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T HE P ARTS OF A S ENTENCE Subject, Predicate, Complement
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T HE S ENTENCE A sentence is a word group that contains a subject and a verb and that expresses a complete thought. A sentence fragment is a group of words that is capitalized and punctuated as a sentence but does not contain both a subject and a verb or does not express a complete thought. Examples Sentence Fragment: Sponsors election-year debates. Sentence: The League of Women Voters sponsors election-year debates
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T HE S UBJECT AND T HE P REDICATE Sentences consist of two basic parts: subjects and predicates. The subject is a word or word group that tells whom or what the sentence is about. The predicate is a word or word group that tells something about the subject. Subject Predicate Rain pelted the sailors
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T HE S IMPLE S UBJECT AND THE C OMPLETE S UBJECT The simple subject is the main word or word group that tells whom or what the sentence is about. Simple: The view from the observatory on the top floor of the building is extraordinary. Complete: The view from the observatory on the top floor of the building is extraordinary.
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T HE S IMPLE P REDICATE AND THE C OMPLETE P REDICATE The simple predicate, or verb, is the main word or word group that tells something about the subject. The simple predicate may be a one-word verb or a verb phrase The complete predicate consists of the simple predicate and all the words used to modify the simple predicate and to complete its meaning. Simple: The victorious athletes were surrounded by admirers. Complete: The victorious athletes were surrounded by admirers.
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T HE C OMPOUND S UBJECT AND C OMPOUND P REDICATE A compound subject consists of two or more subjects that are joined by a conjunction and that have the same verb. They are usually joined by the conjunction and or the conjunction or. A compound verb consists of two or more verbs that are joined by a conjunction and that have the same subject. The parts of a compound verb are usually joined by the conjunction and, but, or the conjunction or.
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F INDING THE S UBJECT OF A S ENTENCE To find the subject of a sentence, ask who? Or what? before the verb. Sharing the island of Hispaniola with Haiti is the Dominican Republic. [What is sharing? Dominican Republic is sharing.] In the auditorium, friends and relatives of the graduates awaited the ceremony. [ Who awaited? Friends and relatives awaited.]
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G UIDELINES FOR F INDING THE S UBJECT OF A S ENTENCE. The subject in a sentence expressing a command or a request is always understood to be you, if the word you does not appear in the sentence. If a command or a request contains a noun of direct address, a word naming the one or ones spoken to, the subject is still understood to be you. The subject of a sentence is never the object of a prepositional phrase. The subject in a sentence expressing a question usually follows the verb or comes between the parts of a verb phrase. The word there or here is almost never the subject of a sentence.
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T RY IT ! Complete Exercise 4 in Chapter 15 on page 537. Once you are finished check your answers with a partner.
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C OMPLEMENTS A complement is a word or word group that completes the meaning of a verb. Some verbs do not need a complement to complete their meanings. Together, the subject and the verb express a complete thought. Examples Complete : She won. Incomplete : Judith Baca created Complete : Judith Baca created the mural. Incomplete : They mailed Complete : They mailed me the information
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C OMPLEMENTS Nouns, pronouns, and adjectives may be complements. Be careful not to mistake an adverb for a complement. Adverb : Mrs. Castaldo teaches well. Complement : Mrs. Castaldo teaches English. The object of a prepositional is not a complement. At first Mrs. Castaldo taught with another teacher.
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D IRECT O BJECTS A direct object is a complement that tells who or what receives the action of a verb or shows the result of the action. A direct object may be a noun, a pronoun, or a word group that functions as a noun. To find a direct object, ask whom ? or What ? After a transitive verb. A direct object may be compound. Examples The employer interviewed several applicants for the job. [Interviewed Whom? Applicants] Does a virus cause a common cold ? [Cause What? Cold.] I miss you. [Miss whom? You.] They usually buy whatever is on sale. [Buy what? Whatever is on sale.] The team included Bob and Ray. [Included whom? Bob/Ray]
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I NDIRECT O BJECTS An indirect object is a complement that often appears in sentences containing direct objects and that tells to whom or to what or for whom or for what the action of a transitive verb is done. An indirect object may be a noun, a pronoun, or a word group that functions as a noun. To find an indirect object, ask To whom ? or To what ? or For whom ? or For what ? after a transitive verb.
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E XAMPLES OF I NDIRECT O BJECTS The Swedish Academy awarded Octavio Paz the 1990 Nobel Prize in literature. [ Awarded the prize to whom? Octavio Paz.] Julie’s part-time work experience earned her a full-time position. [Earned the position for whom? Her.] The teacher gives whoever turns in the earliest paper a bonus. [Gives a bonus to whom? Whoever turns in the earliest paper.]
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Do not mistake an object of the preposition to or for an indirect object. Object of Preposition: Clarice wrote a letter to me Indirect Object: Clarice wrote me a letter. Object of Preposition: Mary baked a cake for Lisa. Indirect Object: Mary bake Lisa a cake. I NDIRECT OBJECT OR O BJECT OF A P REPOSITION ?
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T RY I T ! Complete Exercise 5 in chapter 15 on page 540. Once you are finished check your answers with a partner.
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S UBJECT C OMPLEMENTS A subject complement is a complement that identifies or modifies the subject of a linking verb. Like other kinds of complements the two kinds of subject complements-the predicate nominative and the predicate adjective appear in the predicate. A predicate nominative identifies or refers to the subject of a linking verb. It may be a noun, a pronoun, or a word group that functions as a noun. A predicate adjective is an adjective that is in the predicate that modifies the subject of a linking verb.
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E XAMPLES Predicate nominative ex. Robert Hayden is my favorite poet. [ the noun poet identifies the subject Robert Hayden.] ex. The four most populous states are California, New York, Texas, and Florida. Predicate adjective ex. Your lotus blossom necklace is lovely. ex. Does the cottage cheese smell sour?
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T RY IT ! Complete Exercise 7 in chapter 15 on page 544. Once you are finished check your answers with a partner.
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