Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A.

Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

Syntactic Elements and Structures of the Clause

Focusing on Subjects and predicates – Teacher’s Guide

Recycle
The Word
The Parts of Speech
The Phrase
New
The Clause
The Finite Verb
The skeleton of the message

Introduction: Summary
1 The independent clause (or simple sentence) has two basic constituents: subject and predicate. The
Subject (S) encodes the primary participant in the clause. The S up to the first finite verb of the main
clause.

2 The predicate may consist simply of the Predicator (P), realised by a verb, or of a Predicator followed
by one or more central constituents. These central elements, the Object (O) and the Complement (C) are,
together with the Subject and the Predicator, the major functional categories of the clause.

3 More specifically, we distinguish two main types of Object: Direct (Od) and Indirect (Oi ) and two main
types of Complement (Subject Complement (Cs) and Object Complement (Co). A subsidiary type of
Object is the Prepositional Object (Op). A further type of Complement is the circumstantial Complement,
the most frequent being the Locative/Goal type (Cloc).

4 In addition, the clause may contain a number of Adjuncts (A). These are usually syntactically able to be
omitted. Those of the largest class, the circumstantial Adjuncts, are the most integrated in the clause.
Somewhat separated from clause structure by a pause or a comma, stance Adjuncts express a speaker’s or
writer’s attitude, while connective Adjuncts link clauses or parts of clauses, and paragraphs.

5 Objects and Complements are determined by verb type and are limited in number in any one clause.
Adjuncts are not limited in number.

6 On the simplest level, the central functional categories of the independent clause are: S, P, O and C,
with A usually optional.

The Simple Sentence and its syntactic analysis.

Constituents -The Subject / The Predicator

The goal of these units is to help students build a solid understanding of the tight relationship between S
and P. Each unit goes through a progression in which new grammatical concepts are introduced (by
discovery, as much as possible), built upon, and then practised and reviewed. In addition, the concepts in
each consecutive unit build on one another logically—it might seem unnecessary to spend time reviewing
nouns and verbs with 1st year sts, but it’s necessary if they’re going to understand things like gerunds and
infinitives or specific types of verb phrases.

Objectives:

By the end of the unit the students should understand that…

A. A subject is who or what the sentence is about (a word that refers to a person, place, thing, event,

1
 Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

a substance, or quality)
B. A predivcate is the part of a sentence that contains the finite verb and gives information about the
subjectc.
A group of words that is missing either a subject or a predicate cannot be a sentence.

By the end of the unit, students should be able to…

A. Identify the complete subject and predicate of a sentence

B. Identify complete ideas that contain a subject and a predicate in a paragraph of a short story -
preferable, description/narration

Key concepts to the unit:

The “subject and predicate” concept should be focused on as from the very beginning of the course, but
that doesn’t mean we don’t need to teach it explicitly. It’s impossible to teach students about clauses and
the structure of more complex sentence unless they already understand subject and predicate relationship.
So we need to remember that this concept is a vital stepping stone to understanding higher concepts that
will significantly impact the quality of student writing.

Summary

1 The Subject is the syntactic function identified by the features of position, concord, pronominalisation
and reflection in question tags. Semantically, almost all participant roles can be associated with the
subject. Cognitively, it is that element which has the highest claim to function as Topic in a specific clause
in
context. Syntactically, it is prototypically realised by a NG, but can also be realised by a wide variety of
groups and clauses.

2 The Predicator is the syntactic function that determines the number and type of Objects and
Complements in a clause. It is identified syntactically by position and concord. It is associated with a
number of semantic domains.

The Subject

A. Semantic and cognitive features

The Subject is that functional category of the clause of which something is predicated. The prototypical
subject represents the primary participant in the clause and has the strongest claim to the cognitive status
of Topic – who or what the clausal message is primarily about. This means that in basic clauses (that is:
finite, active, declarative clauses) of ‘doing’, the subject aligns with the semantic function of Agent, the
one who carries out the action. If there is an agent in the event expressed by such a clause, that element
will be the subject. However, the subject can be associated with almost every type of participant role. The
following examples illustrate some of the possible roles aligned with the subject:

Jones kicked the ball into the net. (Agent )

The ball was kicked into the net. (Affected in a passive clause)
Tom saw a snake near the river. (Experiencer in a mental process)
The secretary has been given some chocolates. (Recipient in a passive clause)

The plane landed

Tom disappeared suddenly after the concert

2
 Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

B. Syntactic features

The Subject is that syntactic function which, in English, must be present in declarative and interrogative
clauses, but is not required in the imperative. In discourse, when two or more conjoined clauses have the
same subject, all but the first are regularly ellipted.

He came in, sat down and took out a cigarette.

A clear and easy criterion is the question tag. The Subject is that element which is picked up in a question
tag and referred to anaphorically by a pronoun:

Your brother is a ski instructor, isn’t he?

Susie won’t mind waiting a moment, will she?

The Subject is placed before the finite verb in declarative clauses, and in whinterrogative clauses where
the wh-element is Subject (see 23.6):

Unfortunately, everyone left early.

Who came in late last night?

It is placed after the finite operator (the first element of the VG, 2.5.2) in yes/no interrogative clauses, and
in wh-interrogative clauses in which the wh-element is not Subject:

Are you pleased with the result?

Did everyone leave early?
What film did you see last night? (What film is Object)
When did Sylvia get back? (When is Adjunct)

When pronouns are used, the pronominal forms – I, he, she, we and they – are used to realise subject
function, in contrast to the objective forms me, him, her, us and them, which are used for Objects. You
and it are the same for both. Possessive forms may stand
as subject:

Yours was rather difficult to read.

Jennifer’s got lost in the post.

Subjects determine the concord of number (singular or plural) and person with the verb. Concord is
manifested only in those verb forms that show inflectional contrast:

The librarian/he/she/has checked the book.

The librarians/I/you/we/they have checked the book.
Where is my credit card? Where are my credit cards?

With verb forms that show no number or person contrast – such as had, in the money had all been spent –
we can apply the criterion of paradigmatic contrast with a present form such as has (the money has all
been spent). When the Subject is realised by a collective noun, concord depends on how the referent is
visualised by the speaker:

The committee is sitting late. (seen as a whole)

The committee have decided to award extra grants. (seen as a number of members)

3
 Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

Subjects determine number, person and gender concord with the Subject Complement, and of reflexive
pronouns at Cs, Oi and Od:

Jean and Bill are my friends.

She cut herself (Od) on a piece of broken glass.
Why don’t you give yourself (Oi) a treat?

The Realisation of the S

Subjects can be realised by various classes of groups and clauses:

A. Nominal Groups – That man is crazy

Nominal groups are the most prototypical realisation of subject, as they refer basically to persons and
things. They can range from simple heads to the full complexity of NG structures:

Cocaine can damage the heart as well as the brain.

The precise number of heart attacks from using cocaine is not known.
It is alarming.

B. Dummy it – It’s hot

This is a non-referential or semantically empty use of the pronoun it, which occurs in expressions of time,
weather and distance, such as:

It’s nearly three o’clock.

It’s raining.
It is six hundred kilometres from Madrid to Barcelona.

Syntactically, English requires the presence of a subject even in such situations, in order to distinguish
between declaratives and interrogatives:

Is it raining? How far is it from here to Barcelona?

There is no plural concord with a NG complement, as would occur in Spanish counterparts, for example:
Son las tres. Son seiscientos kilómetros a Barcelona.

C. Unstressed there – There’s plenty of time

Unstressed there (see 19.3; 30.4) fulfils several of the syntactic criteria for subject: position, inversion
with auxiliaries and repetition in tag phrases; but unlike normal subjects it cannot be replaced by a
pronoun. Concord, when made, is with the following NG:

There was only one fine day last week, wasn’t there?
There were only two fine days last week, weren’t there?

Concord with the following NG is made in writing, but not always in informal spoken English with the
present tense of be, and is never made when the NG is a series of proper names:

4
 Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

How many are coming? Well, there’s Andrew and Silvia, and Jo and Pete.

Because of the lack of concord and pronominalisation, unstressed there can be considered as a subject
‘place-holder’ or ‘syntactic filler’, rather than a full subject, since the unit following the verb is clearly the
notional subject. For its function as a presentative device.

D. Prepositional phrase and Adverbial group as subject – Now is the time

These function only marginally as subject and usually specify meanings of time or place, but instrumental
meanings and idiomatic manner uses can also occur.

Will up in the front suit you? (PP of place)

Before midday would be convenient. (PP of time)
By plane costs more than by train. (PP of means)
Just here would be an ideal place for a picnic. (AdvG of place)
Slowly/gently does it! (AdvG of manner)

E. Adjectival head – the poor

The Adjectival Group as such does not function as subject. However, certain adjectives – preceded by a
definite determiner, normally the definite article, and which represent either (a) conventionally recognised
classes of people, as in The handicapped are given special facilities in public places, or (b) abstractions –
can function as heads of (non-prototypical) NGs. The latter type is illustrated in this extract from a book
blurb:

This novel plunges the reader into a universe in which the comic, the tragic, the real
and the imagined dissolve into one another.

F. Embedded clauses

Clauses can realise every element or function of clause structure except the predicator. Cognitively, this
means that we as speakers encode, as the main elements of clauses, not only persons and things but facts,
abstractions and situations. Both finite and non-finite clauses are available for embedding but not every
clause function is realised by all types of clause. The main types were outlined in Chapter 1. Here five of
the relevant one(s) are referred to when describing the realisations of subject, objects and complements.
There are two main types of embedded finite clause: that-clauses and wh-clauses, the latter being either
indirect interrogative clauses or nominal relative clauses. They are illustrated in the following examples,
where they all realise the subject element.

That he failed his driving test surprised everybody. (that-clause)

Why the library was closed for months was not explained. (wh-interrogative)
What he said shocked me. (wh-nominal relative clause)

That-clauses at subject are used only in formal styles in English. In everyday use they are more
acceptable if they are preceded by the fact. The that-clause thus becomes complement of a NG
functioning as subject:

The fact that he failed his driving test surprised everybody. (NG)

A more common alternative is to extrapose the subject that-clause, as in It surprised everybody that he
failed his driving test, explained in G. below. Wh-interrogative clauses express indirect questions.

5
 Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

Nominal relative clauses also have a wh- element, but they express entities and can be paraphrased by
‘that which’ or ‘the thing(s) which’ as in:

What he said pleased me = ‘that which’/the things which he said pleased me.

F. Non-finite clauses at Subject

They are of two main types, depending on the VG they contain: to-infinitive, which can be introduced by
a wh-word, and -ing clauses. (The third non-finite clause type, the -en clause, is not used in this way.) The
‘bare’ infinitive is marginally used:

To take such a risk was rather foolish. (to-inf. clause)

Where to leave the dog is the problem. (wh- + to-inf. clause)
Having to go back for the tickets was a nuisance. (-ing clause)
Move the car was what we did. (bare infinitive clause)

To-infinitive and -ing clauses at subject can have their own subject; bare infinitive clauses cannot. A to-
infinitive clause with its own subject is introduced by for:

For everyone to escape was impossible. (For + S + to-inf.)

Sam having to go back for the tickets was a nuisance. (S + ing-cl.)

The pronominal subject of an -ing clause can be in the possessive or the objective case. The objective
form is the less formal:

Him/his having to go back for the tickets was a nuisance.

G. Anticipatory it + extraposed subject – It was silly to say that.

Subjects such as that he failed to pass the driving test and for everyone to escape sound awkward and top-
heavy, especially in spoken English. The derived structure with ‘anticipatory it’ is now generally
preferred, as it is much easier to encode and the pronoun it is the ‘lightest’ possible subject filler:

It surprised everybody that he failed his driving test.

It was impossible for everyone to escape.

Here the that-clause or the to-infinitive clause is extraposed, that is, placed after the Od (everybody) or Cs
(impossible). The initial subject position is filled by the pronoun it. Extraposition is commonly used in
both speech and writing, especially when the subject is long and heavy, and is better placed at the end of
the sentence, in accordance with the informational and stylistic principle of ‘end-weight’. Extraposed
subjects frequently occur as the complement of a noun or adjective in SPCs structures, as in the following
illustrations:

It’s easy to forget your keys. (To forget your keys is easy)
It’s a pity (that) you are leaving the firm. (That you are leaving the firm is a pity)
It is time he stopped fooling around.

Notice that, for the apparently extraposed clause that follows It is (high) time, there is no corresponding
pattern with the clause in initial position (*That he stopped fooling around is high time).
Likewise, the clause following it + verbs of seeming (seem, appear) and happening (happen, turn out), is
obligatorily extraposed:

6
 Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

It seems that you were right after all. (*That you were right after all seems.)
It so happened that the driver lost control. (*That the driver lost control happened.)

Pronouns account for a high percentage of subjects in the spoken language, as can be seen in the
following recorded dialogue about the mini-skirt. Several other types of subject are also illustrated in the
main and embedded clauses of this text, including two different functions of it:

Identify the constituent that realises Subject function in each of the following clauses:

(1) The use of caves for smuggling is as old as the hills.

(2) There were about half a dozen men seated in the bar.
(3) The light of a torch flickered.
(4) What the critics failed to understand is that his art was not sacrificed to popularity.
(5) The list of people who she says helped her is long.
(6) It was my great good fortune to meet him before he died.
(7) Run like mad was what we did.
(8) It makes sense to tell the neighbours you are going away on holiday.
(9) It is sometimes argued that there is no real progress.
(10) Reading in a poor light is bad for your eyes.

The Predicator (P)

We use the term Predicator for the clause element present in all major types of clause, including the
imperative clause (in which the subject is not usually present in English). The predicator is the clause
function that largely determines the remaining structure of the clause, by virtue of being intransitive,
transitive or copular. The predicator may constitute the whole of the predicate, as in The plane landed, or
part of it, as in The plane landed on the runway. The predicator is identified by position in relation to the
subject. The predicator function is realised by both finite (e.g. waits) and non-finite (waiting) lexical and

7
 Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

primary verbs. Functionally, finiteness is often carried by an auxiliary verb – such as is, was – to specify
tense (past/present) and voice (be + -en), and is then followed by the predicator (is making, was made).

Semantically, the predicator encodes the following main types of ‘process’:

• material processes of ‘doing’ with verbs such as make, catch, go;

• mental processes of ‘experiencing’, with cognitive verbs of perception (e.g. see),
cognition (know), affectivity (like) and desideration (hope); and
• relational processes of ‘being’ with verbs such as be and belong.

Let’s analysi the following sentences syntactically:

The plane landed.

Tom disappeared suddenly after the concert.

Verb = Predicator, which gives the name to the Predicate.

S goes ut to the frist FV
FV, a V that one can conjugate – walk, paint, is walking, have been studying, exist…

Literature:
This unit contains example selections from the novel The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison.
Focusing on who the idea is about and what is done (Subject – Predicate)

A. Identify the subject in each of the following sentences (who or what the sentence is about):

B. Identify the predicate in each of the following sentences (what the subject does):

Here is the house. It is green and white. It has a red door. It is very pretty. Here is the family. Mother,
Father, Dick, and Jane live in the green-and-white house. They are very happy. See Jane. She has a red
dress. She wants to play. Who will play with Jane? See the cat. It goes meow-meow. Come and play.
Come play with Jane. The kitten will not play. See Mother. Mother is very nice. Mother, will you play
with Jane? Mother laughs. Laugh, Mother, laugh. See Father. He is big and strong. Father, will you play
with Jane? Father is smiling. Smile, Father, smile. See the dog. Bowwow goes the dog. Do you want to
play with Jane? See the dog run. Run, dog, run. Look, look. Here comes a friend. The friend will play
with Jane. They will play a good game. Play, Jane, play.

About the author (Retrieved from Britannica)

8
 Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

The Bluest Eye, debut novel by Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison, published in 1970. Set in
Morrison’s hometown of Lorain, Ohio, in 1940–41, the novel tells the tragic story of Pecola Breedlove,
an African American girl from an abusive home. Eleven-year-old Pecola equates beauty and social
acceptance with whiteness; she therefore longs to have “the bluest eye.” Although largely ignored upon
publication, The Bluest Eye is now considered an American classic and an essential account of the
African American experience after the Great Depression.

Identify the subject in each of the following sentences:

1. Necklaces and amulets hung from the posts.

Note that there are two heads here that share a predicate—that’s called a “compound subject.”

2. A small whine emerged from the device.

Identify the predicate in each of the following sentences:

3. Jared had crouched and was picking up the sharp, curved fragments of glass.

Like the compound subject in number 1, this is a compound predicate—two predicates connected to a
single subject. This is important to point out because later when they learn about clauses, students might
confuse this for two clauses because it seems to have two predicates; but it’s still a single clause.

4. Huge and malevolent, the bird stared down at her.

Add your own subject to the following sentences from Incarceron :

5. … was black and looked like ebony.

6. … had not really been listening.

Add your own predicate to the following sentences:

7. The beautiful garden….

8. The long table… .

In your own words…

1.What is a subject and how can you identify one?

2.What is a predicate and how can you identify one?
3.If a group of words doesn’t have a subject and a predicate, why is it not a complete idea?

Answers will vary. Explain in a coherent way.

General Grammar Review:

4.Which of the following homophones is usually a verb: Affect or Effect?

5.Write a sentence in which the word “president” must be capitalized. Example: My mom didn’t vote for
President Obama, but my dad did.
6.What are the two verb phrases in the following sentence?
a. The apes had become more intelligent and were taking over the world.

9
 Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

Review

1. What is the subject of a sentence?

2. What is the predicate of a sentence?
3. Identify the subject and predicate in the following sentence:

Four purple penguins and green iguanas met at the dance club and boogied the night away.

Identify the subject in each of the following sentences from Incarceron by Catherine Fisher:

1. Finn’s oathbrother was transformed.

2. The shouts of the Comitatus died abruptly.

Identify the predicate in each of the following sentences:

3. Keiro flung his head back and screamed with triumph.

4. A warm breeze drifted down the shaft.

Add your own subject to the following sentences:

5. … stopped to look at the magnificent work of art..

6. took a deep ragged breath.

Add your own predicate to the following sentences from Incarceron:

7. A blizzard of metal slivers .

8. The fire in the hearth .

Read the following excerpt from Incarceron by Catherine Fisher and then answer the following questions:

(a) Without waiting for his answer, she turned and swept back into the Den. (b) Slowly, Finn rubbed a
hand around the back of his neck, feeling the damp of sweat. (c) He realized his body was a knot of
tension; he made himself breathe out. (d) Then he froze.

1. Who or what is the subject of sentence (a)?

2. Is “the damp of sweat” the subject of sentence (b)?
3. How many subjects and predicates does sentence (c) have?
4. Is the word “Then” in sentence (d) part of the subject or the predicate?

Read the following excerpt from Incarceron by Catherine Fisher and then answer the following questions:

(a) “The honor is ours,” she said. (b) “Perhaps you’d like to come into the parlor. (c) We have cider and
newly baked cakes as refreshment after your journey.” (d) Well, she hoped they did. (e) Turning, she saw
that three of the servants had gone and the gaps in the line had closed swiftly behind them.

Is the word “honor” in sentence (a) part of the subject or the predicate?
1. In sentence (b), is the word “parlor” a verb, noun, pronoun, or adverb? How do you know?

10
 Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

3. Is “cider and newly baked cakes” the subject of sentence (c)?

4. In sentence (a), which word is a linking verb and which word is an action verb?
5. Sentence (e) is a compound-complex sentence and has three subjects; what are they?
6. In sentence (d), which two words are pronouns?
7. In sentence (d), is “hoped” part of the subject or the predicate?
8. List three nouns from sentence (e).

Extra Practice

The subject of a sentence is who or what the sentence is about—the person or thing doing the action of
the sentence. The predicate is the action of the sentence—what the subject does or is.
In the following sentences, highlight the S in green and the P in yellow.:

Abraham Lincoln served as the 16th President of the United States.

In the 1860 presidential election, Lincoln defeated Democrat Stephen Douglas, John Breckinridge of the
Southern Democrats, and Jon Bell of the Constitutional Union Party.
Before becoming president, Abe worked as a lawyer and served in several political positions.
Lincoln lost eight elections during his political career.
President Lincoln presided over the Civil War and the end of slavery.
Many scholars rank Lincoln as the greatest president in U.S. history.

In order to have a full sentence, you must have a subject and a predicate.
Decide if each of the following groups of words is a complete idea or not (answer YES or NO.)

After re-entering politics in 1854, Abraham Lincoln.

He was elected to the Illinois Legislature but turned down the position, hoping instead to become a
senator.
Was not chosen by the Illinois legislature to be a U.S. senator in 1855.
Later nominated to be the Republican Senator from Illinois, opposing Democrat Stephen A. Douglas.
Lincoln spoke against the Dred Scott Decision in 1857.
He delivered an important speech on slavery in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1860.

Syntax (The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison)

Here is the house. It is green and white. It has a red door. It is

very pretty. Here is the family. Mother, Father, Dick, and
Jane live in the green-and-white house. They are very
happy. See Jane. She has a red dress. She wants to play. Who
will play with Jane? See the cat. It goes meow-meow. Come
and play. Come play with Jane. The kitten will not play.
Here is the house.

11
Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

12
Teaching Tips and File Stuff by Prof. Rosa A. Ledesma
To The Memory of Nilce Sturla

13