Download English features four core sentence elements: subjects

English features four core sentence elements: subjects, predicates,
complements, and modifiers.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES [ edit ]
List the four core sentence elements
Demonstrate the usage of each of the four core sentence elements
KEY POINTS [ edit ]
The subject of a sentence is a noun or pronoun, which commonly performs the action or actions of
the sentence.
The predicate in the sentence is the verb or verb phrase, linked to the subject, that tells what action is
being performed.
A complement in a sentence is a noun or adjective that completes the meaning begun by the subject
and predicate.
There are subdivisions within the category of compliments: direct object, predicate nominative, and
predicate adjective.
Beyond the subject, predicate, and complement, pretty much everything else in a sentence is a
modifier.
There are different types of modifiers: single­word modifiers, phrase modifiers, and clause
modifiers.
TERMS [ edit ]
subject
In a clause: the word or word group (usually a noun phrase) that is dealt with. In active clauses with
verbs denoting an action, the subject and the actor are usually the same.
sentence fragment
An incomplete sentence; a phrase or clause that is punctuated and capitalized as a sentence but does
not constitute a complete grammatical sentence. It is usually caused by the failure to include a subject
and a verb in a sentence or as the result of beginning a sentence with a subordinate conjunction or
relative pronoun.
predicate
The part of the sentence (or clause) which states something about the subject or the object of the
sentence.
modifier
A word, phrase, or clause that limits or qualifies the sense of another word or phrase.
EXAMPLES [ edit ]
For example: "The black cat carried the fish in his mouth. " Subject = the black cat. Predicate =
carried the fish in his mouth. Complement = the fish. Modifier = in his mouth.
The black cat carried the fish in his mouth.
Subject = the black cat
Predicate = carried the fish in his mouth
Complement = the fish
Modifier = in his mouth
The children were given lunch and brought to the dentist by Lindsay and Phil.
Subject: the children
Predicates: were given lunch and brought to the dentist by Lindsay and Phil
Complements: lunch, to the dentist
Modifier: by Lindsay and Phil
Give us feedback on this content: FULL TEXT [ edit ]
In order to successfully craft sentences in the English language, one must first understand
the four core sentence elements: subjects, predicates, complements, and modifiers. A firm
understanding of the elements of a sentence will help you to avoid sentence fragments in
your writing. A sentence fragment is an incomplete sentence usually caused by the failure to
include a subject and a verb or as the result of beginning a sentence with a subordinate
conjunction orrelative pronoun.
To initiate a discussion of these elements, we will start with the basics and use simple
examples. It is important to understand that there are many gray areas of definition and
usage when it comes to English­language sentence construction. The following examples will
not cover most of those gray areas, but they should provide a solid starting point.
Subject
The subject of a sentence is a noun or pronoun. In active­voice sentences, it is the noun or
pronoun performing the action in the sentence. In the examples below, "boy," "she," and
"Mark" are all subjects.
The boy crossed the street.
She works in the city.
Mark is a good athlete.
Predicate
The predicate of a sentence is the verb or verb phrase, linked to the subject, which tells what
action is being performed by that subject. In the examples above, "crossed the street," "works
in the city" and "is a good athlete" are all predicates.
One thing to keep in mind in terms of predicates is that forms of the verb "to be" (am, is, are,
was, were, be, been, etc. ) are sometimes as predicates and sometimes used as tense or mood
indicators in a verb phrase. For example:
The boy was tall. ( Verb used as a predicate. )
We should be arriving soon. (Verb phrase used as a mood indicator—in this case, the
subjunctive mood).
Forms of the verb "to be" are also tricky because they do not show a physical action, which
we normally expect verbs to do. Instead, forms of the verb "to be" belong to category of verbs
called linking verbs. These verbs serve as a kind of verbal equivalent to an equal sign in math.
For example:
The house is green.
She seems angry.
The burden became excessive.
Complement
Some verbs require a complement (usually a noun oradjective) to complete the meaning
begun by the subject and a verb. There are called transitive verbs. For example:
The student raised his hand.
The plants in the lobby are beautiful.
Some verbs never need a complement—these are called intransitive verbs. For example:
Mary smiled.
Fred died.
Some verbs can be used transitively or intransitively, depending on the context. For example:
The parents left their daughter at school. ( In this sentence, "left" is used transitively,
with the noun phrase "their daughter" acting as the complement).
After the concert, the audience left. (In this sentence, "left" is used intransitively, as it
does not need a complement to complete the meaning of the subject­predicate
combination. )
Within the category of complements, there are several sub­categories:
Direct object: A noun complement following an action verb. For example: George carried
the plants to the car. ("plants" is the direct object)
Predicate nominative: A noun complement following a linking verb. For example: George
is a marathoner.
Predicate adjective: An adjective complement following and a linking verb. For example:
George ran fast.
Modifier
A modifier is a phrase in a sentence that provides additional information about an element
within that sentence. Pretty much everything else in a sentence beyond the subject,
predicate, and complement, is a modifier of one kind or another. There are three basic kinds
of modifying constructions:
Single­word modifiers (adjectives and adverbs) ­ It was [a nice house]. ( adjective
modifying a noun, in a noun phrase)
Modifying phrases (e.g. prepositional, participial,infinitive, and appositive phrases) ­
Barry Goldwater, the junior senator from Arizona, received the Republican nomination
in 1964. (appositive phrase)
Modifying clauses (a clause is any group of words with its own subject and predicate) ­
The only one of the seven dwarfs who does not have a beard is Dopey. (adverbial clause)
Compound Elements
In a given sentence, there may be more than one of any of the four core sentence elements.
Compound elements can include:
Compound Subject: Mary and Tom went to the dance.
Compound Predicate: He ran to the house and knocked on the door.
Compound Complement: I bought pencils and paper at the store.
Compound Modifier: He rode a black and white pony.
Verb Phrases
Verb phrases usually function as the predicate of a sentence, but can also sometimes function
as other parts of speech. For example, in the sentence "Going to the grocery store is my
favorite activity" the verb phrase "going to the grocery store" functions as a noun in the
sentence.
Sentence Diagram 1
This diagram shows some of the component parts of a sentence, and demonstrates how they relate to
each other.