What is a Verb?
The verb is perhaps the most important part of the sentence. A verbor compound verb asserts something about
the subject of the sentence and express
actions, events, or states of being. The verb or compound verb is the critical
element of the predicate of a sentence.
In each of the
following sentences, the verb or compound verb ishighlighted:
Dracula bites his
victims on the neck.
The verb
"bites" describes the action Dracula takes.
In early October, Giselle will
plant twenty tulip bulbs.
Here the
compound verb "will plant" describes an action that will take place
in the future.
My first teacher was Miss
Crawford, but I remember the janitor Mr. Weatherbee more vividly.
In this
sentence, the verb "was" (the simple past tense of "is") identifies a
particular person and the verb "remember" describes a mental action.
Karl Creelman bicycled around the world
in 1899, but his diaries and his bicycle were destroyed.
In this
sentence, the compound verb "were destroyed" describes an action
which took place in the past.
Using Verbs
The verb is perhaps the most important part of
the sentence. A verb or compound verb asserts something about
the subject of the sentence and expresses
actions, events, or states of being.
In each of the
following sentences, the verb or compound verb appears highlighted:
Dracula bites his
victims on the neck.
The verb
"bites" describes the action Dracula takes.
In early October, Giselle will
plant twenty tulip bulbs.
Here the
compound verb "will plant" describes an action that will take place
in the future.
My first teacher was Miss
Crawford, but I remember the janitor Mr. Weatherbee more
vividly.
In this
sentence, the verb "was" (the simple past tense of "is") identifies a
particular person and the verb "remembered" describes a mental
action.
Compound Verbs
In each of the
following sentences, the compound verb appears
highlighted:
Karl Creelman bicycled around the world
in 1899, but his diaries and his bicycle were destroyed.
The compound
verb in this sentence is made up of the auxiliary "were" and
the past participle "destroyed."
The book Seema was looking for
is under the sofa.
Here the
compound verb is made up of the auxiliary verb "was" and the present participle "looking."
They will meet us at
the newest café in the market.
In this example
the compound verb is made up of the auxiliary verb "will" and the
verb "meet."
That dog has been barking for
three hours; I wonder if someone will call the owner.
In this sentence
the first compound verb is made up of the two auxiliary verbs ("has"
and "been") and a present participle ("barking"). The
second compound verb is made up of the auxiliary verb "will" and the
verb "call."
Auxiliary Verbs
The most common auxiliary verbs are "be,"
"do," and "have", and you may also use these verbs on their own. You use
"Will" and "shall" to express future time.
In each of the
following examples, a verb commonly used as an auxiliary verb appears as
a simple predicate:
She is the chief
engineer.
The tea cups are in the
china cabinet.
Garth does this kind of
thing frequently.
My roommates and I do the
laundry every second week.
I can't complete my assignment because
he still has my notes.
They have several kinds
of gelato in the display case.
Other common
auxiliaries are "can," "could," "may,"
"might," "must," "ought," "should,"
"will," and "would." A verb like these is called amodal auxiliary and expresses necessity,
obligation, or possibility.
The highlighted
word in each of the following sentences is a modal auxiliary:
Zora was pleased to learn that she could take
several days off.
The small freckled girl told her
neighbours that she would walk their dog for an appropriate
fee.
Henry told Eliza that she ought to
have the hole in the bucket fixed.
The principal told the assembled
students that the school board might introduce a dress code
next autumn.
According to the instructions, we must leave
this goo in our hair for twenty minutes.
Several words
may intervene between the auxiliary and the verb which goes with it, as in the
following sentences:
They have not delivered the
documents on time.
The treasure chest was never discovered.
The health department has recently decided that
all high school students should be immunised against meningitis.
Will you walk the
dog tonight?
The ballet corps was rapidly
and gracefully pirouetting about
Linking Verbs
The play is Waiting for
Godot.
In this
sentence, the linking verb "is" links the noun phrase "the play" to the
identifying phrase "Waiting for Godot," which
is called a subject complement.
Some of us thought that the play was very
good.
In this
sentence, the verb "was" links the subject
complement "very good" to subject "the play."
Others thought it became tedious
after the first fifteen minutes.
In this
sentence, the linking verb "became" links the subject "it"
to the subject complement "tedious." The phrase "after the first
fifteen minutes" functions as an adverb modifying the clause "it became
tedious."
The cast appears disorganised
and confused; perhaps Beckett intended this.
Here "appears"
is functioning as a linking verb that connects the subject "the cast"
to its subject complement "disorganised and confused."
The play seems absurd
to me.
The subject
"the play" is joined to its subject complement "absurd" by
the linking verb "seems."
Linking verbs
are either verbs of sensation ("feel," "look,"
"smell," "sound," "taste") or verbs of existence
("act," "appear," "be," "become,"
"continue," "grow," "prove," "remain,"
"seem," "sit," "stand," "turn").
Many linking
verbs (with the significant exception of "be") can also be used
as transitive or intransitive verbs. In the following pairs of
sentences, the first sentence uses the highlighted verb as a linking verb and
the second uses the same verb as either a transitive or anintransitive verb:
Linking
Griffin insists that
the water in Winnipeg tastes terrible.
In this
sentence, the adjective "terrible" is a subject
complement that describes a quality of the water.
Transitive
I tasted the soup
before adding more salt.
Here the noun
phrase "the soup" identifies what "I tasted." "The
soup" is the direct object of the verb
"tasted."
Linking
My neighbour's singing voice sounds very
squeaky despite several hours of daily practice.
In this example,
the phrase "very squeaky" is a subject complement that describes or
identities the nature of the "singing voice."
Transitive
Upon the approach of the enemy troops,
the gate-keepersounded his horn.
Here the verb
"sounded" takes a direct object, the noun phrase "his
horn."
Linking
Cynthia feels queasy
whenever she listens to banjo music.
In this
sentence, the adjective "queasy" is a subject complement that
describes Cynthia.
Transitive
The customer carefully feels the
fabric of the coat.
Here the noun
phrase "the fabric of the coat" is the direct object of the verb
"feels" and identifies what the customer feels.
Using Verb Moods
A verb may be in one of three moods: the
indicative mood, the imperative mood, and the subjunctive mood.
The indicative mood is
the most common and is used to express facts and opinions or to make inquiries.
Most of the statements you make or you read will be in the indicative mood.
The highlighted
verbs in the following sentences are all in the indicative mood:
Joe picks up the boxes.
The german shepherd fetches the stick.
Charles closes the window.
The imperative mood is
also common and is used to give orders or to make requests. The imperative is
identical in form to the secondperson indicative.
The highlighted
verbs in the following sentences are all in the imperative mood:
Pick up those boxes.
Fetch.
Close the window.
The subjunctive mood has
almost disappeared from the language and is thus more difficult to use
correctly than either the indicative mood or the imperative mood. The
subjunctive mood rarely appears in everyday conversation or writing and is used
in a set of specific circumstances.
paints
present subjunctive: "paint"
walks
present subjunctive: "walk"
thinks
present subjunctive: "think"
is
present subjunctive: "be"
Except for the
verb "be," the past tense subjunctive is indistinguishable
in form from the past tense indicative. The past tense subjunctive of
"be" is "were."
painted
past subjunctive: "painted"
walked
past subjunctive: "walked"
thought
past subjunctive: "thought"
was
past subjunctive: "were"
The subjunctive is found in a handful of
traditional circumstances. For example, in the sentence "God save the Queen,"
the verb "save" is in the subjunctive mood. Similarly, in the
sentence "Heaven forbid," the verb forbid is in the subjunctive mood.
The subjunctive
is usually found in complex sentences. The subjunctive mood is used
in dependent clauses to express unreal
conditions and in dependent clauses following verbs of wishing or requesting.
The subjunctive
mood is used in a dependent clause attached to anindependent clause that uses a verb such as
"ask," "command," "demand," "insist,"
"order," "recommend," "require,"
"suggest," or "wish."
The subjunctive
mood is also used in a dependent clause attached to an independent clause that
uses an adjective that expresses urgency (such as
"crucial," "essential," "important,"
"imperative," "necessary," or "urgent").
Each of the
highlighted verbs in the following sentences is in the subjunctive mood.
It is urgent that Harraway attend
Monday's meeting.
The Member of Parliament demanded that
the Minister explain the effects of the bill on the environment.
The sergeant ordered that Calvin scrub
the walls of the mess hall.
We suggest that Mr. Beatty move the car
out of the no parking zone.
The committee recommended that the bill
be passed immediately.
If Canada were a tropical country, we
would be able to grow pineapples in our backyards.
If he were more generous, he would not
have chased the canvassers away from his door.
I wish that this book were still in
print.
If the council members were interested
in stopping street prostitution, they would urge the police to pursue customers
more vigorously than they pursue the prostitutes.
Using Verb Tenses
in Sequence
Using verbs in correct sequence is often
difficult, especially for those people whose cradle tongue is not English or
whose cradle tongue does not uses a similar tense system. The situation is
further complicated by the fact that context, idiom, and style play as large a role
in determining tense sequence as grammatical rules.
In general, present tenses may be followed by a wide
variety of tenses as long as the sequence fits the logic of the sentence.
Deborah waits patiently while Bridget
books the tickets.
The simple
present tense is used in both the independent clause and the dependent clause.
They have not delivered the documents we
need.
The verb of the
independent clause "They have not delivered the documents" is in the
present perfect tense. The verb in the dependent clause "we need" is
in the simple present tense. Thesimple future could also be used in the
dependent clause ("we will need").
I have been relying on my Christmas
bonus to pay for the gifts I buy for my large family.
In this sentence the compound verb of the independent clause
("I have been relying on my Christmas bonus to pay for the gift") is
in the present perfect progressive. The simple predicate of the dependent clause
("I buy for my large family") is in the simple present
("buy"). The simple future could also be used ("will buy").
Even though the coroner has been
carefully examining the corpse discovered in Sutherland's Gully since early
this morning, we still do not know the cause of death.
In this sentence
the compound verb of the independent clause ("we still do not know the
cause of death") is in the simple present tense. The simple predicate of
the dependent clause ("Even though the coroner has been carefully
examining the corpse discovered in Sutherland's Gully since early this
morning") in the present perfect progressive tense ("has been . . .
examining").
The government has cut university
budgets; consequently, the dean has increased the size of most classes.
In this compound
sentence, both predicates are in the present perfect. The
simple future could also be used in the second independent clause
("consequently, the dean will increase the size of most classes") if
the writer wants to suggest that the dean's action will take place in the
future.
The verb in dependent clause should accurately reflect the
temporal relationship of the two clauses.
If the action in the dependent clause occurred before action in
the independent clause, the past perfect is usually the most appropriate tense
for the dependent clause, as in the following sentences.
Miriam arrived at 5:00 p.m. but Mr.
Whitaker had closed the store.
The action of
dependent clause ("but Mr. Whitaker had closed the store") is
described with a past perfect tense ("had closed") because the act of
closing takes place before the act of arriving. The simple predicate of the
independent clause ("by the time Miriam arrived") is in the simple
past.
After we located the restaurant that
Christian had raved about, we ate supper there every Friday.
Since actions of
the second dependent clause ("that Christian had raved about")
precedes the other actions in the sentence, the past perfect is most
appropriate verb tense.
We fed the elephant oats for a week
because it had eaten all the hay.
In this sentence,
both actions take place in the past, but the action of the independent clause
(the feeding oats) follows the action of dependent clause (the eating of the
hay) and as a result, the predicate of the dependent clause is in the past
perfect ("had eaten").
After she had learnedd to drive, Alice felt more
independent.
In this example
the predicate of the dependent clause is in the past perfect ("had
learned") because the act of learning preceded the independent clause's
the act of feeling independent.
If the action in
the dependent clause, occurs at the same time as the action in the independent
clause, the tense usually match. So if the simple past is used in the
independent clause, the simple past may also used in the dependent clause.
When the verb of
the independent clause is one of the progressive tenses, the simple past is usually
the most appropriate tense for the dependent clause, as in the following
sentences:
Lena was telling a
story about the exploits of a red cow when a tree branch broke the parlour
window.
Here the action
"was telling" took place in the past and continued for some time in
the past. The breaking of the window is described in the simple past.
When the recess bell rang, Jesse was
writing a long division problem on the blackboard.
This sentence
describes actions ("ran" and "was writing") that took place
sometime in the past, and emphasis the continuing nature of the action that
takes place in the independent clause ("was writing").
One of the most
common source of verb sequence error arises from a confusion of the present
perfect ("has walked") and the past perfect ("had walked").
Both tense convey a sense of pastness, but the present perfect is categorised
as a present tense verb.
One of the
easiest ways of determining whether you've used the perfect tenses correctly is
to examine the auxiliary verb. Remember "has" and
"have" are present tense auxiliaries and "had" is a past
tense auxiliary. The future tense auxiliary is "will."
