A Compound subject is a sentence (an independent clause) consisting of a predicate (verb) and a subject. The subject does the verb (action) in the sentence.

If the term ‘compound’ means consisting of two or more separate parts, it means that a compound subject is the one that consists of two or more than two subjects. The subjects in a compound subject are nouns that are joined together by a conjunction.

For example,

1. My friends and I went to the cinema to watch the latest movie.

In the above example sentence, the compound subject is ‘my friends and I’ which is joined by the conjunction ‘and.’

2. Either paints or colour pencils would make my children happy.

Just like the example (1), example (2) has also two subjects ‘paints or colour pencils’ which make up a compound subject.

Why use a Compound Subject?

Just like a compound predicate, a compound subject can be important to make writing effective and concise. You can use a compound subject instead of repeating each subject in multiple sentences.

• Sarah likes to paint at home. Her friend likes to paint at home. (Incorrect)
• Sarah and her friend like to paint at home. (Correct)

Rules to Remember

Should you use a singular verb or a plural verb with the compound subjects?

Generally speaking, you need to write a singular verb with a singular subject and a plural verb with a plural subject.

For example,

• She goes. (singular verb with singular subject)
• They go. (plural verb with plural subject)

However, you have to be careful because there is not the same verb case in a compound subject. Though, a compound subject has two or more subjects but the verb will not always be plural.

If the subjects are joined together by ‘and’ then, you should choose a plural verb. For example,

• Sara and Betty are coming at my place. (both subjects are doing the action)

But, if the subjects are added together and referring to the same idea, then the singular verb should be used. For example,

• Rice and soup is to be ordered.

In a compound subject, subjects can be joined together by ‘or’ or ‘nor’ as well. In this case, check out the subject that is closest to the verb. If the closest subject would be singular, the verb would be singular; and if the closest subject would be plural, the verb would be plural. For instance,

• Neither Sarah nor her friends are like to go to party.
• Either you or my friend gets a free ticket from me.

Common Mistakes in Using Compound Subjects

Outline typical errors made when constructing sentences with compound subjects, particularly in terms of subject-verb agreement.

Mistake: Neither the teacher nor the students is happy. (Incorrect)

Correction: Neither the teacher nor the students are happy. (Correct)

What Did You Learn?

Compound subjects may help you to make your writing effective and concise. A compound subject consists of two or more subjects (nouns) that are joined together by a conjunction. There are specific rules for the usage of verb because a compound subject does not necessarily needs a plural verb.

*If you feel any confusion, refresh your mind by reading the post again.

A simple subject simply tells about a sentence without any modifiers. It means that it can be a main word that tells about the action (verb) which is going on in a sentence.

For example,

1. The children ate the whole box full of chocolates.
In the above example, ‘the children’ is the simple subject. ‘the children’ is doing the action (verb), ‘ate.’

2. Sarah sings very sweetly.
In the above example, ‘Sarah’ is the simple subject, who is doing the action (verb), ‘sings.’

Note: You can see in the above examples that there are no modifiers attached to the simple subjects, ‘the children’ and ‘Sarah.’

Simple vs Complete Subject

Think about a complete subject as the opposite.

It tells what is going on in a sentence with modifiers attached to it. It means that a complete subject does not stand alone in a sentence. Let us see in the examples below.

1. Five cute little angels stayed at my place for one month.
In the above example, ‘five cute little angels’ is the complete subject that is doing the verb.

2. The shiny golden dress made her look much better.
In the above example, ‘the shiny golden dress’ is the complete subject; whereas, ‘dress’ is the simple subject.

You have seen in the above examples that the simple subject is only a single word however; the complete one may consist of more than two words that are called ‘the modifiers.’

Note: Prepositional phrases do not include a simple or a complete subject. So, never try to find out subjects in such phrases.

Check Out: What Is a Compound Subject?

Common Errors with Simple Subject

Identifying simple subjects can sometimes be tricky, and several common mistakes can lead to confusion. Here are a few frequent errors to watch out for:

1. Confusing the Complete for the Simple Subject

The complete subject includes all the words that modify the subject, while the simple subject is just the main noun or pronoun doing the action.

• Sentence: “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.”
• Mistake: Many might think that “The quick brown fox” is the simple subject.
• Correction: The simple subject is simply “fox.”

2. Ignoring Implied Subjects in Imperative Sentences

In imperative sentences, the subject is often implied rather than explicitly stated. This can lead to overlooking the simple subject altogether.

• Sentence: “Sit down.”
• Mistake: Readers may overlook the subject and wonder who is being addressed.
• Correction: The implied simple subject is “you.” Understanding that “you” is often the unspoken subject in commands is essential for grasping the full meaning of the sentence.

3. Misidentifying Subjects in Complex Sentences

In sentences that contain clauses or phrases, identifying the simple subject can become more complicated.

• Sentence: “The teacher, along with her students, is planning a field trip.”
• Mistake: Some may mistakenly identify “teacher and her students” as the simple subject.
• Correction: The simple subject here is “teacher.” The phrase “along with her students” is a prepositional phrase.

Test Yourself

Find out the simple subject in the following examples.

1. My lovely friends will definitely come this week.
2. The glittery pencils made your assignment so attractive.
3. Red velvet cake is one of my favorite cakes.
4. The long and hard ways will not harm you.
5. In the movie, the super hero saves the whole town.

*Answers at the end.

What Did You Learn?

A simple and a complete subject refer to the main word or words but there is a slight difference between them. A simple subject is the word who performs the action and does not include any modifiers. A complete subject, on the other hand, is the word or words that perform the action and it does include modifiers.

Answers: 1) friends 2) pencils 3) cake 4) ways 5) hero

A conjunction is a connector because it is that part of speech that connects words, clauses, phrases, or sentences.

See an example below,

• I think, Sarah is going to bring laptop and books.

In the above example, ‘and’ is the conjunction that is used to join the words ‘laptop’ and ‘books.’

Now, I want to tell you more about conjunctions. There are three different types of conjunctions. Each type has the same function i.e. connects words, clauses, phrases, or sentences.

Let us discuss each of these types one by one.

1. Coordinating Conjunctions

There are seven coordinating conjunctions that are used to join words, phrases, and independent clauses. They are for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so.

There is a very famous acronym to remember the list of coordinating conjunctions. The acronym is ‘FANBOYS.’ See below,

F > for
A > and
N > nor
B > but
O > or
Y > yet
S > so

Example sentences

• You may go to a school or a library to get the book.
• I was not ready to go out but I managed to get ready in five minutes.

In the above sentences, the clauses that are joined by coordinating conjunctions (‘or’ and ‘but’) are brief and carry equal weight. That is why; you do not need to put a comma.

However, when the clauses that are joined by a coordinating conjunction are long, then you can use a comma just before the conjunction. For example,

• I wanted to do something, so I decided to go out and join the party.

Note: Coordinating conjunctions are placed in between the clauses or words that are linked together.

2. Subordinating Conjunctions

A subordinating conjunction is the type of conjunctions that connects a dependent clause to an independent clause. In this, a dependent clause starts with a subordinating conjunction.

Below is the list of a few subordinating conjunctions.

• Even though
• Since
• When
• After
• Although
• Whether
• Although
• Why
• Rather than
• If

Example sentences

• If I take the extra classes, I’ll get more information about our project.

In the above example sentence, the dependent clause, ‘if I take the extra classes,’ is the beginning clause. This is the reason for placing a comma after the dependent clause. However, if the whole sentence starts with an independent clause, there is no need to place a comma. See the example below,

• I’ll get more information about our project if I take the extra classes.

3. Correlative Conjunctions

For me, correlative conjunctions can be known as paired conjunctions, for instance, either… or, neither… nor, both… and, etc.

They have the same usage as coordinating conjunctions. It means that they are used to join clauses that are of equal weight.

Example sentences

• I am not only a good photographer but also a professional teacher.
• Both ‘discreet’ and ‘discrete’ are known as homophones.

Check Out: What Is Conjugation?

Common Mistakes with Conjunctions

Using conjunctions correctly can be tricky, and there are several common mistakes that people often make. Here are two frequent errors, along with tips on how to avoid them:

1. Misusing Coordinating Conjunctions

One common mistake is using coordinating conjunctions incorrectly, especially in compound sentences. Many writers forget to include a comma before the conjunction when joining two independent clauses.

Incorrect: I wanted to go for a walk but it started to rain.
Correct: I wanted to go for a walk, but it started to rain.

Always place a comma before coordinating conjunctions (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) when they connect two independent clauses.

2. Confusing Subordinating Conjunctions

Another frequent error is misplacing subordinating conjunctions, which can lead to sentence fragments. A subordinating conjunction should always connect a dependent clause to an independent clause.

Incorrect: Although I was tired.
Correct: Although I was tired, I decided to go for a run.

Ensure that your dependent clause (e.g., “Although I was tired”) is part of a complete sentence by connecting it to an independent clause.

What Did You Learn?

Hence, the use of a conjunction is very much obvious. It helps a writer to make interesting as well as complex sentences. It is such part of a speech that connects words, clauses, or phrases.

Conditional sentences are such if-sentences that consist of a dependant and an independent clause; and that are used to express a condition. It can not only help to express a condition, but can also help in expressing the outcome of that condition.

In most of the cases, you will find out that the conditional sentence begins with the subordinating conjunction ‘if’; or it is the dependant clause that starts with ‘if.’

However, it does not mean that a conditional sentence always start with a dependant clause that begins with ‘if’.
Take a look at the examples below,

1. If I lose some weight, I can climb a mountain.

                                        Or

• I can climb a mountain if I lose some weight.

In the above example sentences, the dependant clause begins with ‘if’ (if I lose some weight) whereas, the independent clause is ‘I can climb a mountain.’

Note: Some conditional sentences may also begin with ‘when.’

Different Types of Conditional Sentences

There are four different types of conditional sentences. Each type can help in expressing the probability or possibility of an action.

Let us discuss these types one by one.

Zero Conditional Sentences

Zero conditional sentences express truths or facts.

Remember the following rules for a zero conditional sentence,

• Start the dependent clause with ‘if’ or ‘when.’
• Always use simple present tense in both dependant and independent clauses.
• These sentences should be simple to express general truths.

Example sentences

1. If I don’t add sugar, dessert gets tasteless.
2. If you use mobile a lot, your eyes damage.
3. When you drink too much water, it results in water intoxication

First Conditional Sentences

A first conditional sentence expresses such an event or action that has the possibility to be happening in the future (but there is no guarantee for such a future happening.)

Remember the following rules for a first conditional sentence,

• Start the dependant clause with ‘if.’
• Use simple present tense in dependant clause and the simple future tense to express the outcome i.e. in the independent clause.

Example sentences

1. If students pay good attention on lectures, they will get good grades.
2. If you go out for a long drive, you will feel much better.
3. They will go out if he enters.

Second Conditional Sentences

A second conditional sentence expresses such an event or action that has no possibilities to happen in the future because that event or action is not real.

Remember the following rules for a second conditional sentence,

• Start the dependant clause with ‘if.’
• Use simple past tense in dependant clause and an auxiliary modal verb (i.e. could, would, might, etc.) in the independent clause to express the unreal outcome.

Example sentences

1. If I were the principal, I would cancel the examination.
2. If I owned this area, I would build a mall here.

Third Conditional Sentences

A third conditional sentence also based on an unreal event. It is used to express a past event or action that did not happen in the past. In simple words, these sentences could tell you an imagined result.

Remember the following rules for a second conditional sentence,

• Start the dependant clause with ‘if.’
• Use past perfect tense in the dependant clause and an auxiliary modal verb with ‘have’ (i.e. could have, would have, etc.) and a past participle verb in the independent clause to express the imagined unreal past event.

Example sentences

1. If I had attended the lectures, I would have passed the examination.
2. If I had gone earlier, I could have attended the ceremony.

Note: Commas should come after the dependant clause. If the dependant clause comes after the independent clause, there is no need to put a comma.

Real vs. Unreal Conditionals

Real conditionals (zero and first conditionals) describe factual or likely events that could happen in the present or future. Unreal conditionals (second and third conditionals) describe hypothetical, imaginary, or impossible situations, often in the past or future.

Real Conditional (First Conditional): If it rains, we’ll stay inside. (This describes a likely future event.)

Unreal Conditional (Second Conditional): If it rained, we would stay inside. (This describes a hypothetical situation that isn’t happening right now.)

The key distinction between real and unreal conditionals lies in the tense of the verb. In real conditionals, present or future tenses are used to indicate a possibility, while in unreal conditionals, past tense or past perfect is used to express an imaginary situation. For example:

Real (Zero Conditional): If you heat water, it boils. (A general fact.)

Unreal (Third Conditional): If I had known, I would have helped. (An impossible scenario because the time has passed.)

Common Mistakes in Conditional Sentences

Many learners make mistakes when constructing conditional sentences by using incorrect verb tenses or mixing up conditional types.

Mistake: If I will go, I will tell you.
Correction: If I go, I will tell you.
(Explanation: The “if” clause should use the present tense, not the future tense, even when referring to future events.)

Mistake: If I would have seen him, I would have said hello.
Correction: If I had seen him, I would have said hello.
(Explanation: The past perfect tense is required in the “if” clause for third conditionals that refer to past unreal events.)

Use the present tense in the “if” clause of real conditionals, even when discussing future events (first conditional).

What Did You Learn?

Conditional sentences have three different types. They are zero conditional, first conditional, second conditional, and third conditional sentences. They are also known as if-sentences that consist of a dependant and an independent clause and are used to express conditions or the outcomes.

A conjugation is an arrangement of the changing of verb forms in accordance with a person, tense, number, gender, or aspect. It means that verbs do change its form to express a grammatically correct idea.

Let us check out how verb form changes to show a different gender, person, number, tense, or aspect.

Person

There are different persons in English, such as,

1. First person:

• Singular > I
• Plural > We

2. Second person:

• Singular > You
• Plural > You

3. Third person:

• Singular > He, She, It
• Plural > They

Let us see how the verb ‘to be’ conjugate for each of the above person.

1. First person:

• Singular > I am
• Plural > We are

2. Second person:

• Singular > You are
• Plural > You are

3. Third person:

• Singular > He is, She is, It is
• Plural > They are

Conjugation For Tense + Aspect

Conjugation for ‘tenses’ are very obvious in sentences; they help in expressing the time or duration of a particular action. For instance, whether the action took place in the present, past, or future tense. However, the ‘aspect‘ tells the degree at which the action is completed (i.e. continuous, perfect, or progressive.)

Check out the conjugation in the examples below:

Verb used: ‘to like’

1. Simple Present > He, She, It (likes) + I, We, You, They (like)

• Present Continuous > I (am liking) + He, She, It (is liking) + We, You, They (are liking)
• Present Perfect > I, We, You, They (have liked) + He, She, It (has liked)
• and Present Perfect Continuous > I, We, You, They (have been liking) + He, She, It (has been liking)

2. Simple Past > He, She, It, I, We, You, They (liked)

• Past Continuous > He, She, It (was liking) + I, We, You, They (were liking)
• Past Perfect > He, She, It, I, We, You, They (had liked)
• and Past Perfect Continuous > He, She, It, I, We, You, They (had been liked)

3. Simple Future > I, We, You, They, He, She, It (will like)

• Future Continuous > I, We, You, They, He, She, It (will be liking)
• Future Perfect > I, We, You, They, He, She, It (will have liked)
• and Future Perfect Continuous > I, We, You, They, He, She, It (will have been liking)

Number

For ‘number’, the verb is conjugated according to the number of the subject i.e. whether the subject is singular or plural. For example, ‘he, she, it’ are singular subjects. So, conjugated verbs need an –s at the end to express the singular subject, like;

• He writes.
• She writes.
• It writes.

In the same way, plural subjects ‘you, they, we’ do not need an –s.

• You write
• They write
• We write

Gender

There is no such influence of conjugation on gender.

• She writes.
• He writes.

Irregular Verbs

Not all verbs follow regular conjugation rules, especially in past tense and past participle forms. Irregular verbs change unpredictably.

Regular: walk, walked, walked

Irregular: go, went, gone

Regular: play, played, played

Irregular: eat, ate, eaten

Common irregular verbs include drink (drank, drunk) and take (took, taken). These verbs don’t follow the usual “-ed” ending for past tense, so they must be memorized.

Conjugation in Negative Sentences and Questions

In negative sentences and questions, auxiliary verbs like do, does, and did are used to form the correct structure.

Negative: She does not like coffee.

Question: Does she like coffee?

Negative: They did not finish their work.

Question: Did they finish their work?

The main verb stays in its base form after do/does/did in questions and negatives. The auxiliary verb changes depending on the tense and subject.

Common Mistakes in Verb Conjugation

Errors in verb conjugation often involve mixing singular/plural forms or incorrect tense usage.

Mistake: He like football.

Correction: He likes football.

Mistake: I have saw that movie.

Correction: I have seen that movie.

To avoid these errors, ensure subject-verb agreement (e.g., singular subjects need verbs ending in -s) and use the correct past participle for perfect tenses.

What Did You Learn?

Conjugation is such a changing process in which a verb form changes according to the person, number, tense, or aspect. Conjugation should be properly understood to make writing grammatically correct and error-free.