✍ VERBAL PREDICATE and NOMINAL PREDICATE (Grammar, Italian) 📚
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The predicate, together with the subject, is a fundamental element of the sentence.
The predicate represents the core of the sentence, so much so that it can even constitute one on its own: e.g., It's raining!
The predicate can be VERBAL or NOMINAL.
The verbal predicate can indicate:
🔶 an action performed by the subject (e.g., The child eats the apple, where the verbal predicate is "mangia")
🔶 an action undergone by the subject (e.g., The apple is eaten by the child, where the verbal predicate is "è mangiata," which in this case is the passive form)
🔶 an action performed and undergone by the subject (e.g., The child washes himself, where the verbal predicate is "si lava," which in this case is the reflexive form).
Be careful, because servile verbs, such as volere, potere, and dovere, and phrasal verbs, such as stare per, comincia a, speranza di, form a single verbal predicate with the verb they accompany.
Thus, in the sentence "the child wants to eat the apple," the verbal predicate is "he wants to eat," and in the sentence "the child is about to eat the apple," the predicate is "he is about to eat."
The predicate nominal, on the other hand, can indicate:
🔷 a state of being of the subject or a quality, telling us what the subject is like, e.g., The little girl is happy or The little girl is tall, where the predicate nouns are "he is happy" and "she is tall." In these sentences, the predicate noun is composed of the verb essere (to be) + adjective.
🔷 a qualification of the subject, telling us who the subject is,
e.g., Anna is a little girl or The little girl is a ballerina, where the predicate nouns are "she is a little girl" and "she is a ballerina." In these sentences, the predicate noun It is composed of the verb "to be" + noun.
Therefore, based on what has just been explained, we can say that the predicate nominal is made up of the verb "to be" (called a copula because it combines the subject with the noun or adjective) followed by a noun (e.g., "Luca is a doctor") or an adjective (e.g., "coffee is bitter").
Sometimes, however, the verb "to be" (as a copula) may also be followed by a pronoun (e.g., "Maria is that"), an adverb (e.g., "rubare è male"), or an infinitive verb (to want is to be able to).
This second part of the predicate nominal is called the "nominal part" or noun of the predicate.
The verbs " Sembra " (to seem), " Sembra " (to seem), " diventare " (to become), and "divenire" (to become), when followed by a noun or adjective, also take on a copula function and form a predicate nominal.
e.g., "Marco seems angry"
e.g., "Lucia has become a lawyer"
Finally, one last rule! Be careful, because when the verb essere means to be, to be, to belong to, or to be made of, it is not a nominal predicate, but rather a verbal predicate. Recognize that it is a predicate verb because in these cases the verb essere is always followed by a preposition.
For example: the vase is made of crystal
the vase is on the table
the vase is Giovanna's
Luca is in Rome
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