Parts of Speech: Verbs
Verbs are action words, one of the eight parts of speech. They are also one of the two essential components in forming a complete sentence.
In language, verbs are the most active of all the parts of speech. A well chosen verb can communicate action through imagery. For example, “She struts” says a lot more than “She walks.”
Verbs are also flexible. Add the -ing suffix to a verb to make a noun (He revised his own writing). Verbs can also function as adjectives (We have a running dialog). Basically, you can have a lot of fun with verbs, tweaking them to suit your own writerly purposes. But first you have to understand what they are and what role they fulfill.
Verbs Defined
As previously stated, a verb is one of the parts of speech and it’s an action word. The types of action that are represented by verbs are as follows:
Action: walk, run, dance, write, think, talk
Occurrence: shimmer, breakdown
State of Being: sit, sleep, be
It’s not necessary to classify verbs based on action, occurrence, and state of being. These are just examples so you can better identify verbs. Some people might say there is no action in “I am.” However, am (a form of the verb “to be”) is most definitely an action — it’s the action of being (from the verb to be).
Sentence Diagramming and Parts of Speech
If you’ve ever attempted sentence diagramming, you probably started out by learning to identify nouns and verbs. For a sentence to be complete, it must contain one of each of these two parts of speech. In sentence diagramming, the noun is the subject, and the verb is the predicate.
I write.
In the sentence “I write,” the noun/subject is “I.” The verb/predicate is “write.” This is basic grammar and the most elementary sentence structure possible. It’s a good thing for a writer to know.
Transitive and Intransitive Verbs
In a sentence, the verb is connected to one or more nouns. At the very least, there is a noun performing the action of the verb (I eat) or receiving the action (The cookies were eaten). Two nouns can be impacted by the same verb (I eat cookies). The number of nouns that a verb affects in a sentence is referred to as the verb’s valence or valency.
Intransitive verbs have valency 1. In other words, the verb is only tied to the sentence’s subject (I eat). I is the subject and eat is the predicate. In this sentence, eat is an intransitive verb.
Transitive verbs have valency 2. The verb is tied to two words in the sentence – the subject and the object (I eat cookies). I is the subject, eat is the predicate, and the word cookies is the direct object. In this sentence, eat is a transitive verb.
All verbs must have valency. There is no such thing as a verb with zero valency. In order for there to be an action, that action has be performed or received by somebody or something. In other words, verbs need nouns in order to exist. Even if the noun isn’t directly stated (Run!), it is implied (You run!).
Verbal Nouns
Gerunds
If you add -ing to a verb and use it as a noun, you’re using a gerund:
Reading books is fun.
In the sentence above, reading (normally a verb) is used as a noun. The verb in the sentence is “is.”
Infinitives
The infinitive form of a verb is its raw form. The classic example of an infinitive is “to be.” Other infinitives include to see, to run, to dance, etc.
Like gerunds, infinitives can function as nouns.
Running is like jogging.
To err is human.
In the example sentences above, the underlined verbs (gerunds in the first sentence, infinitive in the second) are functioning as nouns or more specifically, as verbal nouns.
Agreement
In sentences, verbs must be in agreement with the words they impact. There are several types of verb agreement, including tense and number agreement. Other languages (such as Spanish and French) also mandate gender agreement.
What does verb agreement mean to a writer? Well, your verbs have to match up to your nouns. When it comes to agreement, English writers and speakers are lucky because we don’t have nearly as many agreements to consider as some other languages have.
Tense
Tense can be a challenge for people who are new to speaking or writing English (and for English natives learning any other language). Verb tense agreement warrants its own, lengthy article, so we’ll keep it simple here and just demonstrate the absolute basics.
If something happens in the past, the verb has to be in past tense. You cannot say “She was writes” or “He is danced” (although these phrases might fit nicely in a poem). What you can say is “She was writing” or “She wrote.” You can say “He is dancing” or “He dances.”
It’s important to learn tense and understand how to put verbs into past tense because much writing is done in past tense. Stories – entire novels – are often written in past tense and it’s not at all uncommon for past and present tense to both appear in a single work.
Most native English speakers naturally grasp tense, which is why we won’t get into a lengthy discussion about it here. Mismatched verb tenses can be a giveaway of folks for whom English is a second language. It’s just one of those mistakes natives rarely make. However, as can be seen in the poetic examples above, mixing up tense can produce some endearing phrases, which may be used in some types of writing, such as poetry. However, erroneous tense agreement in a formal paper or business communication is never a good idea.
Third Person, Singular, Present
The only other strict agreement in English is the third person, singular, present tense of a verb, which takes an -s. That’s a mouthful, so here’s an example:
I run.
You run.
He/she runs.
They run.
We run.
For the record, what we’ve just done here is we conjugated the verb “to run.” Verb conjugation is not much fun in English. As you can see, “run” doesn’t get conjugated all that much, the only exception is when it’s attached to “he” or “she,” in which case it takes an -s. Also for the record, conjugating verbs in French or Spanish is far more exciting.
Are there any grammar issues that you’re struggling with? Parts of speech you don’t quite understand? Got questions about verbs? Participles? Types of verbs? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment.
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Great post, Melissa! And congrats again on winning the contest on Positively Present!
.-= Positively Present´s last blog ..oh, what fun!: the benefits of being festive =-.
I can’t wait to receive the print that I won (I feel so lucky!). Much thanks
Thanks for the great refresher on verbs, Melissa! I even learned something new about valency. (And, as a former French student, I completely agree with you: Conjugating verbs in French is very exciting!)
.-= Rebecca Smith´s last blog ..Merriam-Webster’s 2009 Word of the Year: Admonish =-.
I’m such a nerd; sometimes I actually miss conjugating verbs in French. One of these days, when time allows, I’ll take another French course. Maybe someday I’ll actually get to France!
Melissa,
I love the French language so much that I double-majored in it in college (with English). After graduation, I went to Paris with my mom and sister. It was the trip of a lifetime — and I actually got to use my French! So much time has passed since I’ve spoken (or heard) the language, though, that I’m afraid I’ve lost most of it. I’d love to take another course one day! à bientôt -
.-= Rebecca Smith´s last blog ..Merriam-Webster’s 2009 Word of the Year: Admonish =-.
I thought about minoring in French, but I was in a hurry to finish school. I did, however, take a year of French at community college after I graduated. That was when I was big dreaming about traveling to Paris and I found that all the French I learned in high school came right back to me (and as a result, I easily aced both semesters!). If I take French again, I’ll probably take a conversation class because though I could write and read, I found speaking and especially listening/understanding difficult. I’m keeping my Parisian dreams alive. I’ll get there sooner or later.