verb
word that shows action or state
A word that shows an action, state, or event, for example "go", "like", or "sleep".
a/an [verb]
- In the sentence "She runs every morning", "runs" is the verb.
- Use a strong verb instead of the word "do" in that sentence.
- The teacher asked the students to circle the verb in each line.
- Many English learners find it hard to choose the right verb tense.
- Words like "know" and "believe" are also verbs, even though they do not show physical movement.
- In this sentence, the verb is "eat".
- Please write three sentences with the verb "play".
- I do not understand this verb, so I will look it up.
- The verb in that question is "are".
- Can you tell me what the verb is in this line?
the grammatical category “verb”
The grammar group of words called "verbs", which are used as the main action or state in a clause.
the [verb] as a part of speech
- In English grammar, the verb is one of the four main open word classes.
- Some languages mark the verb for person and number, while others do not.
- In this analysis, we treat "have" as the main verb rather than as an auxiliary verb.
- The student misidentified the word as a noun, but in this context it functions as a verb.
- Linguists disagree about where to draw the line between verb and adjective in some languages.
- In grammar, "verb" is the name of one part of speech.
- Every sentence in English needs a verb.
- Some verb forms in English use more than one word, like "have been working".
- Your teacher may ask you to find the verb and the noun in each sentence.
- Many grammar books start with nouns and verbs because they are the most important word classes.
use or turn a word into a verb
To take a word that is usually another kind of word, and use it like a verb.
to verb [a word]
- Some people hate it when you verb a noun like "impact".
- English speakers often verb brand names, as when they say they will "Google" something.
- The headline cleverly verbed the word "summer" to make it sound more active.
- Writers sometimes deliberately verb adjectives to create a special style.
- You can probably verb that phrase, but your readers might not understand it.
- In that ad, they verb the word "friend".
- English can easily verb many nouns, like "email" or "message".
- Some teachers say, "Don’t verb that word; it sounds strange."
- He likes to verb new words when he writes jokes.
- People often verb the name of a company, like "to Uber home".
- Base: verb
- Plural: verbs
action verb
1verb that shows an action
A verb that shows what someone or something does, either physically or in the mind, like "run", "think", or "write".
- Teachers often start by teaching action verbs like "run" and "jump".
- The worksheet asks students to underline all the action verbs.
- Some verbs are not action verbs but describe a state instead.
helping verb
1non-technical term for auxiliary verb
A simple name for an auxiliary verb, a verb like "be", "have", or "do" that helps another verb in a sentence.
- In the question "Do you like it?", "do" is the helping verb.
- Children often learn about helping verbs before the term "auxiliary verbs".
- Circle the helping verb in each sentence on the worksheet.
intransitive verb
1verb that does not take object
A verb that does not have a direct object after it, for example "sleep" or "arrive".
- The verb "arrive" is an intransitive verb; it does not take an object.
- Some English verbs are only intransitive verbs.
- The teacher explained how to tell an intransitive verb from a transitive one.
linking verb
1verb linking subject and complement
A verb like "be", "seem", or "become" that links the subject of a sentence to a word that describes or renames it.
- In the sentence "She is happy", "is" is a linking verb.
- Some verbs can be linking verbs or action verbs, depending on the sentence.
- The grammar book gives a list of common linking verbs.
main verb
1verb that carries main meaning
The most important verb in a sentence, which shows the main action or state, not the helping verb.
- In the sentence "She is reading", "reading" is the main verb.
- Every clause needs a main verb.
- Find the main verb and underline it in each sentence.
modal verb
1auxiliary verb of possibility or necessity
A helping verb like "can", "must", or "should" that shows things like possibility, necessity, permission, or advice.
- Words like "can" and "might" are modal verbs.
- We use modal verbs to talk about what is possible or necessary.
- The teacher explained how each modal verb changes the meaning of the sentence.
phrasal verb
1verb plus particle as one verb
A verb used together with one or two short words like "up", "out", or "off" that change its meaning, for example "give up" or "look after".
- Many English phrasal verbs, such as "take off" or "run out of", are hard for learners.
- You should learn phrasal verbs in phrases, not as separate words.
- The teacher gave us a list of common phrasal verbs to practice.
regular verb
1verb with standard -ed forms
A verb that makes its past tense and past participle with "+ed" or a normal spelling change, for example "work–worked–worked".
- Most English verbs are regular verbs.
- It is easier for learners to use regular verbs than irregular verbs.
- The worksheet asks you to change regular verbs into the past tense.
stative verb
1verb that describes a state
A verb that shows a state, feeling, or opinion, not an action, like "know", "love", or "believe", and is usually not used with "-ing".
- Verbs like "know" and "believe" are stative verbs.
- Many stative verbs are not normally used in continuous tenses.
- The book explains the difference between stative verbs and action verbs.
transitive verb
1verb that needs a direct object
A verb that must have a direct object after it, for example "eat an apple" or "need help".
- The verb "buy" is a transitive verb because it needs an object.
- Some verbs can be both transitive and intransitive verbs.
- Learners often forget to add an object after transitive verbs.
transitive verb
1verb that takes an object
A verb that needs an object after it.
- “Buy” is a transitive verb because you can buy something.
- In the sentence “They built a house,” “built” is a transitive verb.
- The worksheet asked us to circle each transitive verb.
verb phrase
1group of words built around a verb
The part of a sentence that has the main verb and the words that go with it, but not the subject.
- In the sentence "She has been studying hard", the verb phrase is "has been studying hard".
- The test asks you to underline the verb phrase in each example.
- Grammar books often explain what can be included inside a verb phrase.
auxiliary verb
1a verb that helps the main verb
A helping verb, like "be", "have", "do", or a modal verb, that works with the main verb to make a tense, question, negative, or passive form.
- In the question "Are you coming?", "are" is an auxiliary verb.
- Teachers often explain that an auxiliary verb is used to form questions and negatives in English.
- English uses auxiliary verbs to form many different tenses.
- In the sentence "She is studying", the word "is" is an auxiliary verb.
- The student forgot to include the auxiliary verb in the sentence.
- When forming the present perfect, you must use an auxiliary verb before the past participle.
irregular verb
1verb with nonstandard past forms
A verb that does not make its past tense or past participle with the normal "-ed" ending, for example "go–went–gone".
- Children often make mistakes with irregular verbs like "go" and "come".
- Study the list of irregular verbs before the test.
- In this lesson we will practice the past forms of irregular verbs.
irregular verb
2verb with unusual forms
A verb that changes form in a way that does not follow the normal rule.
- 'Go' is an irregular verb; its past tense is 'went'.
- Students often find it hard to remember all the irregular verbs.