Unit 2.

Verbs and
the verb phrase
Team Fishing
 What is the verb?

A verb is a word (or a part of speech) used to denote

action or state, or, otherwise help to complete the
meaning of the verb phrase.
Examples:
- She goes there twice a week. (action)
- She’ll become a doctor. (state)
- They’re trying to finish the work. (‘re (are) – auxiliary verb)
Content:
2.1. The definition of a verb phrase
2.2. Types of verbs
2.3. The forms of verbs, the uses of each form
2.4. The morphology of lexical verbs
2.5. Auxiliaries, the uses of the modal auxiliaries
2.6. The structures of verbs: Finite and non-finite verb phrases
2.7. Contrasts expressed in the verb phrase
2.8. Tense, aspect and mood of verbs:
• The uses of the present and past tense;
• The uses of the future;
• The uses of subjunctive mood.
2.9. Verbal meaning and the progressive
2.1. The definition of a verb phrase

A verb phrase consists of a main verb alone, or

a main verb plus any modal and/or auxiliary
verbs. The main verb always comes last in the
verb phrase
2.2. Types of verbs

01 02 03
Lexical verbs
Lexical verbs Auxiliary verbs

05
04
Lexical verbs and auxiliary Lexical verbs
verbs.
 01
Lexical verbs:
Dynamic and Stative verbs
- Dynamic verbs are often verbs that denote action, but some may
denote state :
They're singing.
She's feeling tired now.
• Can be used in the progressive tense :
She learns Russian.
She's learning lesson 10.
 
- Stative verbs are often verbs that denote state (even transitive verbs):
She knows me.
• Not commonly used in the progressive tense (or, more concretely, the
present tense of the progressive aspect)
She's weak.
He looks tired.
 
02 Lexical verbs:
intensive and extensive verbs
- Intensive verbs often denote intensive relationship, between
subject and complement.
She's my sister.
She looks cheerful today.
We're feeling tired now. (one entity is involved here)
- Extensive verbs are those that extend their meaning to a new entity, of which the
presence helps complete the meaning of the action or state.
She knows me.
We're learning a new lesson.
We elected him president twice.
- Sometimes, extensive verbs are intransitive:
She has come.
They're living in a new world.
 Auxiliary verbs:
03 primary and modal
auxiliaries. Diagram 1: Auxiliaries
Primary Modal

Periphrastic Perfect Progressive Passive can, may, must, ought

Do have be 1 be 2 to, dare, need

often used in
used to add the meaning of used to add the
negative
interrogative aspect, voice of the verb + meanings to the verb
sentences phrase phrase
04
Lexical verbs and auxiliary verbs.
- Lexical (or main) verbs are those verbs that denote action or state

• We speak Vietnamese. (action)

• They went there last night. (action)
• She looks tired today. (state)
• She's my teacher of English. (state)

- Auxiliary verbs are those that help complete the meaning of the
verbs phrase.
• You can go there now.
• She did sit there with him.
• We're learning a new lesson.
 05 Lexical verbs
- their classification in terms of their
complementation.
Diagram 2: Verbs classe
Transitive
Intensive Intransitive Monotransitive Ditransitive Complex-
(1) (2) (3) (4) transitive (5)
be, appear, come, go,
look, become, live, come in, ask, answer, Give, take, Call, elect,
get, run go out, give get, give up, inform of make, put
in turn down

(SV C / SV A) (S V) (S V O) (S V O O) (S V O C /
S V O A)
(intensive Zero (0) (mono tran - (ditransitive Complex
complement complement - sitive complement transitive
-ation) ation) complement - - ation complement
ation) - ation
2.3. The forms of verbs, the uses of each
form
 Root
- The root form is the basic form of the verb with no changes. It’s also the
simple present tense for everything except the third-person singular. 

Third-person singular present

- Used with subjects like he, she, the singular they, or it, the third-person singular
in the present tense just adds an -s to the end of the root form most of the time.

Simple past
- The past tense shows an action that already happened. In most cases it’s made
by adding -ed to the end of the root form, or just -d  if the root form already
ends in an E.
- Have irregular verbs
 Present participle
- Used for the continuous tenses to show ongoing or current action,
- In most cases you simply add –ing to the end of the root form, although
sometimes you have to remove an E first. 

Past participle
- The past participle is used for the perfect tenses.
- In regular verbs, it’s the same as the simple past tense,
- irregular verbs often use unique past participles
 2.4. The morphology of lexical verbs

 (Lexical word) is what we normally recognise as "the ordinary

word." A lexical item can also be a part of a word or a chain of
words. Lexical items are the basic building blocks of a language's
vocabulary.
“we might describe lexical phrases as “chunks” of language of
varying length” - Lexical Phrases and Language Teaching (1992)
- cat (single word)
- traffic light (words together meaning one thing)
- take care of (a verbal phrase)
- by the way (an idiomatic phrase)
- it's raining cats and dogs (a chain of words)
 2.5. Auxiliaries, the uses of the modal auxiliaries
• AUXILIARIES: Syntactic features of primary
auxiliaries:
a, Their forms:
Periphrastic: Perfect: Have Progressive: Be Passive: Be
Do (+V) (+V -ed2) (+V -ing) (+V -ed2)
Present do/does have/has (be+) am/is/are am/is/are
Past did had was/were (+been) was/were
(been & being)

b, Forms of the verbs following them:

do + V lexical have + V -ed2 of be + V -ing of lexical be + V -ed2
lexical / auxiliary / auxiliary lexical
He does like coffee. She’s been here. We’re talking. This was done.
They don’t go out often. It was being built. It has been finished.
 c, Used as operator:
They didn't go there. She hasn't done it. She isn’t coming. He wasn't informed.

Why did she come late? What has she got? Where was it going? How was it done?

d, Used as proform ( pro-verb)

She went there but I didn't. Have you finished? Are they coming? Was she chosen?
Yes, I have. I'm sure they are. Certainly she was.

e, Only ‘Do’ can be used as emphatic auxiliary:

Do come in and sit down.
He did go there last Sunday.
She does like games.
 MODAL AUXILIARIES: their syntactic
features
a, List of items: can, may, must, shall, will, ought to
dare, need
b. Their own forms:
Present: can, may, shall, will, must, ought to, need, dare
Past: could, might, should, would
For their present tense form, only one form is used for all persons
and numbers: He / we... can go now.
c. Form of the verb following them:
Modal + V (base) of the lexical / auxiliary verb following it.
You can go.
They must have gone out. Note:
• 'Dare' and 'need' are modals when they are used as operator :
She shouldn't be prompted. She needn't attend the lecture.
He can’t be arriving. Dare you go out with him now?
• Otherwise, they are lexical verb:
We don't need to take care of him.
 2.6. The structures of verbs

Non-finite verbs do not change

their form when the number or
person of the subject changes.
There are mainly three types of
non-finite verbs: infinitives,
Finite verbs change their forms gerunds and participles.
when there is a change in the
number or person of the subject.
Finite verbs also have different
forms in different tenses.
 2.7. Contrasts
expressed in the
verb phrase
The contrasts give in 3.25 include:
voice, question, negation, emphasis,
and imperatives.
They include on the one hand … on the
other hand, on the contrary, in
comparison, by comparison, in
contrast, by contrast.
2.8. Tense, aspect and mood of verbs:
a. Tense = use of verb form to indicate time of action / state
We make clear distinction of two tenses:
Hi!
Present: V/V- s ask / asks write/writes have/has
Past: V- ed1 asked wrote had
b, Aspect: The aspect denotes the manner in which the action/state is
performed. There are 4 subcategories of aspect:
-Simple: V/V-s/V-ed1 She works here .
-Perfect: Have + V-ed2 They’ve lived there for 8 years .
-Progressive: Be + V-ing We were dancing here .
-Perfect Having been + V-ing She’s been learning English for a long
Progressive: time .

c, Mood: Mood indicates the speaker’s attitude to the predication (action/state).

In his mind, the action may be thought of as:
+Factual: He went there last night. (Indicative)
+Non factual: *desirous: Keep silent please. (Imperative)
*unreal: If he went there tomorrow he would meet her. (Subjunctive)
01 02 03 04
 Thanks
Do you have any questions?

Nguyen Van Dich !

Nguyen Thi Thu Ha

Nguyen Thi Minh Huyen

Bui Thi Loan

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