Topics
IntermediateTopic vs Subject Prominence
How Spanish, English and Chinese organize sentences around topics or subjects.
Compare languages
English and Spanish are subject-prominent: every sentence needs a grammatical subject. Chinese is topic-prominent: the first element is the topic about which the rest of the sentence comments.
Overview
Languages differ in whether they organize sentences around a grammatical subject or a discourse topic.
- Spanish: Subject-prominent but with pro-drop flexibility. The subject is grammatically required but can be omitted when recoverable. Topic-comment structures exist but are marked.
- English: Strictly subject-prominent. Every finite clause requires an explicit grammatical subject. Dummy subjects (it, there) fill the subject position when no semantic subject exists.
- Chinese: Topic-prominent. The first element in a sentence is typically the topic (what the sentence is about), followed by a comment (what is said about it). No grammatical subject is required.
Spanish
Subject-prominent base
Spanish is fundamentally subject-prominent. The verb agrees with the subject:
- Yo como manzanas. (I eat apples.)
- Ellos vienen mañana. (They come tomorrow.)
- El perro ladra. (The dog barks.)
Pro-drop (subject omission)
Spanish allows subject omission when the subject is recoverable from verb morphology or context:
- Como manzanas. (I eat apples. — yo omitted)
- Vienen mañana. (They come tomorrow. — ellos omitted)
- Llueve. (It rains. — no subject needed)
Left-dislocation (marked topic)
Moving an element to the front for emphasis, with a resumptive pronoun:
- El pescado, no lo como. (Fish, I don’t eat it.)
- A Juan, lo vi ayer. (Juan, I saw him yesterday.)
- Eso, no me lo creo. (That, I don’t believe it.)
Note: The dislocated element is the topic, but the sentence still has a grammatical subject.
Hanging topic (without resumption)
Colloquial Spanish sometimes uses hanging topics:
- El coche, está roto. (The car, it’s broken. — no overt pronoun)
- Tu hermano, ¿dónde vive? (Your brother, where does he live?)
Preverbal objects (marked)
Object fronting without full dislocation is possible but marked:
- El libro leí ayer. (The book I read yesterday. — VSO-like)
- A María vi en el parque. (María I saw in the park.)
English
Strict subject requirement
English requires an explicit subject in every finite clause:
- It is raining. (NOT Is raining.)
- There is a book. (NOT Is a book.)
- It seems that he left. (NOT Seems that he left.)
Dummy subjects
When no semantic subject exists, English uses placeholders:
| Construction | Dummy | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Weather | it | It is raining. |
| Existence | there | There is a problem. |
| Time | it | It is three o’clock. |
| Distance | it | It is far. |
| Seem/appear | it | It seems that… |
Left-dislocation
English can front elements as topics, but requires a resumptive pronoun:
- That book, I read it last week.
- Your brother, I met him once.
- This problem, we need to solve it.
Without resumption: Ungrammatical in standard English:
- ❌ That book, I read last week. (non-standard)
- ✅ That book, I read it last week.
Topicalization (without resumption)
Some topicalization is possible in formal/written English:
- This book I have read. (formal)
- Never have I seen such a thing. (inversion)
Object fronting (marked)
- Beans I can’t stand. ( Beans, I can’t stand them.)
- Him I don’t trust. (marked; requires context)
Chinese
Topic-comment as basic structure
Chinese sentences are organized as topic + comment:
- 这本书我看过。(This book, I’ve read [it]. — topic: book; comment: I’ve read)
- 鱼我不吃。(Fish, I don’t eat [it].)
- 那个孩子鼻子流鼻涕。(That child, [his] nose is running. — topic: child; comment: nose runs)
No resumptive pronoun needed: Chinese does not require pronouns to resume fronted topics.
Topic can be anything
The topic need not be a subject or object:
- 今天我很忙。(Today, I am busy. — topic: time)
- 这个问题我不知道。(This problem, I don’t know. — topic: problem)
- 那个地方我去过。(That place, I’ve been [to]. — topic: place)
Subjectless sentences
Chinese freely omits subjects:
- 下雨了。(Raining.)
- 很好。(Very good.)
- 吃饭了。(Time to eat.)
Double subject constructions
Chinese allows apparent double subjects where the first is topic and the second is the grammatical subject:
- 那个孩子头发很长。(That child, [his] hair is long. — topic: child; subject: hair)
- 这只猫尾巴很长。(This cat, [its] tail is long.)
Zero anaphora
Chinese omits pronouns even across sentences when the topic is maintained:
- 我有一个朋友。很聪明。(I have a friend. [He] is very smart. — zero pronoun)
- 这本书很好。我买了。(This book is good. [I] bought [it]. — multiple zeros)
Comparison at a glance
| Feature | Spanish | English | Chinese |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic type | Subject-prominent | Subject-prominent | Topic-prominent |
| Subject required | Yes (but pro-drop) | Yes (always explicit) | No |
| Dummy subjects | Limited (optional ello) | Required (it/there) | None |
| Object fronting | Marked, pronoun doubling | Marked, resumptive pronoun | Unmarked, no pronoun |
| Topic as time | Left-dislocation | Left-dislocation | Normal |
| Topic as place | Left-dislocation | Left-dislocation | Normal |
| Double subject | Very limited | Ungrammatical | Normal |
| Zero anaphora | Limited (same subject) | Very limited | Very free |
| Body-part sentences | Subject required | Subject required | Topic-comment |
Examples in context
Fish, I don’t eat
- ES: El pescado, no lo como. (marked, resumptive lo)
- EN: Fish, I don’t eat it. (marked, resumptive it)
- ZH: 鱼我不吃。(unmarked, no pronoun)
That child has a runny nose
- ES: Ese niño tiene mocos. (subject-predicate)
- EN: That child has a runny nose. (subject-predicate)
- ZH: 那个孩子鼻子流鼻涕。(topic-comment)
It’s raining
- ES: Llueve. (no subject needed)
- EN: It is raining. (dummy subject required)
- ZH: 下雨了。(no subject needed)
Common mistakes
-
English speakers learning Chinese: Over-supplying subjects: 他是我的朋友，他很聪明 → 我有一个朋友，很聪明
-
Chinese speakers learning English: Omitting subjects: Is raining → It is raining
-
English speakers learning Spanish: Using explicit subject when pro-drop is natural: Yo como (emphatic only) → Como (natural)
-
Spanish speakers learning Chinese: Using left-dislocation with pronoun: 那本书，我看了它 → 那本书我看过 (no resumptive pronoun)
Related topics
- Topic-Comment: How topic-comment structure works in Chinese
- Word Order: How basic sentence order varies
- Ellipsis: How omission works in each language
- Impersonal: How subjectless constructions work
Examples
Basic sentence structure
Subject-prominent (SVO)
It's raining
Llueve (no subject)
This book, I've read
Este libro, lo he leído (left-dislocation)
That child, nose is runny
Ese niño tiene mocos (subject required)
Fish, I don't eat
El pescado, no lo como (left-dislocation)
Dummy subjects required?
Sometimes (ello as optional filler)
Subject omission
Pro-drop (subject omissible)
Object fronting
Marked (requires pronoun doubling: El libro, lo leí)
Examples
Basic sentence structure
Subject-prominent (SVO)
It's raining
It is raining (dummy subject)
This book, I've read
This book, I've read it (left-dislocation)
That child, nose is runny
That child has a runny nose (subject required)
Fish, I don't eat
Fish, I don't eat it (left-dislocation)
Dummy subjects required?
Always (it/there)
Subject omission
Never (except imperatives)
Object fronting
Marked (requires resumptive pronoun)
Examples
Basic sentence structure
Topic-prominent (Topic-Comment)
It's raining
下雨了 (no subject)
This book, I've read
这本书我看过 (normal word order)
That child, nose is runny
那个孩子鼻子流鼻涕 (topic-comment)
Fish, I don't eat
鱼我不吃 (normal)
Dummy subjects required?
Never
Subject omission
Very free
Object fronting
Unmarked (normal strategy)
Comparison at a glance
| Grammar concepts | Spanish | English | Chinese |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic sentence structure | Subject-prominent (SVO) | Subject-prominent (SVO) | Topic-prominent (Topic-Comment) |
| It's raining | Llueve (no subject) | It is raining (dummy subject) | 下雨了 (no subject) |
| This book, I've read | Este libro, lo he leído (left-dislocation) | This book, I've read it (left-dislocation) | 这本书我看过 (normal word order) |
| That child, nose is runny | Ese niño tiene mocos (subject required) | That child has a runny nose (subject required) | 那个孩子鼻子流鼻涕 (topic-comment) |
| Fish, I don't eat | El pescado, no lo como (left-dislocation) | Fish, I don't eat it (left-dislocation) | 鱼我不吃 (normal) |
| Dummy subjects required? | Sometimes (ello as optional filler) | Always (it/there) | Never |
| Subject omission | Pro-drop (subject omissible) | Never (except imperatives) | Very free |
| Object fronting | Marked (requires pronoun doubling: El libro, lo leí) | Marked (requires resumptive pronoun) | Unmarked (normal strategy) |
Select at least one language to view comparisons
Side-by-side comparison
| Grammar concepts | Spanish | English | Chinese |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic sentence structure | Subject-prominent (SVO) | Subject-prominent (SVO) | Topic-prominent (Topic-Comment) |
| It's raining | Llueve (no subject) | It is raining (dummy subject) | 下雨了 (no subject) |
| This book, I've read | Este libro, lo he leído (left-dislocation) | This book, I've read it (left-dislocation) | 这本书我看过 (normal word order) |
| That child, nose is runny | Ese niño tiene mocos (subject required) | That child has a runny nose (subject required) | 那个孩子鼻子流鼻涕 (topic-comment) |
| Fish, I don't eat | El pescado, no lo como (left-dislocation) | Fish, I don't eat it (left-dislocation) | 鱼我不吃 (normal) |
| Dummy subjects required? | Sometimes (ello as optional filler) | Always (it/there) | Never |
| Subject omission | Pro-drop (subject omissible) | Never (except imperatives) | Very free |
| Object fronting | Marked (requires pronoun doubling: El libro, lo leí) | Marked (requires resumptive pronoun) | Unmarked (normal strategy) |
Select at least one language to view comparisons
Examples in context
Basic sentence structure
Spanish
Subject-prominent (SVO)
English
Subject-prominent (SVO)
Chinese
Topic-prominent (Topic-Comment)
It's raining
Spanish
Llueve (no subject)
English
It is raining (dummy subject)
Chinese
下雨了 (no subject)
This book, I've read
Spanish
Este libro, lo he leído (left-dislocation)
English
This book, I've read it (left-dislocation)
Chinese
这本书我看过 (normal word order)
That child, nose is runny
Spanish
Ese niño tiene mocos (subject required)
English
That child has a runny nose (subject required)
Chinese
那个孩子鼻子流鼻涕 (topic-comment)
Fish, I don't eat
Spanish
El pescado, no lo como (left-dislocation)
English
Fish, I don't eat it (left-dislocation)
Chinese
鱼我不吃 (normal)
Dummy subjects required?
Spanish
Sometimes (ello as optional filler)
English
Always (it/there)
Chinese
Never
Subject omission
Spanish
Pro-drop (subject omissible)
English
Never (except imperatives)
Chinese
Very free
Object fronting
Spanish
Marked (requires pronoun doubling: El libro, lo leí)
English
Marked (requires resumptive pronoun)
Chinese
Unmarked (normal strategy)
Select at least one language to view comparisons
Key Takeaways
Spanish: Subject-prominent but with pro-drop flexibility. The subject is grammatically required but can be omitted when recoverable. Topic-comment st...
English: Strictly subject-prominent. Every finite clause requires an explicit grammatical subject. Dummy subjects (it, there) fill the subject positi...
Chinese: Topic-prominent. The first element in a sentence is typically the topic (what the sentence is about), followed by a comment (what is said ab...
Key concepts compared: Basic sentence structure, It's raining, This book, I've read.
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Last updated: June 4, 2026