Example 1: John buys a hat.
John is the subject because he performs the action of the sentence. The verb, here "buys," indicates what that action is; it tells you what John is doing. Finally, "hat" is the object of the sentence. The object, when you have one, is what the verb acts on. In this case, it tells you what is being bought. (Some sentences, like "John sleeps," have no object.)
You aren't likely to see many sentences this simple on your exam, but every sentence, no matter how complicated, builds upon these basic elements.
For instance, we can expand on Example 1 as follows:
Example 2: Wanting to cover up his bald spot, John, in spite of Jane's advice, buys a particular hat with red stitching.
Example 2 gives you more information than Example 1, and perhaps tells you more than you'd like to know about John and his purchase. Still, both sentences have at their heart the same basic structure.
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