What is a Verb?
A verb is a word that expresses a physical or mental action or a state of being. Every complete sentence must have a verb. They are the 'engine' that powers the sentence, telling us what the subject is doing or what it is.
Action vs. Linking Verbs
- 🏃 Action Verbs: These show a physical or mental action that you can 'do'. Examples: 'run', 'think', 'jump', 'study', 'write', 'create', 'analyze', 'imagine'.
- 🔗 Linking Verbs: These do not show action. Instead, they connect the subject of the sentence to a word or phrase that describes or renames it. Common linking verbs include 'is', 'am', 'are', 'was', 'were', 'seems', 'feels', 'becomes', 'appears'. Example: 'He 'is' a doctor.' ('is' links 'He' to his description, 'doctor'). Example: 'The music 'sounds' beautiful.' ('sounds' links 'music' to its description, 'beautiful').
Regular vs. Irregular Verbs
- Most verbs are 'regular'. They form their past tense and past participle by adding '-d' or '-ed'. Examples: 'walk' → 'walked', 'play' → 'played', 'arrive' → 'arrived'.
- 'Irregular verbs' do not follow this pattern and change in unpredictable ways. You must memorize them. Examples: 'go' → 'went' → 'gone'; 'eat' → 'ate' → 'eaten'; 'begin' → 'began' → 'begun'; 'is' → 'was' → 'been'.
Understanding Verb Tenses
- Simple Present: For habits, repeated actions, or general facts. (e.g., 'She 'walks' to school every day.' 'The Earth 'revolves' around the Sun.')
- Present Continuous: For actions happening right now or around the current time. (e.g., 'I 'am walking' to school now.' 'They 'are studying' for their exams this week.')
- Simple Past: For actions that started and finished at a specific time in the past. (e.g., 'I 'walked' to school yesterday.')
- Past Continuous: For ongoing actions in the past that were interrupted by another event. (e.g., 'I 'was walking' when it started to rain.')
- Present Perfect: For actions that happened at an unspecified time in the past or that began in the past and continue to the present. (e.g., 'I 'have walked' this path many times.' 'She 'has lived' here for ten years.')
- Simple Future: For actions that will happen in the future. (e.g., 'I 'will walk' to school tomorrow.')
💡 Helping (Auxiliary) and Modal Verbs
Helping verbs like 'be' (am, is, are), 'do' (do, does, did), and 'have' (have, has, had) work with the main verb to create different tenses and moods (e.g., 'She 'is' reading.'). Modal verbs are a special type of helping verb that express ability, possibility, permission, or obligation. Common modals include 'can', 'could', 'may', 'might', 'must', 'shall', 'should', 'will', and 'would'. (e.g., 'You 'should' finish your homework.')