LESSON THREE:
VERBS
WERE – RUN – SING – IS –
WAS – ARE – FEEL - LAUGH
VERBS: TIME FOR ACTION!
• Action movies. Action GAMES. Action. Action. Action.
• We like action.
• Why?
• Action makes things interesting. So far, you have learned how to
name people, places, and things with nouns and pronouns.
• But now it’s time to put those nouns and pronouns into action.
• Doing so will make your writing interesting, and to do that, you need
to learn about VERBS.
WHAT IS A VERB?
• You learned in the first two lessons that the sentence contains two main parts:
• A Subject And A Predicate.
• The subject tells you whom or what the sentence is about. On the other hand, the predicate describes what the subject
does or is.
• The dog ran through our front yard.
• In this sentence, the subject of the sentence the dog is the subject; whereas the predicate is “ran through our front yard.”
• The job of a verb is to describe the action or express a state of being.
• The verb is always in the predicate.
• In the example sentence, the verb is ran.
• Let’s talk about one of the jobs a VERB performances – describing the action of the subject.
• It shouldn’t surprise you that VERBS such as ran that perform this job are called ACTION VERBS.
• SO LET’S LOOK AT SOME ACTION VERBS.
ACTION VERBS
•
•
•
•
•
• Miss Smith sang a song.
The action verb sang describes the action performed by the subject of the
sentence. Here, Miss Smith performed her action with a song. She sang it.
• The girls walked around the mall.
The action verb walked describes what the subject of the sentence - the girls- did
at the mall.
Here’s one more example;
• Roman kicked the soccer ball.
The action verb kicked tells us what the subject of the sentence Roman did with
the soccer ball.
ACTION VERBS help you speak and write in a more interesting and exciting way.
The following exercise will provide practice identifying sentences with these
important words.
QUICK TEST 18: ROBOTS
• Here is a list of action verbs:
• 1. Power 2. Attached 3. Roll. 4. Use 5. Comes. 6. Walk
• Our task is to complete each sentence using one word from this list.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Robots differ from computers because computers don’t have bodies ….. to them.
Some robots ….. on legs made of metal or plastic.
Others ….. along on motorized wheels.
Some robots ….. motors to help them move.
Small batteries inside the robot ….. these motors.
Our word Robot ….. comes from the Czech word Robota.
Although action verbs are important, there is another group of VERBS that performs an
important job. This group of verbs are called LINKING VERBS. Let’s see what they do.
LINKING VERBS
• Linking verbs link or connect the subject of the sentence to the
predicate of the sentence.
• Rather than describing action, a linking verb helps the words
following it to refer to the subject.
• Linking verbs describe no action – they merely state an existing
condition or relationship.
• The most common linking verbs are some form of the verb “to be,”
such as:
• Am – Being – Will Be – Can – Were – Be – Have – Is – Are – Was
OTHER COMMON LINKING VERBS ARE FORMS OF:
To seem
To appear
To feel
To taste
To look
To grow
To prove
To remain
To smell
To sound
To stay
To become
How to linking verbs work? Sometimes, the words following the linking verb refer to the subject by
renaming the subject. These words that follow the linking verb are known as a predicate noun. For
instance:
Miss Smith is my social science teacher.
In this sentence, the linking verb is helps the predicate noun social science teacher refer to the subject
Miss Smith. In other words, the linking verb renames Miss Smith as someone’s social science teacher.
LET’S TAKE ANOTHER EXAMPLE…..
Carlos was the goalie for his soccer team.
• In this sentence, the linking verb was helps the predicate noun the goalie for his soccer
team rename the subject Carlos.
• Words in the predicate following the linking verb can also describe the subject. You call
these words describing the subject the predicate adjective. Notice the following
sentence:
• The girls are happy.
• The Linking verb are helps the predicate adjective happy to describe the subject girls.
The linking verb enables the right to tell you about the girls. Namely, they are happy.
• Roman feels lonely.
• Here the linking verb feels helps the predicate adjective lonely describe the subject
Roman. Now you know something about the subject Roman – he is lonely.
IMPORTANT
• How do you tell if a verb is an action verb or a linking verb?
• If you can substitute am, is, or are for a verb and a sentence still makes sense, you
have a linking verb. On the other hand, if after the substitution, the sentence
makes no sense, the verb is an action verb.
• Example:
• Take the sentence: John jumps over the fence.
• Now substitute: John is over the fence.
• This sentence makes very little sense; therefore; jumps is an action verb.
• Try the same test with: Samantha looks unhappy. Notice the difference?
• In our next exercise we will practice identifying subjects, predicates, and linking
verbs, as well as predicate nouns and predicate adjectives.
QUICK TEST 19: EARLY AMERICAN PRESIDENTS
Study the following sentences:
1. George Washington was born in Virginia.
2. America's second president was John Adams.
3. Thomas Jefferson, America’s third president, was the founder of the University of Virginia.
4. Jefferson and Adams were lawyers.
5. George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson became famous.
6. Both remain well respected.
Now lets answer the following questions:
1. Can you identify the subject and predicate in each of the sentences?
2. Can you identify the linking verb in each of the sentences?
3. Can you tell the difference between the predicate noun and predicate adjective in each of the
sentences?
ANSWERS TO QUICK TEST 19:
•
•
•
•
•
•
• SUBJECT IS UNDERLINED:
• PREDICATE IS IN RED
• PREDICATE ADJECTIVE OR PREDICATE NOUN IN BRACKETS.
George Washington was born in Virginia. (PA = WAS)
America's second president was John Adams. (PN = WAS)
Thomas Jefferson, America’s third president, was the founder of the University of Virginia. (PA =
WAS)
Jefferson and Adams were lawyers. (PN = WERE)
George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson became famous. (PA = BECAME)
Both remain well respected. (PA = REMAIN)
We all need some help from time to time, and so do verbs!let’s take a look at verbs
that help other verbs. We call these verbs – simply enough – HELPING VERBS.
HELPING VERBS
• A HELPING VERB is a verb that is added to another verb to make the
meaning of the sentence clearer. HELPING VERBS include any form of
the verb “to be” along with the following forms of common verbs:
Can
Could
Do
Does
Have
Has
Had
May
Might
Must
Shall
Should
Will
Would
Being
Did
HELPING VERBS
• Notice how adding a HELPING VERB can change the meaning of a sentence.
1. John may study his vocabulary words tonight.
2. John should study his vocabulary words tonight.
3. John can study his vocabulary words tonight.
4. John will study his vocabulary words tonight.
Suppose John and you are going to play soccer. If you’re sure that is what you are
going to do, you should write:
John and I will play soccer.
Notice how the helping verb will makes your playing soccer certain. However if you
are not sure you will be playing soccer, then you should write:
John and I might play soccer.
QUICK TEST 20: ALASKA
FOR EACH OF THE FOLLOWING SENTENCES:
1. WRITE THE HELPING VERB (IF THERE IS ONE)
2. WRITE THE MAIN VERB
a. Alaska may have some of the most beautiful scenery in the world.
b. Alaska became the 49th state in 1959.
c. Alaskans can say that their state is larger than the combined area of the
next three largest states: Texas, California, and Montana.
d. Mount McKinley, the highest point in North America, occurs in Alaska.
e. Alaska contains many glaciers.
QUICK TEST 20: ANSWERS
1. THE HELPING VERB
2. THE MAIN VERB
a. Alaska may have some of the most beautiful scenery in the world.
b. Alaska became the 49th state in 1959.
c. Alaskans can say that their state is larger than the combined area of the
next three largest states: Texas, California, and Montana.
d. Mount McKinley, the highest point in North America, occurs in Alaska.
e. Alaska contains many glaciers.
COMPLETE VERB
• We refer to the MAIN VERB + HELPING VERB as the COMPLETE VERB.
It is important to determine the complete verb in each sentence so
that you can be sure of the correct meaning of the sentence.
• Maria should prepare the dinner.
• In this sentence the main verb is prepare and the helping verb is
should. Notice the difference in meaning of this sentence when
compared to the following sentence:
• Maria prepares the dinner.
• Here we have no helping verb. Maria is actually preparing the dinner.
COMPLETE VERB
• Lets look at another example:
• John will do his homework.
• The complete verb will do composed of the main verb do and the
helping verb will in this sentence tells you that John has not yet
finished his homework. By contrast, in the following sentence:
• John does his homework.
• You know from the COMPLETE VERB does that John is actually
working on his homework.
SO FAR…..
You have learned about:
• Action Verbs
• Linking Verbs
• Helping Verbs
• Not only is it important to describe action and tell more about the
subject of the sentence, but also you have to be able to tell your
listener or reader WHEN the action or state of being occurred.
• Let’s see how to do this…..
VERB TENSES:
EXPRESSING PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE
• You have learned that a verb expresses an action or state of being.
The tense of a verb tells whether that action or the state of being is
occurring in the present, occurred in the past, or will occur in the
future.
• The English language uses several tenses, but for now, lets just talk
about the three main ones:
•Present, Past And Future.
PRESENT TENSE
• The PRESENT TENSE describes something that exists or is happening
now. To form the PRESENT TENSE you usually add an –s to the verb
when the subject is singular. For example:
• 1. Tom answers the question the teacher asks in class.
• 2. Mary helps her mother prepare the dinner.
• 3. Tom writes his vocabulary words in his workbook.
• 4. Mary throws the ball.
Just remove the –s and you will see that the sentence
makes no sense at all.
PAST TENSE
• By comparison, the past tense describes something that has existed
or has already happened. For most verbs, you can write their past
tense form by adding a –d or –ed.
• Tom answered the question that the teacher had asked the class.
• Mary helped her mother prepare the dinner.
• All of this seems easy; however, numerous verbs require significant
changes in their spelling to form their past tense.
• Michael wrote his vocabulary words in his workbook (Write)
• Mary threw the ball to Lucy. (Throw)
FUTURE TENSE
• Finally the FUTURE TENSE describes something that will exist or something
that will happen. You usually add the helping verbs will or shall to the main
verb to show the future tense.
• Tom will answer the question the teacher asks the class.
• Mary shall help her mother prepare the dinner.
• Michael shall write his vocabulary words in his notebook.
• Mary will throw the ball to Lucy.
• If you communicate in the wrong tense, you will confuse your listener or
reader. Sometimes that confusion can cause a problem. For instance, if
Linda's mother is hurt and needs a doctor, people will react immediately if
you say: Linda's mother needs a doctor! On the other hand if you say:
Linda's mother needed a doctor! – they will not do anything.
QUICK TEST 21: MORE ABOUT ALASKA
• For each of the following sentences, right on a piece of paper the verb
and then write the tense of the verb:
1. Tom and his family will visit our largest state again next year.
2. He and his brother enjoy fishing.
3. They fished in the Bay of Alaska.
4. He would fish again next trip.
5. Many salmon swim in the bays and rivers of Alaska.
Now that you can use verbs to express the past, present, and future, let’s continue
to learn more about verbs. The type of verb and its position in the sentence
determine whether the sentence is written in the active voice or passive voice.
ACTIVE AND PASSIVE VOICE
• In the world of grammar, the term voice refers to how the subject verb in the sentence
performs its job. Consequently, you determine voice by whether the subject performs or
receives the action in the sentence.
• LET’S BEGIN BY LOOKING AT THE ACTIVE VOICE:
• You say that a verb is in the active voice when the subject of the sentence is the
performer of the action. For instance, the following sentence is written in the active
voice.
• John kicked the ball into the goal.
• In this sentence, the subject John performs the action of the sentence kicked the ball
into the goal.
• Let’s look at another active voice sentence:
• The car hit the telephone pole.
• You should be able to see that this is an active voice sentence because the subject of the
sentence car performs the action - hit the telephone pole.
PASSIVE VOICE
• By comparison, a passive voice sentence’s subject receives the action of the sentence rather than
performing the action.
• Notice how the complete verb in this passive voice sentence consists of a form of the verb “to be” (was) and
passed participle verb (kicked).
• The ball was kicked into the goal by John.
Notice also that the subject of the sentence ball is receiving, rather than performing, the action of the
sentence.
Let’s look at another passive voice sentence:
The telephone pole was hit by the car.
Why is this a passive voice sentence?
The answer is because the subject of the sentence telephone pole is receiving the action of the sentence hit by
the car.
Again, notice the “to be” verb (was) combined with the past participle verb (hit).
This ends a discussion of the active voice and the passive voice. Let’s take a few minutes to look at some
verbs that are commonly misused by people of speaking and writing English.
CONFUSING VERB PAIRS
• These confusing verbs common pairs and have similar meanings.
Consequently, sometimes writers and speakers choose the wrong
one. These verb pairs are;
1. Lay and lie.
2. Sat and set.
3. Let and leave.
Let’s look at the first pair lay and lie.
LAY AND LIE
• Lay means to put or place something.
• Lie means to rest or recline.
Incorrect:
Maria needs to lay down and rest.
This sentence is written incorrectly because lay means to put or place
something.
Correct:
Maria needs to lie down and rest.
The sentence is now correct because lie means to rest or recline.
LAY AND LIE
• Incorrect:
Please lie your sleeping bag next to mine.
• The writer has chosen the wrong verb because the writer wanted you
to place your things in a particular place. By comparison, lie means to
rest or recline.
• Correct:
Please lay your sleeping bag next to mine.
• The sentence is now written correctly because the verb lay means to
put or place something.
SET AND SIT
• Set means to put something somewhere.
• Sit means to sit down.
• Incorrect:
In a few seconds, John will set down in the chair behind his desk.
• John doesn’t want to put something somewhere; rather, he merely wants
to sit down in his chair.
• Correct:
• In a few seconds, John will sit down in the chair behind his desk.
• Now this sentence is correctly written because the writer has used the
verb sit, which describes what John wants to do.
SET AND SIT
• Incorrect:
“Tom, did you sit the plates on the table?” asked Mary.
• This sentence is incorrect because things such as plates don’t sit
down; people and animals sit down.
• Correct:
• “Tom, did you set the plates on the table?” asked Mary.
• This sentence is correctly written because the writer has used the
verb set, which means to put or place. The plates are being placed on
the table.
LET AND LEAVE
• Let means to allow
• Leave means to allow to remain.
• Incorrect:
“Will you leave me go with you, John?” asked Mary.
This sentence is not correct. Leave means to allow to remain. Mary is
asking John for permission or to be allowed to go with John.
Correct:
“Will you let me go with you?” asked Mary.
Now you have a correctly written sentence. Let means to allow.
LET AND LEAVE
Can you say why the following sentence is Incorrect:
John will let his books on Mr. Hannan’s desk.
This sentence is incorrect because John wants the books to remain on
Mr. Hannan’s desk. Let means to allow.
Correct:
John will leave his books on Mr. Hannan’s desk.
Here, John is allowing the books to remain on Mr. Hannan’s desk.
Consequently, now the sentence is written correctly.
QUICK TEST 22: CONFUSING VERB PAIRS
For each of these sentences select the correct verb from the choices in brackets:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
The cat wants to (lay, lie,) on the sofa with Mary.
My brother has (sash, set) the table for dinner.
The dog (sat, set)on the car to keep warm.
Please, (let, leave) me have a turn.
I need to (lie, lay) down and rest because I have been working hard all day.
Before class, Mary (sat, set) her books on her desk.
Shall I (lie, lay) it over there or right here?
Because we talk so much, Mr. Hannan won’t (let, leave) me sit next to you in class.
(Set, Sit) those dishes down over there.
Please do not allow your dog to (set, sit) on my clean bed.
.INTRODUCING VERBALS…..
• You should now be confident that you could
correctly use those pairs of confusing verbs.
• Now, it’s time to learn about words that started out
as verbs, but by adding some other words to them or
changing the spelling just a bit, they function as
other parts of speech.
• We call these words VERBALS.
VERBALS
• Verbals are words whose roots are verbs that function as other parts
of speech. There are three types of verbals:
• Gerunds
• Participles
• Infinitives
Because they look like VERBS, they sometimes confuse even the most
experienced writers. Nevertheless, they really are quite easy to
understand, so let’s take a look at them.
GERUNDS
You can form a gerund by taking a verb and adding –ing to the end of it. By doing this, you
can use it as an noun.
Here are some examples of gerunds:
• Good writing is the result of a lot of hard work and practice.
• As you can see, an –ing has been added to the verb write to create the gerund writing,
which is acting as a noun and also as the subject of the sentence.
• Let’s stop a minute and make sure you don’t get confused.
• Just adding an –ing to the end of the verb does not automatically change it to a gerund.
The newly formed word is only a gerund if you use it as a noun in the sentence. For
instance, in our earlier example:
• Good writing is the result of a lot of hard work and practice.
• Writing is a gerund because it is acting as a noun in the sentence.
• But compare…..
GERUNDS
• John is writing his essay for Mr. Hannan’s class.
In this sentence, writing is an action verb. It describes the action of the subject
John.
Now, let’s get back to gerunds:
Suppose you have written the following sentence:
Dancing is great exercise, and it’s also fun.
Because dancing is functioning as a noun in the sentence, you will have written the
gerund dancing by adding an –ing to defer dance.
Here is another example:
Gerard knows that his writing will improve.
In this sentence, the gerund writing has been formed by adding an
–ing to the verb write. Here, the gerund is the direct object in the sentence.
PARTICIPLES
A PARTICIPLE is a verb form which usually ends in –ing or –ed, but
sometimes also –en or –d. It usually functions as an adjective, but
occasionally you will see a participle acting as an adverb.
Scared, the kitten ran under the parked car.
The participle scared was formed by taking the verb scare and adding a
–d. in this sentence, the participle acts as an adjective, modifying the
noun kitten.
Remember: in the above sentence, scared is a participle because it acts
as an adjective.
PARTICIPLES
If the sentence had been:
John scared me.
Now, scared is a verb.
Now let’s look at the participle formed by adding –ing to a verb:
The woman walking into the classroom is Mary.
An –ing has been added to the verb walk to form the participle
walking, which is acting as an adjective in the sentence by modifying
the noun woman.
PARTICIPLES
• I saw John swimming in the pool.
• The participle swimming is acting as an adjective by modifying the noun John. As in the
previous example, this participle was formed by adding –ing to the verbal swim.
• Because most participles end in –ing, they look the same as gerunds.
• The important difference is that participles act as modifiers, either adverts are
adjectives while gerunds function as nouns.
• Laughing makes you feel good.
• In this sentence, laughing is a gerund because it is acting as a noun and is the subject of
the sentence. By contrast, look at the following sentence:
• A laughing person is sometimes annoying.
• Here, laughing is a participle formed by adding an –ing to the verb laugh. It is acting as
an adjective by modifying the noun person.
INFINITIVES
• An infinitive consists of the basic form of the verb, usually preceded by the preposition to.
Infinitives can function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. In the following examples, notice how
the infinitive to learn functions as a noun, or an adjective, or adverbs, depending on how it is
used.
• To learn requires hard work.
• Here’s the infinitive to learn is acting as a noun and is the subject of the sentence. But, you have
the following sentence.
• John had many vocabulary words to learn.
• In this sentence, the infinitive to learn is acting as an adjective because it is modifying or
describing the noun for vocabulary words. Finally, you can have:
• John likes to learn about faraway places.
• Here, the infinitive to learn is acting as an adverb because it is modifying or describing the verb
likes.
• Verbal’s can be a very confusing part of the English language. The following
exercise will help you make sure that you can identify them in a sentence.
QUICK TEST 23: HEALTHY LIVING
• For each of the sentences below, determine whether the underlying word (IN RED) is a verb
or a verbal (gerund, participle, or infinitive).
• Write your answers on a sheet of paper.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Uninformed, many people eat a poor diet.
I saw Mary eating an apple at lunch.
She tries to eat three pieces of fruit every day.
Substituting a piece of fruit for a bag of potato chips is a good idea.
Maria said that instead of eating junk food there are many new food wants to try.
Healthy snacking is one of the keys to good nutrition and good health.
Exercising is another key to good health.
I try to walk at least a mile every day.
Watching too much television is not good for you.
To lose weight is not easy, but sometimes it is necessary.
QUICK TEST 23: HEALTHY LIVING (ANSWERS)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Uninformed, many people eat a poor diet. - PARTICIPLE
I saw Mary eating an apple at lunch. - PARTICIPLE
She tries to eat three pieces of fruit every day. - INFINITIVE
Substituting a piece of fruit for a bag of potato chips is a good idea. - GERUND
Maria said that instead of eating junk food there are many new food wants to try. –
INFINITIVE
6. Healthy snacking is one of the keys to good nutrition and good health. - GERUND
7. Exercising is another key to good health. - GERUND
8. I try to walk at least a mile every day. - INFINITIVE
9. Watching too much television is not good for you. - GERUND
10. To lose weight is not easy, but sometimes it is necessary. - INFINITIVE
END OF LESSON.
• YOU ARE NOW FINISHED WITH THE SECTION ON VERBS.
• NOW IT’S TIME TO LEARN ABOUT ANOTHER IMPORTANT
PART OF SPEECH –
MODIFIERS.
• WE WILL LEARN ABOUT THESE IN OUR NEXT LESSON.
• THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION.