Which choice best describes the underlined words in this sentence?
Should you have been walking the dog without a leash?
Underlined is:
Should _____ have been walking
it does not include the word "you" so I just did an under score to represent that.
A- simple predicate
B- complete predicate
C- compound predicate
D- none of the above
My guess is B. But I am kinda confused on this one...
Right
To determine the answer to this question, you need to understand the concepts of subject, verb, and predicate in a sentence.
In the given sentence, "Should _____ have been walking," the subject is not explicitly mentioned, but it is implied to be the person being addressed or "you." The verb is "walk," and the words "have been walking" together form the predicate.
Now, let's consider the options:
A- Simple predicate: The simple predicate refers to the verb or verb phrase that tells what the subject is doing. In this case, the simple predicate is just "walk," which does not include the entire predicate "have been walking." Therefore, it is not the best choice.
B- Complete predicate: The complete predicate refers to the verb or verb phrase along with any modifiers or complements that complete the meaning of the subject. In this case, "have been walking" is the entire predicate, including the verb phrase plus the helping verbs "have" and "been." The complete predicate represents the best choice for this sentence.
C- Compound predicate: A compound predicate includes two or more verbs or verb phrases that share the same subject. However, the given sentence only contains one verb phrase, "have been walking," so it does not fit the criteria for a compound predicate.
D- None of the above: None of the above options seems to be a suitable choice because the given sentence does have a complete predicate.
Based on these explanations, your guess of B (complete predicate) is correct.