Questions 1–3: Identify the simple subjects and predicates. (Some are compound.) Then, identify and label each complete subject and complete predicate.

1. Men and melons are hard to know.

2. The magistrate should obey the laws. The people should obey the magistrate.

3. Fish and visitors stink in three days.

Questions 4–5: Identify the direct objects.

4. Keep your shop, and your shop will keep you.

5. Creditors have better memories than debtors.

Questions 6–8: Identify the subject complements.

6. The Golden Age never was the present age.

7. A good example is the best sermon.

8. No man ever was glorious, who was not laborious.

Questions 9–13: Read the following sentences. Identify (and label) the direct objects and indirect objects.

9. Samantha baked Richard an apple pie.

10. The teacher handed me the bad news.

11. LaToya gave herself a gold star.

12. We showed Uncle Mike the new car.

13. The server brought Timothy his hamburger.

Questions 14–17: Write down any compound subjects and compound predicates in these sentences. Each sentence has either a compound subject, a compound predicate, or both.

14. Several members always prepare and serve refreshments.

15. Sue and her daughter papered and painted the bedrooms.

16. Hunting and trapping keep us outdoors most of the time.

17. Even snow and sleet are no problem for us.

ANSWERS:
1. Men and melons are hard to know.
2. The magistrate should obey the laws. The people should obey the magistrate.
3. Fish and visitors stink in three days.

4. shop, you
5. memories

6.age (last word in sentence)
7. sermon
8. glorious, laborious

9. pie (direct); Richard (indirect)
10.news (direct); me (indirect)
11. star (direct); herself (indirect)
12. car (direct); Mike (indirect)
13. hamburger (direct); Timothy (indirect)

14. prepare, serve (compound predicate)
15. Sue, daughter (compound subject) papered, painted (compound predicate)
16. Hunting, trapping (compound subject)
17. snow, sleet (compound subject)

2. Simple Subjects: magistrate, people. Predicates: should obey (for both). Complete Subjects: The magistrate, The people. Complete Predicates: should obey the laws, should obey the magistrate.

3. Simple Subjects: Fish, visitors. Predicate: stink. Complete Subject: Fish and visitors. Complete Predicate: stink in three days.

The subject is who or what the sentence is about. The simple subject does not contain any modifiers, like adjectives or articles. The complete subject contains any of the modifiers that modify the subject. The simple predicate is the verb or verb phrase in the sentence. It does not included any of the words that modify the verb - only verbs.

4. shop, you

5. memories

A direct object receives the action of the verb. In sentence 4a, the shop is being kept by you. In sentence 4b, the shop is keeping you. In sentence 5, the memories are being had. Direct objects are ONLY in action sentences. They do not follow linking verbs.

6. age as in the present age

7. sermon

8. glorious, laborious.

The subject complement follows the linking verb in a sentence. The linking verbs link the subject to a description. That description is the subject complement. The subject complement is either a noun that renames the subject, or an adjective that describes the subject. In sentence 6, the present age is describing the Golden Age. In sentence 7, example is renamed as sermon. In sentence 8, the words glorious and laborious describe the man.

9. pie (DO), Richard (IO)

10. news (DO), me (IO)

11. star (DO), herself (IO)

12. car (DO), Uncle Mike (IO)

13. hamburger (DO), Timothy (IO)

The direct object receives the action of the subject and the indirect object receives the direct object. Sometimes I think about what you would do first if you were to act out the sentence. In sentence 9, first (or directly) is baking the pie so the pie is the direct object. Then (or indirectly), Richard gets the pie so Richard is the indirect object. I'm not actually baking him.

14. prepare and serve (compound predicate)

15. Sue and her (compound subject), papered and painted (compound predicate)

16. Hunting and trapping (compound subject)

17. snow and sleet (compound subject)

Compound subjects and compound predicates are two or more subjects or predicates joined together with a coordinating conjunction (usually and). The subjects and predicates have equal weight with each other in the sentence.