Verbs
Verb
is a word used to describe an action, state,
or occurrence, and forming the main part of the predicate of a sentence, such
as hear, become, happen.
Lesson-1
Finite and Non-finite Verbs
A finite verb is one
that has tense. Moreover it has to agree with its subject in person and number.
Therefore it changes its form accordingly.
A finite verb is
essential in a sentence and it is closely connected to the subject of the
sentence. Read the following examples. The words in bold are finite verbs.
1. Stop it at once
2. He tried in vain to escape.
3. The police man asked him to stop
the car
4. I will complete the work by this
evening.
5. Does she help you with the
cooking?
Finite verbs are limited by tense, number or person, whereas
non-finite verbs are not limited by any of the three.
A finite verb
limited by tense. It can be in past, present or future.
Examples: She comes here once a week.
(present)
She came here
twice last week. (past)
A finite verb is
limited by number. It can be singular or plural. Depending on the number of the
subject, a finite verb has to change its form.
Examples: The boy speaks well.
(singular subject)
Those boys speak fluently. (plural subject)
A finite verb is
limited by person. i.e. it has to change according to the person.
Examples: I wake up at five
o’clock. (‘I’----first person)
He wakes up at six o’clock. (‘He’----third person)
Exercise-1
Read the following
sentences and identify the finite verbs.
1. He tried to run fast.
2. It is possible to bridge the gap.
3. It will help in resolving the issue.
4. The athlete succeeded in setting a
national record.
5. This happens to be the most quoted line.
Non-finite verbs
Non-finite are those verbs that are not
limited by number, person, or tense. They are not essential in a sentence. They
are used to express various shades of meanings.
There are three
kinds of non-finites: participles, gerunds, and infinitives.
Participles (-ing, -ed, or –en form of verbs used as
adjectives)
Participles that end
in –ing and represent a continuing or incomplete action are called present
participles.
Examples: I saw a
man carrying a basket of fruits.
Participles that end
in –ed, -d, -en, or –t and represent a completed action or state of the thing
spoken of, are called past participles.
Examples: Blinded
by the rage, he stormed out of the room.
Participles that
take the form of having + past participle, and represent an action completed at
some time in the past, are called perfect participles.
Example: Heaving
slept late, he could not get up early in the morning.
Gerund (-ing form of verb used as noun)
A gerund is the form
of verb which ends in ‘-ing’ and has the force of a noun and a verb
Example: I like reading poetry.
Swimming is good for health.
Infinitives (‘to’ + verb form------ to come, to go, etc)
The infinitive is
base of a verb, often proceeded by ‘to’.
Examples: He refused to obey the orders.
Now look at these
sentences.
He refuses to
give us permission. (‘refuses’ third person singular, present tense)
He refused to
give us permission. (‘refused’ third person singular, past tense)
The verb ‘refuse’ is
limited by person, number, and tense and it changes its form accordingly. It is
a finite verb. But the verb ‘to give’ does not change. It is not limited by
person, number and tense. It is an infinitive.
Similarly gerunds
are not limited by person, number and tense. See the sentences below.
1. Walking is good for health.
2. She likes walking in the evening.
3. Previously, he liked walking in
the evening.
Here walking is a gerund. It is not limited by tense, number
or person. The verb ‘like’ is a finite verb. It changes its form according to
the tense, number and person of the subject.
Participles are non-finites.
1. His mother has a worried look.
2. They had a worried look.
3. He has a worried look.
4. It is a worrying factor.
The past participle is ‘worried’ and present participle is
worrying. They are not limited by person, number and tense.
Exercise-1 based on Lesson-1
Underline the finite
verbs and circle the non-finite verbs in the following sentences.
1. Taming of wild animals is cruel.
2. She bought a packet of frozen peas.
3. He was arrested due to mistaken identity.
4. She has a forgiving nature.
5. His kind gesture helped in cooling
tempers.
6. The teacher wanted to raise her voice.
7. They demanded a written apology from him.
8. Their parents tried to bring them
together.
9. They demolished the ruined building.
10. He took the broken cycle to the repair
shop.
Exercise-2 based on lesson-1
Identify gerunds and participles in the
following sentences.
1. Walking on the grass is forbidden.
2. She is fond of listening to old film
songs.
3. He soon got tired of waiting for his
turn.
4. He saw an aeroplane flying up in the air.
5. Weeping loudly, the girl clung to her
mother.
6. I prefer reading to watching television.
7. Soaring prices affect the quality of
goods.
8. Waving his bat, Kamran acknowledged the
crowd.
Lesson-2
Transitive and Intransitive Verbs
Verbs can be
transitive or intransitive
Transitive Verbs
A verb that takes an
object is a transitive verb. The action or event involves another person or
thing, referred to as an object.
Examples: He likes
cricket. He bought a bat.
The word ‘cricket’
is an object of the transitive verb ‘likes’.
The word ‘bat’ is
the object of transitive verb ‘bought’.
A
transitive verb
shows an action, which passes from the doer or the subject to an object.
Subject verb Object
|
She wrote
a letter.
He had
his
breakfast.
I play
foot ball.
They bought
a big packet.
|
Following transitive
verbs takes two objects. The direct object relates to the verb and is affected
by the action of the verb. The indirect object indicates the person who
benefits from an action or receives something as a result.
teach ask
pray refuse deny
|
Offer promise
tell show give
|
Read the sentences
below and study the use of some of these transitive verbs which take two
objects
Subject Verb Indirect Object Direct Object
|
He asked
her a question.
She gave
him some money.
His mother promised him a gift.
I offered
Mr. Ali some help.
|
Intransitive Verbs
A verb that has no
object is an intransitive verb. It shows an action without an object, or
expresses a state of being. Only the performer of the action (the subject) and
the action (the verb) are mentioned.
Examples: He laughs
often.
An intransitive verb
can be followed by a subject complement, a prepositional phrase, an adverb, or
an adverbial particle (an element that tells us about the time, manner, etc. of
the action of the verb)
Examples: Sohail is my brother. (subject
complement: noun phrase)
My uncle is coming to dinner. (a
prepositional phrase)
The maid comes early. (adverb of
time)
The train went past. (adverbial
particle)
Note: adverbial particles are a group of adverbs with
characteristics of their own, e.g. ‘up’, ‘down’, ‘in’, ‘out’, ‘on’, ‘off’,
‘away’, and ‘back’.
Exercise-2
Add suitable
complements to the following sentences according to the instructions given in
the brackets. Choose from the list below.
Fast away my
good friend
The correct number a teacher without water
Late in my
younger sister
For three hours for excellence with
the work load
|
They came__________________________.
(adverb)
He walked___________________________.
(adverb)
Sahar is ______________________________.
(subject complement: noun phrase)
Rubab is _____________________________.
(subject complement: noun phrase)
It appears to be______________________.
(subject complement: noun phrase)
She became __________________________.
(subject complement: noun phrase)
The principal walked______________________.
(adverbial particle)
We cannot live_____________________________.
(prepositional phrase)
The entrance test lasted __________________.
(prepositional phrase)
She can’t cope _____________________________.
(prepositional phrase)
You should strive__________________________.
(prepositional phrase)
Intransitive Verbs Followed by Prepositional Phrases
There are number of
intransitive verbs that are followed by prepositional phrase and their objects.
The omission of prepositions in such cases will result in incorrect sentences.
Correct
|
Incorrect
|
I listen to music.
I am looking for a map.
|
I listen music.
I am looking a map.
|
Here is a list of
verbs with prepositions.
Abstain from object to believe
in sympathize with
Apply for/to depend on gazing at reply to
Insist on stared at arrive
at think of/about
write to longed for care
for
|
Exercise-3
Fill in the blanks
with suitable phrases from the list above.
1. He can ____________ that job.
2. What do you __________ it?
3. I will _________________ my brother.
4. They _______________ the victims.
5. She ___________________ peace and happiness.
6. I hope they will _______________________ some conclusion.
7. One should _____________________ the old and sick.
8. I do not _______________________ superstitions.
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