The circumstantial complement is a type of verb complement that provides additional information about the circumstances in which the verbal action occurs. It can indicate time, place, manner, cause, purpose, company, among other aspects. For example, in the sentence "I studied in the library", "in the library" is a circumstantial complement of place that specifies where the action of studying was carried out .
Types of circumstantial complement
Circumstantial complement of place
Indicates the space or area in which the verbal action takes place.
Circumstantial complement of time
It indicates the moment or period in which the action of the verb occurs.
Circumstantial complement of mode
Describes the way in which the verbal action is carried out.
Circumstantial quantity supplement
Expresses the magnitude or degree with which the action of the verb is carried out.
Circumstantial complement of cause
State the reason or reason why the verbal action is carried out.
Circumstantial complement of purpose
Indicates the purpose or objective with which the action of the verb is carried out.
Circumstantial company complement
Mention the person or being with whom the verbal action is executed.
Circumstantial complement of instrument
Specifies the means or tool used to carry out the verbal action.
Circumstantial complement of condition
Expresses the necessary or conditioning circumstance for the action of the verb to be carried out.
Examples
- Circumstantial complement of place : «Juan left the key on the table »;
- circumstantial complement of time : «We left the house in the morning »;
- circumstantial complement of manner : "He spoke calmly during the meeting";
- circumstantial complement of quantity : "He ran a lot in the park";
- circumstantial complement of cause : "He arrived late due to traffic ";
- circumstantial complement of purpose : «Study to pass the exam «;
- circumstantial complement of company : «I went to the cinema with my friends «;
- circumstantial complement of instrument : «He wrote the letter with a pen «;
- circumstantial complement of condition : "I will help you if you call me early ."
Other plugins
The complement is a part of the sentence that completes the meaning of a verb, an adjective or a noun, providing additional information that is necessary to understand the full meaning of the sentence.
direct complement
It directly receives the action of the verb and answers the question "what?" or "to whom?" regarding the verb . It is usually a noun or a pronoun.
indirect complement
It indicates to whom or for whom the action of the verb is performed. Answers the question “to whom?” or "for whom?" and is usually introduced with a preposition such as "a" or "for."
Specification Plugin
Specifies or details the meaning of a noun , often introduced by the preposition "of." Answers the question "whose?" or "of what?" with respect to the noun it complements.
Adverbs
The adverb is a word that modifies a verb, adjective or other adverb , providing additional information about how, when, where, to what extent or under what conditions the action is performed or the state is described.
adverb of place
Indicates the place where an action occurs or something is found.
adverb of time
It indicates the moment or duration of an action.
adverb of manner
Describes the way in which an action is carried out.
Adverb of quantity
It expresses the intensity, degree or quantity with which an action is performed or a quality is modified.
Adverb of affirmation
Indicates certainty or confirms the veracity of an action or fact.
adverb of negation
Deny or reject an action or statement.
adverb of doubt
Expresses uncertainty or possibility regarding an action or situation.
Subordinate clause
A subordinate clause depends on another to make complete sense. It cannot function independently and is related to the main one through a conjunction or a link, adding information or fulfilling a specific function.
Adverbial subordinate clause
It functions as an adverb within the main sentence, providing information about time, place, manner, cause, condition, purpose, etc.
Causal subordinate clause
Expresses the cause or reason why the action in the main sentence occurs.
Conditional subordinate clause
It states a condition that must be met for the action of the main sentence to take place.
Consecutive subordinate clause
Indicates the consequence or result of what is expressed in the main sentence.
Temporal subordinate clause
It indicates the time or period in which the action of the main sentence occurs.
Final subordinate clause
It expresses the purpose or purpose with which the action in the main sentence is carried out.
Comparative subordinate clause
Establish a comparison between the action of the main clause and another action or quality.
Preposition and prepositional phrase
Preposition
It is a word that serves to relate elements within a sentence, indicating relationships of place, time , cause, purpose, etc., between a term and its complement. Examples of common prepositions are "in", "to", "with", "by", "for".
prepositional phrase
It is a set of words that begins with a preposition and continues with a complement, which can be a noun, pronoun, or a subordinate clause. The prepositional phrase acts as a complement that adds information to another element of the sentence.
Coordinating and subordinating conjunction
Coordinating conjunction
It is a word that connects elements of the same grammatical category, such as words, phrases or sentences, to form a grammatically equivalent structure . The most common coordinating conjunctions are "and", "or", "but", "nor".
subordinating conjunction
It is a word that joins a subordinate clause to a main clause, establishing a dependency relationship between them. Examples of subordinating conjunctions are "that", "because", "if", "although".
Locution
A phrase is a group of words that function together as a grammatical unit with a specific meaning, similar to that of a single word.
Adverbial phrase
It acts as an adverb within a sentence, modifying a verb, an adjective or another adverb. Example: "often", "silently".
prepositive phrase
It works like a preposition, establishing relationships between the elements of a sentence. Example: "in favor of", "instead of".
conjunctive phrase
It acts as a conjunction , joining sentences or parts of a sentence and establishing relationships between them. Example: "although not", "even though".
verbal locution
It functions as a phrasal verb, with a specific meaning that may be different from the literal meaning of its components. Example: "find", "miss".