1. Understand What a Subject Is:
* The subject is the person, place, thing, or idea that performs the action of the verb. It's who or what the sentence is about.
2. Look for the Verb:
* The verb is the action word or state of being. Find the verb first, as it helps you identify the subject.
3. Ask "Who?" or "What?"
* After you find the verb, ask yourself "Who?" or "What?" is performing the action of the verb. The answer to that question is the subject.
Example:
* Sentence: The dog chased the ball.
* Verb: chased
* Question: Who chased the ball?
* Answer: The dog (This is the subject)
3. Beware of Subject-Verb Agreement:
* The subject and verb must agree in number. If the subject is singular, the verb must be singular. If the subject is plural, the verb must be plural.
* This is important for finding the subject, as it can help you narrow down the possibilities.
Example:
* Incorrect: The dogs chase the ball. (The verb "chase" is singular, but the subject "dogs" is plural.)
* Correct: The dogs chase the ball. (The verb "chase" is now plural to agree with the plural subject "dogs.")
4. Common Sentence Structures:
* Simple Sentences: The subject usually comes before the verb.
* Compound Sentences: There may be multiple subjects and verbs, connected by conjunctions (and, but, or). Each subject-verb pair is a separate clause.
* Complex Sentences: These have a main clause (with a subject and verb) and one or more subordinate clauses. The subject of the main clause is the main subject of the sentence.
5. Look for Prepositional Phrases:
* These phrases begin with prepositions (like "in," "on," "to," "by," "for") and usually describe the subject or verb. They rarely contain the subject.
Example:
* The cat on the mat slept soundly.
* (The subject is "cat", not "mat". "On the mat" is a prepositional phrase that modifies "cat".)
6. Practice, Practice, Practice:
* The more you read and analyze sentences, the more natural it will become to identify the subject.
Let me know if you have any other questions or if you'd like more examples!