McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 1 Prepared by Professors Rita Perkins and Paul Harris, Camden County College Prepared by Professors Rita Perkins and Paul Harris, Camden County College

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 2 u The basic building blocks of English sentences are subjects and verbs. –Who or what the sentence speaks about is called the subject. –What the sentence says about the subject is called the verb.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 3 Find the Subject…. Who or what is the sentence about? 1. My best friend studies marine biology. Friend 2. Sharks attack their prey. Sharks 3. Michael works on a submarine. Michael

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 4 Find the Verb…. There are three ways to find the verb. 1. My best friend studies marine biology. 1. What does the subject do? Studies 1. Sharks attack their prey. 1. What does the subject do? Attack

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 5 Find the Verb…. There are three ways to find the verb. (I, you, he, she, it, or they) 2. Put a pronoun (I, you, he, she, it, or they) in front of the word you think is a verb. If the result makes sense, you have a verb.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 6 Find the Verb…. There are three ways to find the verb. linking verbs 3. Recognize the linking verbs. They do not show action. Instead, they give information. I am tall. Bob seems unhappy.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 7 u Many verbs consist of more than one word. “helping” verb. u The verb often has a “helping” verb. is writing –Mike is writing a report about the great white shark. are studying –We are studying about the jaws and teeth of sharks.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 8 not justneveralwaysonly ¬ Words like not, just, never, always, and only are not part of the verb. doessleep  A shark does not sleep. have feared  People have always feared sharks. LOOKS“to” ­ When what LOOKS like a verb has a “to” in front of it, it is not a verb. like  Sharks like to live in cold water. Notes:

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 9  No -ing word by itself is the verb of the sentence. ( It may be part of the verb, but it must have a helping verb in front of it.) When hunting for sharks, people rarely use the term fishing. Not the verb Verb Michael is hunting for sharks tomorrow. Verb (with a helper)

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 10 u A sentence may have more than one verb. –The shark swam and attacked. u A sentence may have more than one subject. –Dolphins and whales have some protection from sharks.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 11 subject prepositional phrase u The subject of a sentence never appears within a prepositional phrase. prepositional phrase u A prepositional phrase is simply a group of words that begins with a preposition and ends with an object.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 12 u Subject: exhibit u Verb: is An interesting exhibit of a killer whale is very popular at the new aquarium. popular at the new aquarium. Prepositional phrases: of a killer whale at the new aquarium

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 13 brother u Subject: brother expects u Verb: expects Identify the subjects and verbs in the and verbs in thefollowing. My brother expects to go on an important job interview soon. job interview soon.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 14 he u Subject: he practiced u Verb: practiced Identify the subjects and verbs in the and verbs in thefollowing. He practiced for this interview in an interview in an interesting way. interesting way.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 15 u Subject: preparing u Verb: was Preparing for an interview was a very important part of the process. Identify the subjects and verbs in the and verbs in thefollowing.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 16 Bill u Subject: Bill went u Verb: went Identify the subjects and verbs in the and verbs in thefollowing. Relative clause subject: he Relative clause verb: did want Bill went on job interviews for positions that he did not really want.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 17 he u Subject: he is u Verb: is Identify the subjects and verbs in the and verbs in thefollowing. Now he is more relaxed about meeting with employers and answering questions. answering questions.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 18 dress u Subject: dress is u Verb: is Identify the subjects and verbs in the and verbs in thefollowing. Appropriate dress is important too. important too.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 19 applicants u Subject: applicants wrote / spoke u Verbs: wrote / spoke The job applicants wrote essays about their values and spoke in front of a small group. small group.. Identify the subjects and verbs in the and verbs in thefollowing.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 20 Bill u Subject: Bill should have researched u Verb: should have researched Identify the subjects and verbs in the and verbs in thefollowing. Of course, Bill should have researched for have researched for information about information about the company. the company.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 21 candidate u Subject:candidate wants u Verb: wants Identify the subjects and verbs in the and verbs in thefollowing. A worthy candidate for a job wants to give a good impression. give a good impression.

McGraw-Hill Copyright © 2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 22 Just ask!