Grammar for a Gift-giving Season
2023-12-15
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1We are entering a major gift-giving season in the United States.
2People purchase goods and services for their loved ones, friends, coworkers, and others.
3But how do we talk about giving gifts? How do we use subjects, verbs, and objects to describe gift giving?
4Those questions will be the subject of today's Everyday Grammar.
5Let's start with some important terms and ideas.
6In a recent Everyday Grammar lesson, we explored questions about gifts - asking what others might want in terms of a gift.
7In today's lesson, we will talk about statements we might make after we purchase the gift.
8Before we continue with the lesson, we need to identify the key elements of a sentence.
9The simplest way to divide a sentence is into two parts: the subject and the predicate.
10The subject is generally a noun, noun phrase, or pronoun.
11The predicate, on the other hand, says something about the subject.
12The predicate contains a verb, objects, indirect objects, and so on.
13Now that we have our basic building blocks of language, we should explore how to put them together.
14We will start with the predicate. Why? Because the predicate is central to today's lesson.
15The language we use in the predicate to describe a gift purchase often falls into a simple pattern: transitive verb + noun phrase 1+noun phrase 2.
16A transitive verb is one that takes a direct object.
17A direct object is the receiver of the verb's action.
18So, in the pattern we just learned about, we can say that the transitive verb takes a noun phrase that acts like the direct object.
19Finally, we might have a second noun phrase that acts like the indirect object - the person who receives the direct object.
20Please note that the direct object does not always appear directly next to the verb, as we will see.
21Some examples will clarify this explanation.
22When we talk about gift giving, we often use three transitive verbs: get, buy, and give.
23The direct object is the gift. The indirect object is the person receiving the gift.
24So, let's imagine we have a friend named Mary.
25We might say the following about Mary's gift-giving decision:
26Mary got her son a book.
27In our example, the subject is Mary. The predicate is "got her son a book."
28The direct object is "a book."
29What did Mary get? She got a book.
30Who is going to receive the book? Her son. In this case, "her son" is the indirect object.
31So, in the sentence "Mary got her son a book," we can say that the structure is subject + transitive verb + noun phrase 1 + noun phrase 2.
32Here are two other examples. Let's use the transitive verbs "buy" and "give":
33Jonathan bought his mother a sweater.
34Felicia gave her friend a painting.
35All of these examples are in their past forms. But we can also use these verbs in other forms as well.
36Let's take some time to work with these ideas.
37Create a sentence using the following elements:
38The subject is "My father."
39The predicate consists of the verb "get," the noun phrase "a vase," and the noun phrase "my mother."
40Pause the audio to consider your answer.
41Here is one possible answer:
42My father got my mother a vase.
43The order of the sentence is subject + transitive verb + indirect object + direct object.
44Today we explored one pattern we often use to describe gift giving. To be clear: we use other patterns as well.
45One of these makes use of the prepositions "to" and "for." But that will have to be the subject of a future lesson.
46I'm John Russell.
1We are entering a major gift-giving season in the United States. People purchase goods and services for their loved ones, friends, coworkers, and others. 2But how do we talk about giving gifts? How do we use subjects, verbs, and objects to describe gift giving? 3Those questions will be the subject of today's Everyday Grammar. 4Let's start with some important terms and ideas. 5Elements 6In a recent Everyday Grammar lesson, we explored questions about gifts - asking what others might want in terms of a gift. 7In today's lesson, we will talk about statements we might make after we purchase the gift. 8Before we continue with the lesson, we need to identify the key elements of a sentence. 9The simplest way to divide a sentence is into two parts: the subject and the predicate. 10The subject is generally a noun, noun phrase, or pronoun. 11The predicate, on the other hand, says something about the subject. The predicate contains a verb, objects, indirect objects, and so on. 12Now that we have our basic building blocks of language, we should explore how to put them together. 13Putting elements together 14We will start with the predicate. Why? Because the predicate is central to today's lesson. 15The language we use in the predicate to describe a gift purchase often falls into a simple pattern: transitive verb + noun phrase 1+noun phrase 2. 16A transitive verb is one that takes a direct object. A direct object is the receiver of the verb's action. 17So, in the pattern we just learned about, we can say that the transitive verb takes a noun phrase that acts like the direct object. 18Finally, we might have a second noun phrase that acts like the indirect object - the person who receives the direct object. 19Please note that the direct object does not always appear directly next to the verb, as we will see. 20Some examples will clarify this explanation. 21Examples 22When we talk about gift giving, we often use three transitive verbs: get, buy, and give. 23The direct object is the gift. The indirect object is the person receiving the gift. 24So, let's imagine we have a friend named Mary. We might say the following about Mary's gift-giving decision: 25Mary got her son a book. 26In our example, the subject is Mary. The predicate is "got her son a book." 27The direct object is "a book." What did Mary get? She got a book. Who is going to receive the book? Her son. In this case, "her son" is the indirect object. 28So, in the sentence "Mary got her son a book," we can say that the structure is subject + transitive verb + noun phrase 1 + noun phrase 2. 29Here are two other examples. Let's use the transitive verbs "buy" and "give": 30Jonathan bought his mother a sweater. 31Felicia gave her friend a painting. 32All of these examples are in their past forms. But we can also use these verbs in other forms as well. 33Practice 34Let's take some time to work with these ideas. Create a sentence using the following elements: 35The subject is "My father." 36The predicate consists of the verb "get," the noun phrase "a vase," and the noun phrase "my mother." 37Pause the audio to consider your answer. 38Here is one possible answer: 39My father got my mother a vase. 40The order of the sentence is subject + transitive verb + indirect object + direct object. 41Closing thoughts 42Today we explored one pattern we often use to describe gift giving. To be clear: we use other patterns as well. 43One of these makes use of the prepositions "to" and "for." But that will have to be the subject of a future lesson. 44I'm John Russell. 45John Russell wrote this lesson for VOA Learning English. 46_____________________________________________ 47Words in This Story 48predicate - n. grammar: the part of a sentence that expresses what is said about the subject 49pattern - n. the regular and repeated way in which something happens 50phrase - n. a group of two or more words that express a single idea but do not usually form a complete sentence 51vase - n. a container that is used for holding flowers or for decoration