Question

practice a identifying subjects and verbs in sentences
read each sentence. underline the verb and circle its subject. (not all the sentences have an inverted word order.)
example: in the upper canopy is the scarlet tanager
answer: in the upper canopy is the scarlet tanager.

1. a rattlesnake was ready to strike.
2. the penguin shuffled across the ice floe.
3. blinding was the cameras flash.
4. heavy rains caused the roads to flood.
5. here lies the path to victory.
6. the poinsettia is a traditional christmas plant.
7. black vultures mate for life.
8. startling was the news about the collapsed bridge.
9. bright red flowers attract hummingbirds.
10. in line for the grand opening were hundreds of people.

Explanation:

1. In the sentence "A rattlesnake was ready to strike", the verb is "was" (it shows the state of being) and the subject is "A rattlesnake" (the thing that the sentence is about).
2. For "The penguin shuffled across the ice floe", "shuffled" is the verb (an action) and "The penguin" is the subject (the doer of the action).
3. In "Blinding was the camera's flash", "was" is the verb (linking verb) and "the camera's flash" is the subject (the thing being described as blinding).
4. With "Heavy rains caused the roads to flood", "caused" is the verb (action) and "Heavy rains" is the subject (the cause).
5. In "Here lies the path to victory", "lies" is the verb (action) and "the path to victory" is the subject (the thing that lies).
6. For "The poinsettia is a traditional Christmas plant", "is" is the verb (linking verb) and "The poinsettia" is the subject (the plant being described).
7. In "Black vultures mate for life", "mate" is the verb (action) and "Black vultures" is the subject (the ones that mate).
8. With "Startling was the news about the collapsed bridge", "was" is the verb (linking verb) and "the news about the collapsed bridge" is the subject (the news that is startling).
9. In "Bright red flowers attract hummingbirds", "attract" is the verb (action) and "Bright red flowers" is the subject (the ones that attract).
10. For "In line for the grand opening were hundreds of people", "were" is the verb (linking verb) and "hundreds of people" is the subject (the ones in line).

Answer:

1. Underline "was", circle "A rattlesnake"
2. Underline "shuffled", circle "The penguin"
3. Underline "was", circle "the camera's flash"
4. Underline "caused", circle "Heavy rains"
5. Underline "lies", circle "the path to victory"
6. Underline "is", circle "The poinsettia"
7. Underline "mate", circle "Black vultures"
8. Underline "was", circle "the news about the collapsed bridge"
9. Underline "attract", circle "Bright red flowers"
10. Underline "were", circle "hundreds of people"