Object Complements: The Hidden Structure After Direct Objects
Learn object complements — how verbs like make, call, find, consider, elect take complements that describe the direct object.
Some verbs take not just a direct object but also an object complement — a word that describes or renames the object:
They elected him president. (president = object complement describing “him”)
The news made me sad. (sad = object complement describing “me”)
We consider him honest. (honest = object complement)
Rule box: An object complement follows the direct object and describes or renames it. Common verbs: make, call, find, consider, elect, name, appoint, declare, keep, paint, dye.
They elected him president.
She named the baby Arya.
They appointed her manager.
The committee declared him the winner.
We crowned her queen.
The news made me sad.
She painted the wall blue.
We found the task difficult.
He kept the room clean.
I consider him honest.
| Verb | Example |
|---|---|
| make | It made me happy. |
| call | They called him a hero. |
| find | I found it interesting. |
| consider | We consider her talented. |
| elect | They elected her president. |
| name | They named the ship Titanic. |
| appoint | He was appointed captain. |
| declare | The judge declared him innocent. |
| keep | Keep the room clean. |
| paint | She painted the door red. |
| dye | She dyed her hair black. |
| Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|
| They elected him as president. | They elected him president. | No “as” with elect. |
| The news made me sadly. | The news made me sad. | Adjective, not adverb. |
| We consider him as honest. | We consider him honest. | No “as” with consider. |
Choose the correct option.
- They elected him ___. (president / as president)
- The news made me ___. (sad / sadly)
- We consider him ___. (honest / as honest)
- Error spotting: They elected him as president.
- Error spotting: The news made me sadly.
- Fill in the blank: She painted the wall ___. (blue / bluely)
- Fill in the blank: They named the baby ___. (Arya / as Arya)
- Rewrite correctly: We consider her as intelligent.
- Choose: I found the book ___. (interesting / interestingly)
- Choose: He kept the room ___. (clean / cleanly)
- president — no “as.”
- sad — adjective after make.
- honest — no “as.”
- They elected him president.
- The news made me sad.
- blue — adjective.
- Arya — no “as.”
- We consider her intelligent.
- interesting — adjective.
- clean — adjective.
Rule: Object complements describe or rename the direct object. Use adjectives (not adverbs) as object complements. No “as” with elect, consider, name, appoint.
Memory trick: “Object complements describe the object. Adjective, not adverb. No ‘as’ with elect and consider.”
Related posts: