Sentences consist of a number of parts, using different parts of speech.
- The subject of a sentence is either a noun phrase or a pronoun. Normally the subject comes before the verb phrase in a sentence.
The girls had been swimming.
The new teacher came in.
They had finished.
- A verb phrase includes the main verb and may have auxiliary verbs to go with it.
The girls had been swimming.
The new teacher came in.
They had finished.
- The object is a noun phrase or a pronoun.
She used her old skateboard.
Rajiv was reading a new novel.
Josh found it.
Not all verbs need an object. When there is one, the object normally comes after the verb phrase. Some verbs may also need an indirect object.
Hamish gave me a party invitation.
Ruth gave Lauren a nice bunch of flowers.
- An adverbial, or adjunct, is an optional part of the sentence.
This may be:
- a single word, an adverb.
Suddenly, it started to rain heavily.
- an adverbial phrase, a group of words that functions as an adverb.
In the morning, the sky was clear.
You probably won’t notice it after a while.
- an adverbial clause, a group of words including a verb, which functions as an adverb.
When I’ve poured the drinks, I’ll get some biscuits for you.
Mark played while Isabel sang.
Though some adverbials have a fixed position, most can be added to a sentence in several places. Any number of them can be added, limited only by the sense of the sentence.
In the winter, the roads get very slippery.
The roads get very slippery in the winter.
- With certain verbs, such as be and seem, a complement takes the place of an object. A complement can be either an adjective or a noun phrase. Complements provide further descriptive detail about the subject.
He became a doctor in 2015.
He felt a bit silly when he realized what he’d done.
They became good friends despite the mistake.
For further information on English Grammar, visit: https://grammar.collinsdictionary.com/easy-learning
Come back for other blogs on using English in everyday situations: https://blog.collinsdictionary.com/language-learners/learning-english/
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