Basudev Mandal Sir
When we speak or write on a particular topic or engage in a conversation, we use grammatically arranged self-contained series or sets of words. All these sets of words are thematically related to one another as the topic is common. But each such set of words expresses a clear and complete meaning. Such a grammatically arranged set or series of words which expresses a complete and clear meaning is called a sentence.
‘Birds fly’.
This is a very short group of words comprising only two wotds, yet it expresses a complete and clear meaning. So it is a sentence.
‘Cats kill rats.’ is another short set of words consisting of three words, yet it is a sentence as it expresses a complete and clear meaning. When we want to say something, first we choose the topic or subject and then say something about it. Thus a sentence has two main divisions: THE SUBJECT and THE PREDICATE.
We can expand the Subject by adding different MODIFIERS to it. A MODIFIER is a word or a phrase that describes a noun or noun equivalent, or restricts its meaning by giving some specific information about it. There are four classes of modifiers: 1. Adjectives, 2. Nouns, 3. -ing verb forms and 4. Past participles.
1. Adjectives: Adjectives are the most widely used modifiers. In the first example above we can add one or more adjectives to the subject ‘Birds’– Large blue birds fly.The articles a, an and the are also included in the category of modifiers.
2. Nouns: One noun can modify another noun: School children are returning home. In the above example the noun ‘school’ modifies the noun ‘children’.
3. There are two types of – ing verb forms : THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE and THE GERUND. We know that the present participle is used to form the continuous and the perfect continuous tenses in the active voice along with appropriate forms of the helping verbs be (am, is, are;was were, shall be, will be, and have been( have been, has been, had been etc.) respectively. When used as a modifier a present participle modifies the doer or agent of the verb whose present participle is being used as the modifier:
The flying bird was shot by the hunter.
In the above example the present participle ‘flying’ modifies its own agent or doer the ‘bird’.
There is another kind of -ing verb form called GERUND. A gerund functions like noun and so it can be used in all the positions that a noun is used in a sentence. Thus like a noun it can also modify another noun.
A walking stick has been bought by my grandfather. In the above sentence ‘walking stick’ means a stick for walking. The position of a present participle and that of a gerund are the same in many cases, but they are grammatically completely different. The noun that a gerund modifies can never be the agent or doer of the verb whose gerund is being used, while a present participle always modifies its own agent or doer.
4. A PAST PARTICIPLE as a modifier modifies the object of the verb whose past participle is being used. So the past participle of an intransitive verb is not used as a modifier.
The broken chair is to be repaired. In above example the past participle ‘broken’ modifies the noun ‘chair’, which is originally the object of the verb to break.
The subject controls the verb of the sentence on two points of grammar: 1. Voice and 2. Agreement.
1. Voice: The Subject of a sentence in most cases is the agent or doer of the verb of the sentence. However, in some specific cases the subjects are the recipients or original objects of the verbs of the respective sentences. When the agent or doer is the subject of a sentence, the verb is in the active voice, and when the original object is used as the subject of sentence, the verb is in the passive voice. Thus the voice of a sentence depends on the relation between the Subject and the verb.
2. AGREEMENT is a set of rules according to which the verb has to follow the person and number of the subject of the sentence. So we can say ‘Birds fly.’ as the subject here is in the third person and plural number, and the sentence is in the simple present tense and active voice. But when the subject is of the third person and singular number in the same tense and voice, s/es has to be added to the verb. ‘ A bird flies.’
The essential or obligatory parts of the predicate is determined by the type or category of the verb. There are broadly two main types of verbs: TRANSITIVE VERBS AND INTRANSITIVE VERBS. Most of the Transitive verbs take one object each, and that object is always a direct object. To complete the minimum length of the predicate, there must be the object in the sentence.
‘The cat killed the rat.’ Without the object ‘cat’ the remaining portion of the set of words cannot express any meaning . Therefore, it cannot be called a sentence.
There are some transitive verbs that require two objects to complete the predicate:
‘My friend presented me a camera.’ In the above example both the objects ‘camera’ and ‘me’ must be there in the sentence for the action of giving to be performed by the doer ‘My friend’.
There are some transitive verbs that take one object each, but cannot complete the predicate without an extra noun which is not an object, but refers back to the object, or an adjective that modifies the object.
‘The friends of the boy made him their leader’. In this sentence the word ‘leader’ is a noun but does not denote any separate individual or entity— it refers back to the object ‘him’. Without the noun ‘leader’ the remaining portion of the group of words does not make any sense.
‘The long journey made the man tired’.
In this sentence the adjective ‘tired’ modifies the object ‘man’, and without it the remaining set of words will make no sense. Such nouns or adjectives required to complete the predicate are called COMPLEMENTS. So to complete the minimum length of the predicate, the complement must be there along with the object. Such transitive verbs are called TRANSITIVE VERBS OF INCOMPLETE PREDICATION. A noun used as complement in such a sentence refers back to the object, and an adjective used as a complement modifies the object. So such complements are called OBJECT COMPLEMENTS.
An intransitive verb does not require an object and some of them can complete the predicate without any extra word like a complement. Such intransitive verbs are called INTRANSITIVE VERBS OF COMPLETE PREDICATION. ‘The baby is sleeping.’ is a complete and correct sentence as it expresses a complete and clear meaning.
But there are some intransitive verbs that require complements to complete the predicate. Such intransitive verbs are called INTRANSITIVE VERBS OF INCOMPLETE PREDICATION.
‘Gopal became the leader of the boys.’
To become is an intransitive verb, but without the noun phrase ‘the leader of the boys’, it cannot complete thepredicate and therefore cannot convey any meaning at all.Note that a noun used as a complement in a sentence with an intransitive verb of incomplete predication refers back to the subject and an adjective used as a complement modifies the subject. So a complement in such a position is called a SUBJECT COMPLEMENT. Therefore, to complete the minimum length of the predicate—
1. The object of the transitive verb that requires one object, the object must be there in the sentence .
2. Both the objects of a transitive verb that requires two objects, must be there in the sentence.
3. The complement of a transitive verb of incomplete predication must be there along with the object.
4. The predicate of a sentence with an intransitive verb of complete predication can be completed with the verb.
5. The complement of an INTRANSITIVE VERB OF INCOMPLETE PREDICATION must be supplied.
We can add extra words or phrases to the predicate of a sentence with any of the above kinds of verbs—
1. The cat killed the rat in the corner of the room in the darkness of night.
2. My friend presented me a camera on my last birthday.
3. The boys made Gopal their leader for his extraordinary qualities.
4. The baby is sleeping peacefully in the crib.
5. The old man became tired for the long journey.
These extra parts of the predicate depends on the decision of the speaker. They are not essential or obligatory. Such words (peacefully) and phrases( in the crib) are called adjuncts or adverbials.
Let us now check the pronunciations of a few very common words that are often mispronounced. The pronunciation of a word has two main features—
The sounds in the word and stress on the right syllable. Stress is an extra force or emphasis given on a particular syllable of a word. Stress is a fixed element in pronunciation. We cannot change its position as we cannot change the spelling of or the sounds in a word. Let us take the word ‘Asia’. The first ‘a’ is pronounced as in take, gate etc. There are two vowel sounds blended in it ‘ei’ but the last a is pronounced quite differently: it is a very short sound as we get in the first syllable of ago, about etc. It is not like an a in words such as bat, cat, sat etc., nor is it like u in cut, but etc. The sound is made by opening the mouth as little as possible and pronouncing it as short as possible. This sound is called schwa in phonetics and is represented by the symbol ‘ə’ in the International Phonetic Alphabet. The stress is on the first syllable. So the pronunciation of the word is ‘eisha. The vertical mark shows the stress on the syllable. So the pronunciation of its derivative Asian is ‘eishən, not eshian. The schwa sound in the last syllable should be eliminated if possible
Sentence: ‘sentəns.
Predicate: ‘predikət.
Grammar:’græmə. The symbol æ is pronounced like a as in cat, bat etc.
Agent:’eijənt.
Subject: ‘subjikt
.Object:’objikt.
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