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BoSsSy Posted 9 years ago
Grammar

What is "you" in this sentence ?

The sentence is:

I want to help you.

"I" is the subject, "want" is the verb and "to help" is the object but what is "you" ?

  

Top answer

Not quite. "To help" is not the object of "want", but its complement. I want [to help you] .

— BillJ

  • Not quite.
  • "To help" is not the object of "want", but its complement.
  • I want [to help you] .
  • "Want" is a catenative verb and the bracketed expression is a non-finite subordinate clause functioning as its catenative complement.
  • "You" is the object complement of "help".
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1 Answers
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Not quite. "To help" is not the object of "want", but its complement.

I want [to help you].

"Want" is a catenative verb and the bracketed expression is a non-finite subordinate clause functioning as its catenative complement. "You" is the object complement of "help".

The term 'catenative' is derived from the Latin word for 'chain'. It's used to

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