ENGLISH GRAMMAR · LESSON 2 · BEGINNER
Subject and Predicate: The Two Main Parts of a Sentence
Take a sentence like “The little boy is flying a kite.” We know who the sentence is about, and we know what he is doing. These two parts help us understand how a sentence is built.
In this lesson, we will learn how to find the subject and predicate in ordinary sentences, using examples from school, home and everyday life.
1. What is a subject?
The subject is the person, animal, thing or idea that a sentence is about. In many sentences, it tells us who is doing something or who or what is being described.
For example, in “Meena reads every evening,” the sentence is about Meena. So, Meena is the subject.
Sentence: The dog barked loudly.
Ask: Who barked loudly?
Answer: The dog.
So, “The dog” is the subject.
More examples
| Sentence | Subject | How do we find it? |
|---|---|---|
| Rohan plays cricket. | Rohan | Who plays cricket? |
| The birds are singing. | The birds | What are singing? |
| My younger sister loves drawing. | My younger sister | Who loves drawing? |
| Jaipur is a busy city. | Jaipur | What city is being described? |
| Honesty is important. | Honesty | What is being discussed? |
Remember that the subject is not always a person. It can be an animal, a place, a thing or even an idea.
2. What is a predicate?
The predicate is the part of a sentence that tells us something about the subject. It includes the verb and may also include other words that complete the message.
Look at this sentence: “The children played in the park.” The sentence is about the children. The words played in the park tell us what they did. These words form the predicate.
Sentence: My father drives carefully.
Subject: My father
Predicate: drives carefully
More examples
| Sentence | Subject | Predicate |
|---|---|---|
| The baby is sleeping. | The baby | is sleeping |
| Our teacher explained the lesson. | Our teacher | explained the lesson |
| The train arrived late. | The train | arrived late |
| These flowers smell sweet. | These flowers | smell sweet |
| My friends and I went to the library. | My friends and I | went to the library |
A predicate does not always describe an action. In “The sky is blue,” the predicate is blue tells us about the sky.
3. See how a sentence is divided
Let us divide the sentence “The little girl is watering the plants.”
Notice that the predicate is more than just the action word. Here, the verb phrase is “is watering”, but the full predicate is “is watering the plants”.
4. Simple subject and complete subject
Sometimes the subject is only one word. At other times, it includes describing words. It helps to know the difference between the simple subject and the complete subject.
The simple subject is the main word in the subject. The complete subject includes that main word and all the words that go with it.
| Sentence | Complete subject | Simple subject |
|---|---|---|
| The small brown puppy slept. | The small brown puppy | puppy |
| My best friend from school lives nearby. | My best friend from school | friend |
| Several tall trees grow beside the road. | Several tall trees | trees |
| The new science teacher arrived today. | The new science teacher | teacher |
In the first sentence, puppy is the main naming word. The words the small brown give us more information about the puppy.
5. Simple predicate and complete predicate
The simple predicate is the main verb or verb phrase. The complete predicate includes the verb and all the words that tell us more about the subject.
| Sentence | Complete predicate | Simple predicate |
|---|---|---|
| The small brown puppy slept peacefully. | slept peacefully | slept |
| My best friend from school lives nearby. | lives nearby | lives |
| The players have finished the match. | have finished the match | have finished |
| The new science teacher arrived today. | arrived today | arrived |
For school-level exercises, follow the terminology used by your textbook. Some books use “simple predicate” for the main verb, while others explain the verb phrase as a unit.
6. How to find the subject and predicate
Use these steps whenever you are unsure.
- Read the whole sentence. Make sure you understand its meaning.
- Find the verb. Look for the action or the word that links the subject to a description.
- Ask who or what? Ask who or what performs the action or is being described.
- Mark the subject. Include the words that belong with the main subject word.
- The remaining part is usually the predicate. Check that it tells us something about the subject.
Worked example
Sentence: The students in our class completed the project yesterday.
Verb: completed
Who completed the project? The students in our class.
Subject: The students in our class
Predicate: completed the project yesterday
Do not simply divide a sentence in the middle. Find its meaning first, then identify the subject and predicate.
7. Sentences with a hidden or understood subject
In a command or request, the subject you is often understood rather than written.
| Sentence | Understood subject | Predicate |
|---|---|---|
| Please sit down. | You | Please sit down |
| Open your notebook. | You | Open your notebook |
| Do not run in the corridor. | You | Do not run in the corridor |
These are commands. The speaker is talking to someone, so the subject you is understood.
8. Common mistakes to avoid
| Common mistake | Correct understanding |
|---|---|
| Calling only the verb the complete predicate. | The complete predicate includes the verb and the other words that tell us about the subject. |
| Thinking the subject is always the first word. | The subject often comes first, but questions and other sentence structures may place it elsewhere. |
| Thinking the subject is always a person. | A subject can be an animal, thing, place or idea: “Rain fell all night.” |
| Forgetting helping verbs. | In “The children have been studying,” the verb phrase includes “have been studying.” |
| Splitting a sentence without checking its meaning. | Read the whole sentence and identify what it says before marking the two parts. |
9. Practice questions
Try each question on your own before opening the answer. The questions begin simply and become a little more challenging.
Question 1
Find the subject: “A bright star appeared in the sky.”
Show answer
Subject: A bright star.
Predicate: appeared in the sky.
Question 2
Find the predicate: “My mother makes delicious food.”
Show answer
Predicate: makes delicious food.
Question 3
Divide this sentence into subject and predicate: “The old clock stopped suddenly.”
Show answer
Subject: The old clock.
Predicate: stopped suddenly.
Question 4
Find the simple subject: “The children from the next classroom are waiting outside.”
Show answer
Simple subject: children.
Complete subject: The children from the next classroom.
Question 5
Find the complete predicate: “Our school team won the final match yesterday.”
Show answer
Complete predicate: won the final match yesterday.
Question 6
What is the understood subject in “Please keep quiet”?
Show answer
The understood subject is you.
Question 7
Identify the subject and predicate: “Honesty is the best policy.”
Show answer
Subject: Honesty.
Predicate: is the best policy.
Question 8
Identify the complete subject and complete predicate: “The players wearing blue shirts practised after school.”
Show answer
Complete subject: The players wearing blue shirts.
Complete predicate: practised after school.
10. Practice for your notebook
Write each sentence in your notebook. Underline the subject once and the predicate twice.
- The sun shines brightly.
- My cousin plays the guitar.
- The books on the table belong to our teacher.
- A group of students visited the museum.
- The little cat was sleeping under the chair.
- Keep your classroom clean.
Answer key:
- Subject: The sun | Predicate: shines brightly.
- Subject: My cousin | Predicate: plays the guitar.
- Subject: The books on the table | Predicate: belong to our teacher.
- Subject: A group of students | Predicate: visited the museum.
- Subject: The little cat | Predicate: was sleeping under the chair.
- Understood subject: You | Predicate: Keep your classroom clean.
Quick revision
| Term | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Subject | Who or what the sentence is about | The baby |
| Predicate | What the sentence says about the subject | is smiling. |
| Simple subject | The main word in the subject | puppy in “The small puppy slept.” |
| Complete subject | The main subject word and its describing words | The small puppy |
| Simple predicate | The main verb or verb phrase | slept |
| Complete predicate | The verb and the words that complete the message | slept peacefully. |
Here is the main idea to remember: the subject tells us who or what we are talking about, and the predicate tells us something about it.
What should you learn next?
Now that you can identify the main parts of a sentence, the next lesson is Parts of Speech in English Grammar. It explains the different jobs words do in a sentence, such as naming, describing and showing actions.
You can also return to the English Grammar and General English library to continue learning in order.