What Is a Verb: A Simple Classification and Explanation

A verb is a word that expresses an action or a state of being. It is one of the most important components of a sentence because to form a correct sentence, you must include at least one verb. Example: 

• She runs every morning (Action)
• He is a teacher. (State of being)

Classification of Verbs

Verbs are divided into two broad classifications:

1. Lexical (Main or principal) verb
2. Auxiliary (helping) Verb

 

Lexical (Main or principal) verb

The lexical verb is also called the principal or main verb that expresses the main action or state of being of the subject in the sentence. It changes form according to the subject (singular, plural, 1st person, 2nd person, 3rd person). Main verbs can stand alone, or they can be used with a helping or auxiliary verb. Main verbs can be further divided into 2 types:

1. Action Verb
2. Linking Verb

Action Verb

Action verbs express the physical and the mental actions performed by the subject. Example:

• The doctor wrote the prescription. (Physical activity of writing)
• Tarif bought a ticket. (Physical activity of buying)
• Pushpita guessed the right number. (Mental activity of guessing)
• We thought the same thing. (Mental activity of thinking)

Action verbs are split into two categories: transitive verbs and intransitive verbs.

Transitive verbs and Intransitive verbs

Transitive verbs are not just verbs that can take an object; they demand objects. Without an object to affect, the sentence that a transitive verb inhabits will not seem complete. Example: 

• I saw an elephant.
• We are watching TV.
• He speaks English.

Intransitive verbs don’t need an object to make sense – they have meaning on their own. Intransitive verbs don’t take a direct object. Instead, intransitive verbs might have an adverb or adverbial phrase that completes their meaning. Examples:

• He has arrived.
• John goes to school.
• She speaks fast.

Linking Verb

Linking verbs connect the subject to a subject complement (a noun or an adjective that describes the subject). Linking verbs do not describe any direct physical or mental action, rather they give further information about the subject. Example: 

• Aqib is a responsible citizen.
• She seems tired.
• The students looked very happy.

 

Auxiliary Verb

An auxiliary verb (or helping verb) accompanies a main verb to help express tense, voice, or mood. Auxiliary verbs do not carry the main meaning of the sentence but help the main verb to express various grammatical functions. Example:

• Asad is eating all the chocolates. (Here, the auxiliary verb is helps to express tense.)
• The table has been prepared. (Here, the auxiliary verb has been helps to express voice.)
• I will arrange a meeting tomorrow. (Here, the auxiliary verb will helps to express mood.)

Auxiliary verbs can be divided into two main categories:

1. Primary Auxiliary verb
2. Modal auxiliary verb

Primary Auxiliary verb

A Primary Auxiliary verb helps the main verb to show tenses, voices, and questions. The three primary auxiliary verbs are – be, have, and do (in their various forms).

Be (am, is, are, was, were, been, being)

• She is reading a book. (Forms continuous tense)
• The cake was baked by my mother. (Forms passive voice)

Have (have, has, had, having) 

• They have completed the project. (Forms present perfect tense)
• We had not seen him for 15 years. (Forms past perfect tense)

Do (do, does, did)

• She does not like coffee. (Forms negative sentence)
• Did you call her? (Forms interrogative sentence)
• Iqra does know him. (Expresses emphasis)

Modal Auxiliary Verb

A modal auxiliary verb is used to express ideas such as ability, possibility, permission, and obligation. Some common modal auxiliary verbs are can, could, may, might, must, ought to, shall, should, will, and would. For example: 

• Parthib can drive a car. (expresses the idea of ability.)
• Parthib might drive a car. (expresses the idea of possibility.)
• Parthib should drive a car. (expresses the idea of obligation.)
• Parthib will drive a car. (expresses the idea of future intention.)

Common mistakes

Note: Be, Do, and Have are usually auxiliary verbs, but can be used as main verbs as well. 

• She is happy. (“is” is the main verb)
• She is going there. (“is” is an auxiliary verb)
• I have read many books. (“Have” is an auxiliary verb)
• I have many books. (“Have” is the main verb)

Have vs Has

Have and has are different forms of the verb to have. Even though they come from the same word, there are slight differences in the way they’re used.

While the verb to have has many different meanings, its primary meaning is “to possess, own, hold for use, or contain.” Have and has indicate possession in the present tense (describing events that are currently happening).

Have is used with the pronouns I, you, we, and they, while has is used with he, she, and it. How do you use have? Have is used when: 

• Speaking in the first person (I, we)
• Speaking in the second person (you)
• Speaking in the third person plural (they)

Take, for example, the following sentence: “They have nine apples.” Here, have is the correct choice because the subject (they) is a third person plural pronoun. How do you use has? Has is used when:

• Speaking in the third person singular (him, her, and it) He has an apple.