LJ # 1 Grammar #1 1/4/16 Sentence structure

Putting the building blocks together In semester 1, we learned about parts of speech. How many parts of speech can you remember? Write them down!

Parts of speech: 1.Noun 2.Pronoun 3.Verb 4.Adjective 5.Adverb 6.Preposition 7.Conjunction There are also: Articles – the, a, an Interjections – Oops! Gosh! Hey! Ouch! Phew!

Basic Sentence Structure: Parts of speech have specific tasks to perform when they are put together in a sentence. Every complete sentence has a subject and predicate

Subjects: A subject can be a noun or pronoun that is partnered with an action verb. Example: Susan runs. Subject verb

Copy down the following sentence, then identify the subject/verb pair: Philanthropists donated millions to charity.

Did you get it right? Philanthropists donated millions to charity. subject verb The noun, philanthropist, is DOING the action of donating, so philanthropist is the subject of the sentence.

Sometimes a verb will express being or existence instead of action: Can you find the subject/verb pair in this sentence? Good friends are loyal people.

Did you find them? Good friends are loyal people. subject verb The noun, friends, is DOING the existing, so friends is the subject of the sentence

Predicates: A predicate is a verb that expresses the subject’s action or state of being. Example: Susan runs. subject predicate

Lets take another look: Philanthropists donated millions to charity. subject predicate The subject, philanthropist, is DOING the action of donating, so donating is the predicate of the sentence.

Predicates, continued… Sometimes the predicate will be composed of two or three verbs that fit together - the main verb preceded by one or more auxiliary (helping) verbs.

Philanthropists donated… subject predicate Philanthropists have donated… subject predicate Philanthropists will be donating… subject predicate

Important note: To be a predicate, a verb that ends in -ing must ALWAYS have a helping verb with it. An - ing verb WITHOUTa helping verb cannot be a predicate in a sentence.

Subjects and Predicates A subject and predicate may not always appear together or in the normal order, as the following examples show. Copy down the sentences, and try to find the subject/predicate pairs! The dog on the hillside howled at the moon. The dog has often howled at the moon.

Check your answers! The dog on the hillside howled at the moon. subject predicate The dog has often howled at the moon. subject predicate