1. Subject – Verb

The dog barks.

This is the most basic English sentence. Dog is the subject, and barks is the verb.

2. Subject – Verb – Direct Object

The architect desired the building.

A direct object is a noun or pronoun that answers the question “whom” or “what” after the verb. A verb that carries an action onto an object is called a transitive verb. In the example sentence the architect is the subject, designed is the transitive verb, and the building is the direct object. An intransitive verb does not carry onto a verb. In the previous example barks is an intransitive verb.

3. Subject – Verb – Direct Object – Object Complement

We called the store owner incompetent.

With some verbs – like made, name, believe, and judge – the direct object may be proceeded by another word that describes the direct object. This is an object compliment. In the preceding sentence, the subject is we, the verb is called, the store owner is the direct object, and incompetent is the object complement.

4. Subject – Verb – Indirect Object – Direct Object

My brother stole his friend a car.

In some sentences with action verbs, an indirect object identifies who or what receives direct object.

My brother is the subject, stole is the verb, his friend is the indirect object, and a car is the direct object.

5. Subject – Linking Verb – Subject Compliment.

The computer was broken.
My professor is a senator.

This type of sentence requires a linking verb such as be (is, are, was, were, has been, etc.), seem, appear, grow, and many others. These verbs are followed by a subject compliment, which is either a predicate noun or a predicate adjective. A predicate noun renames the subject, and a predicate adjective changes the subject.

In the first example, broken is a predicate adjective. In the second example a senator is a predicate noun.

Those are the five basic sentence structures. Before you move on to the next lesson, make sure you understand them and their components.

There are four types of sentences: declarative, exclamatory, imperative, and interrogative.

A declarative sentence describes facts or information:
We should do the dishes.

An exclamatory sentence focuses on emotions:
Washing the plates was frustrating.

Imperative sentences issue instructions:
Do the dishes, please!

Interrogative sentences ask questions or request information:
Should we do the dishes?

A sentence is made up of two parts, a subject and a predicate. The subject is something (a person, thing, concept, etc.) that the sentence is about – usually what is described or performs an action. The predicate makes a statement, comment, or asks a question about the subject or an action initiated by it.

In this example, “dog” is the subject, and “barked loudly” is the predicate:

The dog barked loudly.

The central components of the subject and predicate are the simple subject and the simple predicate. In the previous example, “dog” is the simple subject, and “barked” is the simple predicate.

Compound subjects and predicates contain connecting works like “and, but, or or.”

A child and his parents got lost in the park.
The sailor put on his cap and untied his boat from the dock.

Predicates always contain a verb (a state of being, an assertion about the subject, or an indication of action). In the following sentence, the verb is ate:

Jeremy ate.

A verb can be preceded by an auxiliary which conveys a specific meaning (am, be, been, can, are, was, has, must…).

They are eating chocolate.
They have been eating chocolate.

Typically, the subject of a sentence is a noun. Nouns name or classify activities, places, things, concepts, and people. Carpet is a noun.

The carpet is red.

A pronoun can substitute a noun, and the noun it substitutes is called its antecedent.

It is red.

“It” is a pronoun, substituting for the antecedent “carpet”. Indefinite pronouns, such as anybody, everybody, and somebody, require no antecedents. Personal pronouns include I, he, she, they, we, and the pronoun who.

That’s enough for grammar for now. Make sure you can answer the following questions:

1. What are the four types of sentences?
2. What is a predicate?
3. What is a verb?
4. What is a noun?
5. What is a pronoun?
6. What are auxiliaries?