Main content
Grammar
Course: Grammar > Unit 8
Lesson 1: Introduction to sentencesWhat is a sentence?
A sentence is a grammatically complete idea. All sentences have a noun or pronoun component called the subject, and a verb part called the predicate. David and Paige explore this division across several different example sentences.
Want to join the conversation?
- I'm a mathematician not a writer so I need lots of help so pardon me if this question is dumb but is the "the" at the beginning of the sentence actually part of the subject or is it just a part of the sentence.(23 votes)
- "The" at the beginning of a sentence is part of the complete subject, but not part of the simple subject. The simple subject is the noun that shows who or what the sentence is about. The complete subject is the the noun and everything to the left of the verb, or predicate.(28 votes)
- What about the sentence, Hello. Like if someone says Hello to you. What is the subject and what is the predicate? Pardon me if this is a dumb question.(18 votes)
- I think that "Hello" isn't a sentence because it isn't a grammatically complete idea. "Hello" originally came from "halâ, holâ" in Old High German, which was sort of like "halôn/holôn", meaning "fetch" as in fetching someone's attention:
https://bit.ly/3clfacr
I guess the root of it was sort of like "Give me your attention," which does have the main sentence components. So "hello" is (more or less) a compiled sentence, "give me your attention" being the predicate and the subject being whoever you want attention from. An explanation of commands without subjects is given at. 2:57(6 votes)
- what is a question(7 votes)
- A question is a sentence worded in such a way as to obtain information.(12 votes)
- Can a sentence contain merely a word? For example Hello. or Yes!(5 votes)
- Yes, I suppose you could.
Hello. Who is this?
OR
Hello, who is this?
Two different ways to say the same thing. And in dialogue it's really useful when you can say a lot in one word. I hope that was helpful!(11 votes)
- I don't feel like "I am" is a sentence.(5 votes)
- It can be a sentence if it acts like the answer to a question.
For example-Who is the person whose phone rang?I am.
In this scenario, 'I am' provides full meaning, and hence it is a sentence.
In other contexts, it won't be a complete sentence as it won't provide a full meaning.(8 votes)
- why is it called syntax?
is there a story for that or is it just random?(3 votes)- Syntax is defined as the way that words and phrases are arranged to create well-made sentences.
Our word syntax comes from the the Greek word suntaxis, which is a combination of these two roots:
- sun = together
- tassein = arrange
So syntax literally means how things are arranged or put together.
Hope this helps!(6 votes)
- Can a sentece end with a question mark?(1 vote)
- Yes, in fact you ended a sentence with a question mark correctly in your question!(6 votes)
- Is it true that "Go." is the shortest English sentence possible?(2 votes)
- No, it's possible to go even shorter. For example:
What letter was featured on Sesame Street today?
J!
"J!" is a complete sentence because it contains a noun and a verb (which is implied).
- noun = J
- verb = was (implied)
In your sentence "Go." the noun is implied.
- noun = you (implied)
- verb = go
Hope this helps!(4 votes)
- difference between assertive and imperative sentences?(3 votes)
- Assertive sentences make a statement such as "Nicholas took a nap." They're simple sentences.
Imperative sentences give commands such as "Go to your room." They make a request.(1 vote)
- Now I wanna muffin!🍞🤣(3 votes)
Video transcript
- [Voiceover] Hello
grammarians, hello Paige. - [Voiceover] Hi, David. - [Voiceover] So today
we're gonna tackle this idea of what is a sentence, as we go into this realm of language
that is called syntax. And syntax is this concept of,
basically grammatical order. What this word syntax
literally means in Greek, is, you know, putting
together and arranging, right, so it just means ordering of language. - [Voiceover] So that's,
like, what a sentence is. - [Voiceover] That's what a sentence is, it's what a sentence is, it's what the components of a sentence are. And we'll go into all of
that in much greater detail, but in order to do that, first of all we have to figure out what
a sentence actually is. So, the definition that you
and I came up with, Paige, is that a sentence is a
grammatically complete idea. - [Voiceover] Right. It's a bunch of words that
say one complete thing. - [Voiceover] So, all sentences have a noun or pronoun component,
- [Voiceover] Mmm-hmm. - [Voiceover] Right, and that's
what we call the subject. And then we have the verb
part, which is the predicate. - [Voiceover] So a sentence has, it has to have like, a
thing, or a noun or pronoun. - [Voiceover] Sure, that's the subject. - [Voiceover] Yeah, and
something that it's doing. - [Voiceover] Sure, that's the predicate. - [Voiceover] Yeah.
- [Voiceover] Okay. So let's say that we've got this sentence, the great big dog licked my face. Here is our sentence, what is the subject? - [Voiceover] Subject
is the great big dog. - [Voiceover] Alright, and that means that everything that's not the subject is part of the predicate, right? - [Voiceover] Mmm-hmm. - [Voiceover] So, licked
my face is the predicate. So this is the noun chunk that is performing the action of the sentence. - [Voiceover] You got it, yeah. - [Voiceover] Cool. So, all sentences have
to have this, right? - [Voiceover] Yeah, they have to have a subject and a predicate,
these two separate parts. - [Voiceover] So if you said,
if you asked a question like, Are you named David? - [Voiceover] Okay, - [Voiceover] If you asked that of me, - [Voiceover] Mmm-hmm, - [Voiceover] Which, go ahead. - [Voiceover] Are you named David? - [Voiceover] I am. Is this a sentence, it's really short. - [Voiceover] It is very short. But, see, "I" is a pronoun,
- [Voiceover] Okay, - [Voiceover] So that can be the subject. - [Voiceover] That's our subject. - [Voiceover] And, "am" is a verb. So it has a subject and a predicate. - [Voiceover] So this is
the noun or pronoun part. And this is the action
that it is performing. Although "am" or "being"
isn't really an action, it's more of a linking verb.
- [Voiceover] Sure. - [Voiceover] But it's still a verb. - [Voiceover] Okay. - [Voiceover] Okay, so this is, this is the predicate then, for sure. - [Voiceover] Yeah. - [Voiceover] Okay, so Paige. Let's say I dropped a muffin. - [Voiceover] Right, - [Voiceover] And you told
me, pick up that muffin. - [Voiceover] Uh-huh. - [Voiceover] That sentence
doesn't seem to have, just let me write that down. That sentence doesn't
seem to have a subject. I see how all of this is predicate. - [Voiceover] Right, pick
up is a verb, and then, - [Voiceover] And then
the muffin is the thing that's being picked up,
like that's all one thing. Where's, what goes in the blue box? - [Voiceover] I see, so when
we have a sentence like this, where I'm telling you to do something, - [Voiceover] Mmm-hmm, - [Voiceover] There
doesn't always have to be a subject said out loud. - [Voiceover] Okay. - [Voiceover] This is
like an order, right? I'm telling you you have
to pick up that muffin. - [Voiceover] So this is kinda like an invisible, secret subject. - [Voiceover] Right, the
subject really is you. - [Voiceover] Okay, - [Voiceover] You pick up that muffin, but I don't have to say it out loud. - [Voiceover] Because I know
that you're talking to me. Because I can tell 'cause
you're looking at me, and you're yelling at me about a muffin. - [Voiceover] Yes, I am. - [Voiceover] So, a sentence is a grammatically complete
idea or expression. - [Voiceover] Mmm-hmm. - [Voiceover] And it has to
have a noun or pronoun part, which we call the subject,
and it has to have a verb and all its baggage part, which is what we call the predicate. And sometimes that subject
can sort of be implied, or invisible, as in the
command. "Pick up that muffin!" - [Voiceover] Right.
- [Voiceover] Cool. You can learn anything, David out. - [Voiceover] Paige out.