42
The dash between subject and nominal predicate
Textbook: pp. 61–62
GoalKnow when a dash is and is not put between the subject and a nominal predicate.
New words
dash · tirepredicative suffix · kesimlik qo‘shimchasidemonstrative pronoun · ko‘rsatish olmoshiordinal numeral · tartib son
Explanation
A dash is put between the subject and a nominal predicate if the predicate comes without a predicative suffix and without a copula: “Vatan — muqaddas zamin”, “Ikki karra ikki — to‘rt”, “Rejamiz — erta turish”. A dash is also put when the subject is a demonstrative pronoun: “Bu — mening sinfdoshim”. If the subject or predicate is a verbal noun the dash follows the same rule: “Maqsad — bilim olish”. No dash is put when the predicate is an adjective, adverb or ordinal numeral (“Bog‘ chiroyli”, “Sinfimiz uchinchi”) and when the particle “ham” stands between subject and predicate (“Akam ham o‘qituvchi”).
Worked examples
Dash: “Toshkent — O‘zbekistonning poytaxti.” “Bu — qiyin masala.” “Vazifamiz — to‘g‘ri yozish.”
No dash: “Havo toza.” “Uyimiz ikkinchi.” “Singlim ham talaba.” “Men o‘quvchiman” (it has a predicative suffix).
Class activity
“Dash — yes/no” cards: the teacher reads a sentence and pupils raise a card to say whether a dash is needed.
Practice
1
Put the dashes: Bobom usta duradgor. Ikki karra uch olti.
Bobom — usta duradgor. Ikki karra uch — olti.
2
Why is there no dash in “Kitob qiziq”?
The predicate is expressed by an adjective.
3
Why is there a dash in “Bu — bizning maktab”?
The subject is the demonstrative pronoun bu and the predicate has no predicative suffix.
4
Change “Opam — o‘qituvchi” with “ham” and explain the punctuation.
Opam ham o‘qituvchi. No dash because ham stands between them.