The verb group consists of a lexical verb
which is optionally preceded by other
auxiliary verbs.
Do the following verb groups in these sentences
belong to the same or different categories?
1. Students met their dean.
2. The girl slept.
3. John gave his father a present.
4. You look tired.
5. Melvin found his own jokes extremely funny.
6. The man glanced at the shop.
1. Monotransitive
2.
Intransitive
6.
Prepositional
Verb
groups
5.
Complex
transitive
3.
Ditransitive
4. Intensive
I. MONOTRANSITIVE VERB GROUPS
A mono-transitive verb is one which requires a single Noun Phrase to
complement it.
For example: make, spot, throw, inspect, etc.
II. INTRANSITIVE VERB GROUPS
• An intransitive verb group is one that does not require any further
constituent as a sister in the verb phrase.
• ‘INtransitive’ means ‘has (and needs) no complement’.
For example: disappear, die, laugh, etc.
III. DITRANSITIVE VERB GROUPS
A ditransitive verb group is one which requires two noun phrases as its
complementation.
IV. INTENSIVE VERB GROUPS
• An intensive verb group requires a single complement, which can take the form of an
adjective, or a noun phrase, or a prepositional phrase.
• Linking verbs: be, seem, become, get, look, remain, appear, taste, feel, smell, sound
etc.
V. COMPLEX TRANSITIVE VERB GROUPS
• A complex transitive verb takes two complements: a direct object and
an object predicate or object complement.
• The object predicate = an adjective phrase, or a noun phrase, or a
prepositional phrase.
VI. PREPOSITIONAL VERB GROUPS
• A prepositional verb group must be complemented by a prepositional
phrase which functions as prepositional complement.
• Examples: glance, reply, refer etc.
1.
Function
[Petrol]
S
[is getting]
Vgrp
[intens]
Category
NP
2.
Function
[Alexander's father]
S
Category
NP
3.
Function
[Alexander's father]
S
Category
NP
[more expensive]
sP
AP
[left]
Vgrp
[trans]
[him]
dO
NP
[left] [him] [the theater]
Vgrp iO
dO
[ditrans]
NP
NP
4.
Function
Category
5.
Function
Category
6.
Function
Category
[Alexander's father] [left] [him] [in the care of the bishop]
S
Vgrp dO
oP
[complex]
NP
NP
PP
[Several of the men he had hired] [were complaining].
S
Vgrp
[intrans]
NP
[He] [may have been referring] [to the fact that you had no clothes on]
S
Vgrp
PC
[prep]
NP
PP
7.
Function
Category
8.
Function
Category
9.
Function
Category
[Customers] [must not sit] [their children] [on the counter]
S
Vgrp
dO
oP
[complex]
NP
NP
PP
[Her mother and father] [didn’t approve] [of Matilda's behavior]
S
Vgrp
PC
[prep]
NP
PP
[Most of the students] [will have done] [the work you set]
S
Vgrp
dO
[trans]
NP
NP
10.
Function
Category
11.
Function
[Col. Mustard] [has locked] [Miss Scalet] [in the library]
S
Vgrp
dO
oP
[complex]
NP
NP
PP
Category
[Children in ragged clothes] [were shinning] [up the drainpipes]
S
Vgrp
PC
[prep]
NP
PP
12.
[Your Kentucky Fried Chicken and chips] [have gone] [cold and greasy]
Function
Category
S
NP
Vgrp
[intens]
sP
AP
13. [The obliging manager] [poured] [everyone] [a gigantic glass of wine]
Function
S
Vgrp
iO
dO
[ditrans ]
Category
NP
NP
NP
14.
Function
Category
15.
Function
Category
[Joan] [placed] [it] [in the gaping hole]
S
Vgrp dO
oP
[complex]
NP
NP
PP
[Karen] [peered] [into gaping hole]
S
Vgrp
PC
[prep]
NP
PP
16. [The new chef] [is liquidizing] [last week's uneaten fritters]
Function
S
Vgrp
dO
[trans]
Category
NP
NP
17.
Function
Category
18.
Function
Category
[This] [would make] [a perfect picnic place]
S
Vgrp
sP
[intens]
NP
NP
[Bill] [has made] [a brilliant picnic table]
S
Vgrp
dO
[trans]
NP
NP
19. [This so-called music] [makes] [me] [mad]
Function
S
Vgrp dO oP
[complex]
Category
NP
NP AP
20.
Function
Category
[He] [should have made] [the men] [a decent meal]
S
Vgrp
iO
dO
[ditrans]
NP
NP
NP
21.
[The exhausted team members] [made] [for the nearest pub]
Function
S
Vgrp
PC
[prep]
Category
NP
PP
1.
Function
[The girl in the palace] [has dyed] [her hair] [deep purple]
S
Vgrp
dO
oP
[complex]
2.
Function
[The balloons]
S
3.
Function
[Richard] [has promised] [me] [his spaghetti machine]
S
Vgrp
iO
dO
[ditrans]
[This sedan-chair] [should prove] [useful ]
S
Vgrp
sP
[intens]
4.
Function
[are ascending ]
Vgrp
[intrans]
5.
Function
6.
Function
7.
Function
[Someone] [has stolen] [my contact-lenses]
S
Vgrp
dO
[trans]
[It] [doesn’t sound] [much fun]
S
Vgrp
sP
[intens]
[The candidate’s antics] [did not amuse] [the board of examiners]
S
Vgrp
dO
[trans]
8.
Function
[The committee] [nominate] [her] [Acrobat of the Year ]
S
Vgrp
dO
oP
[complex]
9.
Function
[Egbert] [has been feeding] [the cat] [smoked salmon]
S
Vgrp
iO
dO
[ditrans]
10.
Function
[I]
S
[would like] [my curry] [as hot as you can make it]
Vgrp
dO
oP
[complex]
11.
Function
[We] [don’t allude] [to his third ear]
S
Vgrp
PC
[prep]
12.
Function
[The main witness for the prosecution] [has disappeared]
S
Vgrp
[intrans]
13.
Function
[He] [has applied] [for a gun licence]
S
Vgrp
PC
[prep]
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