Subjects for intermediate learners

subject pronouns subjects

In English grammar, the subject of a clause is the noun referring to the person or thing that is doing the action of the verb. We will learn all about it here.

advanced

What Are Subjects?

Simply put, the subject is a person or a thing doing the action in a sentence.

Types of Subjects

Basically, we have three main kinds of subjects and we will learn about two of them here.

Simple Subjects
Compound Subjects
Complete Subjects

Simple Subjects

The simple subject is one simple word that is mostly at the beginning of the sentence and it sometimes comes with a definite or an indefinite article.

It can be a personal pronoun:

She eats lunch at 2:30.

They are going shopping.

It can be a proper name:

George is wearing a t-shirt today.

Abraham cannot decide what to eat for dinner.

It can be a collective noun:

The class is going on a trip to Italy.

The family will come to the meeting tonight.

Subject Personal Pronouns

All personal pronouns can be used as subjects in sentences. Let us have a quick review.

	Personal Pronouns
First Person Singular	I
Second Person Singular	You
Third Person Singular (Male)	He
Third Person Singular (Female)	She
Third Person Singular (Non-human)	It
First Person Plural	We
Second Person Plural	You
Third Person Plural	They

Compound Subjects

The second kind of subject is 'compound subjects'. They consist of two or more nouns or pronouns. Look:

Dave and Jackie are going on a trip together.

My sister and I will come to the party at 8 o'clock.

Tip!

For connecting the nouns or pronouns, we use and between them.

How to Find the Subject?

In English, we have different types of sentences. Below you can see them and how to find the subjects:

The subject mainly comes before the verb.

She talks a lot.

The cat is asleep.

In questions, the subject comes after the auxiliary and before the main verb.

Do you know where we are?

Can she speak English?

In imperative sentences, the subject is hidden.

Go! (You go.)

Here in this example, the subject is omitted because it is an order.

Speak faster! (You speak faster)

Objects

Simply put, an object is a noun or pronoun representing the person or thing that is affected by the action of the verb. Here, we'll explain more.

Direct Objects

Generally, an object is a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase that usually comes after the verb. In this article we will talk about the direct objects.

Indirect Objects

As you know, there are three different groups of objects in English. This article is about indirect objects and their functions.

Objects of Prepositions

Objects of prepositions are used when we know there must be an object after the prepositions.

Adjuncts

'Adjunct' is a word from the Latin that means 'join'. They are any elements in the structure of a clause that is not part of its core. Let's learn about them!

Complements

In grammar, complements are words, phrases, or clauses that are essential to complete the meaning of a given expression. Here, we will study them thoroughly!

download langeek app for free

Langeek