In The hallway became quiet, quiet tells us something about the hallway. In Jordan is the new manager, the new manager identifies Jordan rather than referring to someone else.
Both sentences contain a subject complement. The complement gives information about the subject through a linking verb. Understanding this relationship helps you distinguish subject complements from objects and other sentence elements.
What Is a Subject Complement?
A subject complement is a word, phrase, or clause that typically follows a linking verb and identifies, classifies, or describes the subject.
Olivia is the team captain.
The team captain identifies Olivia.
The water feels cold.
Cold describes the water.
The usual pattern is:
Subject + Linking Verb + Subject Complement
The linking verb connects the subject with information about that same subject. Unlike a direct object, a subject complement does not name a separate person or thing involved in an action.
How a Subject Complement Relates to the Subject
The relationship between the complement and the subject is what matters most.
Ava is an architect.
Ava and an architect refer to the same person. The noun phrase identifies Ava by her profession.
Now consider:
The room became silent.
Silent describes the room after a change in its condition.
In both sentences, the complement gives information about the subject. It does not introduce someone or something separate.
Compare these two sentences:
Leo became a teacher.
Leo hired a teacher.
In the first sentence, a teacher identifies Leo. It is a subject complement.
In the second, Leo hired another person. A teacher is the direct object of hired.
The noun phrase is the same, but its grammatical role changes with the verb. That is why looking only at the words after a verb can lead to the wrong answer.
Types of Subject Complements
The two most familiar types of subject complements are predicate nominatives and predicate adjectives.
A predicate nominative identifies or classifies the subject, while a predicate adjective describes it.
Predicate Nominative
A predicate nominative, also called a predicate noun, is a noun or noun phrase that identifies, renames, or classifies the subject.
Marcus is our new neighbor.
Our new neighbor identifies Marcus.
Their first choice was a cabin near the lake.
A cabin near the lake identifies their first choice.
The predicate nominative includes the whole noun phrase, not just its main noun. In the second example, a cabin near the lake functions together as the complement.
Predicate Adjective
A predicate adjective is an adjective or adjective phrase that describes the subject after a linking verb.
The bread smells fresh.
Fresh describes the bread.
The children seemed extremely tired.
Here, extremely tired is an adjective phrase describing the children. Extremely modifies tired, so both words belong to the complement.
The difference between the two types is straightforward: a predicate nominative identifies or classifies the subject, while a predicate adjective describes it.
Can Other Phrases and Clauses Be Subject Complements?
Noun phrases and adjective phrases are the most familiar patterns, but subject complements can also take other forms.
An adverb phrase may express location:
The meeting is upstairs.
A prepositional phrase can serve a similar function:
The keys are on the kitchen counter.
These expressions tell us where the subject is or where an event takes place. They complete the information supplied by be rather than functioning as direct objects.
A clause can also serve as a complement:
The problem is that nobody called.
The clause that nobody called explains what the problem is.
These examples show that the complement function is not limited to single nouns or adjectives. What matters is the role the whole expression plays in the sentence.
Location expressions and clauses may receive different labels in some grammatical descriptions, but that distinction does not change how these examples work. The expressions supply information connected to the subject through the verb.
How to Identify a Subject Complement
Finding a subject complement becomes easier when you look at the relationship between the subject, the verb, and the words that follow.
Consider:
The weather became unpleasant.
The weather is the subject, and became links it with unpleasant. The adjective describes the weather, so it functions as a subject complement.
Now consider:
Charlotte remained the best candidate.
The best candidate identifies Charlotte. It is a noun phrase functioning as the subject complement.
The useful question is whether the expression after the verb identifies, classifies, or describes the subject through a linking relationship.
A noun or adjective appearing after a verb is not enough by itself. You also need to consider what the verb is doing in that sentence.
Subject Complement vs. Direct Object
Subject complements and direct objects can both appear after verbs, but they have different functions.
Emily became the director.
Here, the director identifies Emily. It is a subject complement.
Compare:
Emily called the director.
Now the director refers to the person Emily called. It is a direct object, not an identification of Emily.
The distinction also applies when the complement is an adjective.
Daniel seems confident.
Confident describes Daniel, so it is a subject complement.
Daniel understands the problem.
The problem is the direct object of understands. It does not identify or describe Daniel.
It is tempting to rely on the shortcut that direct objects follow action verbs, but not every transitive verb describes a physical action.
For example:
Nina knows the answer.
The answer is the direct object.
Henry owns a small apartment.
A small apartment is also a direct object.
Neither knows nor owns describes an obvious physical action. What matters is that these verbs take objects, rather than linking their subjects to identifying or descriptive complements.
Subject Complement vs. Object Complement
A subject complement describes or identifies the subject. An object complement describes or identifies a direct object.
Compare:
The room became quiet.
Quiet describes the subject the room, so it is a subject complement.
Now consider:
They kept the room quiet.
The room is the direct object of kept. The adjective quiet describes the condition of that object, making it an object complement.
A noun can show the same difference.
Maya became president.
President identifies Maya, the subject.
The committee elected Maya president.
Here, Maya is the direct object of elected. President identifies the role given to Maya, so it functions as an object complement.
The same word can therefore be a subject complement in one sentence and an object complement in another. The difference is whether it relates to the subject or the direct object.
The Same Verb Can Have Different Functions
Some verbs work as linking verbs in one sentence but take direct objects in another. This is why memorizing a list of linking verbs isn’t always enough.
Compare:
The soup tastes spicy.
Here, tastes connects the soup with a description of its flavour. Spicy is a subject complement.
Now compare:
Mia tasted the soup.
This time, tasted describes what Mia did. The soup is the direct object.
The verb smell behaves similarly.
The flowers smell wonderful.
Wonderful describes the flowers.
Noah smelled the flowers.
The flowers is the direct object of smelled.
The verb itself hasn’t changed to an entirely different word. What changes is how it is used and how the following expression relates to the subject.
Pronouns as Subject Complements: “It Is I” or “It Is Me”?
Pronouns can also identify the subject after forms of be.
Traditional formal grammar often prefers subject-form pronouns in this position:
It was I.
The winner was she.
These pronouns identify the subject rather than functioning as direct objects.
In everyday English, however, object-form pronouns are common and natural after be:
It was me.
That was her.
Expressions such as It’s me, That was him, and It was her are widely accepted in ordinary English.
Subject forms such as It is I and It was she still occur, but they generally sound much more formal.
If you encounter the traditional subject-form rule in a grammar exercise, it helps to recognize it. In normal conversation, though, It’s me is not an error.
Subject Complement Examples in Sentences
The following examples show how subject complements can identify or describe subjects in different sentence patterns.
Amelia became a successful photographer.
The noun phrase a successful photographer identifies Amelia by her profession.
The pavement looks wet.
Wet describes the pavement.
Her uncle is a pilot.
A pilot identifies her uncle by his occupation.
The audience grew restless.
Restless describes the audience’s changing condition.
Ethan remained my closest friend.
My closest friend identifies Ethan and indicates that the relationship continued.
The coffee tastes slightly bitter.
Slightly bitter is an adjective phrase describing the coffee’s taste.
Their main concern was the rising cost of repairs.
The noun phrase the rising cost of repairs identifies what concerned them most.
The explanation seems quite reasonable.
Quite reasonable is an adjective phrase describing the explanation.
The office is downstairs.
Downstairs gives the location of the office and functions as a locative complement of be.
The important question is whether the plan will work.
The clause whether the plan will work identifies the question being discussed.
Across these examples, the same principle applies: a subject complement supplies information connected to the subject through a linking relationship. The most common forms are noun phrases and adjective phrases, while other constructions can express location or identify the content of a question or problem.
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