Verbs

The verb is a very essential type of word in any language, and in English, this is no different. You must have a verb in order to create a sentence, so understanding its function is vital to being able to speak the language. In this article, we are going to look at what a verb is and how it is used. Additionally, we’ll provide you with a selection of verb exercises and examples for practice to enhance your comprehension of verb usage.

What Is a Verb?

Verbs, in theory, are pretty straightforward. But not everybody would be able to provide a definition, even if they know how to use them within a sentence. There’s also a tendency amongst people to stick to certain verbs that they know, and pushing themselves to use new ones becomes a bit of a challenge. In the interest of giving you some variety, we’ll take a look at what exactly a verb is, we’ll use some examples for you to see how they function as part of a sentence, and we’ll provide you with some lists of verbs by different categories so you can find some that might help you mix things up a little in your writing.

A verb is a word that shows action, occurrence, or a state of being. When written with the particle to, the verb is in its infinitive form. This is where you would write it like this:

• to bake
• to clean
• to cook
• to sing

There are many more verbs, of course, but the above list shows you what a verb looks like in its infinitive form, making it slightly easier for you to identify whether or not a word in a sentence is a verb. Remember, a verb should show that something is happening, because an action is taking place in some way or another. Many people when first learning about verbs simply refer to them as “doing words,” because they always show that something has been done, is being done, or will be done in the future (depending on the tense that you are writing in).

Verbs are the main part of a sentence and one of the nine parts of speech in English.

Verb Examples in Different Tenses

Let’s look at the examples of the verbs above in a sentence so you can see how they might work. We’ll show them in different tenses too so you can see how they would need to be changed slightly to make sense.

Verb Examples in the Simple Tenses

• I bake every day. — Here the sentence works as a simple present tense sentence. Let’s change it to past.
• I baked every day. — Changing it to past simple tense means we say “baked” not “bake.” This shows that “I” used to bake every day, but don’t any longer.
• I will bake every day. — Changing to the future means you need the word “will” between the subject “I” and the verb “bake.”

Examples of Verbs in the Continuous Tenses

The easiest way to remember the continuous tense is that it refers to a verb that was happening over time, is still happening now, or will be happening in the future. Take a look at the examples below and see how the sentences change to show what is happening and how the verb looks different from its infinitive form:

• I was cleaning when you arrived.
• I am cleaning right now.
• I will be cleaning when you get here.

Verb Examples in the Perfect Tenses

The best way to remember the perfect tense is that it refers to something that was completed, has just been completed, or will be completed in the future. Notice how the verb looks different this time compared to its infinitive form, and how the surrounding words are different to accommodate the tense:

• I had cooked everything when you arrived.
• I have cooked everything.
• I will have cooked everything when you arrive.

Verb Examples in the Perfect Continuous Tenses

The simplest way to remember the perfect continuous tense is that it’s the previous two combined. So, it refers to something that was happening but has recently been completed, something that is happening now but will soon stop, and something that will happen and then be completed. Take a look below:

• I had been singing for an hour when you arrived.
• I have been singing for an hour.
• I will have been singing for an hour when you arrive.

Verb examples: walk, be, seem, run, see, swim, stand, go, have, get, promise, invite, listen, sing, sit, …

• He speaks English.
• I don’t know how to spell the word.
• She studies hard.

There are many different types of verbs in English grammar: irregular verbs, modal verbs, dynamic verbs, stative verbs, auxiliary verbs, causative verbs, and more.

Verb Rules

Important Verb Rules

There are many rules surrounding the use of verbs in the English language. Let’s take a look at the most important ones.

• When talking in the third person singular, the verb usually requires an -s or -es form, for example: He uses the bathroom.
• If the verb and the subject have a long phrase between them, the verb has to agree with the original subject and not that of the phrase. For example: The sweets which he gave to his wife were very tasty.
• If the subject is preceded by the phrase “one of,” the following verb should be singular. For example: One of the children is crying.
• If there are two nouns within a sentence and they refer to different people or things, the verb is usually plural. For example: The doctor and the nurse are working in the hospital.
• If two nouns refer to the same person or thing (or form one idea), the verb can be singular. For example: My friend and roommate is coming over tonight.
• Plural nouns on their own will use a plural verb, for example: His shoes are too big. However, if the plural noun is preceded by the words “a pair of,” then a singular verb is required. For example: A pair of shoes is quite expensive.
• If the noun is uncountable, then a singular verb should always follow it, for example: The poetry that he writes is very romantic.
• When a collective noun is referring to a single entity, it should use a singular verb, for example: The military is very strict. However, if it is being used to refer to individuals, a plural verb may be used (especially in British English), for example: The military are requesting new members.

Subject-Verb Agreement Rules

10 subject-verb agreement rules in English grammar:

• The subject and verb must agree in number. A singular subject takes a singular verb, whereas a plural subject takes a plural verb.
• The subject is separated from the verb by “with”, “as well as”, “together with”, “along with”. These words and phrases are not part of the subject. The verb agrees with the subject.
• Two subjects joined by “and” are plural.
• Two subjects joined by “or”, “either…or”, “neither…nor”, “not only…but also” take the verb that agrees with the subject closest to it.
• With collective nouns, the verb might be singular or plural (UK), depending on meaning.
• In sentences beginning with “here” or “there”, the true subject follows the verb.
• The verb is singular if the subject is a singular indefinite pronoun. The verb is plural if the subject is a plural indefinite pronoun. Some indefinite pronouns (some, any, all, most) may be either singular or plural, depending upon their use in a sentence.
• Use a singular verb for expressions of measurement, time, money, and weight when the amount is considered one unit.
• Plural-form subjects with a singular meaning take a singular verb.
• Titles of single entities are always singular.

Different Types of Verbs with Examples

Now that we’ve taken a look at verbs, useful verb grammar rules, and common tenses, we’re going to provide you with examples of verbs to help you vary your grammar and vocabulary a little bit.

Learn examples of different types of verbs in English with useful grammar rules.

Irregular Verbs (Examples)

Irregular verbs are common verbs in English that do not follow the simple system of adding “d” or “ed” to the end of the word to form the past tense (the past simple and/or the past participle).

• Fall – fell – fallen
• Feed – fed – fed
• Feel – felt – felt
• Fight – fought – fought
• Find – found – found
• Fly – flew – flown
• Forbid – forbade – forbidden
• Forget – forgot – forgotten
• Forgive – forgave – forgiven
• Freeze – froze – frozen
• Get – got – got
• Give – gave – given
• Go – went – gone
• Grind – ground – ground
• Grow – grew – grown
• Hang – hung – hung
• Have – had – had
• Hear – heard – heard
• Hide – hid – hidden
• Hit – hit – hit
• Hold – held – held
• Hurt – hurt – hurt
• Keep – kept – kept
• Know – knew – known
• Lay – laid – laid
• Lead – led – led
• Learn – learnt / learned – learnt / learned
• Leave – left – left
• Lend – lent – lent
• Lie (recline) – lay – lain
• Lie (not tell the truth) – lied – lied
• Lose – lost – lost
• Make – made – made
• Meet – met – met
• Pay – paid – paid
• Put – put – put
• Read – read – read
• Ride – rode – ridden
• Ring – rang – rung
• Rise – rose – risen
• Run – ran – run
• Saw (cut) – sawed – sawn / sawed
• Say – said – said
• See – saw – seen
• Sell – sold – sold
• Send – sent – sent
• Set – set – set
• Sing – sang – sung
• Sit – sat – sat
• Sleep – slept – slept
• Speak – spoke – spoken
• Spend – spent – spent
• Stand – stood – stood
• Swim – swam – swum
• Take – took – taken
• Teach – taught – taught
• Tell – told – told
• Think – thought – thought
• Throw – threw – thrown
• Wear – wore – worn
• Write – wrote – written

Modal Verbs (Examples)

Modal verbs are auxiliary verbs used to express ability, possibility, permission, obligation, advice, and prediction.

• Can: I can speak Spanish fluently.
• Could: Could you pass me the salt, please?
• May: May I borrow your pencil?
• Might: It might rain later.
• Must: I must finish this project by tomorrow.
• Should: You should eat more vegetables.
• Will: I will help you with your homework.

Dynamic Verbs (Examples)

Dynamic verbs describe actions that can change or progress over time.

• Run: She runs in the park every morning.
• Dance: They danced all night.
• Play: The children played outside.
• Swim: He swam across the lake.
• Write: She writes emails every day.

Stative Verbs (Examples)

Stative verbs describe states, feelings, thoughts, possession, or senses rather than actions.

• Know: I know the answer.
• Believe: She believes in herself.
• Love: They love classical music.
• Need: He needs help.
• Understand: We understand the rules.

Auxiliary Verbs (Examples)

Auxiliary verbs help the main verb express tense, aspect, voice, or emphasis.

• Be: A meeting is being held tomorrow.
• Have: I have finished my homework.
• Do: I do not agree.
• Will: She will call you later.

Causative Verbs (Examples)

Causative verbs show that the subject causes someone else to do something.

• Have: I had the mechanic check the brakes.
• Get: She got her hair cut.
• Make: The movie made me cry.
• Let: Please let me know.

Transitive Verbs (Examples)

A transitive verb needs a direct object to complete its meaning.

• Eat: She ate the sandwich.
• Write: He wrote a letter.
• Buy: She bought a new dress.
• Fix: He fixed the broken vase.

Intransitive Verbs (Examples)

An intransitive verb does not need a direct object.

• Sleep: The baby slept peacefully.
• Laugh: Everyone laughed.
• Run: He ran quickly.
• Arrive: They arrived late.

Linking Verbs (Examples)

Linking verbs connect the subject to more information about it.

• Be: She is happy.
• Seem: He seems tired.
• Become: She became a teacher.
• Feel: I feel confident.

Examples of Different Verb Forms

Infinitives

The infinitive form of a verb is usually written with to, such as to run, to see, to have.

Gerunds

Gerunds end in -ing and function as nouns.

• Swimming is good exercise.
• I enjoy reading.

Participles

Participles act as adjectives.

• Present participle: The running water.
• Past participle: The broken window.

Common Verb Examples in Sentences

• Do: I don’t know.
• Drive: He drives a truck.
• Eat: You can’t eat your cake and have it.
• Learn: Children learn to crawl before they can walk.
• Lay: He lay on his back.
• Lift: He couldn’t lift the table, and neither could I.

Conclusion

The verb is an integral part of the English language, and there are many rules surrounding its use. In this article, we have learned what a verb is, explored the main verb tenses, reviewed subject-verb agreement rules, and studied different types of verbs with clear examples. Understanding verbs will help you build correct sentences and communicate more clearly in English.