VERB

VERBall about..What is a Verb?A verb, from the Latin verbum meaning word, is a word (part of speech) that in syntax conveys an action (bring, read, walk, run, learn), an occurrence (happen, become), or a state of being (be, exist, stand). In the usual description of English, the basic form, with or without the particle to, is the infinitive. In many languages, verbs are inflected (modified in form) to encode tense, aspect, mood, and voice. A verb may also agree with the person, gender, and/or number of some of its arguments, such as its subject, or object. Verbs have tenses: present, to indicate that an action is being carried out; past, to indicate that an action has been done; future, to indicate that an action will be done.(Wikipedia)What is the agreement?In languages where the verb is inflected, it often agrees with its primary argument (the subject) in person, number, and/or gender. With the exception of the verb to be, English shows distinctive agreement only in the third person singular, present tense form of verbs, which are marked by adding "-s" ( walks) or "-es" (fishes). The rest of the persons are not distinguished in the verb (I walk, you walk, they walk, etc.).What are they?Intransitive verbs

An intransitive verb is one that does not have a direct object. Intransitive verbs may be followed by an adverb (a word that addresses how, where, when, and how often) or end a sentence.For example:"The woman spoke softly."The athlete ran faster than the official."The boy wept.

Linking verbs

A linking verb cannot be followed by an adverb or end a sentence but instead must be followed by a noun or adjective, whether in a single word or phrase. Common linking verbs include seem, become, appear, look, and remain.For example:"His mother looked worried."Josh remained a reliable friend.Therefore, linking verbs 'link' the adjective or noun to the subject.*Adjectives that come after linking verbs are predicate adjectives, and nouns that come after linking verbs are predicate nouns.What are they?Transitive verbsA transitive verb is followed by a noun or noun phrase. These noun phrases are not called predicate nouns but are instead called direct objects because they refer to the object that is being acted upon.For example:"My friend read the newspaper."The teenager earned a speeding ticket."A way to identify a transitive verb is to invert the sentence, making it passive.For example:"The newspaper was read by my friend."A speeding ticket was earned by the teenager.

Two-place transitive: Vg verbsVg verbs (named after the verb give) precede either two noun phrases or a noun phrase and then a prepositional phrase often led by to or for.For example:"The players gave their teammates high fives."The players gave high fives to their teammates."

When two noun phrases follow a transitive verb, the first is an indirect object, that which is receiving something, and the second is a direct object, that being acted upon. Indirect objects can be noun phrases or prepositional phrases.What are they?Transitive Verbs: Vc verbs

Vc verbs (named after the verb consider) are followed by a noun phrase that serves as a direct object and then a second noun phrase, adjective, or infinitive phrase. The second element (noun phrase, adjective, or infinitive) is called a complement, which completes a clause that would not otherwise have the same meaning.For example:"The young couple considers the neighbors wealthy people."Some students perceive adults quite inaccurately."Sarah deemed her project to be the hardest she has ever completed.

To be verbs

The verb be is manifested in eight forms: be, is, am, are, was, were, been, and being. These verbs precede nouns or adjectives in a sentence, which become predicate nouns and predicate adjectives similar to those that function with a linking verb. They can also be followed by an adverb of place, which is sometimes referred to as a predicate adverb.For example:"Her daughter was a writing tutor."The singers were very nervous."My house is down the street."How do we describe Valency?The number of arguments that a verb takes is called its valency or valence. Verbs can be classified according to their valency:

Avalent (valency = 0): the verb has neither a subject nor an object. Zero valency does not occur in English; in some languages such as Mandarin Chinese, weather verbs like snow(s) take no subject or object.Intransitive (valency = 1, monovalent): the verb only has a subject. For example: "he runs", "it falls".Transitive (valency = 2, divalent): the verb has a subject and a direct object. For example: "she eats fish", "we hunt nothing".Ditransitive (valency = 3, trivalent): the verb has a subject, a direct object, and an indirect object. For example: "He gives her a flower" or "She gave the watch to John".What is modality?Modality expresses the speaker's attitude toward the action or state given by the verb, especially with regard to degree of necessity, obligation, or permission ("You must go", "You should go", "You may go), determination or willingness ("I will do this no matter what), degree of probability ("It must be raining by now", "It may be raining", "It might be raining"), or ability ("I can speak French"). All languages can express modality with adverbs, but some also use verbal forms as in the given examples. If the verbal expression of modality involves the use of an auxiliary verb, that auxiliary is called a modal verb.What is a voice of verb?The voice of a verb expresses whether the subject of the verb is performing the action of the verb or whether the action is being performed on the subject. The two most common voices are the active voice (as in "I saw the car") and the passive voice (as in "The car was seen by me" or simply "The car was seen").What is Finite Verb?A finite verb is a form of a verb that has a subject (expressed or implied) and can function as the root of an independent clause; an independent clause can, in turn, stand alone as a complete sentence. Finite verbs are distinguished from non-finite verbs, such as infinitives, participles, etc., which generally mark these grammatical categories to a lesser degree or not at all, and which appear below the finite verb in the hierarchy of syntactic structure.What are the examples:The finite verbs are in bold in the following sentences, and the non-finite verbs are underlined:

Verbs appear in almost all sentences.This sentence is illustrating finite and non-finite verbs.The dog will have to be trained well.Tom promised to try to do the work.

A finite verb is generally expected to have a subject, as it does in all the examples above, although null-subject languages allow the subject to be omitted.What are the exceptions:In English, finite verbs lacking subjects are normal in imperative sentences:Come over here!Don't look at him!And also occur in some fragmentary utterances:[It] doesn't matter.[I] don't want to [verb].What is Nonfinite Verb?A nonfinite verb is any of several verb forms that are not finite verbs; that is, they cannot serve as the root of an independent clause. Nonfinite verbs found in English typically are infinitives, participles and gerunds. Generally, they lack a subject dependent.What are the examples:The following sentences each contain one finite verb (underlined) and multiple nonfinite verbs (in bold):

The proposal has been intensively examined today.What did they want to have done about that?Someone tried to refuse to accept the offer.Coming downstairs, she saw the man running away.I am trying to get the tickets.In the above sentences, been, examined and done are past participles, want, have, refuse, accept and get are infinitives, and coming, running and trying are present participles

What are the exceptions:In English that have little inflectional morphology, certain finite and nonfinite forms of a given verb are often identical, e.g.

a. They laugh a lot. - Finite verb (present tense) in boldb. They will laugh a lot. - Nonfinite infinitive in bolda. Tom tried to help. - Finite verb (past tense) in boldb. Tom has tried to help. - Nonfinite participle in boldWhat are the type of nonfinite verbs?1. InfinitivesThe infinitive of a verb is considered the "base" form; it is the form that is listed in dictionaries. They are often introduced by a main verb followed by the particle to. Further, infinitives introduced by to can function as noun phrases, or even as modifiers of nouns. The following table illustrates these environments:InfinitiveIntroduced by a (modal) auxiliary verbIntroduced by a main verbIntroduced by a main verb plus toFunctioning as noun phraseFunctioning as the modifier of a nounlaughDo not laugh!That made me laugh.I tried not to laugh.To laugh would have been unwise.the reason to laughleaveThey may leave.We let them leave.They refused to leave.To leave was not an option.the thing to leave behindexpandYou should expand the explanation.We had them expand the explanation.We hope to expand the explanation.To expand the explanation would have been folly.the effort to expandWhat is infinitive?In traditional descriptions of English, the infinitive is the basic dictionary form of a verb when used non-finitely, with or without the particle to. Thus to go is an infinitive, as is go in a sentence like "I must go there" (but not in "I go there", where it is a finite verb). The form without to is called the bare infinitive, and the form with to is called the full infinitive or to-infinitive.Does infinitive come in passive?English has infinitive constructions which are marked for aspect: perfect, progressive (continuous), or a combination of the two (perfect progressive). These can also be marked for passive voice (as can the plain infinitive):

(to) eat (plain infinitive, active)(to) be eaten (passive)(to) have eaten (perfect active)(to) have been eaten (perfect passive)(to) be eating (progressive active)(to) be being eaten (progressive passive)(to) have been eating (perfect progressive active)(to) have been being eaten (perfect progressive passive, not often used)

*Further constructions can be made with other auxiliary-like expressions, such as (to) be going to eat or (to) be about to eat, which have future meaning.What are the type of nonfinite verbs?2. GerundsA gerund is a verb form that appears in positions that are usually reserved for nouns. In English, a gerund has the same form as a progressive active participle, ends in -ing. Gerunds typically appear as subject or object noun phrases, or even as the object of a preposition:InfinitiveGerund as subjectGerund as objectGerund as object of a prepositionsolveSolving problems is satisfying.I like solving problems.No one is better at solving problems.JogJogging is boring.He has started jogging.Before jogging, she stretches.EatEating too much made me sick.She avoids eating too much.That prevents you from eating too much.investigateInvestigating the facts won't hurt.We tried investigating the facts.After investigating the facts, we made a decision.What is gerund?The gerund is a non-finite verb form that can function as a noun in English grammar. The English gerund ends in -ing (as in I enjoy playing basketball). The same verb form also serves as the English present participle and as a pure verbal noun. Thus the -ing form in the English language can function as a noun, verb, adjective or sometimes adverb; in certain sentences the distinction can be arbitrary.

The gerund is the form that names the action of the verb (for instance, playing is the action of "to play"). In some cases, a noun ending in -ing sometimes serves as a gerund (as in I like building / I like building things, I like painting / I like painting pictures, and I like writing / I like writing novels), while at other times serving as a non-gerund indicating the product resulting from an action (as in I work in that building, That is a good painting, and Her writing is good). The latter case can often be distinguished by the presence of a determiner before the noun, such as that, a, or her in these examples.What is gerund formation?A gerund has four forms two for the active voice and two for the passive:

ActivePassivePresent or ContinuousLovingBeing lovedPerfectHaving lovedHaving been lovedWhat are the examples?Swimming is fun. (gerund as subject of the sentence)I like swimming. (gerund as direct object)I never gave swimming all that much effort. (gerund as indirect object)Eating biscuits in front of the television is one way to relax. (gerund phrase as subject)Do you fancy going out? (gerund phrase as direct object)On being elected president, he moved with his family to the capital. (gerund phrase as complement of a preposition)Does gerund come in passive?Using gerunds of the appropriate auxiliary verbs, one can form gerund clauses that express perfect aspect and passive voice:

Being deceived can make someone feel angry. (passive)Having read the book once before makes me more prepared. (perfect)He is ashamed of having been gambling all night. (perfect progressive aspect)How do we distinct gerund from other uses of the -ing form?The distinction between gerund and present participle is illustrated in the following sentences:

John suggested asking Bill. (asking Bill is the object of the verb, i.e. a noun, so asking is a gerund)I heard John asking Bill. (asking Bill is adjectival, describing John, so asking is a participle)

The distinction between the gerund and the pure verbal (deverbal) noun is that the gerund itself behaves as a verb, forming a verb phrase which is then used as a noun, whereas the pure noun does not in any way behave grammatically as a verb. This is illustrated in the following examples:

I like playing football. (playing takes an object, so is a gerund)Her playing of the Bach fugues was inspiring. (playing takes a prepositional phrase rather than an object; not a gerund)What are verbs that often followed by a gerund?Verbs that are often followed by a gerund include admit, adore, anticipate, appreciate, avoid, carry on, consider, contemplate, delay, deny, describe, detest, dislike, enjoy, escape, fancy, feel, finish, give, hear, imagine, include, justify, listen to, mention, mind, miss, notice, observe, perceive, postpone, practice, quit, recall, report, resent, resume, risk, see, sense, sleep, stop, suggest, tolerate and watch. Additionally, prepositions are often followed by a gerund.

For example:I will never quit smoking.We postponed making any decision.After two years of analyzing, we finally made a decision.We heard whispering.They denied having avoided me.He talked me into coming to the party.They frightened her out of voicing her opinion.What are verbs that often followed by a gerund or a to-infinitive?With little change in meaning

advise, recommend, forbid:The police advised us not to enter the building, for a murder had occurred. (Us is the object of advised.)The police advised against our entering the building. (Our is used for the gerund entering.)

consider, contemplate, recommend:People consider her to be the best. She is considered to be the best.I am considering sleeping over, if you do not mind.

begin, continue, start; hate, like, love, prefer:I would like to work there. (more usual than working)When talking about sports, there is usually a difference in meaning between the infinitive and gerund (see the next section).What are verbs that often followed by a gerund or a to-infinitive?With a change in meaning

like, love, prefer:I like to box. (I enjoy doing it myself.)I like boxing. (Either I enjoy watching it, I enjoy doing it myself, or the idea of boxing is otherwise appealing.)I do not like gambling, but I do like to gamble."dread, hate, cannot bear:I dread / hate to think what she will do.I dread / hate seeing him.I cannot bear to see you suffer like this. (You are suffering now.)I cannot bear being pushed around in crowds. (I never like that.)forget, remember:She forgot to tell me her plans. (She did not tell me, although she should have.)She forgot telling me her plans. (She told me, but then forgot having done so.)I remembered to go to work. (I remembered that I needed to go to work.)I remembered going to work. (I remembered that I went to work.)go on:After winning the semi-finals, he went on to play in the finals. (He completed the semi-finals and later played in the finals.)He went on giggling, not having noticed the teacher enter. (He continued doing so.)

mean:I did not mean to scare you off. (I did not intend to scare you off.)Taking a new job in the city meant leaving behind her familiar surroundings. (If she took the job, she would have to leave behind her familiar surroundings.)

regret:We regret to inform you that you have failed your exam. (polite or formal form of apology)I very much regret saying what I said. (I wish that I had not said that.)

try:When a to-infinitive is used, the subject is shown to make an effort at something, attempt or endeavor to do something. If a gerund is used, the subject is shown to attempt to do something in testing to see what might happen.Please try to remember to post my letter.I have tried being stern, but to no avail.stop, quit:When the infinitive is used after 'stop' or 'quit', it means that the subject stops one activity and starts the activity indicated by the infinitive. If the gerund is used, it means that the subject stops the activity indicated by the gerund.She stopped to smell the flowers.She stopped smelling the flowers.

Or more concisely:She stopped walking to smell the flowers.He quit working there to travel abroad.What are the type of nonfinite verbs?3. ParticiplesParticiples in English can be divided along two lines: according to aspect (progressive vs. perfect/perfective) and voice (active vs. passive).

InfinitiveProgressive active participlePerfect active participlePassive participleFixThe guy is fixing my bike.He has fixed my bikeMy bike was fixed.openthe flower opening upThe flower has opened up.The flower has been opened up.supportthe news supporting the pointThe news has supported the point.the point supported by the newsdriveShe is driving our car.She has driven our car.Our car should be driven often.What is Participle?A participle is a form of a verb that is used in a sentence to modify a noun, noun phrase, verb or verb phrase, and thus plays a role similar to that of an adjective or adverb. It is one of the types of nonfinite verb forms.What are the types of participle?Participles are often identified with a particular tense, as with the English present participle and past participle. However, this is often a matter of convention; present participles are not necessarily associated with the expression of present time, or past participles necessarily with past time.

Participles may also be identified with a particular voice: active or passive. In English the present participle is essentially an active participle, while the past participle has both active and passive uses.What are the examples?I saw John eating his dinner. (eating is an active participle; the modified noun John is understood as the agent)I have eaten my dinner. (perfect construction; eaten is an active participle here)The fish was eaten by lions. (here eaten is a passive participle; the fish is understood as the patient, i.e. to undergo the action)What is Attributive Verb?An attributive verb is a verb that modifies (expresses an attribute of) a noun in the manner of an attributive adjective, rather than express an independent idea as a predicate. In English, verb forms that can be used attributively are typically non-finite formsparticiples and infinitivesas well as certain verb-derived words that function as ordinary adjectives. All words of these types may be called verbal adjectives.What are the examples?The cat sitting on the fence is mine.The actor given the prize is not my favorite.This is a great place to eat.It was a very exciting game.Interested parties should apply to the office.Fin