VERBS
A verb is a
word or group of words that expresses an action (such as sing), an event (such
as happen) or a state (such as exist). Any grammatically complete sentence
contains at least one verb. A verb helps to tell what happens or what exists.
A
verb tells us;
a)
What a person or a thing does.
Samson writes books.
The dog backs.
b)
What is done to a person or thing.
He is accused of murder.
It has been killed.
c)
What a person or thing is or it tells about a state of being or
existence.
He is a president.
We are in the classroom.
d)
It tells about possession.
Marwa has a good
handwriting.
She owns a nice car.
TYPES OF VERBS.
Verbs can be divided
into three main groups.
1. Action verbs.
2. Linking verbs
3. Auxiliary (Helping) verbs.
1.
ACTION VERBS
An
action verb expresses a physical or mental activity. It tells what something or
someone does.
The
workers stopped working for
two weeks.
Action verb
He
thought politicians are too selfish.
Action verb
Actions
verbs can be either transitive or intransitive.
TRANSITIVE AND INTRANSITIVE VERBS.
TRANSITIVE VERBS.
An
action verb is transitive if its action is received by something or someone.
Transitive means ‘crossing over’. The transitive verb shows how the action
crosses over from the doer of the action to the receiver of the action. The
receiver is called the object. So in other words a transitive verb is the one
that is capable of carrying the object. It requires a direct object to complete
its meaning. See examples below;
He likes mangoes
She can speak English
well
He stopped the car
She spoke the truth
He bought a nice shirt
He wrote a letter.
A
transitive verb that is capable of
accommodating only one direct object is called a Mono-transitive verb. E.g.
like, speak, stop, eat, etc.
He
likes mangoes
She
can speak English well
He
stopped the car
She
spoke the truth
A
transitive verb that is capable of
accommodating two objects; one direct object and another indirect object is
called a di-transitive verb. E.g. buy, give, write, pay, promise, offer,
sing, etc.
He bought me a nice
shirt
He wrote his father a
letter
She played me a piano
Juma told her a story
My mother sang me a
lullaby when I was young
The man handed me the
bill
The teacher gave me a gift
She sent her brother a
message
Jane sold me her car.
Without
the direct object the sentence’s meaning would be unclear and incomplete.
Example
He bought....(what?)
He bought me ....(what?)
NOTE: The indirect object
must be placed before the direct object as in the above sentences. It is also
possible to place the direct object before indirect object if they are used
with a preposition as in the sentences below.
He bought a nice shirt
for my brother
He wrote a letter to his
father
She played a piano for
me
Juma told a story to her
My mother sang a lullaby
to me when I was young
She boiled an egg for
him
The conductor reserved a
seat for Joseph
She ordered coffee for
Mary
INTRANSITIVE VERB
An
action verb is intransitive if there is no receiver of the action. Intransitive
means “not crossing over”. No person or thing receives the action of the verb.
In other words it does not require a direct object. Examples; run, come, hide,
stay, fall, laugh, rise, sleep, walk, sink, sit, etc
The soldiers hid in the
caves,.
They stayed there a long
time
She came yesterday
She is running.
She slept earlier today
They are walking to
school
Many
other verbs can be transitive or
intransitive depending on how they’ve been used in a sentence. Examples;
sing, write, run, cook, speak, boil, etc.
|
INTRANSITIVE
|
TRANSITIVE
|
|
She
sings well.
|
She
is singing a song
|
|
He
writes nicely
|
He
writes books
|
|
He
is running
|
He
is ran a mile
|
|
Students
spoke loudly
|
Ana
spoke the truth
|
|
The
soup is boiling
|
She
boiled water
|
2.
LINKING VERBS.
A
linking verb expresses either a state of being or a condition. A linking verb
joins words that name someone or something with the words that describe or
rename that person or thing. In other literatures it is called ‘Verb
of incomplete predication’ because it requires another word to complete
its meaning. There are fewer linking verbs than action verbs. The most common
linking verbs are the forms of ‘be’. (am,
is, was, are, were, been, being, and be).
Of these, the verb forms am, are, is, was
and were are used most often. Other
linking verbs are appear, become, look,
seem, feel, sound, grow, make, smell, taste, etc.
Examples
ü He is a teacher.
ü He looks good.
ü He appears smart today.
ü People are lazy.
ü She was happy at the part.
ü She will be a doctor.
ü The cakes taste nice.
ü She grew weaker and
weaker every day.
ü It sounds awkward.
ü I feel embarrassed.
Usually
a linking verb cannot complete the thought of a sentence by itself. It needs
another word or words to complete the though. The word which is required to
complete the meaning of the verb is known as a complement of the verb.
The complement of the verb can be a noun,
pronoun, or an adjective.
ü My mother is a teacher [noun]
ü This question seems simple. [adj]
ü It was him [pron]
|
Exercise
Use
the following verbs as transitive and intransitive in correct sentences.
Stop,
Speak,
Burn,
Begin,
Sing,
|
3.
AUXILIARY VERBS
An
auxiliary verb (or helping verb) works with another verb to create a verb tense
or to form a question. It helps the main verb to tell what happens or what
exists.
Kinds
of Auxiliary Verbs
There
are two kinds of Auxiliary Verbs.
i.
Primary Auxiliary Verbs.
ii. Modal Auxiliary Verbs.
1.
PRIMARY AUXILIARY VERBS
These
are verbs used to form negatives, questions and tenses. These can also be used
as main verbs/lexical verbs.
There
are three groups of Primary Auxiliary Verbs namely: The forms of the verb to ‘do’, ‘be’ and ‘have’.
|
BE
|
HAVE
|
DO
|
|
Be
Is
/ Am
are
Was
Were
Been
Being
|
Have
Has
Had
Having
|
Do
Does
Did
Doing
|
USES OF BE
a.
It is used as a linking verb.
I am a tax-driver
They are intelligent
Daddy is so strict.
b.
To make progressive aspect of a tense.
(a)
Present progressive
I am watching the comedy show.
She is cooking in the kitchen
They are playing golf.
(b)
Past progressive
I was watching the comedy
show.
She was cooking in the kitchen
They were playing golf.
(c)
Future progressive
I’ll be watching the comedy
show.
She’ll be cooking in the
kitchen
They’ll be playing golf.
c.
To express a command or advice
Be quiet
Be satisfied with what you get.
They are to finish writing the
notes by Monday.
You are to learn this poem by
heart.
d.
To form passive voice
I
am told we are leaving tomorrow.
We
are requested to be quiet.
He
is blamed for leading the
demonstration.
e.
Be + to infinitive, Be + going to, Be + present participle –ing can be
used to express future time/plan.
We are leaving tomorrow.
Magufuli is going to win
The guest of honour is to sit
here.
f.
To make questions and tag questions.
Am I your shop?
Is he serious?
Are they leaving today?
Isn’t she your daughter?
They were happy at the party, weren’t
they?
He is stupid, isn’t
he?
g.
To avoid repetition.
Is it well with you? Yes it is.
You said that you are not a thief but you are.
He was very intelligent, so was
his sister
h.
To make negations
I am not a pastor.
We were not invited.
He was not in the meeting.
i.
Was/were + perfect infinitive express unfulfilled arrangement.
He was to see me today.
They were to return from Denmark this morning.
I was to have published two books by now.
USES OF DO
i.
Apart from being used as an auxiliary verb ‘DO’ is also used as a full
verb to perform an activity or task.
I did it alone.
We do exams every week.
He does all the domestic
chores.
ii.
To make questions.
Do you like mangoes?
Does he go to church on Saturdays?
Did you invite him for dinner?
iii.
To form tag questions for statements without auxiliary verbs.
You came late, didn’t you?
I like bananas, don’t i?
He writes well, doesn’t he?
iv.
To form negations.
I don’t love you.
We didn’t invite you here.
He doesn’t love his wife
anymore.
v.
To avoid repetitions.
I told you to bring your camera but you didn’t. (bring)
He teaches English well. Yes, he does.
Juma said he would not come but he did
(come)
vi.
To emphasize a statement.
You do impress me very much
with your performance.
They did play very well.
I told you to stop it but you did continue.
vii.
To request or invite politely.
Do help me at least this once.
Do come to visit us.
Do join us for a drink in the evening.
USES OF HAVE
i.
Used as a full verb in a sense of to possess/take/experience and
receive.
I have two cars. (possess)
We had lunch at 1: 30 p.m. (take)
She had malaria last week.
(experience)
We have visitors from China
(receive)
ii.
To form perfect aspect of tenses.
Have is used with the past participle of the main verb, to express
actions completed by the present or a particular point in the past or future.
a.
Present perfect
She has finished her homework
b.
Present perfect continuous.
We have been eating.
c.
Past perfect.
They had gone home already.
d.
Past perfect continuous.
He had been waiting for you.
e.
Future perfect
This time tomorrow, I’ll have
finished my exams.
f.
Future perfect continuous
We’ll have been cleaning the classrooms.
iii.
To form questions and tag questions.
Have you finished your assignment?
Had he come back by 8:p.m.?
Has she told you the truth?
I have told you already,
haven’t i?
She has told you the truth,
hasn’t she?
He had come back by 8:p.m hadn’t he?
iv.
To form negations
Marwa has never been to
England.
We have not started classes
yet.
They had not given me correct
answer.
You have not sent me the money
I requested for.
v.
To form passive voice
I have been told that you want
to leave.
We have been invited for
supper by the president.
She has been admitted to the
local hospital.
vi.
Have + to infinitive express command or obligation.
You have to finish this work
before 7:p.m. (command)
She has to write a statement.
(command)
You have to love your
children. (Obligation)
He has to take care of his
aged parents. (obligation)
He was so tired that I had to
carry him on my back.
vii.
To avoid repetition.
I haven’t gone yet, neither have
they.
They promised to come today but they haven’t
yet.
You have done it well, so has
she.
2.
MODAL AUXILIARY VERBS
These are verbs used to express various moods and mental attitudes like.
Modal auxiliary verbs have the following main features.
i.
They cannot be used alone. They should be
combined with main verbs.
Eg. I can ride a bicycle.
I must go now
ii.
They have only one form. They have no
–ing or –ed forms and do not add –s to the 3rd person singular form.
Look at the following sentences and compare the change of verb forms in respect
to the change in pronouns.
|
Modals
|
Primary
|
|
I
can teach
You
can play piano
They
can write it today
She
can climb the mountain
We
can play football well
|
I
am studying
You
are studying
She
is studying
He
has bought a car
You
have bought a car
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iii. They have no infinitive
form.
We cannot say; to can, to shall,
to may,
But we can say I like to be given gifts.
I remember to have said this one day.
The following table summarises the modal auxiliary verbs with their
meanings.
|
Modal Auxiliary
|
Meaning
|
|
Can
|
Ability,
Permission, Request, Possibility.
|
|
Could
|
Ability,
Request, Possibility.
|
|
Shall
|
Futurity,
Willingness, Intention, Suggestion, Insistence, threat, determination,
command.
|
|
Should
|
Obligation,
Advice, Necessity, Expectation.
|
|
Will
|
Futurity,
Willingness, Intention, Prediction, Insistence, Request, determination,
promise, threat.
|
|
Would
|
Willingness,
Habitual Action in the Past, Possibility, Wishes, Desire.
|
|
May
|
Permission,
Possibility, Wishes, Purpose, Concession.
|
|
Might
|
Permission,
Possibility, Concession, Reproach.
|
|
Must
|
Necessity,
Prohibition, Compulsion, Obligation, Certainty, Probability.
|
|
Ought
to
|
Moral
Obligation, Duty, Necessity, Desirability,
|
|
Used
to
|
Past
Discontinued Habit.
|
|
Need
|
Necessity,
Importance, Desirability.
|
|
Dare
|
Challenge,
Courage, Boldness, Disapproval.
|
USES OF CAN
a.
To express ability.
I can speak Chinese well.
He can move a 100 tons rock.
b.
To express capacity.
The room can host five people
at a time.
The bag can carry all these
items.
c.
To express or grant permission.
Can I talk to you?
You can go now.
d.
To make a polite request.
Can I use your book for a while/
Can you help me to carry this box please?
e.
To express possibility.
You can do it if you try hard.
She can be in the main house.
COULD
a.
To express past ability.
My father could run 20 miles a
day ten years ago.
I could play piano when I was
ten years old.
b.
To form indirect speech.
He said that he could do it.
She said that she could finish
it on time.
c.
To express or ask for permission.
Could I take this chair please?
Sir, Could we talk to you?
d.
To make a polite request.
Could you join us for supper today?
Could you teach me Chemistry please?
e.
To express possibility.
If Joshua were a president he could
jail all the prostitutes.
If he had the required qualifications we could give him the job.
MAY
a.
To express or grant permission.
May I come in?
May we do it after dinner?
b.
To make a polite request.
May you lend me ten thousands please?
May you join me for a cup of tea?
c.
To express possibility.
It may rain in the evening.
She may come back today.
d.
To express a wish.
May the Almighty God bless you!
May you have a quick recovery!
e.
To express purpose in subordinate clauses.
Study hard that you may pass
with distinction.
Exercise regularly that you may
become healthy.
MIGHT
a.
To express permission.
Might we leave now?
Might I use your chair for a while?
b.
To form indirect speech as a past tense of may.
He said that he might lend me
the money.
John said that he might marry
next year.
c.
To express possibility/probability.
It might rain this afternoon.
They might win the match.
WILL
a.
To express futurity.
The meeting will start after
30 minutes.
He will come tomorrow.
b.
To make a polite request.
Will you escort me to the bank please?
Will you marry me this year?
c.
To express probability.
I hope she will be a great
author.
I suppose he will sit here.
d.
To express Willingness.
I will give you his phone
number. (Willing to give)
We will help you to carry the
bag. (Willing to help)
e.
To express Intention.
I will come to visit you
during the holiday.
I will build my house here.
f.
To express Prediction
He will be a great player in
the future.
They will fail the exam if
they don’t change their behavior.
g.
To express Insistence.
I will never tell you again.
(I insist)
I will be there at 10:a.m
sharp. (I insist)
h.
To express Request.
Will you escort me to the bank please?
Will you join me for a cup of drink?
i.
To express determination.
I will marry you this
December.
She will never talk to her
anymore.
j.
To express promise.
I will tell you the whole
story. (I promise)
I will buy you a gift if you
pass your exam. ( I promise)
k.
To express threat.
I will teach you a lesson
today.
I will evict you from my
house.
WOULD
a.
To form indirect speech as a past tense of will.
He said that he would visit
us.
They said that they would pass
their exams.
b.
To make a polite request.
Would you mail this letter for me please?
Would teach me English grammar please?
Would you mind escorting me to the cinema hall?
c.
To express a past habit.
I would go shopping every
Friday last year.
We would make a lot of noise
when our team scored a goal.
d.
To express Willingness /determination,
He said that he would teach me this topic.
She told me that she would
look after my children.
e.
To express a wish.
I would like to talk about it.
I would see him when I come to
Mwanza
f.
‘Would rather’ is used to show
preference.
I would rather be a farmer
than stay jobless.
He would rather be a Christian
than remain a pagan.
g.
To form conditional sentences type two and type three.
If I had enough money I would
buy a car.
If they had gone to Serengeti they would
have seen the Giraffe.
SHALL
a.
To express futurity.
I shall see you tomorrow.
I shall visit you next week.
b.
To express permission.
Shall I take this chair?
Shall we go now?
c.
To make a request for advice.
Which university shall I apply
to?
Which food shall we eat?
d.
To make suggestion/offer.
Shall we start our meeting now?
Shall we take a tax or daladala?
e.
To show determination.
You shall tell me the reason
for your lateness.
You shall do as I say.
You shall pay back my money.
f.
To show promise.
I shall tell you when I come
back.
We shall do the assignment as
you said.
g.
To express threat.
You shall go to jail if you
steal.
I shall teach you a lesson if
you come close to me.
She shall be punished for her misconduct.
h.
To express willingness.
I shall die for you.
I shall pay whichever amount
they say, to marry you.
i.
To show a command.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall remember the Sabbath
to keep it holy.
You shall honour your father and your mother.
SHOULD
a.
To express Certainty.
The bus should be here any
time from now.
Your parents should pay for
you.
b.
To express duty and obligation.
Every citizen should pay
taxes. (Duty)
Parents should take care of
their children (duty)
Children should respect
elders. (Social obligation)
Students should follow school
rules and regulations. (Personal obligation)
The rich should help the poor.
(Moral obligation)
c.
Expressing possibility or supposition in conditional sentences.
Should it rain the match will be cancelled.
If he should marry her, they
will make a perfect couple.
d.
To express probability or likelihood.
I should visit you if my car
is repaired in time.
He should be in the office by
now.
e.
Used with perfect infinitive to express unfulfilled past obligation.
I should have gone there
myself. (But I didn’t)
We should have bought that car
when it was being sold. (But we didn’t)
MUST
a.
To express obligation or duty.
You must leave today.
(obligation)
He must tell us the truth. (obligation)
You must take care of your old
parents. (duty)
He must pay the house rent.
(duty)
b.
To express certainty.
You must take the medicine
daily.
You must drink enough water.
c.
To express fixed or strong determination.
I must finish this topic
today.
I must become a public
speaker.
d.
To express probability or likelihood.
I think he must be sick today.
It must be you who told him
the secret.
e.
To express prohibition.
You must not involve yourself
in smoking
You must stay away from
politics when you go to college.
OUGHT TO
a.
To express duty.
They ought to love their
wives.
You ought to feed your family.
She ought to be faithful to
her husband.
b.
To express necessity.
You ought to drink water and
eat well.
You ought to read the bible
daily.
c.
To express fitness.
You ought to be a girl to get
this job.
They ought to be graduates to
qualify for the task.
We ought to know English to
get the visa.
d.
To express moral obligation.
You ought to help the poor.
They ought to address the
elders politely.
You ought not to beat others.
e.
Ought to + perfect infinitive is used to express unfulfilled past
obligation
You ought to have discovered
it earlier.
You ought to have taken your
lunch already.
We ought to have finished the
syllabus by last month.
USED TO
a.
To express the past discontinued habit.
I used to read three books a
week.
She used to visit me every
weekend.
We used to go swimming in the
evening.
NEED TO
a.
To express necessity.
You need to be honest to your
wife.
We need to buy a drink.
DARE
a.
As an auxiliary verb it is used without inflections to mean “have the courage to”
He didn't dare (to) say what
he thought.
They daren't ask for any more
money.
She dared not breathe a word
of it to anybody.
Dare to be different!
There was something, dare I
say it, a little unusual about him.
b.
To express a challenge or persuade somebody to do
something dangerous, difficult or embarrassing so that they can show that they
are not afraid.
I dare you repeat that again
and you will see.
I dare you miss class to day.
Some of the older boys had dared
him to do it.
|
EXERCISE
|
|
Say which function each of the underlined auxiliary verbs
expresses in the following sentences.
i.
I shall marry when I
am ready.
ii.
Students must be in
class at exactly 7:00 a.m.
iii.
She used to smoke ten
times a day.
iv.
It might rain in the
evening.
v.
You can go home now.
vi.
I can drive all types
of cars.
vii.
I will accompany you
to the party.
viii. You ought to travel now.
ix.
You need to work up
earlier than usual.
x.
I dare you to miss
the lesson again.
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