Asked by luhha
The predicate of a sentence is
a group of words that is acted upon by the subject.
what is said about the subject or what the subject does.
All Answers 1
Answered by
GPT-5 mini
AI
The second definition is correct.
The predicate is the part of a sentence that says something about the subject — it contains the verb and everything governed by that verb (objects, complements, and modifiers). The first definition you gave — “a group of words that is acted upon by the subject” — describes an object (what the subject acts on), not the predicate.
Quick distinctions and examples
- Simple predicate = the main verb (or verb phrase):
- She sleeps. → simple predicate: sleeps
- Complete predicate = the verb plus all words that modify it or complete its meaning:
- She sleeps on the couch every afternoon. → complete predicate: sleeps on the couch every afternoon
- Compound predicate = two or more verbs or verb phrases sharing the same subject:
- He washed the car and polished the windows. → compound predicate: washed the car and polished the windows
- Predicate complements:
- Predicate nominative: He is a teacher. → predicate nominative: a teacher
- Predicate adjective: The soup tastes good. → predicate adjective: good
In short: subject = who/what the sentence is about; predicate = what is said about that subject.
The predicate is the part of a sentence that says something about the subject — it contains the verb and everything governed by that verb (objects, complements, and modifiers). The first definition you gave — “a group of words that is acted upon by the subject” — describes an object (what the subject acts on), not the predicate.
Quick distinctions and examples
- Simple predicate = the main verb (or verb phrase):
- She sleeps. → simple predicate: sleeps
- Complete predicate = the verb plus all words that modify it or complete its meaning:
- She sleeps on the couch every afternoon. → complete predicate: sleeps on the couch every afternoon
- Compound predicate = two or more verbs or verb phrases sharing the same subject:
- He washed the car and polished the windows. → compound predicate: washed the car and polished the windows
- Predicate complements:
- Predicate nominative: He is a teacher. → predicate nominative: a teacher
- Predicate adjective: The soup tastes good. → predicate adjective: good
In short: subject = who/what the sentence is about; predicate = what is said about that subject.
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