Lesson 3

Beginners

6.         WHAT IS A VERB?

A verb is a word that indicates the action of the sentence. The word

“acfion” is used in the broadest sense, not necessarily physical action.

IN ENGLISH

Let us look at different types of words which are verbs.

to run, to hit, to talk, to walk

to wresfle

to hope, to believe, to imagine

to dream, to think

to be, to have, to seem

Many verbs however do not fall neatly into one of the above cate-

gories. They are verbs nevertheless because they represent the

“acfion’~ of the sentence.

The book costs only $5.00.

to cost

The students seem tired.

to seem

To help you learn to recognize verbs, look at the paragraph below

where the verbs are in italics.

The three students entered the restaurant, selected a table, hung up

their coats and sat down. They looked at the menu and asked the

waitress what she recommended. She advised the daily special, beef

stew. It was not expensive. They chose a bottle of red wine and

ordered a salad. The service was slow, but the food tasted very

good. Good cooking, they decided, takes time. They ate pastry for

dessert and finished the meal with coffee.

The verb is one of the most important words in a sentence; you canncc

write a complete sentence, i.e., express a complete thought, without a

verb. It is important that you learn to identify verbs because the func-

tion of many words in a sentence often depends on their relationshç

to the verb. For instance, the subject of a sentence is the word doim!

the action of the verb, and the object is the word receiving the acticui

of the verb (see What is a Subject?, p. 26 and What are Objects!~

p. 132).

a physical activity

•           a mental activity

•           a condition

IN SPANISH

            Verbs are identified the same way that they are in English.

Terms Used to Talk About Verbs

            hWINITIvE—The verb form which is the name of the verb is called an

L infinitive: to eat, to sleep, to drink (see What is an Infinitive?,

~2O).

~IJuGATIoN—A verb is conjugated or changes in form to agree with

~ subject: I do, he does (see What is a Verb Conjugation?, p. 39).

1~E—A verb indicates tense, that is, the time (present, past, or

nre) of the action: I am, I was, I will be (see What is Meant by

!,p.58).

rn—A verb shows voice, that is, the relation between the subject

I dt action of the verb (see What is Meant by Active and Passive

a?, p. 97).

—A verb shows mood, that is the speakers’ attitude toward what

saying (see What is Meant by Mood?, p. 73).

a—A verb may also be used to form a participle: writing,

zäging, sung (see What is a Participle?, p. 66).

            INTRANSITIVE—A verb can be classified as transitive or

it depending on whether or not the verb can take a direct

inWbt are Objects?, p. 132).