{"slug":"sentence-structures-linking-verbs-and-subject-complements-complex-transitive-verbs-and-object-complements-stative-verbs","title":"Sentence structures. Linking verbs and subject complements, complex transitive verbs and object complements. Stative verbs.","date":"2026-02-28T00:17:00.000Z","excerpt":"","tags":["language"],"order":17,"published":true,"content":"

Sentence structures

Sentence structures revolve around the Verb types, namely:

intransV: intransitive verb:
obligatoryAdverbialRequiredV: verbs requiring an obligatory adverbial)
linkV: linking verb
transV: transitive verb
ditransV: ditransitive verb
complexTransV: complex transitive verb

I. S + intransV: (subject + intransitive verb)

Someone (S) is talking (V).

II. S + obligatoryAdverbialRequiredV + AC: (subject + verb (verbs requiring an obligatory adverbial) + adverbial complement)

My parents (S) are living (V) in Chicago (AC).

III. S + linkV + SC: (subject + linking verb + subject complement)

I (S) feel (V) tired (SC).

IV. S + transV + dO: (subject + transitive verb + direct object)

We (S) have finished (V) our work (dO).

V. S + ditransV + iO + dO: (subject + ditransitive verb + indirect object + direct object)

She (S) has given (V) me (iO) the letter (dO).

VI. S + complexTransV + dO + OC: (subject + complex transitive verb + direct object + object complement)

You (S) have made (V) me (dO) very happy (OC).

III. Linking verbs and subject complements

Linking verbs

A linking verb (also sometimes called a copular verb) is a type of verb that connects the subject of a sentence to a word or phrase that describes or identifies the subject. It doesn't show action in the way that action verbs do. Instead, it links the subject to a subject complement, which can be:

A predicate adjective: An adjective that describes the subject.
- Example: The sky is blue. (blue describes sky)
- Example: He seems tired. (tired describes He)
A predicate nominative (or predicate noun): A noun or pronoun that renames or identifies the subject.
- Example: She is a doctor. (doctor identifies She)
- Example: They became friends. (friends renames They)

Common Linking Verbs:

Forms of \"to be\": am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been (These are the most common linking verbs.)
Sense verbs (when they describe a state, not an action): look, feel, smell, taste, sound, appear, seem
- Linking: The flower smells sweet. (sweet describes flower)
- Action: She smelled the flower. (smelled is an action she performed*)
Verbs of becoming or remaining: become, grow, turn, remain, stay
- Linking: He became angry. (angry describes He)
- Action: They grew vegetables. (grew is an action they performed*)

How to Identify Linking Verbs:

A helpful trick is to try replacing the verb with a form of \"to be\" (like is, are, was, were). If the sentence still makes sense (even if the meaning is slightly altered), the original verb is likely a linking verb.

The soup tastes salty. (The soup is salty.) - tastes is a linking verb.
He looked happy. (He was happy.) - looked is a linking verb.
She ran quickly. (She is quickly.) - Doesn't make sense, so ran is an action verb.

Linking verbs are a subset of stative verbs

Types of subject complements

1. Predicate Nominative (or Predicate Noun):

A noun or pronoun that follows a linking verb and renames or identifies the subject.
It answers the question \"What is the subject?\" or \"Who is the subject?\"
The subject and the predicate nominative are essentially the same thing.
- Examples:
  - She is a doctor. (doctor renames She)
  - The winner was he. (he identifies winner)
  - My favorite hobby is gardening. (gardening (gerund used as a noun) identifies hobby)
  - Those two ladies are my best friends. (best friends renames ladies)
  - It became a storm. (storm renames It)

2. Predicate Adjective:

An adjective or adjective phrase that follows a linking verb and describes a quality or characteristic of the subject.
It answers the question \"What is the subject like?\"
- Examples:
  - The sky is blue. (blue describes sky)
  - He seems tired. (tired describes He)
  - The soup smells delicious. (delicious describes soup)
  - They were happy. (happy describes They)
  - The music sounds quiet and peaceful. (quiet and peaceful describe music)

Prepositional Phrases Following Linking Verbs a.k.a. Adverbial Complement

You will often see prepositional phrases following linking verbs, but their function is usually to act as an adverbial (modifying the verb or the sentence as a whole) or sometimes to contribute to a predicate adjective. They don't typically rename or directly describe the subject in the same way a predicate nominative or adjective does.

Example: The concert is on Tuesday. (on Tuesday tells when the concert is - adverbial)
Example: She is in good health. (in good health functions as an adjective phrase describing She - predicate adjective)
Example: My keys are under the couch. (under the couch tells where the keys are - adverbial)

The sentence sturcture is: S + V + AC (Subject + Verb + Adverbial complement)

VI. Complex transitive verbs and object complements

Complex transitive verbs

Complex transitive verbs are verbs followed by object complements

1. Verbs of Making or Causing: These verbs describe an action that results in the direct object being in a certain state or having a particular identity.

make: The loud noise made the baby cry. (cry describes the baby)
drive: The constant interruptions drove me crazy. (crazy describes me)
render: The accident rendered his car useless. (useless describes his car)
force: They forced him to resign. (to resign describes him)

2. Verbs of Naming, Electing, or Appointing: These verbs involve giving a name, title, or designation to the direct object.

name: They named their daughter Lily. (Lily renames their daughter)
elect: The students elected Sarah president. (president renames Sarah)
appoint: The manager appointed him team leader. (team leader renames him)
call: We call our dog Buddy. (Buddy renames our dog)

3. Verbs of Considering, Thinking, or Finding: These verbs express an opinion or judgment about the direct object.

consider: I consider him a friend. (a friend renames him)
find: We found the movie boring. (boring describes the movie)
think: They thought the idea brilliant. (brilliant describes the idea)
believe: I believe him innocent. (innocent describes him)

4. Verbs of Keeping or Leaving in a State: These verbs describe maintaining or causing the direct object to remain in a certain condition.

keep: She kept the food warm. (warm describes the food)
leave: They left the door open. (open describes the door)
paint: He painted the fence white. (white describes the fence)

5. Verbs of Changing or Turning Into: These verbs indicate a transformation of the direct object.

turn: The cold weather turned the leaves brown. (brown describes the leaves)
become: He became a successful author. (a successful author renames him)
grow: She grew quite tall. (tall describes She)

Types of Object complements

1. Noun or Noun Phrase: The object complement renames or identifies the direct object.

They elected her president. (\"president\" renames \"her\")
We named our dog Buddy. (\"Buddy\" renames \"our dog\")
The students chose him the team captain. (\"the team captain\" renames \"him\")

2. Adjective or Adjective Phrase: The object complement describes a quality or state of the direct object.

The loud music made me nervous. (\"nervous\" describes \"me\")
She painted the door red. (\"red\" describes \"the door\")
We found the movie boring and predictable. (\"boring and predictable\" describes \"the movie\")

3. Adverb (usually of place): The object complement indicates the location of the direct object. This type is less common.

I put the book here. (\"here\" indicates the location of \"the book\")
They sent him home. (\"home\" indicates the location where \"him\" was sent\")

4. Prepositional Phrase: The object complement describes the state or condition of the direct object using a prepositional phrase.

We kept the food in the refrigerator. (\"in the refrigerator\" describes the location/state of \"the food\")
They considered him out of the running. (\"out of the running\" describes his state in relation to the competition\")

5. Infinitive (with or without to) Phrase: The object complement describes the direct object by indicating an action associated with it.

They made him apologize. (\"to apologize\" is an action they made \"him\" do)
She helped me understand the problem. (\"understand the problem\" is an action she helped \"me\" with)
She I got my friend to lend me his car
The loud noise caused the baby to cry
The law forces companies to pay fair wages

Sometimes “to” is missing (after Causative verbs and Sense Verbs)

Causitive verbs:

Make
- Meaning: To force or strongly persuade someone to do something.
- Structure: make + person/thing + bare infinitive (verb without \"to\")
- Example: \"My parents make me clean my room every Saturday.\"
Have
- Meaning: To arrange for someone to do something for you (often a service).
- Structure: have + person + bare infinitive
- Example: \"I'll have the mechanic check the brakes.\"
- Also can be used with a past participle for something done to an object: have + thing + past participle
- Example: \"I need to have my hair cut.\"
Let
- Meaning: To allow or permit someone to do something.
- Structure: let + person/thing + bare infinitive
- Example: \"My mom let me stay up late last night.\"

Help

Meaning: To assist someone in doing something.
Structure: help + person/thing + bare infinitive OR help + person/thing + to-infinitive (Both are correct and common)
Examples:
- \"Can you help me carry these boxes?\"
- \"Can you help me to carry these boxes?\"

Sense verbs: See, Hear, Watch, Observe, Notice, Feel, Taste, Smell, Listen to

6. Participle Phrase (present or past): The object complement describes an ongoing or completed action of the direct object.

We found him sleeping on the couch. (\"sleeping on the couch\" describes his action)
They wanted the work finished by Friday. (\"finished by Friday\" describes the desired state of \"the work\")

Like subject complements, object complements may be a prepositional phrase, but they aren’t considered real object complements but rather Adverbial Complements (AC):

You should put (V) the chidlrend (dO) in the freezer (AC)
I keep (V) my car (dO) outside the house (AC)
He stuck (V) his hands (dO) in his pockets (AC)

Types of Stative Verbs

1. Verbs of Mental States: These relate to thoughts, opinions, understanding, and beliefs.

believe, know, think (when it means \"have an opinion\"), understand, doubt, imagine, remember, forget, agree, disagree, suppose, realize, recognize, consider (when it means \"believe\"), mind.
- Example: I believe you.
- Example: She knows the answer.
- Example: They doubt the weather will be good.

2. Verbs of Emotions and Feelings: These express likes, dislikes, desires, and other emotions.

love, hate, like, dislike, want, need, prefer, wish, desire, fear, adore, appreciate, care (about), envy, please.
- Example: He loves pizza.
- Example: We need more time.
- Example: They fear the dark.

3. Verbs of Senses and Perception (often function as linking verbs): These describe how we experience the world through our senses.

see, hear, smell, taste, feel (when it means \"perceive\"), look (when it means \"seem\"), sound (when it means \"seem\"), appear, seem.
- Example: I see a bird.
- Example: The soup smells delicious.
- Example: He looks tired.

4. Verbs of Possession: These indicate ownership or belonging.

have, own, possess, belong, include, lack, consist (of).
- Example: She has a new car.
- Example: This book belongs to him.
- Example: The group includes people from different countries.

5. Verbs of States of Being or Existence (often include linking verbs): These describe a general condition or existence.

be (am, is, are, was, were, been, being), exist, seem, appear, become, remain, stay, weigh (when it indicates a state, not the action of weighing).
- Example: They are happy.
- Example: The problem remains unsolved.
- Example: This box weighs five kilograms.

6. Other Stative Verbs (can sometimes overlap with other categories): These don't fit neatly into the above categories but still describe a state.

cost, owe, matter, resemble, fit, measure (when indicating size), concern, depend (on), deserve.
- Example: This shirt fits well.
- Example: It doesn't matter.
- Example: He resembles his father.

Important Note: Some verbs can be both stative and dynamic (action verbs) depending on their meaning in a sentence. For example:

think: I think it's a good idea. (stative - expressing an opinion) vs. I am thinking about my vacation. (dynamic - the action of considering)
have: I have a car. (stative - possession) vs. I am having lunch. (dynamic - the action of eating)
see: I see the house. (stative - perception) vs. I am seeing a doctor tomorrow. (dynamic - the action of meeting)
feel: I feel sad. (stative - expressing an emotion) vs. I am feeling the fabric. (dynamic - the action of touching)
taste/smell/look/sound: Can be stative (describing a quality) or dynamic (describing the action of using the sense).