Function of nouns in sentences

1. Be the subject

• The children have gone to bed

➢ The subject is a noun, noun phrase or pronoun that refers to the person, thing or thing performing the action.

2. Direct or indirect object

For example

• I saw the thief 

The thief – direct object

• The policeman asked the thief a lot of questions

The thief – indirect object

➢ Direct object is a noun, noun phrase or pronoun that is directly affected by the verb.

➢ Indirect object is a noun or pronoun that refers to the person or thing that is indirectly affected by the verb done for or because of it.

3. Object of the preposition

For example

He is listening to music

-> music –> object of preposition to

Any noun that comes after a preposition is the object of that preposition.

4. Complement of the subject

For example:

He is my closet

➢ The complement of the subject (also called complement of the clause) is a noun, noun phrase or adjective that describes the subject. The subject complement is used after the verb be and the linking verbs become, seem, feel,...

5. Complement of object

For example:

They elected him president of the club.

➢ The object complement is a noun, noun phrase, or adjective that describes the object.

6. Complement of object

For example:

He spoke in a different tone

7. Co-predicate with another noun

For example:

He told us about his father, a general, who died in the war.

Nouns in English can be classified into the following categories:

• Singular Nouns & Plural Nouns.
• Countable Nouns & Uncountable Nouns.