Subject and Predicate

Grade 4 · English · Study Guide

Learn the two essential parts of every sentence: the subject and the predicate.

Every complete sentence has two main parts: a subject and a predicate. Understanding these two parts helps you write complete sentences and avoid fragments (incomplete sentences).

The subject is who or what the sentence is about. It is usually a noun or pronoun. In the sentence 'The big brown dog barked loudly,' the subject is 'The big brown dog.' The simple subject is just the key noun: 'dog.' The complete subject includes all the words that describe it: 'The big brown dog.'

The predicate tells what the subject does, is, or has. It always contains the verb. In 'The big brown dog barked loudly,' the predicate is 'barked loudly.' The simple predicate is just the main verb: 'barked.' The complete predicate includes the verb and all its related words: 'barked loudly.'

A sentence fragment is missing either a subject or a predicate (or both). 'Ran to the store' has no subject — who ran? 'The little puppy' has no predicate — what did the puppy do? Both are fragments, not complete sentences.

Compound subjects have two or more subjects joined by 'and' or 'or.' For example: 'Maria and her brother walked to school.' Compound predicates have two or more verbs: 'The cat jumped on the counter and knocked over the glass.'

Subject and Predicate Examples
Complete Subject	Complete Predicate
The tall giraffe	bent its neck to drink water.
My best friend and I	rode bikes all afternoon.
Three large eagles	soared over the mountain.
She	finished her homework before dinner.

Key terms

Subject: The part of a sentence that tells who or what the sentence is about
Predicate: The part of a sentence that tells what the subject does, is, or has — contains the verb
Simple subject: Just the main noun or pronoun in the subject
Complete subject: The simple subject plus all its describing words
Fragment: An incomplete sentence missing a subject or predicate

Flashcards

Subject: Who or what the sentence is about — usually a noun or pronoun
Predicate: What the subject does, is, or has — always contains a verb
Simple Subject: Just the main noun: in 'The big dog barked,' the simple subject is 'dog'
Complete Subject: The noun and all its describing words: 'The big brown dog'
Simple Predicate: Just the main verb: in 'barked loudly,' the simple predicate is 'barked'
Fragment: An incomplete sentence missing a subject, predicate, or both

Practice questions

In the sentence 'The small kitten slept on the couch,' what is the simple subject?
1. The small kitten
2. slept
3. kitten
4. on the couch
Show answer
Answer: kitten
The simple subject is just the main noun — 'kitten.' 'The small kitten' is the complete subject.
The predicate of a sentence always contains a verb.
Show answer
Answer: True
The predicate always includes the verb — it's what tells us what the subject is doing or being.
An incomplete sentence missing a subject or predicate is called a ___.
Show answer
Answer: fragment
A fragment is missing the subject, predicate, or both — it's an incomplete thought, not a full sentence.
Which part of the sentence is the predicate? 'The excited children ran through the park.'
1. The excited children
2. children
3. ran through the park
4. the park
Show answer
Answer: ran through the park
The predicate is everything that tells what the children did — 'ran through the park' contains the verb 'ran.'
A compound subject has two or more subjects joined by 'and' or 'or.'
Show answer
Answer: True
Compound subjects join two or more subjects: 'The cat and dog played together' — both 'cat' and 'dog' are subjects.

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