Predikatív

Predikatív is a grammatical term used to describe an element in a sentence that completes the meaning of the clause by assigning a property, identity, or role to the subject or object. Predicatives typically occur after a copular or linking verb, such as be, seem, become, or their equivalents in other languages, and they do not attach to the noun phrase as modifiers.

Predicatives can take various forms, including adjectives, nouns, pronouns, or participles that function as subject or object complements. In English, predicative adjectives appear after a linking verb (The sky is blue). Predicative nouns occur in sentences like They elected him president, where the noun identifies the subject’s role. In other languages, the predicative form may require specific case marking or agreement; for example, Russian often uses instrumental case for predicative nouns in certain tenses, as in Он стал учителем (he became a teacher).

Predicatives are distinct from attributive modifiers, which modify a noun inside a noun phrase (a blue car). Instead, predicatives express a property or identity of the subject or object as part of the predicate. The study of predicatives intersects with copular verbs, subject complements, and predicative constructions in different languages. Typologically, predicative systems vary widely, reflecting different ways languages encode states, roles, or identities within clauses.

In practice, recognizing predicatív constructions helps in understanding equivalence statements (A is B), identifications (X became Y), and state descriptions (The door remains open). The concept is part of broader discussions in grammar about how languages encode the link between a subject and its predication.