Join In
Twitter
YouTube
Weekly Newsletter
Libraries
A-Z Grammatical Terms
A-Z Confused Words
FAQs by Writers
A-Z Awkward Plurals
Punctuation Lessons
Common Mistakes
(ordered by seriousness) ESL Vocabulary Lists Parts of Speech Lists A-Z Idioms and Proverbs Grammar Videos
(ordered by category) Tests and Games Top Tip Install a grammar checker
for your browser
(ordered by seriousness) ESL Vocabulary Lists Parts of Speech Lists A-Z Idioms and Proverbs Grammar Videos
(ordered by category) Tests and Games Top Tip Install a grammar checker
for your browser
Object Complement
What Is an Object Complement?
An object complement is a noun, a pronoun, or an adjective that follows a direct object to rename it or state what it has become. For example:- I can make John available. (In this example, the direct object is "John." The object complement is "available.")
Table of Contents
- Examples of Object Complements
- Verbs That Attract Object Complements
- Other Types of Complement
- Why Object Complements Are Important
- Printable Test

Examples of Object Complements
Here are some more examples of object complements:- I found the guard sleeping.
- We all consider her unworthy.
- I declare this centre open.
- We consider fish spoiled once it smells like what it is.
- To obtain a man's opinion of you, make him mad. (Physician and poet Oliver Wendell Holmes)
- I found the guard sleeping in the barn.
- We all consider her unworthy of the position.
Verbs That Attract Object Complements
Verbs of making (e.g., "to make," "to create") or naming (e.g., "to name," "to call," "to elect") often attract an object complement. In the examples below, the object complements are shaded and the direct objects are in bold.- To make her happy
- To name her Heidi
- To consider someone stupid
- To paint something purple
- To catch somebody stealing
Other Types of Complement
If you're learning about object complements, it is worth comparing them to subject complements. A subject complement is a word or phrase that follows a linking verb and identifies or describes the subject. For example (subject complements in bold):- John is the captain.
- Myra looks angry. (In these examples, "the captain" and "angry" are the subject complements. They follow linking verbs ("is" and "looks") to tell us about the subjects ("John" and "Myra".)
- We named John the captain.
- We made Myra angry. (The verbs are "named" and "made." The object complements tell us about the objects of the verbs ("John" and "Myra").)
For native English speakers, the biggest writing issue related to complements occurs more commonly with subject complements, but, it can also occur with object complements too.
(Issue 1) Don't use an adverb as a complement.
A complement is an adjective, noun, or pronoun. It's never an adverb. Look at this example:- The garlic has made the soup awfully.
- The garlic has made the soup awful.
- The soup tastes awfully.
- The soup tastes awful.
- Your complement can't be an adverb.
- She looks amazingly.
- She looks amazing.
Help Us Improve Grammar Monster
- Do you disagree with something on this page?
- Did you spot a typo?
Find Us Quicker!
- When using a search engine (e.g., Google, Bing), you will find Grammar Monster quicker if you add #gm to your search term.