VERBS

Verbs
 It is important to know that the verbs are not always referring to
an action

 We can look at verbs from three angles:

 Morphology: how it looks (its form)
 Syntax: what work it does in a sentence (its function)
 Semantics: its meaning
Classification
• SYNTACTICALLY: • MORPHOLOGICALLY:
 Finite verbs
 Transitive verbs
 Intransitive verbs
 Linking verbs  Regular verbs
 Non finite verbs  Irregular verbs
 Gerunds  Compounds (phrasal
 Infinitives and prepositional
 Participles (present, past
and perfect)
verbs)
 Linking verbs • SEMANTICALLY:
 Primary auxiliaries
 Modal verbs
 Action verbs
 Verbs of having
 Linking verbs
 Primary auxiliaries
 Modal verbs
 Sintactically
• Finite verbs (tensed verbs)
 The word finite means limited
 This form of the verb has subject and shows tense.
 This kind of verbs are the sentence root that’s why they can
be used as the only verb in the sentence.
 They don’t require an additional helping verb and usually
follow their subject.
 • Examples:
 We rob banks.
 Do you know her name?
 Yesterday they played together.
Transitive verbs
 This kind of verbs express an action.
 They’re followed by a direct object (thing or person that
receives the action).

• Examples:

• Alex sent a postcard from Argentina

• (postcard=direct object)
• Annie gives her mom a cute present
• ( mom=direct object)
What is an object?
 The aim, purpose, destination or target of a verb's action.
 They answer the questions what or who?

 Examples:
 He met her yesterday (Who did he meet?)
 She wrote a story last year (What did she write?)
 Rust destroys iron (What does rust destroy?)
 Intransitive verbs
 They do not take a direct object.
 There’s no a word in the sentence that tells who or what
receive the action.

• Examples:

• It rains across the state.

• We walk to the railway station.
Some exceptions
• Transitive Verbs Used Intransitively:

• You will often find transitive verbs used intransitively without an

object.
 They are eating.
 I understand.

• Intransitive Verbs Used Transitively

• At rare times intransitive verbs are used transitively.
 How did you cover all that distance? We walked it (‘Walked’
has the object ‘it’ in this sentences.
Linking verbs
 They show a relationship between the subject and some
extra information.
 They are followed by a noun or and adjective.

 Most common are: Be Become Appear Seem Get Smell Feel

Look Remain Sound Go Grow Taste
• Examples:

• She seemed an intelligent woman.

• He got hungry in the evening.

• He looks like a good player.

Non finite verbs
 This type of verbs don’t show a distinction in tense and
normally they cannot stand alone as the main verb in a
sentence.
 Except for modal auxiliaries, all verbs have a non finite
form.
 Also they don’t show person, number and gender.
Gerunds:
 It is made from a verb by adding –ing.
 You cans use it as a subject, object or complement of the
sentence.
 It could be a participle or a gerund, but they’re not the
same.
 They can be negative by adding not
• Examples:

• Reading helps you learn English (subject).

• I enjoy reading (object).
• Her favorite hobby is reading (complement).
• The best thing for your health is not smoking.
Infinitives:
 “To” form of the verb
 They act as a noun and as a verb.
 Occasionally, it acts as an adjective or adverb, despite
being a verb in meaning.
 They don’t convey a tense.
 They also can be negative by adding not.
• Examples:

• The most important thing is to learn.

• To learn values is important for you.
• I decided not to go to the party.
Helping verbs
 They help the main verb in a sentence.
 They have no meaning in their own.
 But they are necessary for the grammatical structure.
• We have:
 Primary auxiliaries
 Modal verbs
How do they help?
• Syntactically: They perform some grammatical function, as:
 In forming the passive
 In expressing the continuity (progressive) aspect
 In expressing the perfect (completed) aspect

 These are called Primary Auxiliaries

• Semantically:

 They add meaning to the meaning of the main verb. What

they add are meanings like: ability, possibility, permission,
command, habitual action, etc.

 These are called Modal Auxiliaries

 • To be: Continuous tenses or passive
Primary voice
• To have: Perfect tenses
auxiliaries • To do: Negative sentences, to ask
questions or show emphasis

• They modify the meaning of the main

verb
Modal • They convey: probability, abilities,
necessities, offers, to make requests
verbs or ask for permission
• Can, could, may, might, will, would,
shall, should, must, ought to.
• Examples:

 To be:
 He is watching TV (continuous tense)
 To have:
 I have finished my homework (perfect tense)
 To do:
 I do not like you (negative)
 Do you want some coffee? (ask a question)
 I do want you to pass the exam (show emphasize)
 Modal verbs:
 I can not speak Chinese, She could do it for you, Would you
like a cup of coffee?, You should go to the doctor…
 Morphologically
• Regular verbs
 In English grammar, a regular verb is a verb that forms
its past tense and past participle by adding at the end -
d or -ed to the base form.
 The majority of English verbs are regular.
Special cases of the -ed forms
• If there is a consonant after a stressed vowel at the end of
the word, double the consonant

• stop – stopped
ban - banned
swap – swapped

• If the vowel is not stressed, we do not double it:

open - opened (Here the stress is on'o', not the 'e'.)
offer - offered ( Here the stress is on 'o', not the 'e')
 Irregular verbs LOREM IPSUM
 . There is no formula to  Break-broke-broken
predict how an irregular  Cut-cut-cut
verb will form its past
tense and past participle  Run-ran-run
forms.  Meet-met-met
 There are over 250  Come-came-come
irregular verbs in English.  Swim-swam-swum
 Although they do not follow
 Be-was/were-been
a formula, there are some
fairly common irregular
forms
Phrasal verbs are usually two-word phrases
consisting of a verb + adverb or verb + preposition.
 Compound verbs
• In English grammar, a  The compound verb can
compound verb is made include:
up of two or
more words that function  A prepositional verb
as a single verb.  A phrasal verb
  Action verbs
They describe what the subject of a sentence is doing.
This type of verbs carry a great deal of information.
We have two types of action verbs
Regular verbs: Irregular verbs:

 She played videogames  I made my homework last

with me yesterday. week.
Verb “to have”
As a main verb: Possession
 As a main verb “to have” implies the meaning of possession.
 For example:
 “I have a job.” “I have a car.“ "I don't have any time."

 When it is used to indicate possession you can say "I have..." or

you might see/hear "I have got...".

 For example:
 I have a shower in my bathroom, I don't have a bath. = I have
got a shower in my bathroom. I haven't got a bath.
As a main verb: Action
• Actions

 When you are talking about actions, you only use "have".

 Example:
 I have a shower every day. - I'm having a shower now.

 Note: It does not take the continuous form "I having" for that you
have to use the auxiliary verb be.
Different forms: Singular
Different forms: Plural
• Examples:

 Do we have a car?
 Have you got a car?

 How many pets do you have?

 Does she have a baby?
 He has a big house