of the students was injured.

Complex: Contains an independent clause plus one or more dependent clauses. (A dependent
clause starts with a subordinating conjunction. Examples: that, because, while, although, where,
if.)
o I don't like dogs that bark at me when I go past.
o She did my homework, while her father cooked dinner.
o You can write on paper, although a computer is better if you want to correct mistakes
easily.
Note: A dependent clause standing alone without an independent clause is called a fragment
sentence - see below.

Compound-complex: Contains 3 or more clauses (of which at least two are independent and
one is dependent).
o I don't like dogs, and my sister doesn't like cats because they make her sneeze.
o You can write on paper, but using a computer is better as you can easily correct your
mistakes.
o A tree fell onto the school roof in a storm, but none of the students was injured, although
many of them were in classrooms at the top of the building.
Advice: Writing that contains mostly short, simple sentences can be uninteresting or even irritating to
read. Writing that consists of mostly long, complex sentences is usually difficult to read. Good writers,
therefore, use a variety of sentence types. They also occasionally start complex (or compound-complex)
sentences with the dependent clause and not the independent clause. In the following examples the
dependent clause is shown in red:


Although it was raining, we decided to go fishing.
If it doesn't rain soon, the river will dry out.

Because the road was icy and the driver was going too fast, he was unable to brake in time when
a fox ran into the road in front of him.
Note: Sentences can also be categorized according to their function. [More]
Note: Independent clauses are also called main clauses. Dependent clauses are also called subordinate
clauses.
Do a quiz to identify clause types. Do a quiz to identify sentence types.
Problematic 'sentences': To write a correct sentence, you need to have a good understanding of what
a sentence is. Students who don't have this understanding, or don't take care, often include problem
sentences in their writing. Native English speakers are just as likely to write problem sentences as ESL
students. There are three main types of problem sentence:


Run-on sentences: These are two sentences that the writer has not separated with an end
punctuation mark, or has not joined with a conjunction. (Click the following run-ons to see
where they should be separated into two sentences.)
o I went to Paris in the vacation it is the most beautiful place I have ever visited.
o It's never too late to learn to swim you never know when you may fall from a boat.
o If you're going to the shops can you buy me some eggs and flour I want to make a cake.
o I like our new math teacher, she always explains the work very clearly.
o He was late to school again, his bus got caught in heavy traffic.
Advice: It is helpful to read your written work aloud. When you speak, you will make natural
pauses to mark the end of your sentences or clauses. If there is no corresponding end punctuation
mark in your writing, you can be almost certain that you have written a run-on sentence.
Sentence fragments: Fragment sentences are unfinished sentences, i.e. they don't contain a
complete idea. A common fragment sentence in student writing is a dependent clause standing
alone without an independent clause. In the each of the following examples the fragment is the
second 'sentence', shown in red:
o I don't think I'm going to get a good grade. Because I didn't study.
o She got angry and shouted at the teacher. Which wasn't a very good idea.
o He watched TV for an hour and then went to bed. After falling asleep on the sofa.
o She got up and ran out of the library. Slamming the door behind her.
o I have to write a report on Albert Einstein. The famous scientist who left Europe to live in
the USA.
o After riding my bike without problems for over a year, the chain broke. 40 kilometers
from my house!
Advice: If your 'sentence' is a dependent clause, or it doesn't contain both a subject and a
predicate, then it is not a proper sentence. You can often detect fragments if you read your writing
backwards sentence by sentence, i.e. from the last sentence to the first one. You can usually
correct a fragment by connecting it to the sentence before or after it.

Good writers, who have a full understanding of the sentence, occasionally choose to write a
sentence fragment. So you may see sentence fragments in the fiction or even some of the nonfiction you read. As an ESL student, however, you should avoid fragments (except when writing
your own creative stories).
Rambling sentences: A rambling sentence is a sentence made up of many clauses, often
connected by a coordinating conjunction such as and, or, so.
o John usually gets up before 7 o'clock, but yesterday his alarm clock did not ring, so he was
still asleep when his boss called him at 10.30 to ask where he was and tell him that he
would lose his job if he was late again.
o Although the blue whale has been protected for over 30 years and its numbers are
increasing, especially in the North Pacific, where whale hunting has been banned, it is still
at risk of extinction as its habitat is being polluted by waste from oil tankers and its main
food, the plankton, is being killed off by harmful rays from the sun, which can penetrate
the earth's atmosphere because there is a huge hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica.
Advice: A rambling sentence is quite easy to spot. You have almost certainly written one if your
sentence contains more than 3 or 4 conjunctions. If you read the sentence aloud and run out of
breath before reaching the end of it, you have written a rambling sentence. If your sentence
stretches over many lines of writing, you have certainly written a rambling sentence and most
probably a run-on sentence too.
Unlike run-ons or fragments, rambling sentences are not wrong, but they are tiresome for the
reader and one of the signs of a poor writer. You should avoid them.
Do a quiz to identify problematic sentences.
General advice: If you are not sure whether you have written a good, correct sentence, ask your
teacher! And remember: The more you read in English, the better a writer you will become. This is
because reading good writing provides you with models of English sentence structure that will have a
positive influence on your own written work.
Note: Good writing consists not only of a string of varied, correctly-structured sentences. The sentences
must also lead from one to the next so that the text is cohesive and the writer's ideas are coherent. For
information on these two important concepts, go to the Language words for non-language teachers page
and click on Cohesion.
Definition of a Predicate
In order to facilitate an easy and better comprehension of what a predicate is, given here is a
definition that might help you out.
A predicate is that part of a sentence, which tells us more about the subject of the sentence. A
predicate always contains the verb in the sentence and describes the action of the subject or the
subject itself.
What is a Predicate in a Sentence
In order to understand the definition of a predicate better, here is an example of a predicate in a
sentence.
Example: The girl picked up the flowers.
Now, in the above example, the sentence will be broken up into two parts: the subject and the
predicate. First let us see what is the subject. In order to find that out, we must ask the questions
'what' or 'who'. In this case, we will ask the question 'who' is this sentence about. The sentence is
about the girl. So, the girl becomes the subject of the sentence. Now, to find out what is the predicate
in this sentence, we know that the predicate is something that tells us more about the subject and
also contains the verb. So, in this case, we'll ask the question, 'what'. What did the girl do? She 'picked
up the flowers'. Since this part tells us more about the 'action' that the girl performed, it is the
predicate of the sentence.
Types of Predicates
Given below are some of the most basic types of predicates. They are fairly easy to understand. They
are accompanied by examples, so you needn't worry at all.
What is a Simple Predicate
This is the most basic type of predicate. When, in a sentence, a single predicate modifies or describes
the subject (whether simple or compound), it is a simple predicate.
Example: The girl with the blue hat rode the bicycle.
In this sentence, the subject is 'the girl'. There is another part describing her, 'with the blue hat'.
However, this does not qualify as the predicate. Why? Because it does not contain the verb of the
sentence. The latter half, 'rode the bicycle' is the part that actually completes the sentence. Such a
simple completion, which is done with the use of the verb of the sentence is called a simple predicate.
What is a Compound Predicate
A compound predicate has more than one verb in a sentence, and they both describe the same
subject or subjects.
Example: The cat and the mouse ran across the fields and then rested under the tree.
In the above sentence, 'the cat' and 'the mouse' are the two subjects. The latter half, 'ran across the
fields and then rested under the tree', as you can see contains two verbs. Both these verbs are telling
us about the subject/s of the sentence. Hence, this type of predicate is called a compound predicate.
What is a Predicate Adjective
A predicate adjective, as the name suggests, has something to do with the predicate and an adjective.
So, a predicate, when it contains an adjective, describing the verb is called a predicate adjective or a
predicative adjective.
Example: We ran to the tall lighthouse.
In this sentence, the subject is 'we'. What did we do? We ran to the lighthouse. But 'which'
lighthouse? The 'tall' lighthouse. So, within the predicate, the word 'tall' complements the verb that
links the subject and the predicate.
What is a Predicate Nominative
A predicative nominative or a nominal predicative occurs when, in a sentence, the linking verb is
followed by a noun or a pronoun. If the predicate contains a noun, after the verb, it is a predicative
nominative.
Example: They gave him his hat.
In this sentence, the subject is 'they'. What did they do? They 'gave him his hat'. As you can see, there
occurs a noun after the linking verb 'gave'. It is complementing the verb in the predicate using a noun,
and hence is also the answer to the question what is a predicate noun.