English Grammar and Composition chapter 6: Kinds of Verbs

06 Kinds of Verbs

6/1: Verb: linking, transitive, intransitive

A. Read the following passage and look at the underlined verbs .

Mr. Kamal is a big scholar. He is our English teacher. He has written many books. All his books are very good. He has a lot of money. He comes to school in his own car. He himself drives the car. He drives very carefully.

Look at the words/phrases after these verbs. In the first two sentences 'is' is followed by a noun phrase and the noun phrase refers to the subject of the sentence. So, 'is' here is a linking verb. A linking verb is followed by a noun or adjective which refers to the subject. There is another linking verb in the passage. Find it out. Some verbs are followed by a noun which is different from the subject. For example, "has written". It is a transitive verb.

A transitive verb is followed by an object (a noun that answers who/what). In the passage, two verbs are followed by an adverbial. They are intransitive verbs. Intransitive verbs do not have any object i.e. intransitive verbs do not answer who/what. Try yourself and find out these verbs.

B . Identify the transitive, intransitive and linking verbs in the following passage.

Nasima is a student. She is a student of class VII. She attends classes regularly. Today she has worn a new dress. She looks very smart in this dress. The teacher praised her in the class.

C . Look at some more linking verbs in the following sentences:

(i) She got nervous in the class.

(ii) The man has gone mad.

(iii) The food tastes delicious.

Printed page 98

D . See the use of some more transitive verbs in the following sentences:

(i) Who has broken the cup?

(ii) He reads a lot of story books.

(iii) I shall take a cup of tea now.

Now use the following verbs as transitive in your own sentences :

kill, prey, sell, draw, learn

E . Here are some more example of intransitive verbs.

(i) The baby is sleeping.

(ii) Boys are playing in the field.

(iii) He was killed in an accident.

Note: An intransitive verb may be followed by nothing or it may be followed by any number of adverbials.

Activity 1 Now use the following verbs as intransitive in your own sentences :

walk work die laugh open

Remember, the same verb may be used as linking, transitive or intransitive. It depends on how you use it.

For example:

He ran home. (intransitive)

The river runs dry in summer. (linking)

I ran a race. (transitive)

Can you think of any other verb like this? Use it in 3 different ways.

Printed page 99

6/2: The Infinitve

We have already discussed tenses and modals in the earlier units. Besides there are other types of verbs that can sometimes cause problems for learners of English. These are: verbs followed by the infinitive, verbs+ -ing form and, verbs that can be followed by either an infinitive or by –ing.

The to infinitive

A . Read the following texts and notice the underlined verbs in them.

a . Karim wanted to tell Bahar the truth. But at the same time he didn't want to upset him. He arranged to meet Raju in the afternoon and decided to ask for his advice.

b . If you want to buy fresh vegetables, remember to go to the farmer's market early in the morning.

c . We were going to spend the weekend in a resort in Bhawal, Gazipur. On the way, we stopped to buy petrol and then we stopped again to buy some oranges and apples. Still we expected to reach the resort in time.

d . Shihab loves to ride his bike for going long distances. But he often forgets to wear his helmet .This morning when he was taking his bike out, his mother came out and said to him, "Good to see that you remembered to wear your helmet, dear. Be careful on the road and remember not to drive too fast.

Grammar point

We use the pattern verb + to infinitive with various common verbs such as,

want, hope, intend, expect, plan, try, manage, arrange, fail, wish, etc.

Printed page 100

e.g. I hope to see you in office tomorrow.

Why? Do you want to discuss anything in particular?

Yes. We're trying to set up a new office in town.

We intend to make it bigger than the present one.

We've managed to buy a good plot and expect to finish the legal formalities soon. We've already arranged to appoint an internationally reputed architect.

I wish to make it look unique. I've failed to make some of my dreams come true, but this time I plan not to fail.

We also use the to infinitive after some verbs connected with thinking, such as decide, forget, remember, etc.

e.g. I've decided to do some part-time job during the summer holidays. And although I remembered to discuss it with my best friend in school, I forgot to tell my parents about it.

We use the to infinitive after some verbs connected with saying that we will or will not do something, such as agree, refuse, offer , promise, etc.

e.g. Rahela had agreed to sell her computer at half price to me, but refused to do so at the last moment. I offered to give a slightly higher price, and she accepted that. I promised not to make any more deals with her.

The negative form is not + to infinitive:

e.g. Remember not to drive too fast.

I've decided not to accept the offer.

Printed page 101

The infinitive without to.

B. Read the following sentences and notice the use of the infinitive with to and without to.

My friend and I went to watch an English film on DVD at the British Council Library yesterday. It was a very funny film and it made us laugh. We tried hard not to laugh out loud and disturb other people but just couldn't stop. It was a story about a family where the parents let the children do anything they wanted. We were laughing so much that ultimately the assistant librarian came and made us leave. We*'ll remember* the incident for a long time to come.

Grammar point

We use the infinitive without to after modal verbs (will, can, could, may, might, must, should, etc.)

e.g. We couldn't stop. We'll remember the incident.

We use the infinitive without to after make and let:

make/let + object + infinitive without to

Activity 1 Put the verbs in brackets into the correct form (the infinitive with/without to).

a. : Did you remember _____ (post) the letter? : Oh no, I didn't. You forgot ______ (remind) me. I'll ______ (do) it now.

b. : Don't forget _____ (take) the old prescriptions with you? : Why should I ______ (take) them? : Because the doctor might ______ (want) ______ (see) them.

Printed page 102

c. : I can _____ (tell) you more stories about Nasiruddin Hojja and you would just ______ (laugh and laugh).

: I want _______ (hear) a sad story now, one that will ______ (make) me cry.

Activity 2 Fill in the blanks with the right infinitive form of verbs given below the passage.

a. Lucy lives in Manila. She is planning ________ to Dhaka to work with an NGO. She intends ________ here for one year. She wishes ______ Bangla after she comes to Bangladesh. A Bangladeshi friend in Manila has given Lucy a pictorial album of Bangladesh which she loves ______ to her colleagues in office. She tells them that she hopes ________ as many places in Bangladesh as she can. The beautiful pictures of the people and the landscape of the country have made her ________ in love with Bangladesh.

show come visit stay fall learn

Printed page 103

6/3: -ing form of verb: Gerund

A. Read the story below.

It was a nice day. Anna and her mother wanted to go out and enjoy the lovely weather. Anna wanted to go hiking in the woods or, she said, they could go swimming or fishing in the lake. But finally they went sailing. They were in the middle of the lake when the wind started to blow. The boat rocked from side to side because of the high waves. Anna was happy and started singing in a loud and clear voice. But Anna's mother didn't want to get wet and turned the boat around.

When they reached the shore, Anna immediately jumped out of the boat and started running around on the beach. She suddenly stopped walking because she felt something under her feet. She picked up her foot since she wanted to see what was there. She was surprised to find a beautiful shell. She took the shell, rubbed off the sand around it and, it started to shimmer in the bright sunlight.

Grammar point

Look at the words in bold in the story above. Notice that when we want to use two verbs together, we use either to + infinitive or the –ing form of the main verb in the sentence.

Some verbs can be followed by either form, but some can only be used with the –ing form.

Verbs that can be followed only by v+ing form are:

finish I've finished writing the letter. Do you want to read it?

Printed page 104

deny The boy denied stealing the rare coins.

risk You shouldn't risk going there at night.

delay They delayed going to the station and missed the train.

avoid I always avoid eating rich and oily food.

enjoy I enjoy writing stories for children.

suggest Babul suggested going to a Chinese restaurant after the meeting.

miss I really miss talking and laughing with my sister. She recently migrated to Australia.

Verbs, like start, like or love can be used with the –ing form as well as with the to + infinitive without any change in meaning. For example,

I love to read poetry. I love reading poetry.

I like dancing. I like to dance.

He's started going to the gym. He's started to go to the gym.

Note: It is important to understand that although some verbs can be used with both the –ing form and the to + infinitive, the choice may lead to a change of meaning of the sentence, for example:

a Do you remember leaving a message for her?

(You already left a message for her.)

Remember to leave a message for her.

(Now or in the future)

b Farooq forgot paying the electricity bill.

(He forgot that he paid the bill.)

Farooq forgot to pay the bill.

(He didn't pay the bill.)

Printed page 105

c Masum stopped buying fruits from the market.

(He used to buy fruits from there before but doesn't buy them from there anymore.)

Masum stopped to buy fruits from the market.

(He wanted to buy fruits from the market and so he stopped.)