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As you know, there's a saying going:

Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home.

I'm having difficulty in identifying the case of it in the sentence. Here are reasons why.

  1. Be it ever so humble, as it is a clause, I think it needs a subject and so it is subjective.
  2. Be it ever so humble, I also think that since this is in imperative mood, I guess it doesn't really need a subject, and it is accusative.

Which one is it: accusative or subjective?

Tushar Raj
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hjjg200
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1 Answers1

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The verb be is a copula, so traditionally it does not have an object, but rather a subject complement as a secondary argument.

However, in your example, the word it is simply the subject; the reason why it looks odd is inversion: verb and subject have switched position. This can happen in certain kinds of subordinate clauses that lack a conjunction, especially if their verb is in the subjunctive mood. Here be is a present subjunctive, not an imperative.

Should he leave the premises, please arrest him.

This is another example of a subordinate clause without a conjunction but with inversion, in the past subjunctive (should).

Ever so humble is the subject complement.

Cerberus - Reinstate Monica
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