GRAMMATICAL

FUNCTION OF SENTENCE
CONSTITUENTS
 CONTENTS

01 02 03 04 05
THE THE OBJECT THE THE THE
SUBJECT COMPLEM ATTRIBU ADJUNC
AND ENT TE T//ADVE
PREDICA RBIAL
TE
1. THE SUBJECT AND PREDICATE
One of the 2 defining characteristics of the sentence is the message or information
content.
SUBJECT E.g : Mai hates school.
The topic, or what is being spoken about.
• Mai : focus of attention
PREDICATE • School also plays an important role in message ( the
The things that are said about the subject.
object of Mai’s hating).
• Hates: word which express the relation between the 2,
SUBJECT PREDICATE
carries the tense
Mai hates school.
Þ The Verb is the first word ( word group) in the
My mother loves cooking
predicate, the most important factor in expressing the
A beautiful song makes me happy.
predicate.
The boy I like best never forget my birthday. Þ The verb must “ agree” with the subject.
1. THE SUBJECT AND PREDICATE
The subject can be expressed by means of a single word – a noun or pronoun –
or a noun phrase, or even a clause.

A single word Family plays an important role in society.

A phrase Playing sport is necessary to have a good health.

My mother loves cooking.

The women with long black hair is my teacher

A clause What we are listening seems to be unpleasant.

How can we get there is the problem.

That fruits grows in Vietnam is very famous.

a, Empty subject
The word "it" can be a subject (or dummy subject) in sentences about times, dates, and the weather
(such as, It's raining) and in certain idioms (It's OK). Also known as ambient "it" or empty "it.“
Unlike the ordinary pronoun it, dummy it refers to nothing at all; it simply serves a grammatical
function. In other words, dummy it has a grammatical meaning but no lexical meaning.

E.g:
• It was raining/snowing/thundering/pouring. ( weather )
•It is 4 pm now. ( time)
It’s 6 miles from here to school. ( Distance)
It’s 37 C now. ( temperature)
•It’s high tide at 10:30. ( The tides)
•It’s noisy here. ( Environment)
•It’s 5 years since we last met.( since)
•It says here there was a big tree. ( says)
•It takes 1 hour to get to school. ( take)
b, Preparatory subject
● The subject “ it” is used to prepare for the real subject which is going to come later in the same sentence.
( Sentences usually beginning with infinitive or gerund. )
E.g:

• It’s wonderful to see you. (instead of ‘To see you is wonderful.’)

• It was very kind of you to help me. (instead of ‘To help me was very kind of you.’)

• It’s my ambition to run my own business. (instead of ‘To run my own business is my ambition.’)

• It was nice meeting you. (instead of ‘Meeting you was nice.’)

b, Preparatory subject
● We use there as some kind of preparatory subject to say that something exists somewhere. We put the
real subject after the verb be. ( there + be

○ There are lots of people in the waiting room.  

○ There used to be a fancy restaurant in this street. 

● We can use there + be with be in any verb tense, in active or passive voice, and with or without
modal verbs.

○ There will be a storm on Saturday. 

○ There has been some tension between the participants. 

○ There must be something wrong here.

○ There’s going to be conflict between the two parties. 

b, Preparatory subject
● We can also use the structures there seem(s) to be, there tend(s) to be or we can use there + be before expressions of
probability such as sure, likely, bound, etc.

○ There seem to be no consequences for his actions.

○ In nature, there tends to be an evolutionary arms race between predator and prey

○ There are likely to be some side effects, but the new drug looks promising. 
● We can also use there + used to.

○ There used to be a library at the end of this street.

● Note that the negative form is there didn’t use to be.
There didn’t use to be any bars in our neighbourhood.
We often use the expression there is no use/point (in) + -ing and there is no need + to infinitive.

○ There is no point in hating those that hate you. 

○ There is no use in trying to make him understand. He doesn’t want to understand. 

○ There is no need for you to worry. Everything’s OK.

c, Agent

● In the active, the person or thing that performs the action indicated by the verb, whereas in the

passive the agent stands after by.

E.g:

○ The girl broke the lipstick

○ The lipstick was broken by the girl.

 THE
OBJECT
2. Object
● The object is the person or thing toward which the subject directs the process spoken of in the verb.
● An object is normally a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase or even clause.
● It usually goes after the verb in the active.
● It can become the subject of a verb in the passive.

Here are some examples of objects:

He hit me.

My mother cooks dinner.

I bought him some bottle of water.

John likes to eat ice cream.

2. Object
● Two types of objects: Direct object and indirect object.

● Direct object refers to the person or thing affected by the action of the verb, it comes immediately

after a transitive verb: She throws the ball. John buys ice cream.

● Indirect object refers to the person who “ benefits” from the action expressed in the verb: John buys

me an ice cream / My mother cooks us a delicious dinner. Indirect object can stand either after the

verb or after the direct object with a preposition in between. ( John buys me an ice cream. =>

John buys an ice cream for me./// My mother gave my sister some money. => My mother gave some

money to my sister.)
admit He admitted his fault to his father.
communicate The dean communicated the decision to the student.
announce The employer announced the result to the employee.
dedicate She dedicates her loyal to the queen.
describe My mother described our grandfather’s look to (for) us.
entrust She entrusted their money to her best friend.
explain He explained what happened at school to ( for) his mother.
indicate The guide indicate the way to me. ● Certain verbs must
introduce John would introduce his girlfriend to his family. have to or for with
mention I forgot to mention my accident to my mother.
the indirect object.
outline Our teacher outlined the lesson for us.
prescribe The doctor prescribed medicine for the patient. ● The to or for
prove The chairman proposed a new plan to the committee. phrase usually
recommend I highly recommend this product to you.
comes after the
repeat I will repeat the problem to ( for) you one more time.
direct object.
report She has been reported to the government.
return He will return the book for me.
suggest My mother suggested a vacation for our family.
2. Object
● The prepositional objects are objects in English which always take/need prepositions to form a
complex unit, such as: to wait for…/to look at/… to approve of…
● E.g:

○ She waited for him for years.

○ I looked at the notice board.

○ All the members approved of the new agreement.

2. Object
The object can be express by means of a single word, a phrase and a clause:

A single word My mother hates banana. She never buys banana.

She knows John.

A phrase I don’t know how to do it.

She lives a boring life.

My sister enjoys drinking bubble tea.

I usually wear second-hand T-shirt.

A clause John suggested that we should visit Phu Quoc island for vacation.

I don’t understand why my mother acted like that.

3. The complement
● Definition: A sentence element that gives further information about the subject or the object. It
completes the meaning of subject or the object.
● There are 2 types of complement: Subject complement and Object complement.
a. The subject complement
● A subject complement is a word or phrase that follows
a linking verb and identifies or describes the subject.
(Note: A linking verb is a verb used to link a subject to a
new identity or description. Common examples are to
be, to become, to appear, to feel, to look, to smell, and to
taste.)
● The subject complement can be expressed by a word, a
phrase or a clause:

○ A word: The box smells funny.

○ A phrase: A pig is not a flying animal.

○ A clause: The problem is where we should go

now.
b. Object complement
● An object complement is a noun, a pronoun, or an adjective that follows a direct object to rename it
or state what it has become.

Verbs of making (e.g., "to make," "to create") or naming (e.g., "to name," "to call," "to elect") often
attract an object complement.
The object complement can be expressed by a word, a phrase or a clause:
• A word: I found the guard sleeping.
• A phrase: I found the guard sleeping in the barn.
• A clause: I named my son what my father named me.
 4. The
ATTRIBUTI
VE
 4. ATTRIBUTIVE
● It refer to an adjective coming before a noun in a phrase or sentence
in the distinction with predicative- a term used to refer to the position
of an adjective coming directly after be and be-like verbs.
● Functionally, while the predicative adjective has the function of a
complement in the sentence and modifies the meaning to the subject,
the attribute ( adjective) modifies meaning of a noun in the sentence,
regardless of its position.
● The attribute can be expressed by a word, a phrase or a clause:

○ A word: It was a beautiful song. He is a government employee.

○ A phrase: The women with long black hair is my aunt.

○ A clause: The man who is standing there is my uncle.

 5. The Adjunct/ adverbial
o An adjunct is usually an adverb used to modify a verb.
When used as an adverb, an adjunct will usually indicate a
time, a manner, a place, a frequency, a reason, or a degree.( by
telling how, when, where,..) An adjunct is a word, a phrase, or
a clause that adds some extra information about the action
expressed by the verb.

- We know that adverbs modify verbs, expressed by a word.

e.g., He ran quickly. (Quickly is the adverb, and ran is the verb.)
- When an adverb consists of more than one word, it is known as an adverbial phrase
e.g., He ran like the wind.
- If this phrase contains its own verb, it's called an adverbial clause
e.g., He ran like his life depended on it.
a. Adverbial clauses
● In a complex sentence, the adverbial clause is subordinate to the main clause. Like adverbs,
they answer the question When? Where? How? Why ?

When ? As soon as you trust

yourself, you will
know how to live.
Where ? You can sit where you
like.
How ? He acts like it is a
joke.
Why ? I went to the hospital
because I felt sick.
b. Adverbial clause
1, Adverbs clause of Degree or Comparison (To What Degree?)
An adverb of degree states to what degree something is done or offers a comparison. An adverb of degree
often starts with one of the following subordinating conjunctions: "than," "as...as," "so...as," or
"the...the."
Here are some examples:

• He is as smart as he is tall.

• She is not so bright as she thinks she is.

2, Adverbs clause of Concession (In spite Of)

An adverb of concession offers a statement which contrasts with the main idea. An adverb of concession
often starts with one of the following subordinating conjunctions: "though," "although," "even though,"
"while," "whereas," or "even if."

Example: We intend to go to India even if air fares go up again between now and the summer.
b. Adverbial Clause
3, Adverbs of clause Manner (How?)
● An adverb of manner states how something is done. An adverb of manner often starts with one of the
following subordinating conjunctions: "as," "like," or "the way."
Here are some examples:

○ He acts like it is a joke.

○ We don't have conversations. You talk at me the way a teacher talks to a naughty student.

4, Adverbs of clause Place (Where?)

● An adverb of place states where something happens. An adverb of place often starts with a
preposition (e.g., "in," "on," "near") or one of the following subordinating conjunctions: "anywhere,"
"everywhere," "where," or "wherever."

Here are some examples: You can sit where you like.
b. Adverbial Clause
5, Adverbial clause of Purpose answer the question What for? And for what purpose ? And are
introduced by conjunctions like so that, in order that, in case, lest and for fear ( that):
E.g: I will go to school soon so that I can meet John.

6, Adverbs clause of Reason (Why?)

An adverb of reason offers a reason for the main idea. An adverb of reason often starts with one of the
following subordinating conjunctions: "as," "because," "given," or "since."
Here are some examples: I don't have a bank account, because I can’t buy it.

7, Adverbial clause of result describe consequences and are introduced by that after, for example, so +
adjective to answer.
E.g: He ran so fast that no one can catch him.
b. Adverbial Clause
8, Adverbs clause of Time (When?)
An adverb of time states when something happens or how often. An adverb of time often starts with one
of the following subordinating conjunctions: "after," "as," "as long as," "as soon as," "before," "no sooner
than," "since," "until," "when," or "while."
e.g: After the game has finished, the king and pawn go into the same box.

9, Adverbs clause of Condition (If, Then)

An adverb of condition states the condition for the main idea to come into effect. An adverb of condition
often starts with "if" or "unless.“( if, even if, only if, provided)

e.g : If the facts don't fit the theory, change the facts.