Subject and Object

Who did what?

Most sentences tell us who did something and what they did it to. Two important parts help us understand this:

• The subject does the action.
• The object receives the action.

The dog chased the ball.

• Subject: the dog (who chased?)
• Verb: chased (what happened?)
• Object: the ball (what was chased?)

In English, word order matters. The usual pattern is subject → verb → object. Switch them and the meaning changes completely: The ball chased the dog!

Finding the subject

To find the subject, find the verb first, then ask who or what is doing it.

• My sister plays the violin. Who plays? → My sister
• The cookies smell delicious. What smells? → The cookies
• After lunch, the whole class went outside. Who went? → the whole class

The subject is usually at the start of the sentence, but not always. In questions it can move: Where did you put my shoes?

Every complete sentence needs a subject. In commands, the subject you is hidden: (You) Close the door.

Finding the object

To find the object, ask whom or what after the verb.

• Ella painted a picture. Painted what? → a picture
• The coach called the players. Called whom? → the players

Not every sentence has an object. The baby slept. Slept what? Nothing. That’s fine. Some verbs don’t need an object.

Direct and indirect objects

Direct object

A direct object receives the action directly.

Sam kicked the ball.
I wrote a letter.

Indirect object

An indirect object tells to whom or for whom the action is done. It comes between the verb and the direct object.

I wrote Grandma a letter.

• Direct object: a letter (what did I write?)
• Indirect object: Grandma (to whom?)

You can usually rewrite the sentence with to or for:

I wrote a letter to Grandma.
Dad baked us a cake. → Dad baked a cake for us.

Subject and object pronouns

Pronouns change form depending on whether they are subjects or objects.

• She called me. (She = subject, me = object)
• We saw them at the park.
• They invited us to the party.

A subject pronoun goes before the verb. An object pronoun comes after the verb or after a preposition like to, with, for or between.

The "and" trap

Mistakes often happen when there are two people.

• ✗ Me and Jake went to the store.

• ✓ Jake and I went to the store.

• ✗ Mom drove Jake and I.

• ✓ Mom drove Jake and me.

Trick: Cover up the other person. You’d say I went (not me went), and Mom drove me (not Mom drove I). Also, it’s polite to put the other person first.

Who and whom

Who is a subject. Whom is an object.

• Who called you? (He called you → subject)
• To whom did you give it? (You gave it to him → object)

Trick: If you could answer with he, use who. If you could answer with him, use whom. Both end in m!

Common mistakes

• ✗ Her and me are best friends. → ✓ She and I are best friends.
• ✗ Between you and I → ✓ Between you and me
• ✗ Us kids love recess. → ✓ We kids love recess.
• Confusing the subject when a phrase comes between: The box of crayons is on the shelf. The subject is box, not crayons.

Try it yourself

Find the subject and object in each sentence:

1. The cat caught a mouse.
2. My friends visited me.
3. Grandpa told us a story. (Find both objects.)

Then choose the right pronoun: (She / Her) and (I / me) built a fort.

Answers: cat / mouse; friends / me; Grandpa / story (direct), us (indirect). She and I.

Quick recap

• The subject does the action; the object receives it.
• English usually follows subject → verb → object.
• A direct object answers what or whom; an indirect object answers to whom or for whom.
• Use I, he, she, we and they as subjects; use me, him, her, us and them as objects.