Predicates

A predicate is the completer of a sentence. The subject names the "do-er" or "be-er" of the
sentence; the predicate does the rest of the work. A simple predicate consists of only a verb, verb
string, or compound verb:

 The glacier melted. 
 The glacier has been melting. 
 The glacier melted, broke apart, and slipped into the sea.

A compound predicate consists of two (or more) such predicates connected:

 The glacier began to slip down the mountainside and eventually crushed some of the village's 
outlying buildings.

A complete predicate consists of the verb and all accompanying modifiers and other words that
receive the action of a transitive verb or complete its meaning. The following description of
predicates comes from The Longman Handbook for Writers and Readers (examples our own):

With an intransitive verb, objects and complements are included in the predicate. (The glacier is
melting.) With a transitive verb, objects and object complements are said to be part of the
predicate. (The slow moving glacier wiped out an entire forest. It gave the villagers a lot of
problems.) With a linking verb, the subject is connected to a subject complement. (The mayor
doesn't feel good.)

A predicate adjective follows a linking verb and tells us something about

the subject:

 Ramonita is beautiful. 
 His behavior has been outrageous. 
 That garbage on the street smells bad.

A predicate nominative follows a linking verb and tells us what the

subject is:
Click on "Mr. Morton" to
 Dr. Couchworthy is acting president of the university.  read and hear Lynn
Ahren's "The Tale of Mr.
 She used to be the tallest girl on the team.
Morton," and learn all
about subjects and
Direct and Indirect Objects
simple predicates (from
A direct object is the receiver of action within a sentence, as in "He hit Scholastic Rock).
the ball." Be careful to distinguish between a direct object and an object Schoolhouse Rock® and
complement: its characters and other
elements are trademarks
 They named their daughter Natasha.
and service marks of
American Broadcasting
In that sentence, "daughter" is the direct object and "Natasha" is the object
Companies, Inc. Used
complement, which renames or describes the direct object. with permission.

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The indirect object identifies to or for whom or what the action of the verb is performed. The direct
object and indirect object are different people or places or things. The direct objects in the sentences
below are in boldface; the indirect objects are in italics.

 The instructor gave his students A's. 
 Grandfather left Rosalita and Raoul all his money. 
 Jo­Bob sold me her boat.

Incidentally, the word me (and similar object­form pronouns such as him, us, them) is not always an indirect 
object; it will also serve, sometimes, as a direct object.

 Bless me/her/us! 
 Call me/him/them if you have questions.

In English, nouns and their accompanying modifiers (articles and adjectives) do not change form
when they are used as objects or indirect objects, as they do in many other languages. "The radio is
on the desk" and "I borrowed the radio" contain exactly the same word form used for quite different
functions. This is not true of pronouns, however, which use different forms for different functions. (He
[subject] loves his grandmother. His grandmother loves him [object].) (See, also, pronoun cases.)

Complements

Since this page is about the completers of thoughts, it is appropriate to include a brief description of
complements. A complement (notice the spelling of the word) is any word or phrase that completes
the sense of a subject, an object, or a verb. As you will see, the terminology describing predicates
and complements can overlap and be a bit confusing. Students are probably wise to learn one set of
terms, not both.

 A subject complement follows a linking verb; it is normally an adjective or a noun that renames 
or defines in some way the subject. 
o A glacier is a huge body of ice. 
o Glaciers are beautiful and potentially dangerous at the same time. 
o This glacier is not yet fully formed. (verb form acting as an adjective, a participle)

Adjective complements are also called predicate adjectives; noun complements are also called 
predicate nouns or predicate nominatives. See predicates, above.

 An object complement follows and modifies or refers to a direct object. It can be a noun or 
adjective or any word acting as a noun or adjective. 
o The convention named (Dogbreath) Vice President to keep (him) happy. (The noun 
"Vice President" complements the direct object "Dogbreath"; the adjective "happy" 
complements the object "him.") 
o The clown got (the children) too excited. (The participle "excited" complements the 
object "children.")

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  A verb complement is a direct or indirect object of a verb. (See above.) 
o Granny left Raoul all her money. (Both "money" [the direct object] and "Raoul" [the
indirect object] are said to be the verb complements of this sentence.) 

The descriptions of complements are based on the glossary of The Little, Brown Handbook by H. Ramsay Fowler and Jane E. Aaron,
& Kay Limburg. 6th ed. HarperCollins: New York. 1995. 751. By permission of Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc. Examples
our own.

Adjective or Adverb?

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Graphics for this handout were designed by Michelle Hansard.

Basic Rules

1. Adjectives modify nouns; adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs.

You can recognize adverbs easily because many of them are formed by adding -ly to
an adjective.

Here are some sentences that demonstrate some of the differences between an
adjective and an adverb by showing what is being modified in each sentence. In each
sentence, light blue arrows point to adjectives and green arrows point to adverbs.

Here careless is an adjective that modifies the

proper noun Richard.

Here carelessly is an adverb that modifies the

verb talks.

Here happy is an adjective that

modifies the proper noun Priya and
extremely is an adverb that modifies
the adjective happy.
Here quickly is an adverb that
modifies the verb finished and
unusually is an adverb that modifies
the adverb quickly.

Adverbs can't modify nouns, as you can see from the following incorrect sentences.

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 The correct sentence should say He is a quiet
He is a quietly man. man.
The correct sentence should say I have a happy
I have a happily dog. dog.

On the other hand, it's sometimes easy to make the mistake of using an adjective to
modify a verb, as the incorrect sentences below show.

The correct sentence should say He talks carelessly

He talks careless about your
wife. about your wife.
The correct sentence should say He is breathing normally
He is breathing normal again. again.

2. An adjective always follows a form of the verb to be when it modifies the noun before the verb.

Here are some examples that show this rule. Light blue arrows point from the adjective
to the noun that it modifies.

3. Likewise, an adjective always follows a sense verb or a verb of appearance -- feel, taste, smell, sound,
look, appear, and seem -- when it modifies the noun before the verb.

Here are some examples that show this rule. Light blue arrows point from the adjective
to the noun it modifies.

Here bad is an adjective that modifies the noun

cough. Using the adverb badly here would not make
sense, because it would mean her cough isn't very
good at sounding.

4
 Here awful is an adjective that modifies the noun oil.
Using the adverb awfully here would not make
sense, because it would mean that castor oil isn't
very good at tasting.

Here fresh is an adjective that modifies the noun air.

Using the adverb freshly here would not make
sense, because it would mean that the air has a
sense of smell that it uses in a fresh manner.

Here unhappy is an adjective that modifies the

pronoun she. Using the adverb unhappily here would
not make sense, because it would mean that she
isn't very good at seeming.

Here dark is an adjective that

modifies the noun images. Using the
adverb darkly here would not make
sense, because it would mean that
the images were suddenly popping
into view in a dark manner.

Be careful to notice whether the word modifies the subject or the verb in the sentence.
If the word modifies the subject, you should use an adjective. If the word modifies the
verb, you should use an adverb. The difference is shown in the following pair of
sentences.

Here sweet is an adjective that modifies the noun

apple. Using the adverb sweetly here would not
make sense, because it would mean that the apple
can smell things in a sweet manner.

Here carefully is an adverb that modifies the verb

smells. Using the adjective careful here would not
make sense, because it would mean that the dog
gives off an odor of carefulness.
Avoiding Common Errors

Bad or Badly?

When you want to describe how you feel, you should use an adjective (Why?
Feel is a sense verb;see rule #3 above). So you'd say, "I feel bad." Saying you feel
badly would be like saying you play football badly. It would mean that you are unable to
feel, as though your hands were partially numb.

Good or Well?

Good is an adjective, so you do not do good or live good, but you do well and live well.
Remember, though, that an adjective follows sense-verbs and be-verbs, so you also

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 feel good, look good, smell good, are good, have been good, etc. (Refer to rule #3
above for more information about sense verbs and verbs of appearance.)

Confusion can occur because well can function either as an adverb or an adjective.
When well is used as an adjective, it means "not sick" or "in good health." For this
specific sense of well, it's OK to say you feel well or are well -- for example, after
recovering from an illness. When not used in this health-related sense, however, well
functions as an adverb; for example, "I did well on my exam."

Double-negatives

Scarcely and hardly are already negative adverbs. To add another negative term is
redundant, because in English only one negative is ever used at a time

They found scarcely any animals on the island. (not scarcely no...)
Hardly anyone came to the party. (not hardly no one...)

Sure or Surely?

Sure is an adjective, and surely is an adverb. Sure is also used in the idiomatic
expression sure to be. Surely can be used as a sentence-adverb. Here are some
examples that show different uses of sure and surely. Light blue arrows indicate
adjectives and green arrows indicate adverbs.

Here sure is an adjective that

modifies the pronoun I.

Here surely is an adverb that

modifies the adjective ready.
He is definitely ready to…

Here sure to be is an idiomatic

phrase that functions as an
adjective that modifies the
pronoun she.

Here surely is an adverb that

modifies the verb has been.

Real or Really?

Real is an adjective, and really is an adverb. Here are some examples that
demonstrate the difference between real and really. Light blue arrows indicate
adjectives and green arrows indicate adverbs.

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 Here really is an adverb that modifies the
adverb well.

Here really is an adverb that modifies the

verb phrase going out.

Here real is an adjective

that modifies the noun
problems.

Near or Nearly?

Near can function as a verb, adverb, adjective, or preposition. Nearly is used as an

adverb to mean "in a close manner" or "almost but not quite." Here are some examples
that demonstrate the differences between various uses of near and nearly. Light blue
arrows indicate adjectives and green arrows indicate adverbs. Subjects and verbs are
marked in purple.

Here neared is a verb in the past

tense.

Here nearly is an adverb that

modifies the verb finished.

Here near is an adjective that

modifies the noun future.

Here near is an adverb of place that

The car drives fast modifies the verb crept.
(Adv)

Here nearly is an adverb

that modifies the verb
related.

Here near is a
preposition. The
prepositional phase near
the end of the movie
modifies the noun
scene.

Count and NonCount Nouns (with Plurals, Articles, and Quantity Words)

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7
Section 1: Definition of Count and Noncount nouns

Count or Noncount?

The main difference between count and noncount nouns is whether you can count the things they
refer to or not.

Count nouns refer to things that exist as separate and distinct individual units. They usually refer to
what can be perceived by the senses.

Examples:

table finger bottle

chair remark award
word girl candidate

Example sentences:

I stepped in a puddle. (How many puddles did you step in?

Just one.)

I drank a glass of milk. (Glasses of milk can be counted)

I saw an apple tree. (Apple trees can be counted)

Noncount nouns refer to things that can't be counted because they are thought of as wholes that
can't be cut into parts. They often refer to abstractions and occasionally have a collective meaning
(for example, furniture).

Examples:

anger courage progress

furniture education weather
warmth leisure precision

Example Sentences:

8
I dove into the water. (How many waters did you dive
into? The question doesn't make any sense; therefore
water is noncountable.)

I saw the milk spill. (How many milks? Milk cannot be

counted.)

I admired the foliage. (How many foliages? Foliage

cannot be counted.)

Think of the batter from which a cake is made. Before you put the batter into the oven, it can't be
divided into parts because it's a thick liquid. Once it has been baked, it becomes solid enough to be
cut into pieces. Noncount nouns are like cake batter; count nouns are like pieces of cake

Note: Since the issue is complicated and almost no rule is absolute, there will be exceptions to the
above definitions; however, we can show some general patterns. Bear in mind that what is countable
in another language may not be countable in English, and vice versa.

Section 2: Uses of Count and Noncount Nouns

Pluralizing

The Rule

From the definitions of mass and count given above you may have already guessed the rule for
pluralizing them:

 most count nouns pluralize with -s

 noncount nouns don't pluralize at all

This rule works for all of the nouns in the lists of examples in the first section. Check this rule for
yourself before reading further.

An Exception to the Rule

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For a number of nouns, the rule needs slight revision. Certain nouns in English belong to both
classes: they have both a noncount and a count meaning. Normally the noncount meaning is
abstract and general and the count meaning concrete and specific. Compare:

Count

 I've had some difficulties finding a job. (refers to a number of specific

problems)
 The talks will take place in the Krannert building. (refers to a number
of specific lectures)
 The city was filled with bright lights and harsh sounds. (refers to a
number of specific lights and noises)

Noncount

 She succeeded in school with little difficulty. (refers to the general

idea of school being difficult)
 I dislike idle talk. (refers to talking in general)
 Light travels faster than sound. (refers to the way light and sound
behave in general)

Note: A special case of the use of noncount nouns in a count sense has to do with classification. Sometimes a usually
noncount noun can be understood as one item separate and distinct from other items of the same category. The nouns
that function in this way often denote foods and beverages: food(s), drink(s), wine(s), bread(s), coffee(s), fruit(s), and so
on. Examples:

 There are several French wines to choose from. (= kinds of wine)

 I prefer Sumatran coffees to Colombian. (= kinds of coffee)
 We use a variety of different batters in our bakery. (= kinds of batter)

A recent entry into this class is homework, which at least among some students has the count plural homeworks in
addition to its noncount use. (For example, "You're missing three of the homeworks from the first part of the course.")
Because this usage is not firmly established and is likely to be considered nonstandard, you should check with your
instructor before using it in writing.

A Revision of the Rule

These exceptions require that the rule for pluralizing be revised: count nouns and nouns used in a
count sense pluralize; noncount nouns and nouns used in a noncount sense do not.

The two possibilities in each half of the rule require different choices. If you know that a particular
noun must be either count or noncount and cannot be both, you need to decide only if it is possible
to pluralize the noun. On the other hand, if you know that a particular noun may be used in either a
count or noncount sense, then you need to decide whether it is appropriate to pluralize.

To summarize, we may put the rule in a chart, like this:

Pluralizes with -s Doesn't Pluralize

     XX       
Count Noun

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      XX       
Count Use

            XX
Noncount Noun

             XX
Noncount Use

Articles

Nouns and Articles

Choosing which article to use (if any) with a noun is a complex matter because the range of choices
depends on whether the noun in question is 1) count or noncount and 2) singular or plural. Both
count nouns (whether singular or plural) and noncount nouns take articles.

Combinations of Nouns and Articles

The following chart shows which articles go with which kinds of nouns. Notice that this, that, these,
and those have been included because, like the, they mark the noun that they modify as definite,
which means that the noun refers 1) to a unique individual or 2) to some person, event, or object
known to both the writer and reader from their general knowledge or from what has been previously
mentioned in a piece of writing.

these,
a, an the this, that no article
those

Count   XX  XX   XX               

singular

Count          XX          XX   XX

plural

          XX   XX           XX

Noncount

Examples:

Count Singular:
I ate an apple.
I rode the bus.
Does she live in this house? No, she lives in that house over there.

Count Plural:
I like to feed the birds.
Do you want these books? No, I want those books up there.
Cats are interesting pets.

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 Noncount:
The water is cold.
This milk is going sour.
Music helps me relax.

Quantity Terms

The following chart shows which quantity words go with which kinds of nouns. Note that quantity
words can be used in combinations such as many more, many fewer, much more, and much less,
any of which can be preceded by how to form questions or relative clauses. Negatives like not and
no can also be applied to many of these terms.

some, any,
mo
many, both,
st,
much, less, sever
mo
littl al,
re,
e, a few/fe
all, each, every,
littl wer/fe
a any
e, west,
lot ,
ver a few,
of, one
y one of
no,
littl the, a
no
e coupl
ne
e of
of
the

Count                           XX

singular

           XX     XX       

Count plural

    XX     XX                

Noncount

Examples:

Count Singular:
I practice every day.
I'd like one donut, please.

Count Plural:
Can I have some chips?
She has a lot of books, and many are autographed.
I have fewer pencils than you.

Noncount:
Can I have some water?
She has a lot of strength, and much is due to her upbringing.
I have less courage than you.

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Count and NonCount Nouns (with Articles and Adjectives)

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Countable Nouns

Countable nouns refer to things that we can count. Such nouns can take either singular or plural
form.

Concrete nouns may be countable.

There are a dozen flowers in the vase.

He ate an apple for a snack.

Collective nouns are countable.

She attended three classes today.

London is home to several orchestras.

Some proper nouns are countable.

There are many Greeks living in New York.

The Vanderbilts would throw lavish parties at their Newport
summer mansion.

Uncountable Nouns

Uncountable nouns refer to things that we cannot count. Such nouns take only singular form.

Abstract nouns are uncountable.

The price of freedom is constant vigilance.

Her writing shows maturity and intelligence.

Some concrete nouns are uncountable (when understood in their undivided sense).

The price of oil has stabilized recently.

May I borrow some rice?

While uncountable nouns do not generally take a plural form, sometimes they may be pluralized
when used in a countable sense. The difference between the uncountable and countable meanings
of nouns that are used in either sense can be seen in the following chart:

Uncountable Sense Countable Sense

Art is often called an imitation of life. I read a book about the folk arts of Sweden.

Life is precious. A cat has nine lives.

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 He likes to eat pizza. How many pizzas should we order?

Religion has been a Many religions are practiced in the United States.
powerful force in history.
The hull of a kayak is made of animal skins.
She has beautiful skin.
We have several sculptures in our home.
Dr. Moulton is an expert in ancient Greek sculpture.

We use only recycled paper in our office. Where are those important papers?

Using Articles with Countable and Uncountable Nouns

A countable noun always takes either the indefinite (a, an) or definite (the) article when it is singular.
When plural, it takes the definite article if it refers to a definite, specific group and no article if it is
used in a general sense.

The guest of honor arrived late.

You are welcome as a guest in our home.
The guests at your party yesterday made a lot of noise.
Guests are welcome here anytime.

Uncountable nouns never take the indefinite article (a or an), but they do take singular verbs. The is
sometimes used with uncountable nouns in the same way it is used with plural countable nouns, that
is, to refer to a specific object, group, or idea.

Information is a precious commodity in our computerized world.

The information in your files is correct.
Sugar has become more expensive recently.
Please pass me the sugar.

Categories of Uncountable Nouns

Abstract Material Generic Non-Plurals with - s

advice meat fruit mathematics

help rice wildlife economics
information bread equipment physics
knowledge cake machinery civics
trouble coffee furniture ethics
work ice cream mail mumps
enjoyment water luggage measles
fun oil jewelry news
recreation grass clothing tennis
relaxation hair money (other games)

For more on using articles with countable and uncountable nouns, see our document on that topic.

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Quantity Adjectives with Countable and Uncountable Nouns

Some, Any

Both words modify either countable or uncountable nouns.

There are some cookies in the jar. (countable)

There is some water on the floor. (uncountable)

Did you eat any food? (uncountable)

Do you serve any vegetarian dishes? (countable)

Much, Many

Much modifies only uncountable nouns.

How much money will we need?

They ate so much cake that they started to feel sick.
Much effort will be required to solve this problem.

Many modifies only countable nouns.

How many children do you have?

They had so many books that they had to stack them in the hall.
Many Americans travel to Europe each year.

A lot of, Lots of

These words are informal substitutes for much and many.

Lots of effort will be required to solve this problem. (uncountable)

A lot of Americans travel to Europe each year. (countable)

Little, Quite a little, Few, Quite a few

Little and quite a little modify only uncountable nouns.

We had a little ice cream after dinner.

They offered little help for my problem. (meaning "only a small amount")
They offered quite a little help for my problem. (meaning "a large amount")
(See quite a bit of, below.)

Few and quite a few modify only countable nouns.

A few doctors from the hospital play on the softball team.

Few restaurants in this town offer vegetarian dishes. (meaning "only a
small number")
Quite a few restaurants in this town offer vegetarian dishes. (meaning "a
large number")

A little bit of, Quite a bit of

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These informal phrases usually precede uncountable nouns. Quite a bit of has the same meaning as
quite a little and is used more commonly.

There's a little bit of pepper in the soup. (meaning "a small amount")
There's quite a bit of pepper in the soup. (meaning "a large amount")

Enough

This word modifies both countable and uncountable nouns.

I don't have enough potatoes to make the soup.

We have enough money to buy a car.

Plenty of

This term modifies both countable and uncountable nouns.

There are plenty of mountains in Switzerland.

She has plenty of money in the bank.

No

This word modifies both countable and uncountable nouns.

There were no squirrels in the park today.

We have no time left to finish the project.

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