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The Sentence
Sentence Elements and the Ways of Realizing Them
The Subject (S)
The subject is the first principal sentence element, it is grammatically independent of the other sentence
elements. It may be identified by:
it is realized by a nominal phrase (or any other structure in nominal function)
when referring to persons it can be replaced by a nominal phrase with a personal pronoun
it is in number agreement with the predicator
position is the most important factor in determining the subject of the sentence; in statements,
the subject normally precedes the predicator, while in questions it follows it
The ways of realizing the subject:
Nominal phrases (most usual way)
Mary laughed heartily.
Co-ordinated nominal structures
Mrs. Brown and her daughters arrived first.
The introductory “there” – there is used to introduce the real subject which is usually indefinite
There was no doubt about that.
Adverbial and Prepositional phrases
Now is the time to make holiday plans. Seldom is better than never. – they function primarily in
answers to questions
After breakfast will be soon enough. –the prepositional phrase is classified as subject primarily
according to position, i.e. before the predicator
Infinitives or Infinitival clauses
To err is human, to forgive divine.
To have seen him lose his temper was shocking for all of us.
Introductory it sometimes opens the sentence, the infinitive or infinitival clause itself forms then
the apposed subject:
It is important to know the truth.
It is impossible to make both ends meet.
Gerunds or Gerundial clauses - mainly found in literary English
Seeing is believing. Smoking is a bad habit.
Reading novels is his favourite pastime. – a gerundial clause is more common
Whether he is honest remains to be seen. – finite nominal clauses
Use of Infinitival or a Gerundial Structure as Subject:
It is easier to read German than to speak it. /Reading German is easier than speaking it.
It is not always easy to refuse offers. /Refusing offers is not always easy.
If an action is being considered in a general sense, both structures can be the subject of a
sentence.
To refuse was impossible. – There is no difference between these forms, but the prevailing
tendency is for the infinitive to be used in reference to one particular action.
Eating between meals is bad for the figure. – Gerund is used to express permanent, habitual and
recurring actions
The Predicator (P)
Second main sentence element. Main principles of identifying:
Birds sing./To get there in time we have to take a taxi – always realized by a verbal phrase, finite
or non-finite
The children played. – its position is usually after the subject
Did the children play? – in questions he operator precedes the subject
The gentleman brought Mary flowers. – it precedes the objects and complements
He reads quickly. – it may precede the adverbial adjunct.
Predicator is dependent on the subject – it agrees with it. Sometimes, predicator is omitted: What? You
fool! A finite verbal form is always predicator in the clause.
Complements
most verbs require them in order to complete their meaning: Mr. Brown is a… nice man.
they are usually subdivide into:
o subject complements
o direct objects
o indirect objects
o prepositional objects (objects to prepositional verbs)
o object complements
a linking verb or copula is followed by a subject complement: None of those children seemed
happy.
a transitive verb normally takes a direct object: They speak English.
a ditransitive verb takes an indirect object (IO) as well as a direct object (DO): He sent her a
present.
a prepositional verb is followed by a prepositional object (pO): You’d better not interfere with
your brother’s plans.
a complex transitive verb requires a direct object (DO) and an object complement (OC): They
called him a liar.
The Subject Complement (SC)
Mary became impatient/angry/a beauty.
characterizes the subject
follows the predicator containing a linking verb (copula) and completes the structure
in dependent relationship with the predicator; predicator claims complement to complete its
meaning
main principles of identifying SC are:
o normally follows the subject and the predicator
o these structures cannot undergo passive transformations
The Ways of Realizing the Subject Complement:
Adjectival phrases:
H is an adjective:
The journey was quite pleasant
The waters run deep.
H is a present participle
o after linking verbs (appear, feel, look, seem, sound)
The speech sounds convincing.
o intransitive verbs expressing position (lie, remain, sit, stand) or motion (arrive, come, go,
run)
The patient lay sleeping.
She remained standing.
o verbs of perception and a few other verbs catch, find and keep in passive transforms:
The girls were heard crying.
He was caught stealing.
o the verbs spend and waste if their object contains the noun time or some other nominal
expression of time:
He spent his time working.
We spend the weekends skiing.
H is a past participle:
o linking verbs and verbs expressing position and motion:
The town appeared (looked, seemed) abandoned.
o some verbs in the passive:
The wolf was found shot behind the bushes.
Nominal phrases (SC is realized by a nominal phrase – with a noun at H; has the same identity as the
subject):
Paul is a good student. / He remained her friend.
Occasionally the subject complement is introduced by as:
They remained as a guard.
He went out as captain.
!*He behaved as a gentleman. – not a SC, but an adjunct (He behaved as a gentleman behaves)
Nominal phrases with a pronoun at H are rarely used as SC:
Who is there? It’s me/us/them.
He was himself again.
SC is occasionally expressed by it or so referring to a previously mentioned fact or thought; so is
used as a pronoun and is associated with the verbs be, become, keep, remain, seem:
It was cold yesterday. So it was
Nominal phrases with a numeral at H:
He was twenty last month.
Adverbial and prepositional phrases (denote a state not adverbial relations of place, time, etc):
I am so so. The furniture is in bad condition.
Infinitives or infinitival clauses (linking verb is usually be, only a limited number of nouns denoting
abstract notions can occur as subjects in this structure: act, advice, aim, experience, desire, habit, hope,
reason)
His aim is to win.
The job of a reporter is to expose and record.
bare infinitive can be used after the subject all one can do, the least / the most one can do
All I wanted to do was cut the formalities short.
the subject of the infinitive may be expressed by the structure for + pronoun
His only wish was for his daughter to recover after the accident.
an infinitive or an infinitival clause may be both the subject and the subject complement of a
clause
To decide is to act. To understand is to forgive.
Gerunds or gerundial clauses (occurs mostly after be):
Deciding is acting.
His hobby is collecting stamps
Finite nominal clauses:
The trouble is that he has no money left.
This is what he told me.
The Direct Object (DO)
DO is the receiver of the action expressed by the predicator. Identification:
realized by a nominal phrase or any structure in nominal function
when referring to persons it can be replaced by a nominal phrase with a personal pronoun in the
objective case at H
its position is normally immediately after the predicator
it becomes the subject of passive transforms
word order is very important for the meaning:
The horse kicked the rider. vs. The rider kicked the horse.
The Ways of Realizing the Direct Object:
DO is realized by:
Nominal phrases (simple or complex, with a (pro)noun or any substantivized part of speech)
We met Bill.
Who sent you that
Infinitives or Infinitival Clauses
o number of verbs (catenatives) followed by a to-infinitive or an infinitival clause as object
is quite considerable:
He helped her to wash the dishes.
o after ask, consider, find out, know, see, tell, wonder an interrogative pronoun or adverb
or whether (if) + infinitive function as non-finite object clauses
Ask the policeman how to get there
o after learn, how the word how is optional
Learn (how) to ride a horse.
o after forget the insertion of how changes the meaning.
I’ve forgotten how to do it.
I’ve forgotten to do it.
Gerund or Gerundial Clauses:
o He likes skating.
Have you finished reading the newspaper?
Finite Nominal Clauses:
o She said that she had lost her purse.
He asked why she had not taken better care of it.
The Cognate Object (CO)
Some intransitive verbs take an object called the cognate object which is represented by a nominal
phrase in which the headword is either of the same root as (i.e. cognate with) the verb or has a
derivative form (emphatic reasons). Nouns death, fight, sleep are cognate with the verbs die, fight,
sleep.
They fought a good fight. (bravely)
He lived a good life. (happily)
The Indirect Object (DO)
IO is a second object to or for which the action of the verb is directed. In Slovene it is represented by the
inflexion of the dative case (dečku), in English IO is placed before the direct object.
Ways of Realizing the Indirect Object:
Nominal phrase (with a noun denoting a person or a personal pronoun in the objective case at H
The firm gave their employees an unexpected rise.
I found him a vacant flat.
rarely by a finite clause
Tell whoever rings me up to call back later.
For-Phrase and to-Phrase (strong resemblance in meaning between the IO and prepositional phrases
with for and to which are adjuncts – the position of the to- and for- phrase is after the direct object
He gave the beggar a dime. vs. He gave a dime to the beggar.
He bought himself a new coat. vs. He bought a new coat for himself.
For-Phrase
The IO can be replaced by a for-phrase when it (IO) expresses the person (or thing) for whose
benefit the action is performed. Normally after verbs: bring, buy, choose, cook, do, get, make,
order, play, save, write
While in Paris he bought his wife some perfume. vs. While in Paris he bought some perfume for
his wife.
To-Phrase
Use of the prepositional to-phrase (functioning as adjunct) instead of the indirect object is
restricted to a small group of verbs: announce, ascribe, attribute, communicate, convey,
confide, confess, dedicate, deliver, describe, devote, dictate, entrust, explain, introduce, leave
(prepustiti), mention, point out, propose, prove, relate, reply, repeat, reveal, say, suggest...
She communicated to them the sad news.
Will you explain your plan to us?
o
can be used instead of indirect object when:
 emphasis or contrast is intended:
Hi will not show the paper to her.
 when the direct object is represented by a pronoun and the indirect object ba a
noun:
I’ll give it to the students.
Sell it to your friends.
 in initial position (in interrogative and exclamatory sentences):
To which of those girls did you lend the book?
The Prepositional Object (pO)
Prepositional verbs require an object, a prepositional object to complete their meaning. pO is expressed
by the same structure as DO, but it cannot be expressed directly by infinitives and infinitival clauses nor
by that-clauses.
He’ll have to account for his conduct.
Her parents will not approve of her marriage.
some verbs are followed by a DO and a PO:
The patient thanked the nurse for her unstinting care.
He reminds me of my father.
sentences containing a prepositional verb + object may undergo passive transformations:
We’ll have to deal with that unpleasant matter soon. vs. That unpleasant matter will have to be
dealt with soon.
the preposition immediately follows the verb!
The boy takes after his father. vs. *The boy takes his father after.
!After whom does he take?
The Object Complement (OC)
is in dependent relationship with the predicator, positioned immediately after the direct object with
which it has the same identity; OC may be realized by:
adjectival phrases
This pullover will keep you warm.
Worries turned his hair white.
OC can usually be predicted from the verb, because some structures do not make sense without
an OC (*This pullover will keep you); with some verbs however, OC is not predictable and the
clause will make complete sense without it:
The hunter shot the deer (dead).
nominal phrases
They named the baby Lucas.
The president made him his adviser.
prepositional phrases
We found the flat in good condition.
She found him in despair.
infinitives or infinitival clauses occur as OC after some verbs expressing perception, permission
or command:
I heard her sing.
I watched her come downstairs.
We have never observed him do it otherwise.
participles or participial clauses
We found her sitting on the porch.
I heard my name called twice.
I had (got) my hair cut.
Finite clauses (very rare)
You may call it what you like.
Henry Ford made his firm what it is today.
The Adverbial Adjunct (A)
The adverbial adjunct is usually an optional element in sentence structure, and characterizes an action
as to its quality or quantity, or indicates the time, place, cause, purpose, etc. with which the action is
connected. Adverbial adjuncts are not grammatically necessary, but they add some very important
information.
The children play. vs. The children play happily.
The car is in the garage. She put some flowers into the vase. – in the sentence patterns S P A or
S P DO A, adjunct is obligatory, where the sentence does not make sense without it
Ways of Realizing the Adjunct:
Adverbial phrases
They fought bravely.
We have almost forgotten it.
Prepositional phrases
He could not sit quiet for joy.
During the war the Slovenes were divided by the two Axis Powers.
o Be careful when analysing:
Put the parcel on the desk. – adjunct
The parcel on the desk is for you. – postmodifier of a nominal phrase
Nominal phrases (simple or complex)
He works nights.
The crate weighed seven pounds.
o some NP functioning as adjuncts derive from prepositional phrases
on that day – that day – What happened that day?
o adjuncts cannot undergo passive transformation
This will cost you a fortune. (A, not DO)
*A fortune will be cost you.
Infinitives or infinitival clauses
He went to Bled to paint.
John has come to help you move the furniture.
Participles or participial clauses:
Laughing he turned round.
He went tiptoeing upstairs.
All things considered, he is making a good progress.
Finite clauses
He was late because the traffic was so dense.
He did not stop reading though it was getting dark.
Verbless clauses
The storm over, he set out.
A great admirer of Picasso, he was looking forward to seeing the complete exhibition of his work.
Semantic Classification of Adjuncts depends largely on the lexical meaning of the words represented in
the adjunct. According to their meaning adjuncts may roughly be classified into three large groups:
1. qualitative adjuncts or adjuncts of manner denote the quality of an action e.g. fast, hard, well,
beautifully, by heart, arm in arm, in a rush, by leaps and bounds.
Learning rules by heart is useless.
2. quantitative adjuncts denote intensity or the extent of an action:
a. adjuncts of degree e.g. almost, even, hardly, merely, partly, scarcely
I do not quite understand what he is up to.
b. adjuncts of measure, including cost, distance, weight (usually represented by NP) e.g. a
lot, three miles, two pounds
He spends about 50 p. on bus fares a day.
3. circumstantial adjuncts express various circumstance in which an action takes place
a. adjuncts of time, e.g. now, then, tomorrow, yesterday
Peter took his Master’s degree four years ago
b. adjuncts of frequency, e.g. always, ever, never, seldom, usually, each year, hardly ever,
annually
Buses to Brighton run at short intervals.
c. adjuncts of place and direction e.g. here, there, everywhere, in the corner, in London
Miss Tapley hasn’t been on the stage this season.
d. adjuncts of cause, e.g. on account of illness, due to the weather
The boy was absent from school on account of his illness not laziness.
e. adjuncts of concession, e.g. in spite of, for all his riches
Despite his endeavours he was not promoted.
f. adjuncts of condition, e.g. in case of fire, but for his expert knowledge
In case of danger ring the alarm bell.
g. adjuncts of instrument, e.g. with a carving knife
He succeeded by dint of hard labour.
h. adjuncts of result, e.g.
He worked himself to death.
The house was burned to ashes.
Loose Adjuncts or Disjuncts are those elements which are not incorporated in sentence structure, they
are independent elements used to express the independent opinion of the speaker towards the
situation described in the clause
normally occur in the initial and in medial position
in speech, disjuncts are marked off by a pause, in writing usually by a comma
realized by:
o adverbial phrases, e.g. actually, anyway, clearly, surely
He was, undoubtedly, a hero.
o prepositional phrases, e.g. of course, in fact, to my regret, in short, in brief
To my regret I realized that they had gone before we arrived.
o nominal phrases, e.g. no doubt, no wonder
He is, no doubt, a born actor.
o non-finite clauses with the predicator expressed by an infinitive or participle
To speak frankly, I don’t like the idea of marrying.
Frankly speaking, I admire his originality of the design.
o finite comment clauses, e.g. I believe, I expect, I guess,...
You must be hungry, I suppose.
o interjections expressing emotion, e.g. joy, surprise, pain, anger
Oh, it’s you, Mary!
Gosh, I must have lost my keys!
o forms of direct address, used when we want to attract somebody’s attention
Are you coming, dear?
How are you, Jane?
single answers to questions may also be analysed as loose adjuncts, e.g. yes, no, probably
Sentence structures
Intransitive patterns
(with no complement)
Pattern one:
Pattern two:
Linking or equational
patterns (with SC)
Pattern three A:
Pattern three B:
Transitive Patterns
(with DO)
Pattern four
Patern five
Patern six A
Pattern six B
Pattern seven
SP
SPA
Dogs bark.
The dog is outside.
S P SC (Adj. P)
S P SC (NP)
Dogs are faithful.
Dogs are a nuisance.
S P DO
S P IO DO
S P DO OC
S P DO OC
S P DO A
monotransitive
ditransitive
complex transitive
complex transitive
complex transitive
The dog bit him.
The dog gave us trouble.
The dog made me angry.
He named the dog Rufus.
I put the dog outside
Coordination
A structure of co-ordination consists of two or more syntactical units, which are equal in rank and
perform the same function. They are joined:
asyndetically (with zero marker)
by coordinating conjunction (placed between the syntactical units which they connect, when
they are of the same rank)
o simple: and, but, nor, or
o compound: rather than, as well as, together with
o correlative: not (only)... but (also), either ... or, neither...nor, both... and
When clauses are joined by a co-ordinating conjunction comma may be used:
John and Mary smiled and nodded each other.
The woman looked very miserable, but the man held his head high.
Coordination in Phrase structure
His mother and father (are both engineers).
(The Americans drive) big and powerful cars.
But can besides the co-ordinating function also have the function of:
o a subordination conjunction with a negative implication:
No man is so old but he may learn.
o a preposition meaning “except”:
Everybody was present but him.
o an adverb meaning only:
The film was on but a few days.
Coordination in sentence structure
Following examples are of coordinating:
subject: Cats and dogs are our favourite pets.
predicator: They danced and sang till dawn.
object: They ordered for dessert cheese and biscuits.
subject complement: They felt tired but happy.
object complement: He painted the kitchen furniture yellow and white.
adjunct: We progressed slowly but steadily.
Eliptical sentences
when either their subject or the predicator or both are omitted – the missing element can easily e
identified form the context. They may occur in:
questions: Ready? (Are you ready?)
short answers to wh- and verbal questions:
Where have you been? At Mary’s (At Mary’s place).
in set phrases (used in conversation) the following elements are omitted:
o the subject I or it : Thank you. (I thank you)
o the subject and /or the auxiliary:
Feel any better? (Do you feel...)
o the subject (I, you) and the predicator expressed by a linking verb:
Sorry to be late. (I am sorry...)
o the subject and the predicator expressed by a full lexical verb (mostly in suggestions and
exclamations):
A cup of coffee? (Would you like...)
Bottoms up! (Drink up you wine to the bottom!)
o the impersonal or the introductory subject it and / or the auxiliary:
No use persuading him. (It’s no use...)
Ten o’clock. (It’s ten o’clock.)