Practice Makes Perfect: Exploring Grammar - Muschla Gary Robert 2010

A President’s Ride in an Automobile
Subjects and predicates
Sentences

Sentences are built around subjects and predicates.

✵ The complete subject of a sentence includes all the words that tell who the subject is or what it is about.

Tara is a piano teacher.

The powerful earthquake caused much damage.

The thunder will scare the puppy.

✵ The simple subject is the most important word or words in the complete subject. The simple subject is usually a noun or pronoun.

Tara is a piano teacher.

The powerful earthquake caused much damage.

The thunder will scare the puppy.

✵ Subjects may be compound. A compound subject has two or more simple subjects.

Jason and Joanna are cousins.

✵ The complete predicate of a sentence includes all the words that tell what the subject is or does.

Tara is a piano teacher.

The powerful earthquake caused much damage.

The thunder will scare the puppy.

✵ The simple predicate is the most important word or words in the complete predicate. It is a verb or a verb phrase.

Tara is a piano teacher.

The powerful earthquake caused much damage.

The thunder will scare the puppy.

✵ Predicates may be compound. A compound predicate has two or more simple predicates.

Roberta sang and danced in the school play.

1.4 A President’s Ride in an Automobile

This president was the first to ride in an automobile. Who was he?

To answer the question, read each sentence below. Decide if the slash divides the sentence into its complete subject and complete predicate. If it does, write the letter for yes in the space above the sentence number at the bottom of the page. If the sentence is not divided correctly, write the letter for no.

1. The first automobiles / were called horseless carriages.

S. Yes

K. No

2. Many inventors worked / on early automobiles.

E. Yes

H. No

3. Henry Ford built one / of the first cars in 1893.

S. Yes

D. No

4. Early cars / broke down often.

E. Yes

O. No

5. Many people thought / of “motoring” as a sport.

H. Yes

L. No

6. Many improvements in / automobiles were made.

K. Yes

R. No

7. Soon people / looked upon automobiles as a means of transportation.

T. Yes

G. No

8. Many companies / began making automobiles.

V. Yes

F. No

9. Today many families / own more than one automobile.

O. Yes

R. No