Subjects and Verbs

Subjects and Verbs

In this sentence:

"A cup of flour and some salt are mixed together and poured into the batter."

Why are the subjects "cup" and "salt" instead of "flour" and "salt"? You can't mix or pour a cup. Doesn't "cup" describe the amount of flour just like "some" describes the amount of salt? Help! :-)

Comments for Subjects and Verbs

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Mar 13, 2013
Answer
by: Chelsey

This can be confusing.

“Cup” and “salt” are both subjects of this sentence. They are the simple subjects.

“Cup of flour” and “some salt” are the complete subjects.

The whole subject of this sentence is the phrase a cup of flour and some salt. It is a compound subject joined by the word “and.”

You are correct on your second question. You cannot mix or pour a physical “cup.” However, in this sentence “cup” does not refer to a physical cup. It refers to a measured amount. In this sentence, it is a measured amount of flour. You are adding that amount to the batter. So, you are adding a "cup" (of flour) to the batter.

The words “a” and “some” are the determiners in this sentence.

“A” indicates the subject “cup” (of flour).

“Flour” is the object of the preposition “of.”

So, in this sentence, “flour” is not the subject.

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