the subject *You* is ellipsed, or left out, because, when such a sentence is said, the people who hear it are assumed to understand who is being spoken to. As you begin your study of syntax, simply remember that words can be left out, and that when they are, you are dealing with an ellipsis. As you progress and become familiar with more of the basic constructions, you may want to return to this document and study some of the more advanced examples of ellipsis. In analyzing texts, we can denote ellipsis by putting the ellipsed words in *asterisks.*

In Prepositional Phrases

     Ellipsed Object of the Preposition:

     One of my favorite examples is "Put on your thinking cap." Clearly this  does not mean "Put ?something? {on your thinking cap.}" Rather, it means "Put your thinking cap {on *your head.*}"
     Sometimes the object is ellipsed because it is assumed to be understood, as in this passage from Aesop's Fable of the Ant and the Grasshopper: "An Ant passed {by *him*,} bearing along with great toil an ear of corn ...."

    Ellipsed Preposition:

     In prepositional phrases with compound objects, it is often easier to visualize the analyzed sentence if one inserts an "ellipsed" preposition: "{With its head} {in the sand,} and {*with* its tail} {in the air,} an ostrich must look rather silly."

    As noted above ("Close the door."), "you" is ellipsed in subjects. When a verb phrase repeats a preceding one, part of the second verb and the complement are ellipsed by mature writers: "You did not complete the job as well as he did *complete the job.*
     In some cases, an entire verb phrase is ellipsed (when it repeats the preceding one. In this case, it is usually replaced by a comma: "The sky is blue; the grass, green."

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