Verbs!

Group: Verbs 3

Cornelia John

Joslynne Raymond

Perla Salazar

Rebecca Salazar

Denise Olivo

Jeehan Ibrahim

Adriana Mendoza

Heather Davis

Michelle McDonald

Amanda Medina

What are verbs?

Class

Form

Verbals

Main

The main verb states the main action or state of being of the subject in the sentence. To put it simply, the main verb is the part of most of us think of as the action part: eat, prowl, swim, attack.

Transitive

A transitive verb has two characteristics. First, it is an action verb, “expressing a doable activity" like chase, climb, paint, hunt, eat, clean, wants etc. Second, it must have a direct object, something or someone who receives the action of the verb.

Here are some examples of transitive verbs:

The lion kicked the lizard under the rock.

Kicked = transitive verb; the lizard = direct object.

The monkey held her baby.

Held = transitive verb; baby = direct object.

Auxiliary

An auxiliary verb (also called helping) gives additional meaning to the main verb following it; helping verbs have do not have meaning on their own. They are essential for the grammatical formation of a sentence, but they do not tell us very much alone. They “help" the main verb (which has the real meaning). Some examples include: can, should, will and do.

Let’s Play Bingo!

On the next screen you will see a BINGO card with an auxiliary verb in each square. Your mission is to create 5 sentences using an auxiliary verb and main verb of your choice. Try creating the sentences using the wild animals you see! Can you get 5 in a row?

“An intransitive verb has two characteristics. First, it is also an action verb, expressing a doable activity like chase, climb, paint, hunt, eat, clean, wants. Second, unlike a transitive verb, it will not have a direct object receiving the action."

Here are some examples of intransitive verbs:

The lion sleeps.

Sleeps = intransitive verb; no direct object.

The giraffe walks.

Walks = intransitive verb; no direct object.

A verb has different forms depending on…

Singular

1. One large hippo floats outside the cave.

Tense of Verbs

In English, there are three basic tenses: present, past, and future. Each has a perfect form, indicating completed action; each has a progressive form, indicating ongoing action; and each has a perfect progressive form, indicating ongoing action that will be completed at some definite time.

Tense indicates time.

Each verb has three principal parts:

Present: perfect form, progressive form, perfect progressive form.

Past: perfect form, progressive form, perfect progressive form.

Future: perfect form, progressive form, perfect progressive form.

Present Tense

Simple Present:

Describes actions or situations that are now taking place and are habitually or generally true.

Antelopes jump over the stream.

Present Progressive:

Describes activity in progress, something not finished, or something continuing.

The turtle is swimming in the lake.

Present Perfect:

Describes single or repeated actions that began in the past and lead up to and include the present.

The alligators have lived inside their habitat for several years.

Present Perfect Progressive:

Indicates action that began in the past, continues to the present, and may continue into the future.

The monkeys have been scratching that bark for several days.

Past Tense

Simple Past

Describes completed actions or conditions in the past.

The monkey sat in the puddle.

Past Progressive

Indicates past action that took place over a period of time.

The lion was purring as he licked his paw.

Past Perfect

Indicates an action or event that was completed before another event in the past.

No one had thought about bringing an umbrella to the zoo.

Past Perfect Progressive

Indicates an ongoing condition in the past that has ended.

The zookeeper had been thinking about feeding the bears before lunch.

Future Tense

Simple Future

Indicates actions or events in the future.

The alligator will chew his meal in minutes.

Future Progressive

Indicates future action that will continue for some time.

The hyenas will be fighting for some time.

Future Perfect

Indicates action that will be completed by or before a specified time in the future.

Next year the zoo will have a new snake habitat open.

Future Perfect Progressive

Indicates ongoing actions or conditions until a specific time in the future.

By tomorrow, the zoo will have been closed for two days.

Active Voice

Active voice verbs are used when the subject is acting in a sentence.

Example:

The zebra stomped on the rocks.

Stomped is an active verb because it allows the subject to undertake an action.

Passive Voice

Passive voice verbs are used when the subject is being acted upon in a sentence.

Example:

The tallest tree was reached by Ed the giraffe.

“Was reached” is considered passive because they indicate that the subject (tree) is receiving an action.

A verb may be in one of three moods:

Indicative Mood

The indicative mood is the most common mood. It is used to express facts and opinions or to make inquiries.

EXAMPLES:

The monkey picks up the branch.

The African lion fetches the meal.

The zookeeper closes the window.

Imperative Mood

The imperative mood is also common. It is used to give orders or to make requests. It is identical in form to the second person indicative.

EXAMPLES:

Pick up those branches.

Fetch.

Close the window.

Subjunctive Mood

The subjunctive mood expresses a condition which is doubtful or not factual. It is often found in a clause beginning with the word “if”. It is also found in clauses following a verb that expresses a doubt, a wish, regret, request, demand, or proposal.

Example:

I wish to see wild animals!

Directions: In the following sentence, please identify the verb, person and tense.

One day scientists will make artificial gills for divers.

Verb=

Person=

Tense=

Let's try another!

Directions: Write the correct form of the verb shown in parentheses to complete each sentence.

The hippo ______ on it’s stomach under the trees all day. (lay)

The zookeeper _____ the gorillas before lunch. (feed)

The zookeeper _____ off the hungry lions in the habitat. (fight)

A spider _____ her tapestry. (weave)

I liked the suit that the penguins ____ during the show. (wear)

Activity 1

Verb: Will make

Person: third person

Tense: future

Activity 2

Laid, Fed, Fought, Wove, Wore

“...serve in sentences as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs."

...“are special forms of verbs and do not function as verbs even though they are formed from verb bases".

Gerund as subject:

Traveling on a safari might satisfy your desire for new experiences. (Traveling is the gerund.)

The safari trip might satisfy your desire for new experiences. (The gerund has been removed.)

Gerund as direct object:

The zebras are drinking water from the river. (The gerund is drinking.)

The zebras go to the river. (The gerund has been removed)

Gerund as subject complement:

The lion’s favorite activity is sleeping. (The gerund is sleeping.)

The lion’s favorite food is fresh meat. (The gerund has been removed.)

Gerund as object of preposition:

The cheetah was resting at the hill. (The gerund is resting.)

The cheetah hunted his pray for hours. (The gerund has been removed.)

Participles

“A participle is a verbal that is used as an adjective and most often ends in -ing or -ed".

“The term verbal indicates that a participle, like the other two kinds of verbals, is based on a verb and therefore expresses action or a state of being. However, since they function as adjectives, participles modify nouns or pronouns".

“There are two types of participles:

present participles and past participles".

“Present participles end in -ing".

“Past participles end in -ed, -en, -d, - t, or -n, as in the words asked, eaten, saved, dealt, and seen".

Smiling, she hugged the panting koala.

Shaken, he walked away from the startled hyena.

The sleeping baby chimp looks adorable.

The lion saved his cubs from the ferocious fire.

Infinitives

“An infinitive is a verbal consisting of the word "to" plus a verb (in its simplest "stem" form) and functioning as a noun, adjective, or adverb.

The term verbal indicates that an infinitive, like the other two kinds of verbals, is based on a verb and therefore expresses action or a state of being".

“However, the infinitive may function as a subject, direct object, subject complement, adjective, or adverb in a sentence".

“Although an infinitive is easy to locate because of the “to" + verb form, deciding what function it has in a sentence can sometimes be confusing".

To wait seemed foolish when decisive action was required. (subject)

Everyone wanted to go see the monkeys. (direct object)

The vulture’s ambition is to fly high. (subject complement)

The antelope lacked the strength to resist the lion’s hunger. (adjective)

We must go on a safari trip to learn more about the animal’s habitat. (adverb)

“Be sure not to confuse an infinitive--a verbal consisting of to plus a verb--with a prepositional phrase beginning with to, which consists of to plus a noun or pronoun and any modifiers"(Purdue Online Writing Lab, 1995-2013).

Infinitives: to fly, to draw, to become, to enter, to stand, to catch, to belong

Directions:

Name the verbal category of each group of sentences (Gerund, Participles, Infinitives) and circle the verbal on each sentence.

You have 5 min. to complete this assignment!!!

__________________

As soon as Theodore felt the rain splatter on his head, he knew that he had a good chance of seeing the elephants near the river.

When Danny heard the honk of the safari truck, he tapped me on the shoulders, showing his excitement about the trip.

Although we spent extra time watching the chimpanzees eat, we still missed the feeding of the giraffes.

__________________

The zebra trotting up to the fence hopes that you have an apple or carrot.

The water drained slowly in the pond from the river in the savannah.

Eaten by mosquitoes, we wished that we had made hotel, not campsite, reservations.

_________________

The alligator enjoys swimming.

Sleeping is essential for the tiger cubs.

Lions never gave hunting all that much effort.

Answers: Infinitives, Gerund, Participles

References

Verbs

Class

(“English Club", 1997)

(Simmons, 1997)

Good Luck!

(Simmons, 1997)

(Veit, 1999)

Intransitive Verbs

(Simmons, 1997)

Wild Things

Form of Verbs

Person of a Verb

Number of a Verb

Person indicates whether the subject of the verb is first (is speaking) second (is spoken to), or third person (is spoken about).

(Feder, 2002)

Number indicates whether a verb is singular or plural. In a clause, the verb and its subject must both be singular or both be plural (Nichol, n.d.). To make a noun plural, you add “an S”. To make a verb plural, you take away “an S”. Generally, if subject doesn't have “an S”, the verb will. If the subject does have “an S”, the verb won't.

Plural

2. Five small hippos float inside the cave.

(www.ucl.ac.uk/internet-grammar/verbs/person.htm)

(“Tense of Verbs", 2006)

(“Tense of Verbs', 2006)

(“Tense of Verbs", 2006)

Voice of Verbs

...is a characteristic which indicates the relation of the verb’s action to its subject.

The voice of a verb may be either “active” or “passive.”

(“Verbs: Voice and Mood", 1995-2013)

Mood Verbs

Let’s Practice

laid

(“Verbs: Voice and Mood", 1995-2013)

Verbals

(Tidewater Community College, 2004)

Gerunds

(Purdue Online Writing Lab, 1995-2013)

(Tidewater Community College, 2004)

“Gerunds: a verb form, ending in -ing, which acts as a noun."

Example: Running in the wild after dark can be dangerous.

Gerunds are frequently accompanied by other associated words making up a gerund phrase ("running in the jungle after dark").

“The term verbal indicates that a gerund, like the other two kinds of verbals, is based on a verb and therefore expresses action or a state of being. However, since a gerund functions as a noun, it occupies some positions in a sentence that a noun ordinarily would, for example: subject, direct object, subject complement, and object of preposition."

(Purdue Online Writing Lab, 1995-2013)

Activity