A declarative sentence often consists of two parts. One ascribes a certain property to something else; the other stands for an entity to which this property is ascribed. The two parts are described as the predicate and the subject respectively (Notions of "Subject").

In Chinese, verbs, adjectives, and nouns can all serve the function of the principal constituent of the predicate.

Verb phrases often function as the predicate. Verbs are traditionally classified into transitive and intransitive verbs, depending on whether they require an object or not. Trans…