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Anonymous Posted 10 years ago
Grammar

Simple subject

Hi: I'd like to ask you a few things about what is called the "Simple Subject" in English grammar, please. I've learnt that a "simple subject" is a Noun or a Pronoun without any modifers or descriptive words that functions as the subject of a sentence; that performs or does the action expressed by an action verb. Or it the Noun or the Pronoun without any modifiers that is connected or linked to a "subjective verb complement"
when the verb it precedes is a linking verb.
But I'd like to know if we can also refer to a "gerund" or an "infinitive", or a "Noun Clause", for example, when these things are used as
the subject of a sentence as a simple subject.

Here are some examples:

- Walking is good for your health. (Here, the gerund "walking" is used as the subject of the sentence. Can this be referred to as
a simple subject, since it has no modifiers accompanying it?)

-To err is human, to forgive is divine. (Here, the infinitives "to err" and "to forgive" are used as the subjects, but they are not accompanied
by any modifiers. For this reason, can we call them "simple subjects"?)

- What he does doesn't impress me at all. (Here, the "noun clause" "what he does" is the subject of the sentence, but it not accompanied by
any modifiers. So, is it a simple subject, here?)
Thank you.
  

Top answer

Anonymous But I'd like to know if we can also refer to a "gerund" or an "infinitive", or a "Noun Clause", for example, when these things are used as the subject of a sentence as a simple subject. Yes.

  • Anonymous But I'd like to know if we can also refer to a "gerund" or an "infinitive", or a "Noun Clause", for example, when these things are used as the subject of a sentence as a simple subject.
  • Yes.
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6 Answers
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AnonymousBut I'd like to know if we can also refer to a "gerund" or an "infinitive", or a "Noun Clause", for example, when these things are used as the subject of a sentence as a simple subject.
Yes.
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Mister MicawberYes.
Thank you very much, sir, for your reply.

If we add some sort of modifiers to them, then do they become complete subjects?

-Walking long distances alone makes her tired.

-To eat too fast isn't always a good thing.

-What he said to Jane softly didn't seem to make her happy.
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AnonymousIf we add some sort of modifiers to them, then do they become complete subjects?
Yes, that is right. And simple/complete predicates are demarked in the same way.
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AnonymousIf we add some sort of modifiers to them, then do they become complete subjects
What do you mean by naming subjects "complete"? Do you mean it as "complex"?
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http://study.com/academy/lesson/complete-subject-definition-examples-quiz.html
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fivejedjonhttp://study.com/academy/lesson/complete-subject-definition-examples-quiz.html
Thank you for the link.

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