Whether you understand the definition or not, predicates are linguistically ubiquitous. We use them in every sentence—you do too!
What are predicates in grammar?
A predicate tells us what's going in any given sentence. Take the sentence I fell as an example.
The first-person singular pronoun I is the sentence subject—what performs the action or what the sentence is about.
The simple past tense, fell, is the predicate since it tells us what the subject does or did ...it's also the only other word left in the sentence. What can we gather then about the prolific predicate so far?
- They communicate what subjects do or states being experienced: She reads; He feels down.
- Predicates always contain a verb
- Apart from the main verb, predicates can also comprise of objects (direct or indirect), and modifiers (e.g., adverbs, prepositional phrases).
Identifying predicates in sentences
We know now that a predicate tells us what goes on in a sentence, and always consists of the verb/action performed. Aside from a few exceptions, sentences are made up of two core components: a subject and a predicate.
To help identify the sentence predicate, start by eliminating the subject. Subjects are either nouns, pronouns, or noun phrases.
- [Traditional Belgian waffles] [are dotted with little pearls of sugar.]
- [My friend Sarah] [puts ketchup on everything.]
- [The baby goats] [climbed up the cliff face reluctantly.]
Identifying predicates: types of predicates
There are several types of predicates:
- Simple: Friendship is valuable.
- Compound: Bridgette reads and writes.
- Complete: She is studying at university to earn her degree.
- Predicate nominatives: Samuel Clemens's pen name is Mark Twain .
- Predicate adjectives: He is exhausted.
How can you easily identify a predicate in a sentence? As mentioned, eliminate the subject first, and see what remains.
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