How to find subject and object in any sentence?

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9pointer

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Highly confused with subject and object in any sentence. What exactly they are? How to find object and subject in any sentence:?::?:

I'm sorry for asking such a silly question but i m unable to grasp the concept properly for Grammar book:-?:-?:-?
 

MikeNewYork

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In most cases, the subject is the doer of the action and the object is the recipient of the action. That is a good place to start.
 

cereal_chick

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I am highly confused with the subject and object in any sentence. What exactly are they? How do I find the object and subject in any sentence?

I'm sorry for asking such a silly question but I'm unable to grasp the concept properly for my Grammar book.
Please refrain from using smileys in lieu of proper punctuation. Remember to place a verb in every clause, invert the subject and verb in a question and place definite articles where appropriate.

As for the subject and object:
— The subject is the "doer" or the agent of the action described by the verb.
— The object is the thing being acted upon. There are two types of object: the direct and the indirect object. The direct object describes what is directly affected by the action, whereas the indirect object describes something which is indirectly affected by the action.

Look at the sentences (with the subject and objects highlighted in their respective colours):
"He died yesterday." The subject here is "he", "he" being the one who performed the action of dying.
"Mary had a shower." The subject is Mary because she is the one taking the shower, and the shower is the direct object, because it is the thing being taken.
"Did you give him the pen?" The subject is you (inverted with the verb, it being a question). The direct object is the pen, because the pen is the one given, the thing physically being passed. "Him" is the indirect object, because "he" is the recipient of the pen, the direct object.

[Not a teacher]
 

MikeNewYork

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The dog ate a bone. Dog = subject; bone = object.
The man was following his wife. Man = subject; wife = object.
I walked to the store. I = subject; there is no direct object. The verb is intransitive.
The ambassador placed the file on the desk. Ambassador = subject; file = object.
 

9pointer

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Sir

Thank you for correcting my sentences. I will try to improve on your suggestions.

Jim's grandmother died in 1989.
Subject: Grandmother

I've lost my key. I can't find it.
Subject: I Object: Key
Am I correct?
 

mtreadaway

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Hi 9pointer,

Yes you're correct. Good job. You could try looking up some TOEFL preparation activities to identify subjects and objects. I think they are very systematic. That was how I became confident with identifying sentence components.

Thanks,

Maria
 

Tdol

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The subject normally comes before the verb, and the object after it.
 
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