The Subject

Nouns and pronouns used as the subject — —  Labour conquers all things.  The sweetest songs are those that tell of the saddest thought.  Every man is the master of his own fortune.  One can’t shut one’s eyes to things not seen with eyes.  Nothing is good or bad, but by comparison.

Gerunds (-ing verbs) and infinitives (to do verbs) used as the subject — —  Seeing is believing.  Thinking can give men enjoyment and pleasure.  There’s no settling the argument at the moment.  To skateboard with him is what I wish.  It is easier to buy books than to read them, and easier to read them than to absorb them.  It’s my pleasure to have a chance to help you with your English.

Noun clauses used as the subject — —  What’s mine is yours and what’s yours is mine.  What seems to be medicine might be poison to others.  That he often works wonders is clear.  It’s clear that he often works wonders.  Whether he’s a responsible boy or not remains to be seen.  It remains to be seen whether he’s a responsible boy or not.

“The + adj.” or “The + -ed/-ing v.” used as the subject — —  The wounded are being taken good care of.  The rich are getting richer and richer while the poor poorer and poorer.  The deaf and mute also get very good education in our country.

Recommended sentence patterns: He who...  He who has health has hope, and he who has hope has everything.  He who refuses to see is the blindest.

Recommended sentence patterns: Those who...  Those who work hard at English now will succeed in their later career.  Those who want to participate please register your names here.

Recommended sentence patterns: There’s no doing...  There’s no spitting in public.  There’s no chatting in this room.  There’s no persuading him to do so.

Common mistakes:  There are only two people in our class refuse to read English. There are only two people in our class who refuse to read English.

Common mistakes:  Him working hard at English made his parents very happy. His working hard at English made his parents very happy.

Common mistakes:  When and where to hold a meeting are still a question. When and where to hold a meeting is still a question.

Common mistakes:  Read English every morning is very important. Reading English every morning is very important.

Common mistakes:  He is honest and diligent is known to us all. That he is honest and diligent is known to us all.

Common mistakes:  See him this afternoon is impossible. To see him this afternoon is impossible.