What are Verbs? What are Verbs? Verbs can be divided i
Verbs can be divided into three typesnto three types 1. Action Verbs 1. Action Verbs 2.Verbs of being 2.Verbs of being 3.Linking Verbs 3.Linking Verbs 1.Action Verbs 1.Action Verbs
Verbs are doing words. A verb usually expresses an action. Verbs are doing words. A verb usually expresses an action. Action verbs
Action verbstell about something a person, animal, force of nature or thing can do or be. Can youtell about something a person, animal, force of nature or thing can do or be. Can you cry, march, rinse, or turn? Can the wind blow or a cup fall? These are all actions.
cry, march, rinse, or turn? Can the wind blow or a cup fall? These are all actions. Examples:
Examples: The doctor
The doctorwrotewrotethe prescription.the prescription.
(In this example, the word "wrote" is a verb. It expresses the action 'to write'.) (In this example, the word "wrote" is a verb. It expresses the action 'to write'.) Alison
Alisonboughtboughta ticket.a ticket.
(The word "bought" is a verb. It expresses the action 'to buy'.) (The word "bought" is a verb. It expresses the action 'to buy'.) Verbs Express Mental Actions Too
Verbs Express Mental Actions Too
Verbs do not necessarily express physical act
Verbs do not necessarily express physical act ions like the ones above. They can ions like the ones above. They can express mentalexpress mental actions too:
actions too:
think, remember, hope, believe,want,thought, think, remember, hope, believe,want,thought, Example:
Example: Peter
Peterguessedguessedthe right number.the right number. (The word "guessed" is a verb. It
(The word "guessed" is a verb. It expresses the action 'to guess'.)expresses the action 'to guess'.) IIthoughtthoughtthe same thing.the same thing.
(The word "thought" is a verb. It expresses the action 'to think'.) (The word "thought" is a verb. It expresses the action 'to think'.) Action verbs. Action verbs. add add allow allow bake bake bang bang call call chase chase damage damage drop drop end end escape escape fasten fasten fix fix gather gather grab grab hang hang hug hug imagine imagine itch itch jog jog jump jump kick kick knit knit land land lock lock march march mix mix name name notice notice obey obey open open pass pass promise promise question question reach reach rinse rinse scatter scatter stay stay talk talk turn turn untie untie use use vanish vanish visit visit walk walk work work yawn yawn yell yell zip zip zoom zoom
2.Verbs of Being (express a state of being/existence) 2.Verbs of Being (express a state of being/existence)
A small, but extremely important group of verbs do not express any action at all. The most important A small, but extremely important group of verbs do not express any action at all. The most important verb in this group - arguably of all - is the verb 'to be'.
verb in this group - arguably of all - is the verb 'to be'. Being Verbs
Being Verbs tell about something in a state of being. A noun or pronoun does not always take action.tell about something in a state of being. A noun or pronoun does not always take action. Sometime, it just is. For that purpose, you use a
Sometime, it just is. For that purpose, you use a being verbbeing verb..
This is seen in forms like: is, are, was, were, am, will be, been, being This is seen in forms like: is, are, was, were, am, will be, been, being
Examples: Examples:
Bakar is strange(is shows a state of existence) Bakar is strange(is shows a state of existence)
Bakar will always be my friend.(will be shows a state of existence) Bakar will always be my friend.(will be shows a state of existence) Bakar has been here for
Bakar has been here for a week(has been shows a state of a week(has been shows a state of existence)existence) Bakar was away last week. (
Bakar was away last week. (was shows a state of exiwas shows a state of existence)stence) Here are the
Here are thebeing verbsbeing verbsin all the past, present, and fin all the past, present, and future tenses.uture tenses. Present
Present Tense Tense - - I I am, am, you you are, are, he/she/it he/she/it is, is, we we are, are, they they areare Past
Past Tense Tense - - I I was, was, you you were, were, he/she/it, he/she/it, was, was, we we were, were, they they werewere Future
Future Tense Tense - - I I will will be, be, you you will will be, be, he/she/it he/she/it will will be, be, we we will will be, be, they they will will bebe Present
Present Perfect Perfect Tense Tense - - I I have have been, been, you have you have been, been, he/she/it he/she/it has has been, been, we we have have been,been, they have been
they have been Past
Past Perfect Perfect Tense Tense - - I I had had been, been, you had you had been, been, he/she/it he/she/it had had been, been, we we had had been,been, they had been
they had been Future
Future Perfect Perfect Tense Tense - - I I will will have have been, been, you will you will have have been, been, he/she/it he/she/it will will have have been, been, we we willwill have been, they will have been
have been, they will have been 3.Linking Verbs
3.Linking Verbs
Linking verbs do not show action. Instead, they connect nouns and pronouns to other information in Linking verbs do not show action. Instead, they connect nouns and pronouns to other information in the sentence.
the sentence.
Here are an example: Here are an example: My sister
My sister isissmart.smart. My sister-subject My sister-subject Is-linking verb Is-linking verb Smart-complement Smart-complement My sister=smart My sister=smart Try out Try out
Jamal became a doctor Jamal became a doctor
Most Linking Verbs can also be used as action verbs Most Linking Verbs can also be used as action verbs Action or linking verb?
Action or linking verb? The cake smelled good The cake smelled good Rio smelled the cake Rio smelled the cake
Examples of linking verbs Examples of linking verbs am am are are are are being being appear appear be be become become feel feel get get grow grow have/has been have/has been is is lie lie look look might be might be
might have been might have been prove prove remain remain seem seem sit sit smell smell sound sound stay stay taste taste turn turn were were 4. Helping Verbs 4. Helping Verbs
Helping verbs do not stand alone or express action Helping verbs do not stand alone or express action They help action or linking verbs.
Example:
Samad love these bananas Add helping verb-will
Samad will love these bananas
There are 24 helping verbs
be
am
is
are
was
were
been
being
have
has
had
could
should
would
may
might
must
shall
can
will
do
did
does
having
5.Irregular Verbs
The dog wants to bite me. The dog bit me.
The dog has bitten me. My arm hurts.
I hurt my arm yesterday. I have hurt my arm before. bite/bit/bitten choose/chose/chosen eat/ate/eaten fall/fell/fallen hurt/hurt/hurt go/went/gone lay/laid/laid ring/rang/rung send/sent/sent teach/taught/taught write/wrote/written
EXERCISE
–
Identify the verbs1.Mosquito repellents hide you. The spray blocks the mosquitoes' sensors, so they are unaware of your presence.
Hide block are
2. My two sisters sent a card to my aunt and uncle in 1930, and it has only just arrived. A sticker on the card apologised for the delay. I was amazed.
3. Our designer told us that the colour blue has a calming effect. It causes the release of calming hormones.
Told has causes
List of common Verbs A abide accelerate accept accomplish achieve acquire acted activate adapt add address administer admire admit adopt advise afford agree alert alight allow altered amuse analyze announce annoy answer anticipate apologize appear applaud applied appoint appraise appreciate approve arbitrate argue arise arrange arrest arrive B back bake balance ban bang bare bat bathe battle be beam bear beat become beg begin behave behold belong bend beset bet bid bind bite bleach bleed bless blind blink blot blow blush boast boil bolt bomb book bore borrow bounce bow C calculate call camp care carry carve cast catalog catch cause challenge change charge chart chase cheat check cheer chew choke choose chop claim clap clarify classify clean clear cling clip close clothe coach coil collect color comb come command communicate compare compete D dam damage dance dare deal decay deceive decide decorate define delay delegate delight deliver demonstrate depend describe desert deserve design destroy detail detect determine develop devise diagnose dig direct disagree disappear disapprove disarm discover dislike dispense display disprove dissect distribute dive divert
ascertain ask assemble assess assist assure attach attack attain attempt attend attract audited avoid awake box brake branch break breathe breed brief bring broadcast bruise brush bubble budget build bump burn burst bury bust buy buzz compile complain complete compose compute conceive concentrate conceptualize concern conclude conduct confess confront confuse connect conserve consider consist consolidate construct consult contain continue contract control convert coordinate copy correct correlate cost cough counsel count cover crack crash crawl create creep critique cross crush cry cure curl curve cut cycle divide do double doubt draft drag drain dramatize draw dream dress drink drip drive drop drown drum dry dust dwell
E earn eat edited educate eliminate embarrass employ empty enacted encourage end endure enforce engineer enhance enjoy enlist ensure enter entertain escape establish estimate evaluate examine exceed excite excuse execute exercise exhibit exist expand expect expedite experiment explain explode express extend extract F face facilitate fade fail fancy fasten fax fear feed feel fence fetch fight file fill film finalize finance find fire fit fix flap flash flee fling float flood flow flower fly fold follow fool forbid force forecast forego foresee foretell forget forgive form formulate forsake frame freeze G gather gaze generate get give glow glue go govern grab graduate grate grease greet grin grind grip groan grow guarantee guard guess guide H hammer hand handle handwrite hang happen harass harm hate haunt head heal heap hear heat help hide hit hold hook hop hope hover hug hum hunt hurry hurt hypothesize
frighten fry I identify ignore illustrate imagine implement impress improve improvise include increase induce influence inform initiate inject injure inlay innovate input inspect inspire install institute instruct insure integrate intend intensify interest interfere interlay interpret interrupt interview introduce invent inventory investigate invite irritate itch J jail jam jog join joke judge juggle jump justify K keep kept kick kill kiss kneel knit knock knot know L label land last laugh launch lay lead lean leap learn leave lecture led lend let level license lick lie lifted light lighten like list listen live load locate lock log long look lose love M N O P
maintain make man manage manipulate manufacture map march mark market marry match mate matter mean measure meddle mediate meet melt melt memorize mend mentor milk mine mislead miss misspell mistake misunderstand mix moan model modify monitor moor motivate mourn move mow muddle mug multiply murder nail name navigate need negotiate nest nod nominate normalize note notice number obey object observe obtain occur offend offer officiate open operate order organize oriented originate overcome overdo overdraw overflow overhear overtake overthrow owe own pack paddle paint park part participate pass paste pat pause pay peck pedal peel peep perceive perfect perform permit persuade phone photograph pick pilot pinch pine pinpoint pioneer place plan plant play plead please plug point poke polish pop possess post pour practice praised pray preach precede predict prefer prepare
prescribe present preserve preset preside press pretend prevent prick print process procure produce profess program progress project promise promote proofread propose protect prove provide publicize pull pump punch puncture punish purchase push put Q qualify question queue quit R race radiate rain raise rank rate reach read realign realize reason receive recognize recommend S sack sail satisfy save saw say scare scatter schedule scold scorch scrape scratch scream T tabulate take talk tame tap target taste teach tear tease telephone tell tempt terrify
reconcile record recruit reduce refer reflect refuse regret regulate rehabilitate reign reinforce reject rejoice relate relax release rely remain remember remind remove render reorganize repair repeat replace reply report represent reproduce request rescue research resolve respond restored restructure retire retrieve return review revise rhyme rid ride ring rinse rise risk screw scribble scrub seal search secure see seek select sell send sense separate serve service set settle sew shade shake shape share shave shear shed shelter shine shiver shock shoe shoot shop show shrink shrug shut sigh sign signal simplify sin sing sink sip sit sketch ski skip slap slay test thank thaw think thrive throw thrust tick tickle tie time tip tire touch tour tow trace trade train transcribe transfer transform translate transport trap travel tread treat tremble trick trip trot trouble troubleshoot trust try tug tumble turn tutor twist type
rob rock roll rot rub ruin rule run rush sleep slide sling slink slip slit slow smash smell smile smite smoke snatch sneak sneeze sniff snore snow soak solve soothe soothsay sort sound sow spare spark sparkle speak specify speed spell spend spill spin spit split spoil spot spray spread spring sprout squash squeak squeal squeeze stain stamp stand
stare start stay steal steer step stick stimulate sting stink stir stitch stop store strap streamline strengthen stretch stride strike string strip strive stroke structure study stuff sublet subtract succeed suck suffer suggest suit summarize supervise supply support suppose surprise surround suspect suspend swear sweat sweep swell swim swing switch
symbolize synthesize systemize U undergo understand undertake undress unfasten unify unite unlock unpack untidy update upgrade uphold upset use utilize V vanish verbalize verify vex visit W wail wait wake walk wander want warm warn wash waste watch water wave wear weave wed weep weigh welcome wend wet whine whip whirl whisper whistle win wind wink wipe wish withdraw withhold withstand wobble wonder work worry wrap wreck wrestle wriggle X - Y - Z x-ray yawn yell zip zoom
wring write
VERB FORMS
The Base Form
Here are some examples of verbs in sentences: [1] She travels to work by train [2] David sings in the choir
[3] We walked five miles to a garage [4] I cooked a meal for the family
Notice that in [1] and [2], the verbs have an -s ending, while in [3] and [4], they have an -ed ending. These endings are known as INFLECTIONS, and they are added to the BASE FORM of the verb. In [1], for instance, the -s inflection is added to the base form travel .
Certain endings are characteristic of the base for ms of verbs:
Ending Base Form
-ate concentr ate, demonstr ate, illustr ate -ify clar ify, dignify, magnify
-ise/-ize baptize, conceptualize, realise
Past and Present Forms
When we refer to a verb in general terms, we usually cite its base form, as in "the verb travel", "the verb sing ". We then add inflections to the base form as required.
Base Form + Inflection
[1] She
travel
+s
to work by train[2] David
sing
+s
in the choir[3] We
walk
+ed
five miles to a garage[4] I
cook
+ed
a meal for the whole familyThese inflections indicate TENSE. The -s inflection indicates the PRESENT TENSE,
and the -ed inflection indicates the PAST TENSE.
Verb endings also indicate PERSON. Recall that when we looked at nouns and
pronouns, we saw that there are three persons, each with a singular and a plural
form. These are shown in the table below.
Person Singular Plural
1st Person I we
2nd person you you
3rd Person he/she/John/the dog they/the dogs
In sentence [1], She travels to work by train, we have a third person singular pronoun
she, and the present tense ending -s. However, if we replace she with a plural
pronoun, then the verb will change:
[1] She travels to work by train [1a] They travel to work by trainThe verb travel in [1a] is still in the present tense, but it has changed because the pronoun in front of it has changed. This correspondence between the pronoun (or noun) and the verb is called AGREEMENT or CONCORD. Agreement applies only to verbs in the present tense. In the past tense, there is no distinction between verb forms: she travelled/they travelled.
The Infinitive Form
The INFINITIVE form of a verb is the form which follows to: to ask to believe to cry to go to protect to sing to talk to wish
This form is indistinguishable from the base form. Indeed, many
people cite this form when they identify a verb, as in "This is the verb
to be", although to is not part of the verb.
Infinitives with to are referred to specifically as TO-INFINITIVES, in
order to distinguish them from BARE INFINITIVES, in which to is
absent:
To-infinitive Bare infinitive Help me to open the gate Help me open the gate
More Verb Forms: -ing and -ed
So far we have looked at three verb forms: the present form, the past form, and the infinitive/base form. Verbs have two further forms which we will look at now.
[1] The old lady is writing a play
[2] The film was produced in Hollywood
The verb form writing in [1] is known as the -ing form, or the -ING PARTICIPLE form. In [2], the verb form produced is called the -ed form, or -ED PARTICIPLE form.
Many so-called -ed participle forms do not end in -ed at all:
The film was written by John BrownThe film was bought by a British company The film was made in Hollywood
All of these forms are called -ed participle forms, despite their various endings. The term " -ed participle form" is simply a cover term for all of these forms.
The -ed participle form should not be confused with the -ed inflection which is used
to indicate the past tense of many verbs.
We have now looked at all five verb forms. By way of summary, let us bring them
together and see how they look for different verbs. For convenience, we will illustrate
only the third person singular forms (the forms which agree with he/she/it ) of each
verb. Notice that some verbs have irregular past forms and -ed forms.
Base/Infinitive Form
Present Tense Form
Past Tense
Form -
ing
Form -ed
Formcook he cooks he cooked he is
cooking
he has cooked
walk he walks he walked he is
walking
he has walked
take he takes he took he is taking he has taken
bring he brings he brought he is
bringing
he has brought
be he is he was he is being he has been
Finite and Nonfinite Verbs
Verbs which have the past or the present form are called FINITE verbs. Verbs in any other form (infinitive, -ing , or -ed ) are called NONFINITE verbs. This means that verbs with tense are finite, and verbs without tense are nonfinite. The distinction between finite and nonfinite verbs is a very
important one in grammar, since it affects how verbs behave in sentences. Here are some examples of each type:
Tense Finite
or
Nonfinite?David plays the piano Present Finite
My sister spoke French on
holiday Past Finite
It took courage to continue after the accident
NONE -- the verb has
the infinitive form Nonfinite
Leaving home can be very traumatic
NONE -- the verb has
the -ing form Nonfinite
Leave immediately when you are asked to do so
NONE -- the verb has
the -ed form Nonfinite
Auxiliary Verbs
In the examples of -ing and -ed forms which we looked at, you may have noticed that in each case two verbs appeared:
[1] The old lady is writing a play
[2] The film was produced in Hollywood
Writing and produced each has another verb before it. These other verbs ( is and was) are known as AUXILIARY VERBS, while writing and produced are known as MAIN VERBS or LEXICAL VERBS. In fact, all t he verbs we have looked at on the previous pages have been main verbs.
Auxiliary verbs are sometimes called HELPING VERBS. This is
because they may be said to "help" the main verb which comes after
them. For example, in The old lady is writing a play , the auxiliary is
helps the main verb writing by specifying that the action it denotes is
still in progress.
Auxiliary Verb Types
In this section we will give a brief account of of each type of auxiliary verb in English. There are five types in total:
Passive
be
This is used to form passive constructions, eg.The film was produced in Hollywood
It has a corresponding present form:
The film is produced in HollywoodWe will return to passives later, when
we look at voice.
Progressive
be
As the name suggests, the progressive expresses action in progress:
The old lady is writing a play
It also has a past form:
The old lady was writing a playPerfective
have
The perfective auxiliary expresses an action accomplished in the past but retaining current relevance:
She has broken her leg
(Compare: She broke her leg )
Together with the progressive
auxiliary, the perfective auxiliary
encodes aspect , which we will look at
later.
Modalcan/could
may/might
shall/should
will/would
must
Modals express permission, ability, obligation, or prediction:
You can have a sweet if you like He may arrive early
Paul will be a footballer some day I really should leave now
Dummy
Do
This subclass contains only the verb
do. It is used to form questions:
Do you like cheese?to form negative statements:
I do not like cheeseand in giving orders:
Do not eat the cheeseFinally, dummy do can be used for
emphasis:
I do like cheese
An important difference between auxiliary verbs and main verbs is
that auxiliaries never occur alone in a sentence. For instance, we
cannot remove the main verb from a sentence, leaving only the
auxiliary:
I would like a new job ~*I would a new job You should buy a new car ~*You should a new car She must be crazy ~*She must crazy
Auxiliaries always occur with a main verb. On the other hand, main
verbs can occur without an auxiliary.
I like my new job I bought a new car She sings like a bird
In some sentences, it may appear that an auxiliary does occur alone. This is especially true in responses to questions:
Q.Can you sing? A. Yes, I can
Here the auxiliary can does not really occur without a main verb, since the main verb -- sing -- is in the question. The response is understood to mean:
Yes, I can sing
This is known as ellipsis -- the main verb has been ellipted from the
response.
Auxiliaries often appear in a shortened or contracted form, especially
in informal contexts. For instance, auxiliary have is often shortened to
've:
I have won the lottery ~I've won the lottery
These shortened forms are called enclitic forms. Sometimes different
auxiliaries have the same enclitic forms, so you should distinguish carefully between them:
I'd like a new job ( = modal auxiliary would )
We'd already spent the money by then ( = perfective auxiliary had )
He's been in there for ages ( = perfective auxiliary has) She's eating her lunch ( = progressive auxiliary is)
The following exercise concentrates on three of the most important auxiliaries -- be, have, and do.
The NICE Properties of Auxiliaries
The so-called NICE properties of auxiliaries serve to distinguish them from main verbs. NICE is an acronym for:
N
egation Auxiliaries take not or n't to form the negative, eg. cannot, don't, wouldn'tI
nversion Auxiliaries invert with what precedes them when we form questions:[I will ] see you soon ~[Will I] see you soon?
C
ode Auxiliaries may occur "stranded" where a main verb has been omitted:John never sings, but Mary does
I do like cheese
Main verbs do not exhibit these properties. For instance, when we
form a question using a main verb, we cannot invert:
[John sings] in the choir ~*[Sings John] in the choir?
Instead, we have to use the auxiliary verb do:
[John sings] in the choir ~[Does John sing ] in the choir?
Semi-auxiliaries
Among the auxiliary verbs, we distinguish a large number of multi-word verbs, which are called SEMI-AUXILIARIES. These are two-or three-word combinations, and they include the following:
get to happen to have to mean to seem to tend to turn out to used to be about to be going to be likely to be supposed to
Like other auxiliaries, the semi-auxiliaries occur before main verbs:
The film is about to start
I'm going to interview the Lord Mayor
I have to leave early today
You are supposed to sign both forms
Some of these combinations may, of course, occur in other contexts in which they are not semi-auxiliaries. For example:
I'm going to London
Here, the combination is not a semi-auxiliary, since it does not occur with a main verb. In this sentence, going is a main verb. Notice that it could be replaced by another main verb such as travel (I'm travelling to London). The word 'm is the contracted form of am, the progressive auxiliary, and to, as we'll see later, is a preposition.
Tense and Aspect
TENSE refers to the absolute location of an event or action in time, either the present or the past. It is marked by an inflection of the verb:
David walks to school (present tense) David walked to school (past tense)
Reference to other times -- the future, for instance -- can be made in
a number of ways, by using the modal auxiliary will , or the
semi-auxiliary be going to:
David will walk to school tomorrow
David is going to walk to school tomorrow.
Since the expression of future time does not involve any inflecton of
the verb, we do not refer to a "future tense". Strictly speaking, there
are only two tenses in English: present and past.
ASPECT refers to how an event or action is to be viewed with respect
to time, rather than to its actual location in time. We can illustrate this
using the following examples:
[1] David fell in love on his eighteenth birthday [2] David has fallen in love
[3] David is falling in love
In [1], the verb fell tells us that David fell in love in the past, and
specifically on his eighteenth birthday. This is a simple past tense
verb.
In [2] also, the action took place in the past, but it is implied that it
took place quite recently. Furthermore, it is implied that is still re levant
at the time of speaking -- David has fallen in love, and that's why he's
behaving strangely. It is worth noting that we cannot say *David has
fallen in love on his eighteenth birthday . The auxiliary has here
encodes what is known as PERFECTIVE ASPECT, and the auxiliary
itself is known as the PERFECTIVE AUXILIARY.
In [3], the action of falling in love is still in progress -- David is falling in
love at the time of speaking. For this reason, we call it
PROGRESSIVE ASPECT, and the auxiliary is called the
PROGRESSIVE AUXILIARY.
Aspect always includes tense. In [2] and [3] above, the aspectual
auxiliaries are in the present tense, but they could also be in the past
tense:
David had fallen in love -- Perfective Aspect, Past Tense David was falling in love -- Progressive Aspect, Past Tense
The perfective auxiliary is always followed by a main verb in the -ed
form, while the progressive auxiliary is followed by a main verb in the
-ing form. We exemplify these points in the table below:
Perfective Aspect Progressive Aspect Present Tense has fallen is falling
Past Tense had fallen was falling
While aspect always includes tense, tense can occur without aspect
(David falls in love, David fell in love).
Voice
There are two voices in English, the active voice and the passive voice:
Active Voice Passive Voice
[1]Paul congratulated David [2] David was congratulated by Paul
Passive constructions are formed using the PASSIVE AUXILIARY be,
and the main verb has an -ed inflection. In active constructions, there
is no passive auxiliary, though other auxiliaries may occur:
Paul is congratulating David Paul will congratulate David Paul has congratulated David
All of these examples are active constructions, since they contain no
passive auxiliary. Notice that in the first example (Paul is
congratulating David ), the auxiliary is the progressive auxiliary, not
the passive auxiliary. We know this because the main verb
congratulate has an -ing inflection, not an -ed inflection.
In the passive construction in [2], we refer to Paul as the AGENT.
This is the one who performs the action of congratulating David.
Sometimes no agent is specified:
David was congratulated
We refer to this as an AGENTLESS PASSIVE
Verb Types
So, you now know the answer to the question, "What is a verb?" (It's a word that expresses action or a state of being!) You also know that there are three categories of verbs (action verbs, linking verbs, and helping verbs).
For the next little while, we are going to focus on main verbs. So, forget about those poor little helping verbs for a bit, and let's turn our attention to action verbs and linking verbs.
Transitive Active Action Verb John kicked Jen.
Intransitive Complete Action Verb
Jen cried.
Transitive Passive Action Verb John was kicked.
Intransitive Linking Linking Verb Jen felt happy.
Intransitive Linking
Linking verbs differ from the three other verb types because they are the only verb type that does not express any action .
What do linking verbs do? It's pretty simple. Linking verbs link.
They will always link the subject of a sentence to either a noun (which renames the subject) or an adjective (which describes the subject).
Nouns that rename the subject are called predicate nouns. Adjectives that describe the subject are called predicate adjectives.
It may help you to think of linking verbs as an equal sign betw een the subject and a predicate noun or a predicate adjective.
Example:
I am a teacher. I = teacher
The soup is salty. soup = salty
Am is linking the subject I with the predicate noun teacher .
Is is linking the subject soup with the predicate adjective salty .
Transitive Active
These action verbs transfer their action to a receiver . That means that something or someone is always being acted upon. In our example sentence, Jen is receiving the action kicked - even though she probably doesn't want to be receiving it.
The receiver of the action is called the direct object. In our example sentence, Jen is the direct object.
Every single transitive active sentence must have a direct object , and the direct object always receives the action .
Transitive Passive
These action verbs also transfer their action to a receiver . Only the receiver of the action is always the subject.
Check out the example. Who is receiving the action? John is. John is the subject of the sentence, and he is receiving the action was kicked .
Notice that we may not actually know who initiated the action. (Who kicked John?) Sometimes we find this out in a prepositional phrase, such as: John was kicked by Jen. But, it doesn't change anything. The subject is still receiving the action.
Intransitive Complete
Again, these are action verbs. Unlike the two verb types above that transfer their action, this type does not. Since it does not transfer action, there can be no receiver of any action.
What is a verb? Here are a few more example sentences.
Transitive Active Cats drink milk.
Clocks make noise.
I lost my ticket. Intransitive Complete Cats drink. Clocks tick. Buses move. Transitive Passive Milk was drunk.
The clocks were wound.
My ticket was lost.
Intransitive Linking Milk tastes delicious.
Clocks are helpful.
