Sentence Elements
The building blocks of every English sentence: subject, predicate, object, and more
What are Sentence Elements?
Every English sentence is made up of elements — each playing a specific role. The main elements are subject, predicate (verb), object, predicative (complement), attributive, adverbial, and complement.
Types of Sentence Elements
Subject
The person or thing that performs the action or is described. Usually a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase before the verb.
The cat sat on the mat.
She is a doctor.
Mrs. Bennet was a woman of mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper.
From novelPredicate (Verb)
The verb that tells what the subject does or is. The core of the sentence.
Birds fly south in winter.
Object
The receiver of the action. Direct object receives the action directly; indirect object indicates to/for whom the action is done.
She bought a book.
He gave me a gift.
Predicative (Subject Complement)
Follows a linking verb (be, seem, become) to describe or identify the subject.
The soup tastes delicious.
Attributive
Modifies a noun, providing more detail. Can be adjectives, possessives, prepositional phrases, or relative clauses.
The red car is fast.
The girl in the blue dress is my sister.
Adverbial
Modifies a verb, adjective, or the whole sentence, indicating time, place, manner, reason, etc.
She sings beautifully.
I will meet you at the station tomorrow.
Complement (Object Complement)
Follows and completes the meaning of the object: "They made him king."
They made him captain.
We painted the door green.