“ENGLISH VERBS AND ITS
IMPLICATIONS IN THE
TEACHING-LEARNING
PROCESS: A GLOBAL VIEW.”
BY HERNAN ARTETA HUERTA
As a student of a foreign language,
I have always found English verbs a bit difficult to understand and use due to
the fact that we are not taught the world around them. Many people still
believe that teaching structural aspects of the language is not really
necessary; since most approaches to ELT focus on the communicative trends. In this article, I am going to be as clear as
possible and will attempt to describe, analyze, compare and exemplify them as
they are used to help my colleagues understand the importance of what I am
proposing here.
KNOWING VERBS. Getting to know verbs and how they work and behave structurally and
functionally is a crucial aspect in the teaching-learning process. If we teach our students to identify them,
they will improve their productive skills; I mean they will be able to speak
and write more effectively. That is why students need to be trained to
recognize each verb by quickly analyzing them in a sentence rather than just
memorizing them because a single verb might fit into several patterns,
categories or even kinds. For example “have” can be a lexical, an auxiliary, a
causative, and even a modal verb.
· I have a lot of experience working
with kids. (lexical verb)
· I have been to Egypt three
times this year. (auxiliary
verb)
· I always have the butcher slice the
meat. (causative
verb)
· I have to work in the office
all weekend long. (special modal)
Verbs can also be affected by the subject,
number
(singular or plural), aspect (simple, progressive and
perfective); mood (declarative or indicative, imperative, and subjunctive,
which can be either present or past); tense (past and present - most
grammarians and linguists consider that English does not have the future tense
since this can be expressed by using the simple present and the present
progressive); voice (active, passive, and mid-voice) and finally by the kind,
which will determine the type of complement that is to follow. For example, in
the complement position we can find structures like the direct object (DO), indirect
object (IO), subjective complement (SC), objective
complement (OC), and adverbs of manner, place, direction, time,
frequency, reason, purpose, etc.
THE ASPECT is a grammatical category which deals with HOW the event described by the verb is
regarded. For instance, whether it is a habit, a repeated or a temporal action,
or even if it is in progress (ongoing action.) In spite of the fact that when
talking about verb tenses we find names like: simple, progressive, and
perfective, English has only two acknowledged aspects PROGRESSIVE, and PERFECTIVE.
· I am working harder on
weekends. (progressive aspect)
· I have worked hard all my life. (perfective aspect)
THE MOOD expresses, basically, the writer´s or speaker´s
attitude to what is being said. English grammar has three moods: The INDICATIVE or DECLARATIVE, which is used in most statements and questions. The IMPERATIVE used in
requests and commands. (imperative statements have an understood subject of
“YOU” and therefore take second-person verbs.) The SUBJUNCTIVE mood is found in
contrary-to-fact or hypothetical statements. It is also used to express
necessity and desire. In your own writing, you must decide which statements
should be in the subjunctive. (*If something is likely to happen, use the
indicative. If something is purely hypothetical, use the subjunctive.)
· He walks every day after lunch (indicative mood)
· Do
you believe in hard work? (indicative
mood)
· [You] Sit
down. (imperative
mood)
· [You]
Please take a number.
(imperative mood)
· If
I were king, you would
be queen. (present
subjunctive)
· I wish I were a doctor to help her. (expressing
desire)
· It is necessary that she see
a doctor. (expressing necessity)
THE TENSE is the
relationship between the FORM of the verb and the TIME of the action or state it describes. In English,
verbs tenses are two PRESENT and PAST. There is no FUTURE tense, since this can be expressed by the
simple present and the present progressive.
· The sun rises in the east. (timeless expression)
· Suddenly she falls on the
ground. (past event [descriptive])
· They are studying in the hall now. (present [ongoing])
· The movie begins at 7:30 pm.
(future [scheduled])
· I leave / am leaving next week.
(future [plans])
THE VOICE is the way in which a language expresses a
relationship between the verb and the noun, noun phrase or noun clause
associated with it. Three sentences can differ in voice and yet have the same
basic meaning. However, there might be a change in focus or emphasis and one
type would be more appropriate than the other. The voice could be either ACTIVE, MID-VOICE,
or PASSIVE.
· The storm damaged the house.
(active voice)
· The house was damaged by the
storm. (passive voice)
· The house damaged. (mid-voice – see ergative verbs)
THE VERB FORM is connected to the way we regard
verbs and its relationship with the subject or grammar patterns. They can be:
· Base / main /
principal / simple form work
· S-form works
· Ed-form worked
· Ing-form working
· Infinitive / To-form to work
Verbs can also be FINITE where the verb shows tense, person or number. For example, she goes, he
went; or NON-FINITE where verb forms have no person,
tense or number. For instance, to exercise (verb, verbal noun, and adverb of
purpose), exercising (verbal noun and participial adjective [active]), exercised (participial adjective [passive].)
· My father is fishing by the
lake. (verb-ing)
· He has
just bought a fishing rod.
(participial adjective)
· He loves fishing / to fish. (gerund[verbal noun])
· He went to the lake to fish. (adverbial[of purpose])
Finally, the KIND OF VERB is also important because by knowing them you might
figure out what structure is likely to follow it. That means that if we are
familiarized with the verbs we will decide on either using a direct object, an
indirect object, a subjective complement, or an adverbial. Through my personal
teaching experience, I have found different kinds of verbs, so I will attempt
to describe them all.
1.
REGULAR
VERBS are the ones that get their past and
past participle forms by adding the suffixes “D“ “ED“
or changing the last “Y” into “I” And
adding “ED” For example, wanted, asked,
claimed, granted, stopped, kicked, locked, etc.
2.
IRREGULAR VERBS are the ones that change slightly, completely
or just remain the same to get their past and past participle forms. For
example, speak-spoke-spoken, drive-drove-driven, teach-taught-taught,
caught-caught, cut-cut, let-let, set-set, hit-hit, do-did-done, go-went-gone.
3. ACTION (DYNAMIC) VERBS are the
ones that can be used in continuous tenses. (ing-forms) e.g. drive, teach,
write, drink, sing, run, swim, do, etc.
- My mother is cooking now. (present
progressive)
-
By 10 o’clock I’ll be dancing. (future progressive)
-
Your brother was fighting on the street. (past progressive)
-
I’ve been teaching grammar for quite long. (present perfect progress.)
4. NON-ACTION (STATIVE) VERBS are the
ones that cannot be used in continuous tenses. They can be sub
categorized into:
n Mental state verbs are the ones related to the mind. For example: know, think, understand,
believe, guess, suppose, forget, remember, imagine.
n Condition verb are the ones that show state or condition like:
have (possess), own, seem, appear, look like, resemble, owe, cost, belong.
n Perception verbs are the
ones related to the senses. For example, hear, feel, see, notice, smell, taste,
observe, spot, find, catch (find.)
Feeling and Emotion verbs: love,
hate, like, hope, need, want, prefer, desire, wish, consider, mean.
§ I guess that she is a movie star. (correct)
I am
guessing that she is a movie star. (incorrect)
§ My brother has a beautiful sports
car. (correct)
My brother
is having a beautiful sports car. (incorrect)
5. TRANSITIVE VERBS are the
ones that are followed by a direct object. The sentences with a transitive verb
can be transformed into the PASSIVE
VOICE. They can
be classified into three categories:
n Simple transitive verbs are just followed by a direct object. (one
object)
e.g. Mary is writing a
letter. (verb
+ D.O.)
n Ditransitive verbs are followed by a direct and an indirect object.
e.g. Mary is writing a letter to John. (verb + D.O. + I.O.)
Mary is writing
John a
letter. (verb
+ I.O. + D.O.)
Mary is writing
to John. (verb + I.O. (implicit D.O.)
n Complex transitive verbs are the verbs followed by special structures
including an objective complement (O.C.) after the direct object. Some of the
most common verbs fitting this structure are:
believe, consider, think, understand, judge, know, proclaim, appoint,
elect, vote, name, choose, call, see, feel, hear, notice, spot, find, catch,
observe / make, have, get, set, wish, want, need, desire, paint, etc.
e.g. He judged me wrong. D.O. + O.C.
I
reported him dead. D.O. + O.C.
That
man wants his coffee hot. D.O.
+ O.C.
Sue
needs her shoes clean. D.O.
+ O.C.
They
painted their car black. D.O.
+ O.C.
Make her happy. D.O. + O.C.
6.- INTRANSITIVE VERBS are followed by a complement which
can be compound by adverbs of manner, time, place, direction or frequency but
they cannot contain a direct object.
Among the intransitive verbs we have the verbs showing movement example:
go, travel, fly, drive, sail, walk, run, jog, swim, be, etc. The sentence with
an intransitive verb cannot be transformed into the passive voice.
e.g. He
was at home. (verb + adverb of place.)
I travel last Monday morning. (verb + adverb of time.)
We
always drive carefully. (verb + adverb of manner.)
They
work on Sundays. (verb + adverb of frequency.)
7.- BITRANSITIVE
(AMBITRANSITIVE) VERBS are the ones that can function either as TRANSITIVE
or INTRANSITIVE.
This special case is also known as the “DOUBLE
GRAMMATICAL ROLE.” For example:
a. Peter drove to
Denver. (the verb drive is INTRANSITIVE, because it
V Adv. Place is followed by an adverb of place.)
b. Peter drove my car. (the
verb drive is TRANSITIVE, because it is
V
D.O. followed by a direct object.)
c. Peter drove
his car to Denver. (the
verb is TRANSITIVE, because of
V D.O.
Adv. Place the fact
that it has
a direct object
despite having an adverbial of place.)
d. I wrote a
letter this morning. (transitive
verb) So it is BITRANSITIVE
I wrote a letter to Natty. (ditransitive
verb)
I wrote a lot this morning. (intransitive
verb)
8.- PHRASAL VERBS are the ones that are compound by
two or three words one of them is a verb and the other one is or are
prepositions or adverbs. They can be
used as synonyms for other well-known verbs. We have two kinds of phrasal verbs:
n Two-word Verbs:
§
Separable.- You cannot use pronouns after the two parts
of the verb, but you can use them in between the two parts. Among the most
common ones we have : turn up, turn
down, turn off, turn on, take off, put on, put in, take out, roll up, roll
down, speed up, slow down, fill in, fill out, call up, fix up, write down,
leave out, etc.
e.g. Turn
on it. (INCORRECT)
Turn
on the radio. Take off
your sweater.
Turn the radio on. Take your sweater off.
Turn it on. Take it
off.
§
Inseparable.- You can
use pronouns after them, Among the most common ones we have : get in, get on,
get off, check into, look at, look for, look into, look like, look after, take
care, take off, call on, etc.
e.g. Get
on the bus.
Get on it. (CORRECT)
n Three-word Verbs:
§ They are also known as PHRASAL PREPOSITIONAL VERBS and
they are always inseparable. Among the most common ones we have: check out of,
come up with, cut down on, drop out of, get rid of, look down on, look forward
to, look up to, run out of, stick up for, etc.
9.- CAUSATIVE VERBS are special verbs used with another
verb to express that one person causes, forces, persuades, obliges, hires, gets
another person to do something for him/her. They are HAVE, MAKE and GET. The grammar of have and make is
similar because they are followed by a noun plus a base form; while get is
followed by an infinitive form. You can
also use causative-like
verbs, such as: cause, drive, hire, persuade, force, oblige,
compel, order, convince, bribe, beg, request, suggest, etc. Only HAVE and GET can be used in passive constructions.
e.g. My mother always has the
butcher slice the meat. (active)
I am having the
plumber fix the faucet. (active)
My wife had her suit mended by the tailor. (passive)
We are going to have
our shoes soled. (passive)
10.- COMMANDING VERBS are special verbs which express orders, this
structures include a that clause with a base-form verb (also known as the SUBJUNCTIVE) Among the most common ones we have
: suggest, order, request, urge, demand, insist, require, claim, ask,
recommend, prefer, forbid, prohibit, ban, etc.
e.g. His doctor recommended
that he stay in bed for a week.
The thief demanded
that the vault be opened.
We insist that
the driver lower the speed.
The judge ordered
that the suspect be released.
11.- COPULA VERBS are special verbs that link the
subject with the complement. In other words, the complement refers back to the
subject describing it. The structure after linking verbs is known as SUBJECTIVE
COMPLEMENT
(SC). One way to check whether a verb is linking or
not is by replacing the verb using an appropriate form of be (we understand by
appropriate number and tense.) Some of the most common linking verbs are: feel,
smell, taste, sound, look, appear, seem, resemble, remain, keep, stay, go,
turn, get, become, and grow.
e.g. Vanessa appears
tired. = Vanessa is tired.
This soup smells
good.
Your friend sounded
upset. = Your friend was upset.
The chocolate cake
looks delicious.
12.- PERFORMATIVE
VERBS are the ones that perform
the action itself while saying it or writing it.
e.g. I
resign. (resign
performs the action of resignation)
I named him André. (named,
the action of giving the name)
13.- PERMISSIVE VERBS In this group we consider all the verbs that
permit or prohibit us to do something.
We can consider the following verbs: let, permit, authorize, allow,
appoint, enable, entitle, prohibit, forbid, ban, bar, etc.
The structure after permissive verbs is usually
S + Permissive + Obj. + V-INF.
The structure for let is as follows: Let
+ someone +
DO + Sth.
e.g. The teacher allowed his students to open their books. (active voice)
All of the students
were allowed to open their books. (passive voice)
Mr. Bossy appointed my
sister to be his secretary. (active
voice)
My sister was appointed
to be Mr. Bossy’s secretary. (passive
voice)
I let my son play
soccer after he finished his homework.
14.- REFLEXIVE VERBS.- We say that a verb is reflexive when
we find a reflexive pronoun or a reciprocal pronoun in the predicate. Some common reflexive verbs are:
congratulate, look, enjoy, see, hear, buy, get, find, etc.
e.g. My father cut
himself while shaving this morning.
They really enjoyed
themselves at the party.
His sister bought
a new car by herself.
I saw her dancing
with herself
.
15.- REPORTING VERBS are the verbs used to build up reported
structures: reported speech, reported questions and special structures in the
passive voice and/or structures including TO BE Such verbs are : say, tell, ask,
the structures are : it is said, it is reported, it is known, it is believed,
it is thought, it is considered, etc.
e.g. They said (to me) that Cecilia is very
friendly.
They told me that Cecilia is very
friendly.
It
is said that
Cecilia is very friendly.
Cecilia
is said to be very friendly.
16.- SENSORY
(PERCEPTION) VERBS are the ones related to the senses. The grammar of these verbs is rather complex
because they accept a number of patterns which varies one from another. They can be followed by an adjective (S.C.),
noun + infinitive without to, noun + verb ing, noun+ past participle, noun
clause (that clause), D.O. + O.C., noun + as if/ as though … ( clause ). Some of the most common verbs are : feel,
smell, see, observe, watch, taste, hear, spot, catch, notice.
e.g. I feel good. adjective
(S.C.)
I saw him
tired. D.O.
+ adjective (O.C.)
I observe the
insect fly. noun (D.O.)
+ BF.
I heard the
bell ringing. noun (D.O.)
+ v-ing.
I saw your
car crashed. noun (D.O.)
+ past participle.
I see that
he is wrong. that
clause.
He sounded
as if he was tired. as
if … (clause.)
17.- HELPING VERBS are the ones which help as form
tenses, aspects and negative and interrogative sentences. These verbs can be
sub classified into three groups.
n Auxiliary verbs.-
BE : is,
are, am, was, were, been. be, and being. (they help to form continuous tenses
and the passive voice.) DO: do,
does, did. (they help to form simple tenses.) HAVE: have, has, had, having. (they help to form perfect tenses.) GET: get, gets, got, getting. (they
help to form the passive voice).
e.g. He is painting the door now. (progressive
tense)
The door is being painted. (passive
voice)
My younger sister didn’t study (simple tense)
She has travelled for a year. (perfect
tense)
The car got broken down. (passive
voice)
n Modal (defective) verbs.-
They are called
defective verbs, because of their defect. They do not have the past participle
form and MUST does not have past nor past participle forms. CAN–COULD,
MAY–MIGHT, WILL–WOULD, SHALL–SHOULD, MUST.
§
Special Modals: HAVE TO - HAD TO, OUGHT TO, DARE TO, NEED TO.
e.g. They can swim. (modal +
verb BF.)
He could be tired. (modal + BE
+ adj.)
She might be working. (modal +
BE + V-ing.)
You should have studied. (modal +
HAVE + PP.)
We must’ve been playing now. (modal + HAVE + BEEN + PP.)
n Periphrastic modals (modal-like verbs)
Are special phrases
which help us to form tenses and structures. These idioms are very useful and
many people use them in daily conversations. The most common idioms are: be to,
be able to, be going to, be about to, be supposed to, be used to, be accustomed
to, get used to, used to, would rather, had better, etc.
e.g. You’d better not go.
That tree is about to fall down.
We are used to eating hot dishes
Weren’t you supposed to be working?
My cousin is able to speak five languages.
18.- LEXICAL(PRINCIPAL)VERBS are the ones which express the
action in a sentence. In other words, they carry lexical meaning in them. They
sometimes work along with a helping verb to form a verbal phrase express
aspect, tense, or even mood.
19.- FACTIVE VERBS are verbs followed by a clause which the speaker or
writer considers to express a fact.
e.g. I remember that she was always late.
20.- INCHOATIVE VERBS are the ones used to describe a change.
e.g. The
apples ripened. (They
became ripe)
He has aged a lot. (He´s
become old)
ANOTHER IMPLICATION is that some English verbs require
a preposition to be syntactically correct. These prepositions are determined by
the verbs which precede them rather than the nouns that follow. Among these
verbs we have depend on / upon, grow up to, listen to, look at, pay for, talk
to, think about, wait for, work on, etc.
e. g. Look at the
pictures. NO Look the pictures.
We were listening to the music. NO We were listening the music.
Having seen the verb implications
described above, I cannot finish the article without talking about VERB
PATTERNS. It is
also necessary to glance at this last aspect regarding verbs, which is crucial
for learners of the language. English verbs are grouped into four major
patterns:
I)
Verbs followed ONLY by infinitives: afford, appear, ask, claim,
decide, expect, fail, happen, hope, learn,
manage, offer, promise, refuse, seem, tend, want, warn, etc. Inside this
category we also have sub categories. For example,
a.- Verb + infinitive He
asked to go.
b.-
Verb + noun + infinitive He
asked me to go.
c.-
Verb + Wh + infinitive He
asked where to go.
d.-
Verb + Wh + noun + infinitive He asked me where to go.
e.-
Verb + infinitive of purpose We came to visit you.
f.-
Verb + noun + inf. of purpose She
bought a magazine to read.
II)
Verbs followed ONLY by gerunds: admit, appreciate, avoid, consider, dislike, delay, deny, detest,
doubt, enjoy, fancy, imagine, involve, mind, miss, postpone, prevent, propose,
recall, recommend, resist, risk, remind, suggest, etc.
a.- Verb + gerund Vanessa
enjoys cooking.
b.-
Verb + noun + gerund I recommend your arriving early.
c.-
Verb + preposition + gerund We believe in working hard.
III)
Verbs followed by EITHER infinitives or
gerunds (same
meaning):
like,
love, hate, begin, cease, continue, start, deserve, etc.
Ø
I
love listening to music. = I love
to listen to music.
IV) Verbs followed EITHER by infinitives or gerunds (different meaning):
stop, try, remember, forget, regret,
etc.
Ø
I
forgot locking the door.
(different from) I forgot to lock the door.
CONCLUSION: Teaching and
learning English implies knowing the verbs and its implications in the
production of written and oral language; that is why I consider important to
help students get familiarized with the world around verbs, which means
enabling them to deal with the aspect, the mood, the tense,
the voice,
and even the different forms and kinds. Finally, we must
help them understand that verbs behave in different ways and that some of them
might fit into several grammar patterns.
Bibliography:
1.
CliffsNotes.com. Moods of the Verb. 21 Jul 2009.
.
2.
Jack C. Richards, John Platt, Heidi Platt.1992. Dictionary of Language Teaching & Applied Linguistics. Longman
2nd edition.
3. Marjorie, F., Bonner M, and Westheimer
M. 2000. Focus on Grammar an Intermediate course for reference and practice.
Longman 2nd
edition.
4. Fuchs, M., and Bonner M, 2000. Focus
on Grammar a High-Intermediate course for reference and practice. Longman 2nd edition.
5. Maurer, J., 2000. Focus
on Grammar an Advanced course for reference and practice. Longman 2nd edition.
6.
Collier Macmillan English Program. 1981 A
Practical English Grammar Macmillan
Publishing Co. 11th printing.
7. Praninskas, J., 1975. Rapid
Review on English Grammar. Prentice-Hall 2nd edition
8.
Graver, B.D.,
1986. Advanced English Practice. Oxford 3rd edition.
9. Spankie, G.M., 1975.
English in Use. Nelson.
revised edition
1986.
10. Schrampfer, B., 1989.
Understanding and Using English
Grammar. Prentice Hall Regents 2nd edition.
Lima, January 25th, 2012.
HERNAN ARTETA HUERTA
LICENTIATE IN EDUCATION.
DIPLOMA EN TEFL
SPECIALIST IN ELT TRAINING
MASTER’S STUDIES IN EDUCATIONAL MANAGEMENT.
LIMA-PERU
Para
Lightbown y Spada es difícil encontrar un argumento que valide esta creencia,
en la medida en que muchos aprendices producen oraciones que antes no han
escuchado. Si bien es cierto a través de la imitación con el método audio
lingual el aprendiz lograba cierta
eficacia en la pronunciación y entonación, al momento de producir en lengua
extranjera se encontraban muy limitados al llevar a cabo interacciones
genuinamente significativas. A dichos aprendices les era difícil interactuar en
situaciones reales de comunicación.
MITO No 2: Los
niños tienen mucho más ventaja para aprender una lengua extranjera que el
adulto.
Este es
un mito y/o sirve como propaganda para institutos que requieren captar usuarios
de manera rápida. Aprender una lengua extranjera toma tiempo, esfuerzo,
motivación y persistencia. El tiempo para aprender una lengua también difiere
en relación a cada aprendiz. Los seres humanos tenemos ciertas habilidades que
nos permiten aprender una lengua extranjera en menor tiempo que otros; y
existen aquellos que tienen más dificultad y por lo tanto requerirán mucho más
tiempo. Existen teorías psicolingüísticas que actualmente plantean que quienes
desarrollan el lado izquierdo del cerebro más que el derecho tienen más
habilidad para los idiomas; sin embargo estas no son concluyentes y se ha
demostrado que ayuda pero no es limitante.
El idioma inglés que actualmente se enseña en los diferentes
centros de estudios es y debe ser “estándar”.
Un profesor del idioma inglés puede o no tener un acento cercano al británico
o americano, pero sobre todo debe hacerse entender y ser competente en la
lengua extranjera. Esta competencia involucra un conocimiento lingüístico,
poseer habilidad comunicativa, estratégica y discursiva. Con el dominio de esta
competencia en el idioma inglés estará en capacidad de proporcionar al
estudiante del conocimiento sociolingüístico que tiene que ver con el
conocimiento a nivel morfosintáctico,
semántico, lexical de las diferencias existentes entre el idioma inglés
británico y/o americano. 
