CHAPTER 3:

VERBS AND
VERB PHRASES
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CC BY-SA 2.0
 CONTENTS
I. Types of verbs
II. Verbal forms and the verb phrase
III. The morphology of lexical verbs
IV. The auxiliaries ‘do, have, be’
V. The modal auxiliaries
VI. Finite and non-finite verb phrases
VII. Tense, aspect, and mood
 TYPES OF VERB

• According to the function of items in the verb phrase, verbs can be classified into lexical verbs
and auxiliary verbs, with the latter subdivided into primary and modal auxiliaries.
• VERBS

LEXICAL VERBS AUXILIARY VERBS

(walk. write, play, etc)
primary auxiliaries modal auxiliaries
(do, have, be) (can, could, may, might,
shall, should, will,
would, must, ought to, used
to, need, dare)
Note: used to, need, dare, had better, tend to are often called Marginal modal auxiliaries or semi-auxiliaries
-Lexical verbs are open-class items.
 FILL IN EACH GAP WITH A WORD FROM THE LIST. YOU MAY USE
EACH WORD MORE THAN ONCE

(auxiliary/ form/ function/ inflection/ items/ lexical/ members/ modal/ noun/ primary
/syntactic/ system/ verb /)
The verb phrase must be seen contains three (1)_________ . The last has the
(2)__________ of a (3) __________ verb; the second has the (4) ________ of a
(5)___________ (6) ___________; the first, the function of a (7)_________
(8)___________.
• 1 items
• 2 function
• 3 lexical
• 4 function
• 5 primary
• 6 auxiliary
• 7 modal
• 8 auxiliary
 FILL IN EACH GAP WITH A WORD FROM THE LIST. YOU MAY USE
EACH WORD MORE THAN ONCE

(auxiliary/ form/ function/ inflection/ items/ lexical/ members/ modal/ noun/

primary /syntactic/ system/ verb /)
Whereas (1) ___________verbs are open-class
(2)_____________, the (3)_____________verbs are
(4)_________ of a closed (5)__________.
• 1. lexical
• 2 items
• 3 auxiliary
• 4 members
• 5 system
 I. VERBAL FORMS AND THE VERB
PHRASE
1. Verbal forms
- Many English Vs have 5 forms: the base (V), the ”-s" form (V-s), the past form
(V-ed1), the "-ing" participle (V-ing), and the"-ed" participle (V-ed2).
E.g. sing, sings, sang, singing, sung
- Regular lexical verbs have 4 forms (Ved 1 = Ved2);
E.g. work, works, worked, working
- Some English verbs have 3 forms (V = Ved1 = Ved2)
E.g. put, putting, puts; hurt, hurting, hurts.
- The verb "to be" has 8 forms: be, am, is, are, was, were, being, been.
 I. VERBAL FORMS AND THE VERB
PHRASE
2. Uses of verb forms
(1) Base form is used for
- all person in the present tense except the third person singular.
e.g. I/ You/ We/ They call every day.
- imperative:
e.g. Call at once!
- subjunctive:
e.g. He demanded that she call and see him.
- the bare infinitive; and the to-infinitive
e.g. He may call; He wants her to call.

(2) "s" form is used for the third person singular in the present tense. E.g. He always gets
up early.
 I. VERBAL FORMS AND THE VERB PHRASE

(3) Past form is used in past tense.

e.g. I/ You/ He/ She/ We/ They learned English.

(4) "-ing" participle is used in progressive aspect and in non-finite –ing participle clauses.
E.g. She is learning English (progressive aspect).
Learning English is difficult. (non-finite)

(5) "-ed" participle is used in perfective aspect, passive voice, and non-finite –ed participle
clauses.
E.g. We've learnt English for a year. (perfective aspect)
He is called Jack (passive voice)
Called early, he had a quick breakfast.
 T H E M O R P H O L O G Y O F L E X I C A L V E R B S

Lexical verbs are those that have their own lexical meaning and can occur as a head of the verb phrase.
E.g. Sing, dance...
+ the -s form and -ing participle of both regular and irregular verbs are predictable from the base
form.
+ the past and past participle forms in irregular verbs cannot be predicted from the base.
(1) Regular lexical verbs: are lexical verbs whose past tense and past participle we can predict if we
know the base.

(2) Irregular verbs are those whose past tense and past participle can’t be predicted from the base
meet meeting meets met met
speak speaking speaks spoke spoken
 FILL IN EACH GAP WITH A WORD FROM THE LIST. YOU MAY USE
EACH WORD MORE THAN ONCE

• (base / defective / infinitive / lexical /participle/ past/ predict/

present /tense )
Regular verbs are (a)_______verbs whose (b)_______ (c)_______ and
(d)________ (e) ________ one can always (f)________ from the
(g)________.

a. lexical
b. past
c. tense
d. past
e. participle
f. predict
 FILL IN EACH GAP WITH A WORD FROM THE LIST. YOU MAY USE
EACH WORD MORE THAN ONCE

• (base consonant / defective /-ed /imperative / infinitive/ inflection/ -ing/lexical

/participle/ past/ phonological /predict/ present /tense /voiceless/ voiced /vowel)

a. Past
b. Tense
c. Past
d. Participle
e. Predict
 FINITE AND NON-FINITE VERB PHRASES

Finite
- Form: V, Vs, Ved1
- Can be used as predicate
- There's person and number
concord between subject
and finite verbs
- Has tense and mood
distinction
Non-finite
- Form: to-V, V-ing, Ved2
- Can't occur as predicate
- Remain unchanged
- No mood nor tense
distinction

e.g. We sing. She sings. She sang. (Finite VPs)

They want to sing. They like singing. To sing Karaoke is fun. (Non-finite VPs)
He offered her some flowers.
 T H E A U X I L I A R I E S ‘ D O , H AV E , B E ’

(1) Do

- As operator used to form nagatives and interrogatives (E.g. I don’t

smoke. / Do you smoke?)
- As emphatic affirmative (E.g. I do agree with you.)
- As emphatic imperative (E.g. Do sit down, please.)
 T H E A U X I L I A R I E S ‘ D O , H AV E , B E ’

(2) Have
 T H E A U X I L I A R I E S ‘ D O , H AV E , B E ’

(3) Be
 THE MODAL AUXILIARIES

Pp52-58 self study

 MARGINAL MODAL AUXILIARIES

• Used to in positive sentences

• usedn’t to / didn't use to in negative sentences
• used he to (BrE); did he used to (both AmE and BrE) in the interrogative construction
• Dare and need can be constructed either as modal auxiliaries (with bare infinitive and
with no inflected -s form) or as lexical verbs (with to-infinitive and with inflected -s
form).
 T E N S E , A S P E C T, A N D M O O D

• Tense : the correspondence between the form of the verb and our concept of time.
• Aspect : the manner in which the verbal action is experienced or regarded (for
example as completed or in progress),
• Mood relates the verbal action to such conditions as certainty, obligation,
necessity, possibility.
• These three categories impinge on each other: in particular, the expression of
time present and past cannot be considered separately from aspect, and the
expression of the future is closely bound up with mood.
 TENSE AND ASPECT

• Consider the present and past tenses in relation to the progrèssive and perfective
aspects.
 PRESENT

• The simple present

• The present progressive
 PAST

• The simple past

• The past progressive
• The present perfect
• The present perfect progressive
• The past perfect
• The past perfect progressive
 VERBAL MEANING AND THE PROGRESSIVE

• The progressive occurs only with dynamic verbs. There are five classes of dynamic verbs.
 VERBAL MEANING AND THE PROGRESSIVE

• The stative verbs which disallow the progressive, can be seen as belonging to one of two
classes.
 THE FUTURE

• There is no obvious future tense in English corresponding to the time/tense

relation for present and past. Instead there are several possibilities for denoting
future time.

• Future-in-the-past
 MOOD

E.g. - She enjoys exploring new places.

- Don’t call me a liar.
- The teacher requires that every student submit
homework on schedule.
 Mood can be INDICATIVE, IMPERATIVE or SUBJUNCTIVE
 MOOD

• Mood is expressed in English

- to a very minor extent by the sub­junctive, as in
So be it then!
- to a much greater extent by past tense forms, as in
E.g. If you taught me, I would learn quickly
by means of the modal auxiliaries, as in
E.g. It is strange that he should have left so early
 MOOD

The subjunctive: 3 types

(1) THE MANDATIVE SUBJUCTIVE
(2) The FORMULAIC SUBJUNCTIVE
(3) The SUBJUNCTIVE were
 MOOD

(1)The MANDATIVE SUBJUNCTIVE :

E.g. We demanded that every member inform himself of these
rules. (formal)
It was necessary that every member inform/ should inform
himself of these rules. (less informal)
- has only one form, the base (V); lack of the regular
indicative concord between subject and finite verb in the 3rd person
singular present, and the present and past tenses are
indistinguishable.
- can be used when the main clause contains an expression of
recommendation, resolution, demand, and so on.
 MOOD

(2) The FORMULAIC SUBJUNCTIVE also consists of the base

(V) but is only used in clauses in certain set expressions which have
to be learned as wholes
• Come what may, we will go ahead
• God save the Queen!
• Long live Ho Chi Minh!
(3)The SUBJUNCTIVE were is hypothetical in meaning and is
used in conditional and concessive clauses and in subordinate
clauses after optative verbs like wish.
 MOOD

(3)The SUBJUNCTIVE were is hypothetical in meaning and is

used in conditional and concessive clauses and in subordinate
clauses after optative verbs like wish.
 MOOD

Modal past: in closed and unreal conditions involving other verbs

than “be”, the past tense conveys the impossibility
E.g. It’s time you went home.
She looks as if/ as though she won a lottery ticket.
I’d rather you didn’t submit your assignment late.
If only I lived on an isolated island.
THE USES OF THE MODAL AUXILIARIES
THE USES OF THE MODAL AUXILIARIES
THE USES OF THE MODAL AUXILIARIES
THE USES OF THE MODAL AUXILIARIES
THE USES OF THE MODAL AUXILIARIES
THE USES OF THE MODAL AUXILIARIES
THE USES OF THE MODAL AUXILIARIES
 THE MODALS AND ASPECT

• The perfective and progressive aspects are normally excluded when the modal
expresses ‘ability’ or ‘permission’
CHAPTER 12: THE VERB AND ITS
COMPLEMENTATION
 II. VERB TYPES
1. According to the complementation of the verbs:
5 types VERBS

Intensive Extensive

Intransitive Transitive

Mono-transitive Di- Complex

transitive transitive
 II. VERB TYPES

1.1. Intransitive verbs

Verbs with zero complementation can never take an object:

Intransitive verbs consist of 2 sub-groups:

+ Simple intransitive verbs: come, go, walk, sing...
e.g. The bird can sing.
+ Phrasal intransitive verbs: come in, go out, take off...
e.g. The plane took off an hour ago.
 II. VERB TYPES
1.2. Intensive verbs
Verbs with intensive complementation when a subject complement is present
- The verb in such a sentence is a ‘copula’ or ‘linking verb’. The most common
copula is be. Other copulas fall into two main classes:
+ Current corpulas: be, look, feel, appear, smell, sound, taste…
e.g. He looks tired. (SVC)  current
+ Resulting corpulas: become, get, go, run, turn, make…
e.g. She becomes a nice girl. (SVC)  resulting
 SUBJECT COMPLEMENT

(1) noun phrases:

E.g. She made a good wife.
(2) Adjective phrases:
E.g. John became healthier
• Note:
• Some adjectives (at least when used in a particular sense) require
complemen­tation by a prepositional phrase, the preposition being
specific to a particular adjective:
E.g. Joan is fond of them
They are conscious of their responsibility
 SUBJECT COMPLEMENT

Adjective complementation by finite clause

(a)indicative verb: I am sure that he is here now
(b) putative should: I was angry that he should ignore me
(c) subjunctive verb: It was essential that he be appointed
Adjective complementation by non-finite ‘to’-infinitive clauses
E.g. (1) Bob is splendid to wait
(2) Bob is slow to react
(3) Bob is furious to hear it
(4) Bob is hesitant to agree with you
(5) Bob is hard to convince
 ADVERBIAL

(3) Adverbials (Predicative adjuncts)

• The only copula that allows an adverbial as complementation is be:
E.g. The children are at the zoo/... are outside. (place adjunct)
The party will be at nine o’clock/... will be tonight (time adjunct)
The two eggs are for you [‘recipient’ adjunct]
The drinks are for the journey [‘purpose’ adjunct]
The increase in food prices this year was because of the drought
[‘cause’ adjunct]
 II. VERB TYPES
• 1.3. Mono-transitive verbs
• - Verbs with ONE object.
• - Mono-transitive verbs consist of 4 sub-groups:
• + Simple or derived: ask, answer, tell, retell...
• e.g. He bought this book last week.
• + Phrasal (the particle can either precede or follow the direct object ): bring about, turn
on, take off, give up…
• e.g. He gave up smoking yesterday.
• + Prepositional (The preposition in a prepositional verb must precede its
complement ): depend on, look for, look at...
• e.g. He looked at his father attentively.
• + Prepositional phrasal (a verb followed by two particles): put up with, cut down on...
• e.g. I can't put up with him any more.
 MONOTRANSITIVE VERBS

• Monotransitive verbs require a direct object, which may be

(1)a noun phraseIt is usually possible for the direct object of an
active sentence to become the subject of a passive sentence
e.g. The boy caught the ball ~ The ball was caught (by the boy).
• A small group of transitive verbs, the most common of which is
have, normally do not allow a passive transformation of the
sentence:
e.g. They have a nice house Will this suit you?
He lacks confidence. John resembles his father.
The coat does not fit you
 MONOTRANSITIVE VERBS

• Monotransitive verbs require a direct object, which may be

(2) a finite clause:
E.g. They agree that she is pretty.
I propose that he admit all applicants.
(3) a non-finite clause (infinitive or –ing participle clause).
E.g. John longed to do the homework.
John began to write/ writing a letter.
M O N O T R A N S I T I V E V E R B C O M P L E M E N T AT I O N
F I N I T E C L A U S E S A S D I R E C T O B J E C T
M O N O T R A N S I T I V E V E R B C O M P L E M E N TAT I O N
FINITE CLAUSES AS DIRECT OBJECT
M O N O T R A N S I T I V E V E R B C O M P L E M E N TAT I O N
NON-FINITE CLAUSES AS DIRECT OBJECT
 M O N O T R A N S IT IV E V E R B S

• A small group of transitive verbs normally do not allow a passive

transformation of the sentence:
e.g. They have a nice house. Will this suit you?
He lacks confidence. John resembles his father.
The coat does not fit you
- ‘reciprocal’ verbs such as resemble, look like, equal {two times three
equals six), agree with, mean {"Oculist’means "eye-doctor" )
- verbs of ‘containing’ or their opposite, such as contain {The library
contains a million books), hold {The auditorium holds over a thousand
people), comprise, lack;
- and verbs of ‘suiting’, such as suit, fit, become {This dress becomes her).
 II. VERB TYPES
•1.4. Di-transitive verbs
•- Verbs with 2 objects.
•- Di-transitive verbs consist of 3 sub-groups:
•+ Simple: ask, give, tell, teach, show, bring, buy, owe...
•e.g. The police asked him so many questions.
•+ Prepositional: accuse of, charge with, compare to, congratulate on, convince
of, deprive of, inform of, introduce to, punish for, refer to, remind of rob of,
sentence to, treat to …
•e.g. He accused me of killing her cat.
•+ Idiomatic expression: take care of, pay attention to...
•e.g. He took great care of his children.
DITRANSITIVE VERBS
 D I T R A N S I T I V E V E R B C O M P L E M E N TAT I O N

• Noun phrases as indirect object + finite clauses as direct object

e.g. John convinced me that he was right
John asked (me) what time I would come
 D I T R A N S I T I V E V E R B C O M P L E M E N TAT I O N

• Noun phrases as indirect object + non-finite clauses as

direct object
• E.g.
 II. VERB TYPES
•1.5. Complex transitive verbs
- Verbs with ONE object + a complement/ an adverbial
- Complex transitive verbs consist of 2 sub-groups:
•+ SVOC: call, consider, elect, look upon, leave, paint,
find...
•e.g. I called him my brother.
•+ SVOA: put, place, stand, hang, take...
•e.g. I put my bag on the shelf.
 PHRASAL VERBS, PREPOSITIONAL VERBS, PHRASAL PREPOSITIONAL VERBS

Intransitive phrasal verbs:

Verb + particle
The bomb blew up. {=exploded}
He turned up unexpectedly. {=appeared}
Did he catch on? {=understand}
- More idiomatic
- The meaning can not be predicted
from the meaning of verb and
particle in isolation
- Can not insert modifying adverb
“right/ straight” between the verb
and the adverb
vs. Verb + prepositional adverb
He ran across {across a place}
He walked past {past a place/ a person)
He walked straight in
Out came the sun
The adverb has its own meaning
- The function= a prepositional phrase of direction
- The meaning of verb and adverb are separable
- ’Run” can be replaced by “walk/ swim/ jump/ fly/ wade…
- “Across” can ve replaced by ‘in/ over/ through/up/ down…
- Can insert modifying adverb “right/ straight” between the
verb and the adverb
- Can place the adverb before the verb with S-V inversion
 VERB + PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE

Verb + Prepositional phrase Verb + particle + prepositional phrase

= Verb + preposition + NP (as E.g. Go on to the next room
prepositional complement) Set off down the road
E.g. Go into the room
Fly over the Pacific Ocean
Rush out of the house
Go onto the platform.
Verb + prepositional adverb + prepositional phrase
E.g. Fly across in no time.
drive out to my friends.
 PHRASAL-PREPOSITIONAL VERBS

• Verb + 2 particles + object  idiomatic

E.g. I can’t put up with his behaviour.
You must cut down on sugar intake.
Other examples: look up to somebody, look down on
somebody, break in on (the conversation)
 TRANSITIVE PHRASAL VERBS

(Transitive) phrasal verb + object vs. (transitive) Prepositional verb + object

- They turned on the light/ They turn the light
on.
- She brought up two children/ She brought - I approved of their action.
two children up - We must go into the problem.
- Find out the clue/ Find the clue out. - Can you cope with the work?
- Shall I put away the dishes?/ Shall I put the - He’s looking for a comic.
dishes away?

- The particle can either precede or follow the - The preposition must precede
direct object although it cannot precede personal its complement
pronouns (“They turned on it” WRONG - Other examples: ask for,
- Other examples: take in, look up, call off, make
out, put off… believe in, care for, object to,
long for, live on, refer to …
211 EX