SUBJECT AND PREDICATE
Sentence Foundations, Identification and Usage
Samacheer Kalvi–oriented English grammar courseware for learners aged 11+.
Tamil Nadu State Board • School Grammar • Exam FoundationCourse Learning Outcomes
- Identify the subject and predicate in a sentence.
- Distinguish the simple subject from the complete subject.
- Distinguish the simple predicate from the complete predicate.
- Recognise compound subjects and compound predicates.
- Understand how subject and predicate support sentence meaning.
- Connect subject–predicate knowledge with sentence patterns.
- Use the skill in Samacheer-style grammar questions.
- Improve accuracy in writing and sentence analysis.
Samacheer Kalvi Connection
Samacheer grammar materials treat clauses as groups containing a subject and predicate, and sentence-pattern work asks learners to identify structures such as SV, SVO and SVC. citeturn0search2 citeturn0search8
The Tamil Nadu examination question-bank material also shows direct sentence-pattern identification, for example identifying the pattern of “Ram’s father is a lawyer.” citeturn0search24
Course Roadmap
- What is a sentence?
- What is the subject?
- What is the predicate?
- Simple and complete subject
- Simple and complete predicate
- Compound subjects
- Compound predicates
- Subject–predicate agreement
- Questions, commands and unusual word order
- Subject and predicate in clauses and sentence patterns
- Samacheer-style exam practice
- 20 MCQs, revision and mastery check
Lesson 1 — What Is a Sentence?
A sentence is a group of words that expresses a complete thought.
| Sentence | Subject | Predicate |
|---|---|---|
| Ravi plays cricket. | Ravi | plays cricket. |
| Priya reads a book. | Priya | reads a book. |
| The children are happy. | The children | are happy. |
Lesson 2 — What Is the Subject?
The subject is the person, animal, thing or idea that the sentence is about. It commonly performs the action or is described by the predicate.
| Sentence | Subject | Question to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Arun runs fast. | Arun | Who runs fast? |
| The dog barked loudly. | The dog | Who/what barked? |
| Honesty is valuable. | Honesty | What is valuable? |
Lesson 3 — What Is the Predicate?
The predicate tells us what the subject does, what happens to it, or what it is like.
| Subject | Predicate |
|---|---|
| Meena | won the prize. |
| Karthik | is very intelligent. |
| The birds | are flying in the sky. |
| My father | works in Chennai. |
Lesson 4 — Simple Subject and Complete Subject
The simple subject is the main word naming the subject. The complete subject includes the simple subject and all words that describe or modify it.
| Sentence | Simple Subject | Complete Subject |
|---|---|---|
| The clever boy won the race. | boy | The clever boy |
| My younger sister Priya sings well. | sister | My younger sister Priya |
| The tall trees near our house are swaying. | trees | The tall trees near our house |
Lesson 5 — Simple Predicate and Complete Predicate
The simple predicate is the main verb or verb phrase. The complete predicate includes the verb and all words that complete or modify the predicate.
| Sentence | Simple Predicate | Complete Predicate |
|---|---|---|
| Ravi plays cricket every evening. | plays | plays cricket every evening |
| Ananya has finished her homework. | has finished | has finished her homework |
| The students are studying in the library. | are studying | are studying in the library |
Lesson 6 — Compound Subjects
A sentence may have two or more subjects sharing one predicate. Such a subject is called a compound subject.
Subject: Ravi and Arun | Predicate: play football
Subject: Priya, Meena and Ananya | Predicate: prepared the chart
Lesson 7 — Compound Predicates
A sentence may have one subject performing two or more actions. This creates a compound predicate.
| Sentence | Subject | Compound Predicate |
|---|---|---|
| Ravi opened the door and switched on the light. | Ravi | opened the door and switched on the light |
| Meena sang and danced. | Meena | sang and danced |
| Karthik washed the car and cleaned the windows. | Karthik | washed the car and cleaned the windows |
Lesson 8 — Subject–Predicate Agreement
The subject and verb must agree in number and person. This is a foundation for correct sentence construction.
| Correct | Incorrect | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Ravi plays cricket. | Ravi play cricket. | Singular subject → singular present verb. |
| The boys play cricket. | The boys plays cricket. | Plural subject → base verb in simple present. |
| My sister is ready. | My sister are ready. | Singular subject → is. |
Samacheer grammar guidance also emphasises that a verb agrees with its subject in number and person. citeturn0search11
Lesson 9 — Questions, Commands and Unusual Word Order
Questions
In questions, the subject may appear after an auxiliary verb.
Subject = the students; Predicate = are ready.
Subject = Ravi; Predicate = did finish the work.
Commands
In an imperative sentence, the subject you is often understood rather than stated.
Understood subject = you; Predicate = open the door.
Lesson 10 — Subject, Predicate, Clauses and Sentence Patterns
Every independent clause has a subject and a predicate. Understanding them helps learners recognise common sentence patterns such as SV, SVO and SVC.
| Pattern | Example | Subject | Predicate |
|---|---|---|---|
| SV | Ravi sleeps. | Ravi | sleeps |
| SVO | Priya reads books. | Priya | reads books |
| SVC | Arun is a doctor. | Arun | is a doctor |
| SVA | Meena lives in Madurai. | Meena | lives in Madurai |
Samacheer sentence-pattern exercises use patterns such as SV, SVO and SVA, making subject–predicate identification a useful foundation skill. citeturn0search8
Lesson 11 — Samacheer-Style Exam Practice
The following exercises are original practice based on the grammar concepts represented in Tamil Nadu Samacheer materials and question-bank patterns. They are not reproduced questions from a copyrighted paper.
Answer
Subject: The young farmer. Predicate: grows vegetables.Answer
studentsAnswer
has completed her project carefullyAnswer
Ravi and KarthikAnswer
opened the book and read the first chapterAnswer
the childrenAnswer
you is understood.Lesson 12 — Common Errors, 20 MCQs & Mastery
Common Errors
- Do not confuse the first noun with the subject.
- Do not mistake an object for the subject.
- In questions, do not assume the first word is the subject.
- In commands, remember the understood subject you.
- Separate the simple subject from descriptive words around it.
- Separate the simple predicate from the complete predicate.
- Check subject–verb agreement after identifying the subject.
20 MCQs
A) plays B) cricket C) Ravi D) plays cricket
Answer
C) RaviA) Ravi B) plays cricket C) cricket D) plays
Answer
B) plays cricketA) The B) clever C) boy D) won
Answer
C) boyA) Priya B) sister C) My younger sister Priya D) sings well
Answer
C) My younger sister PriyaA) boys B) are playing C) football D) are
Answer
B) are playingA) compound subject B) compound object only C) compound clause D) predicate adjective
Answer
A) compound subjectA) compound subject B) compound predicate C) compound noun D) dependent clause
Answer
B) compound predicateA) tall B) house C) trees D) swaying
Answer
C) treesA) Are B) ready C) the students D) Are ready
Answer
C) the studentsA) door B) open C) you D) the
Answer
C) youA) The young girl B) Priya C) won the prize yesterday D) the prize
Answer
C) won the prize yesterdayA) Ravi runs. B) Ravi and Priya sing. C) Ravi sings and dances. D) Ravi is happy.
Answer
B) Ravi and Priya sing.A) Ravi and Arun play. B) Ravi plays and sings. C) Ravi is a player. D) Ravi plays cricket.
Answer
B) Ravi plays and sings.A) run B) runs C) running D) are run
Answer
B) runsA) runs B) is running C) run D) runs are
Answer
C) runA) is B) valuable C) Honesty D) is valuable
Answer
C) HonestyA) teacher B) Meena C) book D) gave
Answer
A) teacherA) noun + adjective B) subject + predicate C) verb + adverb D) article + noun
Answer
B) subject + predicateA) What opened? B) Who opened the gate? C) Where is the gate? D) When did he open?
Answer
B) Who opened the gate?A) count the words B) find the main verb and ask who/what performs or is linked to it C) find the longest word D) ignore the verb
Answer
B) find the main verb and ask who/what performs or is linked to itQuick Revision Chart
| Term | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Subject | Who/what the sentence is about | Ravi plays. |
| Predicate | What is said about the subject | Ravi plays cricket. |
| Simple Subject | Main subject word | The clever boy won. |
| Complete Subject | Subject + modifiers | The clever boy won. |
| Simple Predicate | Main verb/verb phrase | Ravi plays. |
| Complete Predicate | Verb + remaining predicate words | Ravi plays cricket every day. |
Final Mastery Check
- Underline the subject and circle the predicate in: “Ananya completed her science project.”
- Find the simple subject in: “The talented young singer won the prize.”
- Find the complete predicate in: “Karthik has finished his homework carefully.”
- Identify the compound subject in: “Priya and Meena prepared the poster.”
- Identify the compound predicate in: “Ravi opened the book and read the story.”
Teacher / Parent Activities
- Subject Detective: give ten sentences and let learners find the verb first, then the subject.
- Colour Coding: mark subjects in one colour and predicates in another.
- Sentence Building: give a subject card and predicate card; students match them to make meaningful sentences.
- Pattern Link: after identifying Subject + Predicate, identify SV, SVO, SVC or SVA where possible.
- Exam Drill: use short Samacheer-style questions and require students to explain why an answer is correct.
Source & Alignment Note
Samacheer Kalvi grammar resources explain clauses through subject and predicate and provide sentence-pattern practice. citeturn0search2 The 12th-standard grammar overview includes Sentence Patterns and Simple, Compound and Complex Sentences among its grammar areas. citeturn0search10 Tamil Nadu examination material also demonstrates sentence-pattern identification in grammar questions. citeturn0search24
This courseware is an original instructional resource for learners aged 11+; examples and MCQs are newly written for teaching and practice rather than reproducing a complete previous-year paper.