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AJELLS: Vol. 5 No. 1, 2014
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An Overview of Linking Verbs (Copulas)
for the Effective Use of English
Ephraim A. Chukwu
Abstract
“An Overview of Linking Verbs (Copulas) for the Effective
Use of English” gleans the three types of linking verbs for
study, understanding and correct use. The paper introduces
other types of verbs to distinguish them from linking verbs.
Following this introduction are explanations of what linking
verb is, its types, whether it is an action word, its dual
functions, the word or word group it links as complements,
and its discernible significance in English. The misuse or
ignorance shown in the use of this type of verb by learners
and scholars alike inspired this assemblage and the
observable significance arising therefrom.
Introduction
The verb class subsumes the transitive versus the intransitive;
the weak (regular) versus the strong (irregular); as well as the
copulas or the linking verbs. Transitive verbs have direct
objects (nouns) which receive the actions of these verbs:
Okeke slapped Mgbeke.
Femi jilted Fumilayo.
Dauda murdered Zainabu.
The underlined action words are transitive verbs which
transferred their actions to the direct objects Mgbeke,
Fumilayo and Zainabu. Intransitive verbs do not transfer their
actions; rather their actions are retained by the subject
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initiating the actions:
Babies grow slowly
The witches vanished
John slept soundly
The verbs grow, vanished and slept relate to and are retained
by the subjects Babies, witches and John. The weak or regular
verbs are so designated because their forms in the present,
past and participle are the same except by the addition of 'ed'
to the past and participle:
walk
walked
walked
look
looked
looked
love
loved
loved
The strong or irregular verbs are so described as their forms in
the present, past and participle are partially or completely
different:
go
went gone
eat
ate
eaten
am
was been
is
were being
are
The linking verbs may be irregular as the verb 'be' or they may
be regular as some of the sensory verbs – taste, sound, look, or
irregular – smell and feel.
What are Linking Verbs or Copulas?
As the name suggests, a linking verb is a link or connector
between two groups of words. This link shows relationship
between these words and how these words affect each other.
According to Glencoe (2001: 456), Ebest et al (2003: 358) and
Fowler et al (2007: 320), a linking verb links, or joins or
connects the subject of a sentence and its complement.
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The subject complement which may be a noun or a pronoun or
an adjective is “a word or expression that identifies or
describes the subject” (Glenco 2001: 456).
Nneoma is beautiful.
adjective
Segun became a doctor.
noun
The girl was mine.
pronoun
The linking verbs is, became, was join the subjects Nneoma,
Segun, The girl with the subject complements beautiful,
doctor, mine. These complements identify the subjects as
beautiful
Nneoma
doctor
Segun
My(ne)
girl
Linking verb therefore is a joint that fastened or fixed a
subject and a complement together. The inseparableness of
subject and complement manifests in the complement giving
us the attribute of the subject.
What are the Types of Linking Verbs
Three types of linking verbs are isolated:
1.
The Verbs 'be'
am, is, are, was, were,
being, been
2.
The Sensory verbs i.e .taste, look, sound (hear),
smell feel
verbs associated with
the five senses
3.
Others
remain, become, grow,
seem, stay, appear
Examples of linking verbs in sentences from sources
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I am a musician
That singer is an artist
'be' verbs from
Glencoe p. 456
The days were hot
Those are mosquitoes
The cake tastes good.
He grew taller over the summer.
Glencoe p. 456
She felt good about the election result.
He seems better today.
Careful editing is essential to a wellwritten paper.
She became an industrial engineer.
Ebest p. 358
The repair crew grew tired.
Jowitt and Nnamonu (207/208) explain linking verbs as words
which link two language expressions that identify each other.
According to them, in the sentences:
Matthew is my friend.
Joseph feels happy.
Joseph seems sad.
there is identity between Matthew and my friend; Joseph
and happy; Joseph and sad; just as there are identities among
the subjects at the left hand side of the linking verbs and the
other nouns, noun phrases and adjectives at the right hand side
of the underlined linking verbs in the three groups of
sentences above, i.e. between I and musician, singer and artist,
days and hot, those and mosquitoes, cake and good, he and
taller, she and good, he and better, editing and essential, she
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and engineer, crew and tired. The right group gives attributes
to the left group of subjects.
Are Copulas Action Verbs?
A linking verb is not an action word. Jaderstrom et al (2000:
245) and Glencoe (2001: 456) confirm this. The former say
that “a linking verb does not indicate action”; the latter says
that “a linking verb does not show action”. Some linking
verbs, according to Leech and Suartvik (261), are verbs of
appearance -look-, verbs of sensation –feel- and verbs of
becoming – become and get. Sentence examples expressing
the non-actionness of linking verbs.
John felt happy at the result.
The children look emaciated.
James became an engineer.
The soup tasted delicious.
The scene appears misleading.
These instances of linking verbs show that no action is
expressed by verbs so designated. Rather, the verbs (copulas)
link the subjects with their descriptions as captured by the
words following those copulas.
Dual Functions of Some Linking Verbs
Some linking verbs take objects. In this use they become
transitive in function. Jowitt and Nnamonu (208) illustrate this
thus:
a.
We tasted the stew.
b.
The food tasted good.
In sentence 'a', 'tasted' is a transitive verb and takes a
direct object, 'the stew'. In sentence 'b', 'tasted' is a linking
verb as 'food' and 'good' has identity of oneness. A linking
verb can function transitively, intransitively and connectively.
E.g.
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Farmers grow cocoa - transitive, grow takes a direct
object cocoa
Cocoa grows luxuriantly - intransitive, the adverb
luxuriantly modifies the
verb grow.
The weather grows bad every day – linking verb,
joining weather and bad.
Nouns/Pronouns and Adjectives that Follow Copulas i.e.
Act as Complements
Nouns, pronouns and adjectives that are linked with
the noun subjects identify or describe these subjects. These
nouns, pronouns and adjectives are called subject
complements. Quirk and Greenbaum (13/14) explain that a
subject complement has a straightforward relation to the
subjects of its respective sentence. They illustrate this
relationship with two sentences.
The girl is now a student at a large university.
His brother grew happier gradually.
In these two sentences the relationship between the
subjects, 'the girl', and 'his brother', and their following
complements, 'a student' and 'happier', is understood: 'The girl'
(subject) “is understood as being a girl student” and His
'brother' (subject) “a happier brother”.
“A subject complement is a word or word group that
describes or renames the subject of a sentence” (Ebest et al
478). The subject complements in the two sentences above 'a
student', a noun and 'happier', an adjective describe the subject
nouns. Ebest et al further explain that “when the subject
complement is a noun, it is called predicate nominative; when
it is an adjective, it is called a predicate adjective” (478).
Sentence examples from Ebest et al:
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This milk tastes sour
(adjective)
She is my lawyer
(noun)
This book is a best-selling historical novel
(noun phrase)
His excuse was that he had been sick
(noun clause)
-
-
Predicate appeared in describing the nouns or
adjectives. Traditionally a sentence is divided into a subject
and predicate. The predicate begins from the main verb. In the
sentences above the main verbs are tastes, is, was. All other
words after these verbs belong to the second part of these
sentences called predicates. This is why the adjective, noun,
noun phrase and noun clause are called predicate adjective
and predicate nominatives. Nominatives are nouns, noun
phrases and noun clauses.
Significance of Copulas in English
The significance of copulas as presented here is based on
carefully though out nature of linking verbs in the English
language as deduced from their general understanding and
description given above.
Effective Structural Analysis
Copulas, as seen, may function as links, transitives and
intransitives. Simple sentence analysis may give structures as
SVC, SVO, SVA, etc. Copulas take SVC structure, but not
SVO or SVA. Ignorance about the uses will make one analyze
linking verbs as action verbs (transitive) or verbs that admit
adverb modifiers (intransitive).
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Structural Relationship
Subject of a sentence and the complement of the sentence
linked by a copula have identifiable relationship. The
complement describes or renames the subject by emphasizing
the subject's quality or feature. But the subject and object of a
sentence do not have any identity – one is different from the
other. The relationship between a subject and subject
complement is that of oneness, one attributing quality to the
other.
Structural Nomenclatures
Predicative nominative and predicate adjective are terms
adopted to differentiate subject complements from other
words that appear after the main verbs. We have objects
(direct and indirect) and adverbials that are placed after the
main verbs. Predicate nominative and predicate adjective
readily indicate words or word groups that describe the
subject of a sentence even though they are with the linking
verbs.
Structural Linkage Process
Coordinating conjunctions link word or word group of equal
grammatical status. Subordinating conjunctions link words or
word groups of unequal grammatical status. These
conjunctions link expressions whose words combine to give a
required message or idea. On the contrary, linking verbs serve
to combine two words or word groups that refer to one entity.
Examples:
Okeke is mad
gives us “mad Okeke”;
Chinyere is beautiful
gives us “beautiful Chinyere”;
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The food tastes delicious
gives us “delicious food”; etc
Structural Exclusiveness
Linking verbs is unique. It is not the same as other verbs as
explained in the introduction. Its types must be identified,
learned and used correctly; otherwise, one will be a dilettante.
Copulas are recognized and introduced to express appearance,
sensation, becoming, “characterization or attribute and
identification of the subject” (Quirk & Greenbaum 353).
Examples:
John was a doctor
John became healthier
He felt foolish/ill/a fool
Ada looked stupid in her attire The smell seemed a danger to health
identification
becoming/attribute
sensation
appearance
appearance
These are ways of expression exclusively projected by linking
verbs.
Structural Reference
“Reference”, according to Matthew (337), is “the
relation between a part of an utterance and an individual or set
of individuals that it identifies”. Subjects and subject
complements are referring expressions which identify one and
the same person. Therefore a subject of a linking verb, as well
as the complement linked with this subject by this linking verb
demonstrates structural reference. Predicate nominative (a
noun in the predicate position) and predicate adjective (an
adjective in the predicate position) both refer to, identify and
describe the subject of the linking verb.
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To get the actual feature and identity of the subject,
reference is made to the noun or noun equivalent and the
adjective linked by the linking verb. If the subject is a doctor,
an engineer, a trader, the complements give these identities:
Okafor is a doctor.
Adeniyi became an engineer
Mohammed sounded authoritative in his
lecture.
If the subject displays certain mood and physical appearance,
the complements give these descriptions:
The girls are ravishingly beautiful.
Mike was angry at the decay in society.
This dish looks appetizing.
These descriptive and identifying words – engineer,
authoritative, doctor, beautiful, angry, appetizing – refer to the
subjects, Okafor - Adeniyi, Mohammed, The girls, Mike, This
dish. This reference to these subjects supplies them with
identity, appearance, attribute.
Conclusion
Linking verb or copula is a verb “whose main function is to
relate subject and complement” (Crystal 110). In this function,
it expresses sensation (feel), appearance (look, seem),
becoming/resulting (become), identification (is, was, etc). To
write well, edit well, read well, it is necessary to identify these
verbs, learn them and use them for effective writing as they
are unique in their function.
Ephraim A. Chukwu is from Department of English
Language and Literature, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.
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Works Cited
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ed), Blackwell P Publishing, Malden-Massachusetts,
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Ebest, Sally Barr; Alred, Gerald J; Brusaw, Charles T; Oliu,
Walter E. Writing from A
– Z: The Easy-to-Use
Reference Handbook (4ht ed), McGraw-Hill
Companies,
New York, 2003.
Fowler, H. Ramsey; Aaron, Jane E; Okoomian, Janice. The
Little, Brown Handbook
(10th
ed),
Pearson
Education Inc, New York, USA, 2007.
Glencoe – Writer's Choice Gramar and Composition (Grade
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Jaderstrom, Susan and Miller, Joanne M. Business English at
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Woodland
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California, 2000.
Jowitt, David and Nnamonu, Silas. Common Errors in English,
Longman Group UK Limited, Essex, England, 1988.
Leech,
Geoffery and Suartvik, Jan. A Communicative
Grammar of English (3rd ed), Pearson Education
Limited, Essex, England, 2002.
Matthews, Peter H. Oxford Concise Dictionary of Linguistics.
(2nd ed), Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2007.
Quirk, Randolph and Sidney Greenbaum. A University
Grammar of English, Pearson Education Limited,
Essex, England, 2000.
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