Considered to be

Question

zWritingTip response: This question relates to subject and verb agreement. When a sentence begins with there or here, the actual subject is considered to be the word or words following the verb. Use a singular verb if the actual subject is singular and a plural verb if the actual subject is plural.
Grammar Tip – There Was or There Were | Ontario Training Network

I understand the meaning but needs elaboration on the use of infinitive "to be" here? if I remove it , it still makes sense to me. What parts of speech is " to be...following verb."?
Thanks

Englishmaven · Accepted Answer

You are right. It makes sense if you remove "to be." It is a little "wordy" with "to be" in the sentence, and if I had written it, I wouldn't have included "to be" in the sentence for that reason.

"...is considered to be..." is a chain of verbs like "...began to write..."

The word "considered" already expresses the idea of "to be," so it is redundant to include "to be" after it. "...is considered to be..." is a linking verb. The word "subject" is the subject of the sentence. "...is considered to be..." or "...is considered..." is the verb phrase, and "the word or words" are the predicate nominative/ predicate noun/ subject complement that is a noun. "The word or words" restate the word "subject" in this case, which is what a predicate nominative does. When we say "subject" in this particular sentence, we mean the word or words, and when we say "the word or words," we mean "subject." That is a perfect predicate nominative. It's a bit of a confusing example because of the actual words being used. Here is an easier example:

She is a teacher. "She" is the subject. "Teacher" is the predicate nominative. It follows a linking verb and restates the subject. When we say, "She," we mean the teacher, and when we say, "The teacher," we mean "she." "The teacher" restates the subject "she."

You ask what part of speech "to be the word or words following the verb" is. All of that is not just one part of speech. The words are different parts of speech, and together, they create more than one part of the sentence. "To be" is part of the verb phrase as I mentioned before. "The word or words" is the predicate nominative, comprised of an article, noun, coordinating conjunction, and another noun. "Following the verb" is an adjectival participial phrase that modifies "the word or words." The present participle is followed by a noun that is an object of "following."

The easiest way to look at this rather complicated situation is the way you looked at it in the first place. You were right. You could easily delete "to be."

I'm guessing you do understand the point that was being made about sentences that start with "there" or "here." That point was that the subject of the sentence is not "there" or "here." The verb, often a form of "to be" comes after "there" or "here" and is followed by the subject of the verb.

There is a problem. "Problem" is the subject of "is."
There are two problems. "Two problems" is the subject of "are."

There are a few varieties of this style of sentence:
Here comes trouble.
Here come the children.
There have been many questions about the lecture.
There has been one question about the lecture.
There is an important point I would like to make.
There are important points I would like to make.

Jigneshbharati · Answer

Thanks a lot for this wonderful explanation. much appreciated.

Considered to be

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