LessonsRestricting the Verb: Objects, Complements and Conditional ClausesQuiz

Different complements answer different questions and have different syntactic roles. Their rhetorical contribution is likewise distinct.

ComplementQuestionExample
Direct objectAffected what?قَرَأَ الْكِتَابَ
Cognate objectHow or how much?سَارَ سَيْرًا سَرِيعًا
AdverbialWhen or where?وَصَلَ صَبَاحًا
Object of purposeFor what reason?قَامَ إِكْرَامًا لَهُ
Circumstantial accusativeIn what state?جَاءَ مُبْتَسِمًا

“Morning” establishes an event’s time, whereas “smiling” supplies a participant’s state. A qualification is understood by the informational question it answers.

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A comparison of verb complements

Restricting the Verb: Objects, Complements and Conditional Clauses

Different complements answer different questions and have different syntactic roles. Their rhetorical contribution is likewise distinct.

ComplementQuestionExample
Direct objectAffected what?قَرَأَ الْكِتَابَ
Cognate objectHow or how much?سَارَ سَيْرًا سَرِيعًا
AdverbialWhen or where?وَصَلَ صَبَاحًا
Object of purposeFor what reason?قَامَ إِكْرَامًا لَهُ
Circumstantial accusativeIn what state?جَاءَ مُبْتَسِمًا

“Morning” establishes an event’s time, whereas “smiling” supplies a participant’s state. A qualification is understood by the informational question it answers.