Nominativetopredicative

Nominativetopredicative is a linguistic term used to describe a construction in which a nominal phrase in the nominative case functions as the predicate part of a sentence, typically after a copular verb such as be or seem. The predicative noun expresses identity, classification, or a property attributed to the subject. This contrasts with predicative adjectives or other types of complements.

In languages with explicit case marking, the predicative noun often appears in the nominative form, though the exact case can vary by language. In English, the predicate noun after a linking verb is usually uninflected (the man is a teacher), reflecting a historical nominative function but without overt case marking. In German, predicative nouns commonly appear in the nominative, as in Der Mann ist Lehrer. In Russian, the predicative nominal is typically in the nominative in the present tense, while past-tense predication can involve the instrumental case when expressed with certain verbs of becoming or remaining.

The nominativetopredicative construction is closely related to the broader concept of predication and to the notion of a predicate nominative (or predicative noun). It highlights how languages encode identity, profession, or category through a nominal complement, and how case marking interacts with copular syntax. Differences across languages include whether a copular verb is required, which case the predicative noun assumes, and how definiteness or indefiniteness is expressed.

See also: predicate nominative, predicative noun, copula, predication.