The doing and being words! โก
A verb is a word that shows an action (run, eat, sing) or a state of being (is, am, are, was). Without verbs, there'd be no sentences!
A verb is the heart of every sentence. Every complete sentence must have a verb! Think of verbs as the engine that makes your sentence move ๐.
Verbs can show physical actions (jump, swim, eat), mental actions (think, dream, remember), or states of being (is, am, are, was, were).
โ Quick Test โ Find the verb!
"The cat sleeps on the sofa."
The verb is sleeps โ it tells us what the cat is doing!
๐ ๐ run ยท ๐คธ jump ยท ๐ด sleep ยท ๐จ paint โ all VERBS!
Not all verbs are the same! Here's every type you need to know. ๐
Shows something a person or animal does. It can be physical or mental!
Physical:
run ยท jump ยท eat ยท swim ยท write ยท kick
Mental:
think ยท believe ยท imagine ยท remember ยท know
Connects the subject to a description. It doesn't show action โ it shows a state!
Common Linking Verbs:
is ยท am ยท are ยท was ยท were ยท seem ยท appear ยท feel ยท taste ยท smell ยท look ยท become
Helps the main verb. It goes before the main verb and changes the meaning!
Helping Verbs:
have ยท has ยท had ยท will ยท would ยท can ยท could ยท should ยท must ยท may ยท might ยท am ยท is ยท are
An action that goes TO an object. The action "transfers" to something or someone!
Remember:
Ask "what?" or "whom?" after the verb. If there's an answer, it's transitive!
An action that doesn't go to an object. It stands alone and makes complete sense!
Examples:
She laughed. ยท He sneezed. ยท The baby cried. ยท They arrived.
Regular verbs add -ed in the past. Irregular verbs change completely!
Regular (+ed):
jump โ jumped
walk โ walked
talk โ talked
Irregular (changes!):
run โ ran
eat โ ate
swim โ swam
Verbs change their form to show when something happens: past, present, or future!
Something that already happened!
Something happening right now!
Something that hasn't happened yet!
These are tricky verbs you need to memorise โ no -ed here!
"Be" is the Most Complex!
The verb "to be" has 8 different forms: be, am, is, are, was, were, been, being. That's the most of any English verb!
Same Word, Different Jobs!
"Run" can be a verb (I run fast) or a noun (a morning run). Context is everything in English!
English Has 12 Tenses!
English actually has 12 different tenses! Past, present, and future each have simple, continuous, perfect, and perfect continuous forms.
Share these grammar tips with friends, parents & teachers ๐จ