Download Verbs TBH 18

Mr. Taylor’s Guide to
Verbs
A verb expresses an action, a state of
being, or an event.
Capt Kirk drinks too much at Christmas. (Action)
Mother’s Day fell early this year. (Occurrence)
Thanksgiving is tomorrow. (State of Being.)
Verbs also reveal when events take
place: in the past, present, or future.
The quality of the verb that expresses
time is referred to as the tense of the
verb.
Spock drinks a Pepsi. (Present Tense)
Spock drank a Pepsi. (Past Tense)
Spock will drink a Pepsi. (Future Tense)
Information verbs convey to the reader
Person: who or what acts or experiences an action: first
person (I), second person (you), or third person (he, she,
it, Spock).
Number: how many subjects. singular or plural.
Tense: when the action occurs.
Mood: what attitude is expressed toward the action.
Voice: is the subject acting or being acted upon?
Regular Verbs
Regular verbs change their form from
present tense to past tense in a
predictable way.
Base form:
Past Tense:
Past Participle:
I talk
I talked
I had talked
Note: the only way to tell a past tense verb from a past
participle is how it is used.
Irregular Verbs
Irregular verbs are the oldest verbs we have in
our language; therefore, they do not follow the
same pattern the regular verbs follow:
Base form:
Past tense:
Past participle:
I lie (recline)
I lay
I have lain
There is no magic formula for learning
the forms of irregular verbs. When in
doubt, look it up.
Types of Verbs
Main: a verb expressing an action, occurrence, or state of
being. (Spock talked to Uhura.)
Linking: a verb that doesn't express action, but renames
or describes the subject.
(Sulu was happy).
Auxiliary: a verb that when combined with a past participle
forms the complete verb.
(I had talked.)
Types of Verbs
Modal Auxiliary: a verb that adds meaning such as ability
or possibility to a sentence. (I might fail you.)
Transitive: a verb that must be followed by a direct object,
a noun or pronoun, that completes the verb’s message.
(Spock drank a Pepsi.)
Intransitive: a verb that does not have a direct object
completing its message. ( Spock cried like a little girl.)
“ . . .like a little girl” is not a noun or pronoun so it is not
an object. It only describes how Spock cried.
Main Verbs
Main verbs are the words in sentences that
express actions and tell the reader what is
happening. A verb’s tense describe when the
action took place.
Simple Tenses
Present
Past
Future
I finish, or she finishes.
I finished
I will finish
Main Verbs
Perfect Tenses
The perfect tenses describe actions or
occurrences that are still having an effect at the
time or are having an effect until a specified
time. The perfect tenses are composed of an
auxiliary verb (have, has, or had ) and a past
participle.
Present perfect: I have finished
Past perfect:
I had finished
Future perfect:
I will have finished
Main Verbs
The Progressive Tenses
The progressive tenses describe an ongoing
action or condition. They also express
habitual or recurring actions or conditions.
The present progressive tense utilizes the
present tense form of a “be” verb that agrees
with the subject in person and number, plus a
present participle of the main verb.
Spock is working with Mr. Data.
The Romulans are trying to take over Earth.
I am thinking about Pepsi.
Main Verbs
The Progressive Tenses
The past progressive indicates a past action
went on until another event occurred. It uses
“was” or “were” to agree with the subject in
person and number plus the present participle
of the main verb.
Spock was working with Mr. Data
The Romulans were planning to attack Earth.
I was thinking about drinking a Pepsi.
You were thinking about taking a nap.
Main Verbs
The progressive Tenses
The future progressive indicates that an
action will continue until a certain time in the
future. It uses “will” plus “be” and a present
participle.
Spock will be working with Mr. Data tomorrow.
The Romulans will be thinking about attack.
You will be wanting a Pepsi.
I will be wanting a Pepsi too.
Main Verbs
Perfect Progressive Tenses
The perfect progressive tenses are used to
indicate an action that takes place over time. It
is comprised by adding “have, has, or had” to
the progressive tenses.
Spock has been warning us about the dangers
of Coke addiction.
(Present perfect progressive)
This action began in the past and continues to the
present.
Main Verbs
The Perfect Progressive Tenses
Kirk had been ordering Pepsi for years.
(Past perfect progressive)
This action began in the past and continues to the
present.
In May, Spock will have been drinking Pepsi
for ten years.
(Future perfect progressive)
This is an ongoing action that took place in the past
and continues into the future.
Using Verbs in a Sentence
When a verb appears in a dependent clause, its
tense depends on the tense of the main verb in
the independent clause. When the main verb is
in the past tense, the verb in the dependent
clause is usually in the past or past perfect
tense.
Spock was a Vulcan who had worked with Kirk.
Shifts from past to past perfect.
Using Verbs in a Sentence
When the main verb in the independent clause
is in the present or future tenses, the verb in the
dependent clause may be any tense needed to
convey the meaning.
Spock is a good student who will earn an “A.”
Shifts from present to future.
Missy will not graduate because she is a lazy
dog.
Shifts from future to past.
Using Verbs in a Sentence
When an infinitive appears in a verbal phrase,
the tense it expresses depends upon the tense
of the sentence’s main verb. The present
infinitive (“to” plus a verb) indicates that the
action is happening at the same time as or later
than the main verb.
Spock went to see a movie.
The going and seeing occur at the same time.
Using Verbs in a Sentence
When the perfect infinitive (“to” plus
“have” plus the past participle) indicates
action happening earlier than the main
verb.
I would like to have seen Capt. Kirk fight
the bug-eyed monster.
The “like” occurs in the present and
the “to have seen” occurs in the past.
Using Verbs in a Sentence
When a participle appears in a verbal phrase, its
tense depends on the tense of the sentence’s
main verb. The present participle indicates
action happening at the same time as the action
of the main verb.
Thinking about Pepsi, Spock drove into a tree.
The “thinking” occurs at the same
time as the “driving.”
Using Verbs in a Sentence
The past participle or the present perfect
participle indicates action occurring before
the action of the main verb.
Having finished his Pepsi, Spock drank another.
Since he had consumed too much Pepsi, Spock
couldn’t sleep.
The action in the subordinate clause occurs before
the action in the independent clause.
Using Verbs in a Sentence
Verb tense may shift in a paragraph or
sentence as long as the shift in tense is
required for the sentence to make sense.
Random shifting of tense must be
avoided.
Using Verbs in a Sentence
Spock was born on Vulcan. He lives on Earth,
but soon he will join Starfleet.
These sentences are shifting from past to present to
future, but it must or it won’t make any sense.
Spock is born on Vulcan. He lives on Earth, but
he joins Starfleet.
These sentences make no sense.
Linking Verbs
linking verbs are weak verbs that convey a
state of being, relate to the senses, or indicate
a condition.
Linking verbs are often forms of the verb “be”
and link the subject to an adjective that
describes it.
(Sulu was happy)
(Captain Kirk is well)
Linking Verbs
Linking verbs may deal with the senses look,
feel, taste, and sound that describe the
subject. These verbs will not indicate an
action.
(Fish tastes good)
Linking verbs convey a sense of existing or
change. Examples include appear, seem, get,
turn, and remain.
(Spock grew old.)
Linking Verbs
To test if a verb, other than a be verb, is
functioning as a linking verb, substitute “was”
or “were” for the original verb. If the sentence
makes sense, the original verb was functioning
as a linking verb.
Spock grew a beard.
Spock was a beard. (No)
Grew is not a linking verb.
Spock grew old.
Spock was old. (Yes)
Grew is a linking verb.
The importance of linking verbs will be clear when we
study objective and subjective case.
Understanding Mood
Mood is the least important aspect of verb
usage. Mood indicates the attitude toward the
action in a sentence. Shifting in mood is
generally not a huge problem in writing.
The Indicative Mood is used to make factual
statements, highly likely events, and for
questions about fact.
The Imperative Mood expresses commands
and direct requests.
The Subjunctive Mood expresses unreal
conditions, conjectures, recommendations, and
wishes.
Understanding Mood
Indicative:
The door is open. [fact]
Missy seemed hungry. [highly likely]
Do you want a Pepsi. [question about a fact]
Imperative:
Please close that door. [command]
Subjunctive:
I wish I were a fish. [states a desire]
If I were you, I’d be scared. [conditional]
Understanding Voice
Voice in a verb tells the reader if the
subject is acting or being acted upon. In
active voice the subject does the action in
the sentence.
“Scotty fixed the engine.” is written in
active voice because Scotty is the subject
of the sentence, and he is performing the
action of fixing.
Understanding Voice
In passive voice the subject is receiving
the action of the verb, not doing it. The
person or thing doing the action is often in
a phrase starting with the word “by.”
“The engine was fixed by Scotty.” is written
in passive voice because the subject is
receiving the action of being fixed, and the
object is doing the action.
Understanding Voice
Passive voice is bad because:
It uses more words.
It is harder for the reader to understand.
It utilizes wimpy verbs.
Passive voice is useful because:
It emphasizes what was done not who did it.
Verbs
At first verb tense may seem to be a bit
overwhelming, but with a little practice
proper verb usage will become second
nature.
Learning to utilize the English language
correctly will not only improve your writing,
but it will also help to keep your papers
out of the circular file.
Remember to use verbs logically.
The End.
Live Long and Prosper