Subjects and VerbsChapter 23

The basic building blocks of English sentences are subjects and verbs.◦Who or what the sentence is about is called the subject.

◦The word(s) that show the action of the subject, or its state of being, is called the verb.

Subjects and Verbs

FIND THE SUBJECT

Who or what is the sentence about?

Subjects

My best friend studies marine

biology.

• Friend

Sharks attack their prey.

• Sharks

Michael works on a submarine.

• Michael

FIND THE VERB

There are three ways to find the verb.

1. What does the subject do?

Verbs 1

My best friend studies marine biology.

• Studies

Sharks attack their prey.

• Attack

Put the pronoun (I,

you, he, she, it, or they) in front of the

word you think is a verb.

If the result works…

you have a verb.

Verbs 2

Find the verb…There are three ways to find the verb.

#2

Verbs 3

Recognize linking verbs. They do not show action, but a state of being.

I am tall.

Bob seems happy.

Find the verb…There are three ways to find the verb.

#3

Many verbs consist of

more than one word.

The verb sometimes

has a “helping”

verb.

Verbs 4

◦Mike is writing a report about the great white shark.

◦We are studying about the jaws and teeth of sharks.

Notes:o Words like not, just, never, always,

and only are not part of the verb.oA shark does not sleep.oPeople have always feared sharks.

o When what looks like a verb has a “to” in front of it, it is not

o a verb.o* Sharks like to live in cold water.

Verbs 5

Verbs 6

When hunting for sharks, people

rarely use the term fishing.

“Use” is the verb. “Hunting” is not the verb.

Notes:

No -ing word by itself is the verb of the sentence. ( It may be part of the verb, but it must have a helping verb in front of it.)

“Is” = helping verb“Hunting” = verb

Michael is hunting for sharks tomorrow.

A sentence may have more than one verb.◦The shark swam and attacked.

A sentence may have more than one subject.◦Dolphins and whales have some protection from sharks.

Compound Subjects and Verbs

The subject of a sentence never appears within a prepositional phrase.

A prepositional phrase is simply a group of words that begins with a preposition and ends with an object.

Distinguishing Subjects from Prepositional Phrases.

An interesting exhibit

of a killer whale is very

popular at the new aquarium.

Subject: exhibit

Verb: is

Prepositional phrases:

of a killer whale

at the new aquarium

Distinguishing Subjects from Prepositional Phrases.

Practice 1

Identify the subjects and verbs in the following:

My brother expects to go on an important job interview soon.

Subject: brother

Verb: expects

Practice 2

Identify the subjects and verbs in the following:

He practiced for this interview in an interesting way.

Subject: He

Verb: practiced

Practice 3

Identify the subjects and verbs in the following:

Preparing for the interview was an important part of the process.

Subject: Preparing

Verb: was

Identify the subjects and verbs in the following:

Bill went on job interviews for positions that he did not really want.

Subject: Bill

Verb: went

Relative clause subject: heRelative clause verb: did want

Practice 4

Practice 5

Identify the subjects and verbs in the following:

Now he is more relaxed about meeting with employers and answering questions.

Subject: He

Verb: is

Identify the subjects and verbs in the following:

Appropriate dress is important, too.

Subject: dress

Verb: is

Practice 6

Practice 7Identify the subjects and verbs in the following:

The job applicants wrote essays about their values and spoke in front of a small group.

Subject: applicants

Verb: wrote/spoke

Identify the subjects and verbs in the following:

Of course, Bill should have researched the company beforehand.

Subject: Bill

Verb: should have researched

Practice 8

Practice 9

Identify the subjects and verbs in the following:

A worthy candidate for a job wants to give a good impression.

Subject: candidate

Verb: wants