Reference articles on history, science, culture and more
Surprise meSurprise meSubscribe
Encyclopedia

Object complement

Wikipedia contributorsAdapted for Fathomly · View authors
1 min read
Source updated February 11, 2025

In grammar, an object complement is a predicative expression that follows a direct object of an attributive ditransitive or resultative verb and that complements the direct object of the sentence by describing it. Object complements are constituents of the predicate. Noun phrases and adjective phrases most frequently function as object complements.

01Examples

The object complement is bold in the following examples:

  • She painted the barn red. , Adjective as object complement

Here, painted is an attributive ditransitive verb. The direct object is the barn. The object complement construction allows for the combination of the sentences She painted the barn and The barn was painted red.

  • He considers you a friend. , Noun phrase as object complement

Here, considers is an attributive ditransitive verb. The direct object is you. The object complement construction allows for the combination of the sentences He considers you and You are a friend.

Watch videos about Object complementExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Object complement”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

Fathomly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation. Spotted a problem? Tell us.

Continue exploring

Related topics

Object (grammar)

In linguistics, an object is any of several types of arguments. In subject-prominent, nominative-accusative languages such as English, a transitive verb typically distinguishes between its subject and any of its objects, which can include but are not limited to direct objects, indirect objects, and arguments of adpositions; the latter are more accurately termed oblique arguments, thus including other arguments not covered by core grammatical roles, such as those governed by case morphology (as in languages such as Latin) or relational nouns (as is typical for members of the Mesoamerican Linguistic Area).

Complement (linguistics)

In grammar, a complement is a word, phrase, or clause that is necessary to complete the meaning of a given expression. Complements are often also arguments.

Predicate (grammar)

The term predicate is used in two ways in linguistics and its subfields. The first defines a predicate as everything in a standard declarative sentence except the subject, and the other defines it as only the main content verb or associated predicative expression of a clause.