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1.12 What Is a Sentence? Building Blocks and Units

Building blocks used together form a unit.

You have learned that a noun becomes the subject of a sentence
when it is connected to a verb as the performer of that action.
In a sentence, the subject and the verb need each other in order
to make sense. Let’s replace the word “sentence” with the term
“unit.” Units are composed of different parts that we will call
building blocks. They must be placed in such a way that the unit
is complete and makes sense.

Jake, the subject, is a building block. The noun Jake will not
be a subject if you separate it from the verb. In order to label
Jake as the subject, he needs to perform an action, in this case,
swimming. When you put these two parts —Jake (subject) and
swims (verb)— together, you form the simplest possible unit.

Use a period to indicate that your sentence or unit is complete:

Jake swims.

You have also learned that a noun can be used as a subject
complement when it is connected to the subject through a linking
verb. Here we have the building blocks of a subject (hamburger)
and a subject complement (winner) that must be connected by
a linking verb (is) to be complete and make sense. Thus, together
they form a unit.

Jake Jake swims.

Proper Noun Subject Noun

Subject and Verb form a Unit.

Verb

Example:

The hamburger The hamburger is the winner.

Common

Noun

Subject

Noun

Subject, Verb, and Subject Complement form a Unit.

Linking

Verb

Example:

Subject

Complement