These are word's grammars related to subject. Click on any word to go to its word's detail page. Or, go to the definition of subject.
English clauses which are not imperatives must have a subject. Sometimes we need to use a ‘dummy’ or ‘empty’ or ‘artificial’ subject when there is no subject attached to the verb, and where the real subject is somewhere else in the clause. It and there are the two dummy subjects used in English:
We often use it as a dummy subject with adjectives and their complements:
There operates as a dummy subject in the construction there is or there are. There is/are indicates that something or someone exists or is in a particular place or situation:
A subject is one of the five major elements of clause structure. The other four are: verb, object, complement and adjunct. Subjects are essential in declarative, negative and interrogative clauses.
In statements (declarative clauses), the subject comes before the verb:
The subject is an essential part of a clause. Sometimes we need to use a ‘dummy’ subject where there is no other subject to put in the subject position. We use it or there as subjects:
In imperative clauses (orders, instructions, requests) we don’t include the subject:
The person and number of the subject of the clause determine the person and number of the verb of the clause. This is called subject–verb agreement or concord:
A subject complement gives us more information about the subject. It usually comes after linking verbs and sense verbs (including be, seem, smell, taste), and after change of state verbs (including go, get, become).
10 Subject complements: parts of speech
Subject complements can be adjective phrases, noun phrases, adverb phrases or prepositional phrases:
11 Pronouns as subject complements
When we use a pronoun as a subject complement after be, we usually use an object pronoun (e.g. me, him, us):
