Lesson 5 - learnenglish.org.inlearnenglish.org.in/docs/Parts of Speech/Theory-PDF/Parts of...

VERB

Lesson – 5

I. A verb is described as a word which is used to indicate an action, a state of being of

existence or possession.

A verb tells us:

1. What a person or thing does.

E.g. Aruna writes.

The sun rises.

2. What is done to a person or thing.

E.g. Joseph is punished.

The papers are spoilt.

3. What a person or thing is or it tells about a state of being or existence.

E.g. Sheis a teacher.

They are in the house.

4. It may tell us about possession.

E.g. Sheh as blue eyes.

I have good memory.

II. KINDS OF VERBS

Verbs can be divided into the following three categories:

1. Transitive verbs

2. Intransitive verbs

3. Auxiliary verbs/Modal verbs

Transitive verbs

Intransitive verbs

Transitive Verbs

• A verb is transitive if the action does not stop with the agent, but passes from the

agent to something else.

e.g. I read a book.

In this sentence the sense is not complete with ‘I read’ only until is known what I

read. The sense is complete. A transitive verb must have its object.

TRANSITIVE VERB: TWO OBJECTS

• Sometimes a Transitive Verb contains two objects, namely

1. Direct Object

2. Indirect Object

The following verbs can be used with two objects:

E.g. bring lend sell make

give offer send get

hand pay show leave

play sing pass

promise take

Subject + Transitive Verb Indirect Object Direct Object

MY FATHER BOUGHT ME A WATCH

I GAVE RITU A LETTER

HE HANDED ME THE BILL

SHE LENT ME HER DICTIONARY

THEY OFFERED THE BEGGAR A RUPEE

I PAID RAJU THE AMOUNT

SHE PLAYED ME THE VIOLIN

I PROMISED HER A PRESENT

MADHAVI SHOWED ME THE PHOTOGRAPH

I SANG HIM A SONG

SHE MADE ME A DRESS

I TOLD JOSEPH A STORY

I SENT MY BROTHER THE MESSAGE

HE SOLD ME THE BIKE

I GOT PADMA A TICKET

Note: The indirect object should be placed before the direct object but the direct

object may be placed before the indirect object, if the above verbs are used with

prepositions.

Note: This construction is possible after the following verbs.

E.g. find fry fetch boil

book keep build knit

buy leave cook make

bake order reserve

E.g. I shall find you a job.

Madhavi fetched me the coat.

They booked mea ticket.

My wife boiled me an egg.

I built her a house.

Padma bought me a nice gift.

Vijaya cooked them a nice meal.

Uma baked me a cake.

I kept Padma the jewel.

She knitted her baby a sweater.

I ordered them coffee.

My brother reserved me a seat.

Note: The above sentences can be written with prepositions.

SUBJECT + TRANSITIVE VERB

DIRECT OBJECT

PREPOSITION INDIRECT OBJECT

I SHALL FIND A JOB FOR YOU

MADHAVI FETCHED THE COAT FOR ME

THEY BOOKED A TICKET FOR ME

MY WIFE BOILED AN EGG FOR ME

I BUILT A HOUSE FOR HER

PADMA BOUGHT A NICE GIFT FOR ME

VIJAYA COOKED A NICE MEAL TO THEM

I KEPT THE JEWEL FOR PADMA

I ORDERED COFFEE FOR THEM

MY BROTHER RESERVED A SEAT FOR ME

Hint: The answer to ‘what’ or ‘whom’ is the direct object and the answer to ‘to

whom’ or ‘for whom’ is the indirect object.

E.g. I Shall find you a job. (what will I find you? a job)

(for whom did I find? for you)

Intransitive Verbs

• A verb is intransitive when the action stops with the agent and does not pass from

the agent to anything else.

e.g.I sleep.

The sense of this sentence is complete. Its action does not pass on to any other

thing. Therefore it needs no object. An intransitive verb has no object.

SAME VERB: TRANSITIVE AND INTRANSITIVE USE

• The same verb can be used both transitively and intransitively. Hence, it is not easy

to decide whether a verb is Transitive or Intransitive.

INTRANSITIVE VERB : PREPOSITION

• Intransitive Verb may be turned into Transitive Verb, if a preposition is used.

E.g. She laughed at him.

I looked at the painting.

We talked about the film.

They wished for happiness.

I have asked for permission.

Auxiliary/Modal Verbs

• An auxiliary verb is one which helps to form a tense or mood of some principal verb

and forgoes its own significance as a principal verb for that purpose.

e.g. He has gone.

In this sentence hasis auxiliary verb and goneprincipal verb. Here has helped the

principal verb in marking its present perfect tense, and in so doing it has lost its own

identity as a principal verb.

• Auxiliary verbs are 27 in number. They are-

Is, was, were, am, are, will, would, shall, should, do, does, did, can, could, may,

might, must, ought, a has, have, had, need, dare, used, be, been, being.

• These auxiliary verbs are used in the progressive tenses and passive voice:

Progressive Tense:

You are kicking.

You were kicking.

You have been kicking

Passive Voice:

You are kicked.

You were kicking.

You have been kicking.

Auxiliary or helping verbs are verbs that are used to help form verb phrases but

cannot do so independently.

There are four basic auxiliary verb groups:

1. To be

2. To have

3. Modal auxiliaries

4. To do

VERB OF INCOMPLETE PREDICATION

• A verb which requires the help of some other word to complete its meaning is

known as verb of incomplete predication.

E.g. He is a teacher.

She appears beautiful.

My sister looked unhappy.

The sky grew cloudy.

Note: The word which is required to complete the meaning of the verb is known

as the complement of the verb. If the complement refers to subject, it is subject

complement and if the complement refers to object, it is object complement.

• The complement of the verb may be a noun pronoun, adjective, gerund, infinitive or

a present participle.

E.g. He is a teacher. (Noun)

It is me. (Pronoun)

She appears beautiful. (Adjective)

The hills appear fascinating. (Present Participle)

I found him writing. (Participle)

He began to work. (Infinitive)

She continued working. (Gerund)

Verb in Tense form

Used colours:

Blue – infinitive Grey – irregular verbs in the Simple Past

Red – negation Dark green – auxiliary

Purple – past participle Orange – ending

Light green – signal word

Examples affirmative

I work.

He works.

I go.

He goes.

Examples negative

I don’t work.

He doesn’t work.

I don’t go.

He doesn’t go.

Tense

Simple Present

Signal Words

every day, some time, always, often, usually, seldom, never, first …. then

Use

• something happens repeatedly • how often something happens • one action follows another • things in general • with verb like (to love, to hate, to think, etc.) • future meaning: timetables, programmes

Form

Infinitive he/she/it: infinitive + s

Examples interrogative

Do I work?

Does he work?

Do I go?

Does he go?

Tense

Present Progressive

Signal Words

Now at the moment look!, listen!

Use

• something happening at the same time of speaking or around it

• future meaning: when you have already decided and arranged to do it (a fixed

plan, date)

Form

be (am/are/is) + infinitive + ing


I‘m working.

He’s working.

I‘m going.

He’s going.

Examples negative

I’m not working.

He isn’t working.

I’m not going.

He isn’t going.


Am I working?

Is he working?


I worked.

He worked.

I went.

He went.

Examples negative

I didn’t work.

He didn’t work

I didn’t go.

He didn’t go.


Did I work?

Am I going?

Is he going?

Did he work?

Did I go?

Did he go?

Tense

Past Progressive

Signal Words

While

Use

• an action happened in the middle of another action

• someone was doing something. at a certain time (in the past) – you don’t know

whether it was finished or not

Form

was/were + infinitive + ing


I was working.

He was working.

I was going.

He was going.

Examples negative

I wasn’t working.

He wasn’t working.

I wasn’t going.

He wasn’t going.


Was I working?

Was he working?

Was I going?

Was he going?

Tense

Simple Present Perfect

Signal Words

Just yet never ever already so far, up to now, since for recently

Use

• you say that something has happened or is finished in the past and it has a

connection to the present.

• action started in the past and continues up to the present.

Form

have/has + past participle*(infinitive + ed) or (3rd column of table or irregular verbs)


I have worked.

He has worked.

I have gone.

He has gone.

Examples negative

I haven’t worked.

He hasn’t worked.

I haven’t gone.

He hasn’t gone.


Have I worked?

Has he worked?

Have I gone?

Has he gone?

Tense

Present Perfect Progressive

Signal Words

all day the whole day how long since for

Use

• action began in the past and has just stopped

• how long the action has been happening

• emphasis: length of time of an action

Form

have/has + been + infinitive + ing


I have been working.

He has been working.

I have been going.

He has been going.

Examples negative

I haven’t been working.

He hasn’t been working.

I haven’t been going.

He hasn’t been going.


Have I been working?

Has he been working?

Have I been going?

Has he been going?

Tense

Simple Past Perfect

Signal Words

Already just never

Use

• Mostly when two actions in a story are related to each other: the action which

had already happened is put into Past Perfect, the other action into Simple Past

• The past of the Present Perfect

Form

had + past participle*

*(infinitive + ed) or (3rd column of table of irregular verbs)


I had worked.

He had worked.

I had gone.

He had gone.

Examples negative

I hadn’t worked.

He hadn’t worked.

I hadn’t gone.

He hadn’t gone.


Had I worked?

Had he worked?

Had I gone?

Had he gone?

Tense

Past Perfect Progressive

Signal Words

how long since for

Use

• how long something had been happening before something else happened

Form

had + been + infinitive + ing


I had been working.

He had been working.

I had been going.

He had been going.

Examples negative

I hadn’t been working.

He hadn’t been working.

I hadn’t been going.

He hadn’t been going.


Had I been working?

Had he been working?

Had I been going?

Had he been going?


I’ll work.

He’ll work.

I’ll go.

He’ll go.

Examples negative

I won’t work.

He won’t work.

I won’t go.

He won’t go.


Will I work?

Will he work?

Will I go?

Will he go?


I’m going to work.

He’s going to work.

I’m going to go.

He’s going to go.

Examples negative

I’m not going to work.

He’s not going to work.

I’m not going to go.

He’s not going to go.


Am I going to work?

Is he going to work?

Am I going to go?

Is he going to go?

Tense

Future Progressive

Use

• an action will be in progress at a certain time in the future.

this action has begun before the certain time.

• something happens because it normally happens.

Form

will + be + infinitive + ing


I’ll be working.

He’ll be working.

I’ll be going.

He’ll be going.

Examples negative

I won’t be working.

He won’t be working.

I won’t be going.

He won’t be going.


Will I be working?

Will he be working?

Will I be going?

Will he be going?

Tense

Future Perfect Simple

Use

• something will already have happened before a certain time in the future

Form

will + have + past participle*

*(infinitive + ed) or (3rd column of table of irregular verbs)


I’ll have worked.

He’ll have worked.

I’ll have gone.

He’ll have gone.

Examples negative

I won’t have worked.

He won’t have worked.

I won’t have gone.

He won’t have gone.


Will I have worked?

Will he have worked?

Will I have gone?

Will he have gone?

Tense

Future Perfect Progressive

Use

• sth. will already have happened before a certain time in the future • emphasis: length of time of an action

Form

will + have + been + infinitive + ing

Tense

Future Perfect Progressive

Use

• sth. will already have happened before a certain time in the future • emphasis: length of time of an action

Form

will + have + been + infinitive + ing

Tense

Conditional Simple

Use

• something that might happen

• main clause of the conditional sentences

Form

would + infinitive


I would work.

He would work.

I would go.

He would go.

Examples negative

I wouldn’t work.

He wouldn’t work.

I wouldn’t go.

He wouldn’t go.


Would I work?

Would he work?

Would I work?

Would he work?

Tense

Conditional Progressive

Use

• something that might happen


Form

would + be + infinitive + ing


I would be working.

He would be working.

I would be going.

He would be going.

Examples negative

I wouldn’t be working.

He wouldn’t be working.

I wouldn’t be going.

He wouldn’t be going.


Would I be working?

Would he be working?

Would I be going?

Would he be going?


I would have worked.

He would have worked.

I would have gone.

He would have gone.

Examples negative

I wouldn’t have worked.

He wouldn’t have worked.

I wouldn’t have gone.

He wouldn’t have gone.


Would I have worked?

Would he have worked?

Would I have gone?

Would he have gone?

Tense

Conditional Perfect Progressive

Use

• something that might have happened in the past


Form

would + have + been + infinitive + ing


I would have been working.

He would have been working.

I would have been going.

He would have been going.

Examples negative

I wouldn’t have been working.

He wouldn’t have been working.

I wouldn’t have been going.

He wouldn’t have been going.


Would I have been working?

Would he have been working?

Would I have been going?

Would he have been going?

V1 Base Form

V2 Past Simple

V3 Past Participle

Break broke Broken

Bring brought brought

Broadcast broadcast broadcast

Build built built

Burn burned or burnt burned or burnt

Buy bought bought

Catch caught caught

Choose chose chosen

Come came come

Cost cost Cost

Cut cut cut

Dig dug dug

Do did done

Draw drew Drawn

Dream dreamed or dreamt dreamed or dreamt

Drive drove driven

Drink drank drunk

Eat ate eaten

Fall fell Fallen

Feel felt felt

Fight fought fought

Find found found

Fly flew flown

Forget forgot forgotten

Forgive forgave forgiven

Freeze froze frozen

Get got got (sometimes gotten)

Give gave given

Go went gone

Grow grew grown

Hang hung hung

Have had Had

Hear heard heard

Hide hid hidden

Hit hit hit

Hold held held

Hurt hurt hurt

Keep kept kept

Know knew known

Lay laid laid

Lead led led

Learn learned or learnt learned or learnt

Leave left left

Lend lent lent

Let let let

Lie lay lain

Lose lost lost

Make made made

Mean meant meant

Meet met met

Pay paid paid

Put put put

Read read read

Ride rode ridden

Ring rang rung

Rise rose risen

Run ran run

Say said said

See saw seen

Sell sold sold

Send sent sent

Show showed showed or shown

Shut shut shut

Sing sang sung

Sink sank sunk

Sit sat sat

Sleep slept slept

Speak spoke spoken

See saw seen

Sell sold sold

Spend spent spent

Stand stood stood

Stink stank stunk

Swim swam swum

Take took taken

Teach taught taught

Tear tore torn

Tell told told

Think thought thought

Throw threw thrown

Understand understood understood

Spend spent spent

Wake woke woken

Wear wore worn

Win won won

Write wrote written

We sometimes use Continuous instead of Progressive. Some signal words can be found in

more tenses. We did not list signal words in the future. Always remember what action is

described.

SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

The verb agrees with the subjectin NumberandPerson

The rule about subject-verb agreement

• Two or more singular subjects connected by and usually take a verb in plural.

• Example :-Hari and Ram are here.

• A singular verb must be used with a singular subject and a plural verb used with a

plural subject. While this seems obvious, the construct escapes some students.

Many singular verbs end with the letter ‘S’ while plural nouns end in ‘S’ as well.

Example:

The cat dreams about chasing mice.

The cats dream about chasing mice.

• If two singular nouns refer to the same person or thing, the verb must be singular.

Example: My friend and benefactor has come.

• If two singular subjects express one idea, the verb may be in the singular.

Example:- Bread and milk is his only food.

• If the singular subject are preceded by ‘each’ or ‘every’ the verb is usually singular.

Example:- Every boy and girl was ready

• Two or more singular subjects connected by ‘or’, ‘nor’, ‘either’, ‘nor’ take a verb in

the singular.

Example:- No nook or corner was left unexplored.

Note:

70% of the time when we use a verb in English, it is an irregular one.

Even irregular verbs follow some patterns.

Don’t just study this list – try to create your own sentences and use all the verbs you

know! This will help you remember them much better.

When all the three forms of verbs are identical:

bet, burst, cast, cost, cut, fit, hit, hurt, let, put, quit, set, shut, split, spread

To Have

• This verb is used as an auxiliary in the perfect tense.

I have finished my paper.

I had finished my paper.

I have been finished with my paper.

To Do

• This verb is used when the main verb of the sentence requires aid of an auxiliary, but

there is no other helping verb that will fit. It is often used in question, negative or

emphatic statements.

• Does he drive?

• He drives, doesn’t he?

• Despite his flat tire he does drive.

Modal Auxiliaries

• These auxiliaries affect the mood of the verb; that is, they determine whether a verb

is a fact, desire, possibility, or command. They are most commonly used to represent

degrees of freedom or severity.

Most common modal auxiliaries:

• will, shall, can, may, need (to), dare, would, should, could, might, must, ought (to)

Ability: I can run.

Necessity: I must run.

Obligation: I ought to run.

Permission: I may run.

EXAMPLES USING AUXILIARY VERBS

These are helping verbs.

1. May implies permission, doubt or possibility:

e.g. It may rain tonight.

May I use your pen?

2. Might is the past form of ‘may’ but it does not necessarily represent past time. Often it implies more doubt than ‘may’.

e.g. If the clouds are salted, the rains might come.

3. Can is used to express ability.

e.g. He can do this work.

4. Could is the past form of can but it does not necessarily represent past time. Often it impliesa more uncertain condition than can.

e.g. She could refuse, but she never does.

5. Shouldis the past form of shall. It is used in subordinate clauses after in case and sometimes after if:

e.g. I shall get some money in case my brother comes.

If you should see Raj, give him my regards.

It is also used in past sentences with so that and, in order that.

6. Must is followed by the infinitive without to:

e.g. I must be here by 8 O’ clock.

Must is used to give strong advice or orders:

e.g. I really must stop drinking.

7. Should and Ought have similar meanings, but ought is followed by ‘to’. Ought to has a more objective force and is used when we are talking about laws, duties and regulations:

e.g. we ought to see her tomorrow.

Should and ought to can also be used to talk about strong probability:

e.g. He has bought a bottle of whisky – that ought to be enough.

8. Do is used to make question and negative forms of ordinary verbs:

e.g. Do you know Rajat?

Do is used in question-tags and short answers:

e.g. You know painting, do you?

Does he know I am here?

Do is used before an imperative to make the request more persuasive:

e.g. Do accompany us.

Do is not used in question which have:

who, what or which as their subject

e.g. who said that?

what happened?

which one’s are that?

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