Episode 02 — 주어와 동사: 모든 문장은 이 둘에서 시작된다

MisoEnglish Grammar Series

Episode 02 — 주어와 동사

모든 문장은 이 둘에서 시작된다

"문법을 외우지 말고, 느껴라" Don't memorize grammar. Feel it.

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🧭 들어가며 | Introduction

영어 문장을 만든다는 것은, 결국 딱 두 가지를 결정하는 것에서 시작된다. "누가(무엇이)?" 그리고 "어떻게 한다?"

Building an English sentence comes down to deciding just two things: "Who (or what)?" and "What do they do (or be)?"

이 두 가지가 바로 **주어(Subject)**와 **동사(Verb)**다. 나머지는 전부 이 둘 위에 살을 붙이는 작업일 뿐이다.

These two things are the Subject and the Verb. Everything else is just adding flesh to these two bones.

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1. 주어란 무엇인가 | What Is a Subject?

주어는 문장의 주인공이다. "누가 혹은 무엇이 이 문장의 중심인가"를 가리킨다.

The subject is the main character of the sentence. It answers: "Who or what is this sentence about?"

She laughed. 그녀가 웃었다.

The dog barked loudly. 개가 크게 짖었다.

Music makes me happy. 음악은 나를 행복하게 만든다.

Running every day changed my life. 매일 달리기가 내 인생을 바꿨다.

주어 자리에 올 수 있는 것들:

• 명사: The cat, Water, Love
• 대명사: I, You, He, She, It, We, They
• 동명사(-ing): Running, Eating well
• to부정사: To succeed, To learn English
• 명사절: What she said, That he left

Things that can be a subject:

• Nouns: The cat, Water, Love
• Pronouns: I, You, He, She, It, We, They
• Gerunds (-ing): Running, Eating well
• Infinitives: To succeed, To learn English
• Noun clauses: What she said, That he left

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2. 영어는 주어를 생략할 수 없다 | English Never Drops the Subject

한국어에서는 주어 생략이 자연스럽다. "배고파", "갔어", "알아" — 누구 얘기인지 문맥으로 다 통한다.

In Korean, dropping the subject is completely natural. "배고파", "갔어", "알아" — context tells you who it's about.

영어는 다르다. 주어는 항상 있어야 한다. 설령 그 주어가 아무 의미도 없는 "It"이나 "There"일지라도.

English is different. The subject must always be present. Even if that subject is a meaningless "It" or "There."

~~Is raining.~~ ❌ It is raining. ✅ 비가 온다.

~~Is cold today.~~ ❌ It is cold today. ✅ 오늘 춥다.

~~Are many people here.~~ ❌ There are many people here. ✅ 여기 사람이 많다.

이 "It"과 "There"은 유령 주어다. 실제로 가리키는 것이 없지만, 영어 문법상 주어 자리를 채워줘야 하기 때문에 존재한다.

This "It" and "There" are ghost subjects. They don't refer to anything real, but English grammar demands that the subject slot be filled — so there they are.

💡 유령 주어 It의 쓰임 | Uses of the Ghost Subject "It"

용도 Use 예문 Example 의미 Meaning

날씨 Weather	It is sunny.	날씨가 맑다
시간 Time	It is 3 o'clock.	3시다
거리 Distance	It is far from here.	여기서 멀다
상황 Situation	It is not easy.	쉽지 않다

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3. 동사란 무엇인가 | What Is a Verb?

동사는 주어가 "무엇을 하는지" 또는 **"어떤 상태인지"**를 말해준다. 영어 문장에서 동사는 심장과 같다. 없으면 문장이 살지 않는다.

The verb tells us what the subject does or what state it's in. In an English sentence, the verb is the heart. Without it, the sentence has no life.

동사의 두 가지 종류:

① 동작 동사 (Action Verbs) — 움직임과 행위를 표현 Action Verbs — express movement and action

She runs every morning. 그녀는 매일 아침 달린다.
He sent me a message. 그는 나에게 메시지를 보냈다.
They are building a new bridge. 그들은 새 다리를 짓고 있다.

② 상태 동사 (Stative Verbs) — 상태와 존재를 표현 Stative Verbs — express states and existence

She is a teacher. 그녀는 선생님이다.
I know the answer. 나는 답을 안다.
He seems tired. 그는 피곤해 보인다.
This tastes amazing. 이것은 정말 맛있다.

⚠️ 상태 동사는 진행형으로 쓸 수 없다 | Stative Verbs Don't Use -ing

~~I am knowing the answer.~~ ❌ I know the answer. ✅

~~She is seeming tired.~~ ❌ She seems tired. ✅

"know", "believe", "love", "hate", "want", "need", "seem" 같은 상태 동사는 현재 진행형(-ing)으로 쓰지 않는다. 이것은 규칙이라기보다, 상태는 지금 이 순간에만 일어나는 게 아니기 때문이다.

Stative verbs like "know", "believe", "love", "hate", "want", "need", "seem" don't take the -ing form. It's not just a rule — it's because states don't "happen" only at this specific moment. They simply exist.

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4. 주어와 동사는 반드시 일치해야 한다 | Subject and Verb Must Agree

영어에서 동사는 주어를 따라간다. 주어가 단수(하나)면 동사도 단수형, 주어가 복수(여럿)면 동사도 복수형.

In English, the verb follows the subject. Singular subject → singular verb. Plural subject → plural verb.

She runs fast. ✅ (she = 단수, runs = 단수형)
They run fast. ✅ (they = 복수, run = 복수형)

~~She run fast.~~ ❌
~~They runs fast.~~ ❌

현재시제에서 3인칭 단수(he / she / it) 주어일 때는 동사에 -s 또는 -es를 붙인다. 이것이 영어 학습 초반에 가장 많이 틀리는 실수 중 하나다.

In the present tense, when the subject is third-person singular (he / she / it), the verb takes -s or -es. This is one of the most common early mistakes.

📌 수일치 패턴 | Subject-Verb Agreement Pattern

주어 Subject 동사 Verb (현재 / Present) 예문 Example

I	work	I work here.
You	work	You work hard.
He / She / It	works	She works here.
We	work	We work together.
They	work	They work fast.

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5. 주어 찾기 연습 | Practice: Find the Subject

문장이 복잡해지면 주어를 찾기 어려워진다. 이럴 땐 동사를 먼저 찾고, 그 동사의 주체가 누구인지 역추적하면 된다.

When sentences get complex, finding the subject gets harder. The trick: find the verb first, then ask "who or what is doing this?"

The tall man in the black coat smiled at me.
→ 동사: smiled / 주어: The tall man (in the black coat는 수식어)
Verb: smiled / Subject: The tall man (in the black coat is just a modifier)

What she told me was shocking.
→ 동사: was / 주어: What she told me (명사절 전체가 주어)
Verb: was / Subject: What she told me (the entire noun clause is the subject)

Running every morning helps your mental health.
→ 동사: helps / 주어: Running every morning (동명사구 전체가 주어)
Verb: helps / Subject: Running every morning (the entire gerund phrase is the subject)

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📌 이번 편 요약 | Episode Summary

1. 주어는 문장의 주인공이다 — 명사, 대명사, 동명사, to부정사 모두 가능 The subject is the main character — nouns, pronouns, gerunds, infinitives all qualify.
2. 영어는 주어를 절대 생략하지 않는다 — It, There도 유령 주어로 자리를 채운다 English never drops the subject — even "It" and "There" hold the spot.
3. 동사는 동작 동사와 상태 동사로 나뉜다 — 상태 동사는 진행형 불가 Verbs split into action and stative — stative verbs don't take -ing.
4. 주어와 동사는 수가 일치해야 한다 — 3인칭 단수엔 -s를 붙인다 Subject and verb must agree in number — third-person singular gets -s.
5. 복잡한 문장에선 동사 먼저, 주어는 역추적 — 동사가 열쇠다 In complex sentences, find the verb first, then trace back to the subject.

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🔜 다음 편 예고 | Coming Up Next

Episode 03 — 목적어와 보어 : 동사 뒤에 무엇이 오는가 Object and Complement: What Comes After the Verb?

주어와 동사만으로는 부족할 때가 있다.
동사 뒤에 무엇이 오느냐에 따라 문장의 의미가 완전히 달라진다.

Sometimes a subject and verb aren't enough.
What comes after the verb changes the entire meaning of the sentence.

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© MisoEnglish Grammar Series | Level 1 — Episode 02 "문법을 외우지 말고, 느껴라" | "Don't memorize grammar. Feel it."

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Subject and Verb: Every English Sentence Starts Here

The Two Things You Must Get Right Before Anything Else

MisoEnglish Grammar Series — Episode 02

"Don't memorize grammar. Feel it."

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Introduction

Every English sentence — no matter how long, complex, or sophisticated — is built on exactly two things: a subject and a verb.

Get these two right, and the rest of the sentence has somewhere to stand. Get them wrong, and no amount of vocabulary or extra words will save you.

This episode is about understanding what subjects and verbs actually are, why English treats them the way it does, and why Korean speakers make specific, predictable mistakes with them.

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1. What Is a Subject?

The subject is the main character of the sentence. It answers one simple question: "Who or what is this sentence about?"

She laughed. The dog barked loudly. Music makes me happy. Running every day changed my life.

Any of these can be a subject: nouns, pronouns (I, you, he, she, it, we, they), gerunds (running, eating), infinitives (to succeed), or even entire noun clauses (what she said, that he left).

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2. English Never Drops the Subject

This is one of the biggest stumbling blocks for Korean learners. In Korean, leaving out the subject is completely natural — context handles it. In English, the subject must always be there. No exceptions.

Even when there's nothing meaningful to say as a subject, English invents one:

~~Is raining.~~ ❌ It is raining. ✅

~~Is cold today.~~ ❌ It is cold today. ✅

~~Are many people here.~~ ❌ There are many people here. ✅

"It" and "There" in these sentences are what we call ghost subjects — they don't refer to anything real. They exist purely to fill the subject slot that English grammar demands.

"It" shows up as a ghost subject for weather (It is sunny), time (It is 3 o'clock), distance (It is far), and general situations (It is not easy).

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3. What Is a Verb?

The verb tells you what the subject does or is. It's the heartbeat of the sentence — remove it, and everything stops.

English verbs fall into two broad categories:

Action verbs express movement or behavior:

She runs every morning.
He sent me a message.
They are building a new bridge.

Stative verbs express states, feelings, or mental conditions:

She is a teacher.
I know the answer.
He seems tired.
This tastes amazing.

The Rule Stative Verbs Follow

Stative verbs — know, believe, love, hate, want, need, seem, taste, smell — cannot be used in the progressive (-ing) form.

~~I am knowing the answer.~~ ❌ I know the answer. ✅

~~She is seeming tired.~~ ❌ She seems tired. ✅

Why? Because states don't happen at a specific moment — they simply exist. The progressive form is for actions unfolding right now. A state just... is.

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4. Subject and Verb Must Agree

In English, the verb has to match the subject in number. Singular subject, singular verb. Plural subject, plural verb.

She runs fast. ✅
They run fast. ✅
~~She run fast.~~ ❌
~~They runs fast.~~ ❌

In the present tense, when the subject is third-person singular — he, she, or it — the verb takes an -s or -es ending. This is one of the most common errors among Korean learners, not because it's complicated, but because Korean verbs don't change based on the subject at all.

Subject Present Verb

I	work
You	work
He / She / It	works
We	work
They	work

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5. How to Find the Subject in Complex Sentences

As sentences get longer, finding the subject gets trickier. The most reliable method: find the verb first, then ask who or what is doing it.

The tall man in the black coat smiled at me.
→ Verb: smiled / Subject: The tall man (the rest is a modifier)

What she told me was shocking.
→ Verb: was / Subject: What she told me (the whole noun clause)

Running every morning helps your mental health.
→ Verb: helps / Subject: Running every morning (the gerund phrase)

The verb is your anchor. Once you find it, the subject reveals itself.

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Episode Summary

1. The subject is the main character — nouns, pronouns, gerunds, and clauses all qualify.
2. English never drops the subject — "It" and "There" exist just to fill that slot.
3. Verbs are either action or stative — stative verbs never take -ing.
4. Subject and verb must agree — third-person singular always gets -s.
5. To find the subject, find the verb first — then trace back.

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Coming Up Next

Episode 03 — Object and Complement: What Comes After the Verb?

A subject and a verb give you the skeleton. But what the verb leads into — an object, a complement, or nothing at all — is what gives the sentence its full shape and meaning.

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© MisoEnglish Grammar Series | Level 1 — Episode 02 "Don't memorize grammar. Feel it."

 

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