Subject, Predicate, Complements Parts of a Sentence Subject, Predicate, Complements

Quick Activity Write one sentence. What did you have to include to make that a sentence? How did you know that was a sentence? What makes a sentence a sentence?

Examining Sentences They race. (Jerry Spinelli, Loser, p. 5) Who or what did something? What did they do?

Simple formula Subject + Verb = simple sentence The light cluster brilliantly up the street at Claudia’s house. (p.174)

So…What is a sentence? A sentence is a word or word group that contains a subject and a verb that expresses a complete thought. Fragment = word or word group that is capitalized and punctuated as a sentence but that does not contain both a subject and a verb or does not express a complete thought.

Questions to ask yourselves: Who or what did something = subject: who or what the sentence is about 2. What did they do? = predicate: main word or word group that tells something about the subject.

Matt winces. Maria flinched. Matt froze. Matt nodded.

Fragment vs. Sentence Fragment: The room with the high ceiling. Sentence: The room with the high ceiling glowed in the sunset. Fragment: After you have finished the test. Sentence: Exit quietly after you have finished the test.

Um…is this a fragment? [You] Stop! Pass the asparagus, please. [You]

Coyotes were howling in the distance. The telephone in the lobby rang.

Simple Subject and Predicate Simple subject = main word or word group that tells whom or what the sentence is about Simple predicate (verb) = main word or word group that tells something about the subject

Examples Rihanna sang her heart out at the benefit concert. The Jonas Brothers also performed.

Prepositional Phrases Subject of a verb is never in a prepositional phrase (which I will explain later). Most of the women voted. One of the parakeets in the pet shop looks like ours.

Complements Complement = word or word group that completes the meaning of a verb. Some groups of words need more than a subject or a verb to express a complete thought.

Complement Examples Aunt Edna looks happy. Marcella might become a chemist.

The 4 Kinds of Sentences: Declarative: makes a statement and ends with a period. Interrogative: asks a question and ends with a question mark. Imperative: makes a request or gives a command. Exclamatory: shows excitement or expresses strong feeling and ends with an exclamation mark.