English majors and minors, year II, autumn semester 2009 - 2010

Lecture 7
Verbs I
Verbs provide the focal point of the clause. The main verb in a clause determines the other
clause elements that can occur and specifies a meaning relation among those elements.
However, there are many different kinds of verbs, including lexical vs. auxiliary verbs, different
semantic classes, and single-word vs. multi-word verbs.

1 Verb functions and classes

1.1 Main verbs vs. auxiliary verbs
Main verbs play a central role in clauses. They usually occur in the middle of a clause,
and they are the most important element in the clause because they determine the other
clause elements. The pattern of these other clause elements is called the valency pattern. For
example, a clause with the main verb go/went cannot take a direct object (e.g. */ went the
house). However, go/went can be followed by an adverbial (underlined below):
/ went into the empty house.
In contrast, a clause with the main verb give usually occurs with both a direct object
and an indirect object. In the following example, him is the indirect object and a message is the
direct object:
/ could give him a message.
Auxiliary verbs, on the other hand, occur before a main verb and qualify the meaning
of the main verb. In the following example, could and be are auxiliary verbs, and staying is the
main verb. Could adds unreality to the meaning of the main verb, and be signals an ongoing
process:
Jack the Ripper could be staying there.
The overall meaning is quite different from the sentence without auxiliary verbs, Jack
the Ripper stays there.

1.2 Lexical verbs vs. primary verbs vs. modal verbs

Verbs can be grouped into three major classes according to their ability to function as
main verbs or auxiliary verbs:
• Lexical verbs (e.g. run, eat, think) function only as main verbs.
• Primary verbs (be, have, and do) can function as both auxiliary and main
verbs.
• Modal verbs (can, could, shall, should, will, would, may, might, must) function only
as auxiliary verbs.

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 Lexical verbs (sometimes called 'full verbs') are used only as main verbs.
Children and dogs ran from side to side.
He barely ate or slept that night.
The class of lexical verbs is an open class, which means that the English language is
always adding new lexical verbs.
Most lexical verbs have regular endings for forming past and present tense (e.g. call,
calls, called). However, many of the most common lexical verbs in English have irregular
morphology. In the above example sentences, the verbs show irregular past tense forms: run—
ran, eat—ate, and sleep—slept.
One distinctive feature of English grammar is that lexical verbs often occur as multi-
word units:
He turned on the lights.
/ looked at that one again.
There are only three primary verbs: be, have, and do, the most common verbs in English.
These verbs form a separate class because they can be used either as a main verb or as an
auxiliary verb. For example, compare the following uses of each primary verb:

• primary verbs—main verb function:

He does my washing.
His dad was an art professor.
Every atom has a dense nucleus.
• primary verbs—auxiliary verb function (with main verb underlined):
He doesn't look at the numbers.
He was wearing a dark ski mask.
A particular combination of results has occurred.
Finally, modal verbs are used only as auxiliary verbs. In the following examples the
main verb is underlined:
People thought he might have been joking.
He would probably like it softer.
Lexical verbs are much more common than primary verbs or modal verbs. This is
not surprising as there are hundreds of different lexical verbs, and most clauses occur with a
lexical verb as main verb. In contrast, there are few primary verbs and modal verbs, and many
clauses occur without an auxiliary verb.
When the verb be (am, is, was, were, etc.) is used as a main verb it is termed the
copula, because of its special linking or 'coupling' function. It is the single most common verb
occurring as a main verb.

Conclusions

 Verbs perform two major functions in clauses: main verbs vs. auxiliary verbs.
o Main verbs are the central element in a clause.
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 o Auxiliary verbs qualify the meaning of the main verb.
 Verb forms can be grouped into three major classes according to their ability to
function as main verbs or auxiliary verbs.
o Lexical verbs (e.g. run, eat, think) function only as main verbs.
o Primary verbs (be, have, and do) can function as both auxiliary and main verbs.
o Modal verbs (can, could, shall, should, will, would, may, might, must) function only as auxiliary
verbs.
 Lexical verbs are much more common than primary verbs or modal verbs.
 Lexical verbs are most common in conversation and fiction.

2. Semantic categories of lexical verbs

Although many verbs have more than one meaning, we find it useful to distinguish
seven semantic categories: activity verbs, communication verbs, mental verbs, causative
verbs, verbs of occurrence, verbs of existence or relationship, and verbs of aspect.

A Activity verbs
Activity verbs usually refer to a volitional activity—that is, an action performed
intentionally by an agent or 'doer'. Thus, in the following examples, the subject (underlined
below) performs the action by choice:
Then you should move any obstacles.
He bought biscuits and condensed milk.
In many of these jobs, women are working with women only.
Many commonly used verbs are activity verbs. The twenty most common, in conversation,
fiction, newspaper writing, and academic prose combined, are:
bring buy come follow
get give go leave
make meet move pay
play put run show
take try use work
Activity verbs can be transitive, taking a direct object, or intransitive, occurring without
any object:

 transitive activity verbs, with the direct object underlined:

Well give it to the dogs, they'll eat it. (CONV)
Even the smallest boys brought little pieces of wood and threw them in.
 intransitive activity verbs:
They ran, on rubbery legs, through an open gate.
Go to the hospital!

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 Activity verbs are also sometimes used to express events that occur without the volition of
an agent. For example, move and give were used in the examples above as volitional activities.
In the following examples the subjects (underlined) do not perform the activity by their will:

During that time continents, oceans, and mountain chains have moved
horizontally and vertically.
A few simple, rough calculations will give surprisingly good estimates.
B Communication verbs
Communication verbs are a special subcategory of activity verbs that involve
communication activities, particularly verbs describing speech and writing:
You said you didn't have it.
'Stop that', he shouted.
The organiser asked me if I wanted to see how the money was spent.
Too many students write far too little about their research methods.
The twelve most common 'communication' verbs in conversation, fiction, newspaper
writing, and academic prose combined are:
ask call claim describe
offer say speak suggest
talk tell thank write
C Mental verbs
Mental verbs refer to mental states and activities. For example:
/ think it was Freddie Kruger.
I wanted very much to give him my orange but held back.
These verbs do not involve physical action. Some of the verbs convey volition; others
do not. Mental verbs express a wide range of meanings:
 mental states or processes (e.g. think, know)

 emotions, attitudes, or desires (e.g. love, want)

 perceptions (e.g. see, taste)

 the receiving of communication (e.g. read, hear)

Many mental verbs describe mental activities that are relatively dynamic in meaning,
such as the following:
They decided to watch TV.
And uh then I studied Russian at Berkeley.
We might even discover that he uses a lower number of abstract nouns than other
writers of his time.
Other mental verbs are more stative in meaning: that is, they describe a state rather
than an action. These include verbs describing mental states, such as believe, remember,
and understand, as well as many verbs describing emotions or attitudes, such as enjoy, fear,
hate, and prefer:
 mental states:
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 Oh yeah, right we all believe that.
Somehow I doubt it.

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 emotions/attitudes:
He hated this weekly ritual of bathing.
I preferred life as it was.
The twenty most common 'mental' verbs in conversation, fiction, newspaper writing, and
academic prose combined are:
believe consider expect feel
find hear know like
listen love mean need
read remember see suppose
think understand want wonder
D Causative verbs
Causative verbs, such as allow, cause, force, and help, indicate that some person or thing
helps to bring about a new state of affairs. These verbs often occur with a derived noun as the
direct object, which reports the action that was facilitated. For example, deletion and formulation
in the following sentences are formed from verbs (the direct objects are underlined):
Still other rules cause the deletion of elements from the structure.
This information enables the formulation of precise questions.
The use of derived nouns with causative verbs is particularly common in academic
prose. In other cases, the resulting action or event is expressed in a complement clause that
follows the causative verb (underlined in the following examples):
What caused you to be ill?
This law enables the volume of a gas to be calculated.
This would help protect Jaguar from fluctuations in the dollar.
Compared with other semantic classes of verbs, there are only a few common causative
verbs:
allow help let require
E Verbs of occurrence
Verbs of occurrence report events that occur without an actor. Often the subjects of
these verbs are affected by the event that is described by the verb, as in these examples
(subjects are underlined):
The lights changed.
Resistant organisms may develop in the alimentary tract.
The term 'feature' has occurred many times in this chapter.
Seven verbs of occurrence are especially common, in conversation, fiction, newspaper
writing, and academic prose combined:
become change develop die
grow happen occur

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 F Verbs of existence or relationship
Verbs of existence or relationship report a state of existence or a logical relationship
that exists between entities. Some of the most common existence verbs are copular verbs,
such as seem and appear.
Witnesses said he appeared happy and relaxed.
All these uses seem natural and serviceable.
Other verbs in this class report a state of existence or a relationship between entities:
 state of existence:
/ go and stay with them.
These varying conditions may exist in close proximity.
 relationship:
The exercise will include random stop checks by police, and involve special
constables and traffic wardens.
They contained large quantities of nitrogen.
Some common 'existence/relationship' verbs are:
appear contain exist include
indicate involve live look
represent seem stand stay
G Verbs of aspect
Verbs of aspect characterize the stage of progress of an event or activity. These verbs
usually occur with a complement clause following the verb. In the following examples the
complement clause is underlined:

She kept running out of the room.

He couldn't stop talking about me.
Tears started to trickle down his cheeks.
Some common 'aspect' verbs are: begin, continue, keep, start, stop.

2.1 Verbs with multiple meanings

Many verbs have more than one meaning. In some cases, the verb's meaning covers
two or more semantic categories simultaneously. For example, the verbs hesitate and pretend
can convey the physical activity aspects of hesitating and pretending as well as the mental
aspects.

She hesitated and then said 'Why not.'

She can just pretend it's her new car.
Also, some verbs have different meanings in different contexts. This is especially true of
activity verbs, which often have secondary meanings in another category. For example, raise can
refer to a physical activity or an act of communication (e.g. raise your hand or raise the subject)
and look can refer to a physical action (look down), to a mental process (look at the offer), or to a
state of existence (you look happy). These different meanings are also often associated with
different valency pattern.
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 The context usually makes the intended meaning of a verb obvious. In the following pairs
of examples 1 has a physical meaning, and 2 has a mental or communication meaning:
1 Many patients are quite fit when admitted to the surgical ward.
2 / must admit it gave me a bit of a shock.
1 He jumped and raised his right elbow so that it projected outwards.
2 The issue was raised by Mr. Burns at a meeting with the Transport Secretary.
1 / think I was half ready to follow her.
2 I don't follow you, begging your pardon.

3 The most common lexical verbs

The twelve most common lexical verbs in English are all activity or mental verbs, except for
the verb say, which is the single most common lexical verb overall:
• activity verbs: get, go, make, come, take, give
• mental verbs: know, think, see, want, mean
• communication verb: say.
(The primary verbs be and have are also extremely common expressing existence or
relationship.)
A Say
The verb say is the most common lexical verb overall. Speakers and writers rely heavily
on say to report the speech of themselves and others, rather than some communication verbs
like tell, ask, offer, or explain. In all registers, this verb is most common in the past tense, in
reporting a past utterance:
You said you didn't have it.
No use sitting about, he said.
He said this campaign raised 'doubts about the authenticity of the eventual
allegedly free choice'.
However, conversation differs from the written registers: it also commonly uses say in
the present tense. Often, as in the first example below, these occurrences still report past
speech, but the use of the present tense conveys a feeling of immediacy and personal
involvement:

So he says, Oh my God!
Rachel says she thinks that Pam's just acting like a spoiled brat.
Present tense say is also commonly used for repeated or habitual behavior, as in:
Look mum, he says horrible things to me.

Interestingly, present tense say is also common in jokes, conveying a sense of

immediacy:
And the daughter comes home from school one day and says, mum I want to be
like you.
And she says yes every time she's got her bubble gum in, she says no when she
hasn't got the bubble gum in her mouth.

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 B Get
Although it is easy to overlook, the verb get is more common in conversation than any
other lexical verb in any register. Get is so common because it is extremely versatile.
Although it is often used as an activity verb, it actually has a wide range of meanings and
grammatical patterns. The major meanings of get include:
• obtaining something (activity):
See if they can get some of that beer.
• moving to or away from something (activity):
Get in the car.
• causing something to move (causative):
We ought to get these wedding pictures into an album of some sort.
• causing something to happen (causative):
It gets people talking again, right.
• changing from one state to another (occurrence):
She's getting ever so grubby-looking now.
Once you got to know him you liked him.
• understanding something (mental):
Do you get it?
In addition to these meanings, get in the perfect form have got is equivalent to the
primary verb have with a stative meaning, as in:
The Amphibicar. It's got little propellers in the back. <compare: It has little
propellers.. .>
Have you got any plans for this weekend? <compare: Do you have any plans.. .>
In speech, have is sometimes omitted from the perfect form of get, as in:
You got your homework done, Jason? <compare: Have you got...?>
The verb get is also extremely versatile from a grammatical point of view. In addition to
being a main verb, it functions as part of the semi-modal (have) got to (or gotta). It can also
be used like an auxiliary verb to create a passive construction, the so-called 'get passive':
/ got caught once before. < compare: / was caught once before.>
Finally, get occurs in idiomatic multi-word phrases:
He was no good she says, she got rid of him.
My mom loves him. He can get away with anything - he could get away with
murder and my mom would still love him.
Given its versatility, it might seem surprising that get is not extremely common in all
registers. However, it is relatively rare in most written registers. In general, it is considered an
informal word and is therefore avoided in formal writing. In its place, written registers use a
wide range of lexical verbs with more specific meanings, such as obtain, cause, encourage,
become, and understand.

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 C Other extremely common verbs
Most of the other extremely common activity verbs are used to different extents across
the registers. Go is extremely common in conversation and also very common in fiction:
We might as well go and see Janet.
Then they went and sat in rocking chairs in the front room.
The verb come, which is related to go in meaning, is also most common in these two
registers:
He came with Alan.
'Ma, the permit isn't going to come', he said.
In fiction and news, two other activity verbs are common—make and take:

I thought I might make coffee for them all before I go.

The intruders took money and jewelry, commission sources said.
Like get, both make and take commonly occur as part of idiomatic expressions, For
example:
You have to take advantage of every moment.
Without shame he details how he came to make a mark in espionage history.
Mental verbs, especially know, think, see, want, and mean, are particularly common in
conversation. These verbs report states of awareness, certainty, perception, and desire.
Mental verbs usually go with I or you as subject:

/ think it was a worm that it had in its mouth.

In many cases, these verbs occur together in the same utterance:
I see what you mean.
You know what I mean.
I really wanted her to wear it, you know?
Fiction, too, has relatively high frequencies of the verbs know, think, and see. These verbs
typically occur in the past tense, reporting the thinking and perceptions of fictional
characters:
She knew what had happened to them.
/ thought I would go and see the Pope.
She saw the light again.
Surprisingly, the verb see is also relatively common in academic prose, where it is used to report
scientific observations, or for references to other studies:
The Type I disease is usually seen in calves grazed intensively.
There now exists an extensive literature on the construction of social indicators
(see, for example, Knox 1978c).
Finally, the verb give is relatively common in all registers. In most registers, this verb is
used with activity meanings:
He's not gonna give it to you twice though.
She was too shy to give him more than a covert glance.
The vehicles will be given to the National Association of Boys' Clubs.
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However, in academic prose give often expresses causative or existence meanings:
A good method of analysis is one that gives a large correlation coefficient.
K values are given in Fig. 2.5.

3.1 Repeated use of the most common verbs

As a group, the commonest verbs occur much more frequently in conversation than in
the other three registers. They are used so often that they account for nearly 45 per cent of all
lexical verbs in conversation. In contrast, the commonest verbs account for only 11 per cent of
all lexical verbs in academic prose.
The written registers rely less on the most common verbs. In part, this might reflect a
wider range of subject matter—especially in news and academic prose. It may also reflect a
wish to make the text more interesting by varying vocabulary— especially in fiction. Further,
varied and precise word choice is easier for writers, because they have time to plan and
revise. Speakers in conversations, in contrast, have little opportunity for planning or revising,
so they rely more heavily on the most common verbs

Conclusions
 Lexical verbs fall into seven major semantic categories: activity verbs, communication
verbs, mental verbs, causative verbs, verbs of occurrence, verbs of existence or
relationship, and verbs of aspect.

 Many lexical verbs have more than one meaning.

 Twelve verbs are especially common in English. Their main uses fall into three types:
o activity verbs: get, go, make, come, take, give
o mental verbs: know, think, see, want, mean
o communication verb: say.

 In conversation, these twelve verbs are extremely common. Written registers like academic
prose tend to use a wider range of different verbs.

Lexical verbs: structures and patterns

4 Regular and irregular verb endings

4.1 Regular verbs
Inflections are morphemes that express grammatical meanings like person and number. Most verbs
are regular, meaning that they use the same inflections to mark person, tense, aspect, and voice. For
example, all regular verbs mark third person singular with an -s suffix and past tense with an -ed suffix. Yet
many grammatical distinctions are not marked on verbs in English. For example, there is no difference
between the verb form for first person present tense (e.g. / walk), second person present tense (you walk),
and the infinitive of regular verbs (to walk). Some other grammatical distinctions are marked by the use of
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auxiliary verbs (such as have for perfect aspect and be for passive voice), rather than by inflections.
Consequently, English verbs have few morphological forms. Regular verbs have only four morphological
forms. These forms involve three suffixes added to a base:

form use

base infinitive, present tense except third person singular, and subjunctive
base + suffix -(e)s third person singular present tense
base + suffix -ing ing-participles (as in progressive aspect)
base + suffix -ed simple past tense and ed-participles (or past participle, as in perfect and
passive constructions)
For example:

base look move try push reduce

base + suffix -(e)s looks moves tries pushes reduces
base + suffix -ing looking moving trying pushing reducing
base + suffix -ed looked moved tried pushed reduced
Pronunciation of suffixes:

 -ing: /iŋ/
-(e)s: /s/ after voiceless consonants except /∫, t∫, s/: looks, hopes, laughs
/z/ after vowels and voiced consonants except /3, d3, z/: tries, moves, minds
/iz/ after /∫, t∫, s, 3, d3,, z/: passes, reduces, recognizes, pushes, massages, watches,
manages
 -ed /t/ after voiceless consonants except /t/: watched, looked, pushed
/d/ after vowels and voiced consonants except /d/: tried, moved
/id/ after /t, d/: waited, wanted, included
Spelling of suffixes:

 -(e)s: -es after the letters s, z, x, sh or ch: pass—passes, push—pushes, watch—watches

-s after all other letters
 -ing and –ed: if the base of the verb ends in consonant + e, the final e is dropped before
adding the suffix: reduce—reducing—reduced;
compare a base ending in vowel + e: agree—agreeing—agreed
 -(es) and (ed): if the verb ends in a consonant + y, the spellings become –ies and -ied: copy—
copies—copied, try—tries—tried; otherwise, final y takes the usual endings: play
—plays—played

4.2 Irregular verbs

There is a much smaller set of irregular verbs—that is, they have irregular past tense and
ed-participle forms—but these include many of the most common verbs. Note that the ed-
participle is a good label for regular verbs, since all regular verbs have an ed-participle (i.e.
past participle) ending in -ed. But it is a misleading label to use for irregular verbs, since

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irregular past participles (like cut, eaten) rarely end in –ed. There are seven main patterns
used to mark past tense and ed-participles in irregular verbs:

A Class 1
A -t suffix marks past tense and ed-participles. The t may replace a final d of the base: e.g.
build—built, send—sent, spend—spent. Or the t may be added to the base: e.g. spoil—spoilt,
learn—learnt. Some of the verbs that add t to the base also have a regular form: e.g. learnt and
learned both occur.

B Class 2
A -t or -d suffix marks past tense and ed-participle, and the base vowel changes. For
example:

base form past tense ed-participle

mean meant meant
think thought thought
sell sold sold
tell told told

C Class 3
The regular -ed suffix marks past tense, but an -(e)n suffix marks ed-participles. For
example:

base form past tense ed-participle

show showed shown (note: showed also occurs)

D Class 4
No suffix is used for the past tense, but ed-participles have an -(e)n suffix; in addition, the base
vowel changes in either the past tense, ed-participle, or both. For example:

base form past tense ed-participle

give gave given
know knew known
see saw seen

E Class 5
The base vowel changes in the past tense, the ed-participle, or both; there are no other
changes. For example:

base form past tense ed-participle

begin began begun
come came come
find found found

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 F Class 6
Past tense and ed-participle forms are identical to the base form. For example:

base form past tense ed-participle

cut cut cut
hit hit hit

G Class 7
One of the forms is completely different. For example:
base form past tense ed-participle
go went gone

4.3 Preference for regular vs. irregular endings

Many irregular verbs also have regular alternatives. For example, two different forms are
used for the past tense of speed: the irregular sped, and the regular form speeded. In most
cases, one form is used more than the other. For example, the irregular forms hung, lit, quit, and
sped are more common than the regular forms hanged, lighted, quitted, and speeded. In
contrast, the regular forms dreamed, knitted, and leaned are much more common than the
irregular forms dreamt, knit, and leant.
For a few verbs, different forms are associated with different grammatical functions. For
example, the regular form spoiled is used more commonly for past tense, but the irregular form
spoilt is used more commonly for the ed-participle (in British English).
In American English, the verb get is unusual because it has two irregular ed-participle
forms that occur following have: got and gotten. In British English, the combination have +
gotten almost never occurs. In both American English and British English, the combination
have got can express a meaning roughly equivalent to have as a lexical verb, or it can
express the perfect aspect meaning of get:
• meanings equivalent to have as a lexical verb:
Look at that face. He hasn't got any teeth. (AmE) <compare: He
doesn't have any teeth.>
Have you got an exam on Monday? (BrE) <compare: Do you have an exam on
Monday?>
• perfect aspect of get:
It could have got put in storage or something. (AmE)
We have got ourselves into a rut. (BrE)
In contrast, have gotten in American English almost always has a perfect aspect
meaning, as in:
I can't believe Ginger's bike hasn't gotten stolen yet. (AmE)

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 5 Verb formation
Derivational affixes are incomplete units of language that form a new word when they
are added to an existing word (the base). Prefixes are attached to the front of the base, while
suffixes are attached to the end of the base.
Verb prefixes usually do not change the word class. That is, when a prefix is attached to
a verb base, the new word remains a verb. However, the meaning changes:

base verb derived verb with prefix base verb derived verb with prefix
like dislike cook overcook
lead mislead seal reseat
do outdo zip unzip

Verb derivational suffixes, on the other hand, are added to a noun or adjective to create a
verb:

adjective base derived verb with suffix noun base derived verb with suffix
active activate assassin assassinate
simple simplify class classify
actual actualize alphabet alphabetize
black blacken height heighten

5.1 Most common derivational affixes

There are many different derivational prefixes used to form new verbs in English, The most
common derivational prefixes, in order of frequency of occurrence, are:

prefix meaning of prefix examples

re- again reabsorb, rearm, rebuild, redefine, refinance
dis- opposite, apart disallow, disarm, disconnect, discontinue, dislike
over- too much, across, beyond overbook, overcome, overeat, overhear, overreach
un- opposite, in reverse unbend, uncouple, unfold, unload, unpack
mis- wrong, poorly misbehave, mishandle, misinform, mispronounce
out- beyond, further outbid, outdo, outgrow, outperform, outweigh
The prefix re- is used most often in formal written registers, like academic prose and
news. Many verbs formed with re- have been in use for a considerable time, but re- is also
frequently used to create new words in technical discourse: e.g. redeploy, redimension,
retransmit.
There are only a few derivational suffixes used for verb formation, although some of the
suffixes combine with many different words. The suffixes are listed below in order of frequency
of occurrence:

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suffix meaning of suffix examples
-ize/-ise to (cause to) become computerize, energize, itemize, stabilize
–-en to (cause to) become awaken, flatten, lengthen, moisten
-ate to (cause to) become activate, liquidate, regulate, pollinate beautify,
-(i)fy to (cause to) become codify, exemplify, notify

Notice that all four of the most frequent derivational suffixes have a basic meaning
of 'become' or 'cause to be'. However, when different suffixes are added to the same base,
separate meanings can result. For example, liquidize is usually used with an agent making a
substance 'liquid', but liquify is often used without an agent, and liquidate is used in a
financial context, when assets are 'made liquid'.
The suffix -ize is often spelled -ise in BrE.

6 Valency patterns
The main verb in a clause determines the other elements that are required in that clause.
The pattern of the clause elements is called the valency pattern for the verb. The patterns are
differentiated by the required clause elements that follow the verb within the clause (e.g. direct
object, indirect object, subject predicative). All valency patterns include a subject, and optional
adverbials can always be added.
There are five major valency patterns:

A Intransitive
Pattern: subject + verb (S + V). Intransitive verbs occur with no obligatory element following the
verb:
subject verb
More people came

B Monotransitive
Pattern: subject + verb + direct object (S + V + DO). Monotransitive verbs occur with
a single direct object:

subject verb direct object

She carried a long whippy willow twig.

C Ditransitive
Pattern: subject + verb + indirect object + direct object (S + V + IO + DO). Ditransitive
verbs occur with two object phrases—an indirect object and a direct object:

subject verb indirect object direct object

Fred Unsworth gave her a huge vote of confidence.

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 D Complex transitive
Patterns: subject + verb + direct object + object predicative (S + V + DO + OP) or
subject + verb + direct object + obligatory adverbial (S + V + DO + A). Complex transitive
verbs occur with a direct object (a noun phrase) which is followed by either (1) an object
predicative (a noun phrase or adjective), or (2) an obligatory adverbial:

subject verb direct object object predicative

1 people called him Johnny

subject verb direct object object predicative

2 He put his hand on the child's shoulder.

E Copular
Patterns: subject + verb + subject predicative (S + V + SP) or subject + verb +
obligatory adverbial (S + V + A). Copular verbs are followed by (1) a subject predicative (a
noun, adjective, adverb or prepositional phrase) or (2) by an obligatory adverbial.

subject (copular) verb subject predicative

1 Carrie felt a little less bold.

subject (copular) verb obligatory adverbial

2 I 'II keep in touch with you.

F Variations on transitive patterns

The monotransitive, ditransitive, and complex transitive patterns are the transitive
patterns; they all require some type of object. As in the above examples, the most
common structure for the objects is a noun phrase. However, in some cases other structures
can function as objects. For example:

 monotransitive pattern with a complement clause for the direct object:

subject verb direct object
He said he was going to make a copy

 ditransitive pattern with a prepositional phrase expressing the indirect object:

subject verb direct object indirect object

He gave all that info to the FBI.

<note that the indirect object prepositional phrase could also be analyzed as an adverbial>
 ditransitive pattern with a noun phrase for the indirect object and a complement
clause for the direct object:
subject verb indirect object direct object
Staff in the information told me that the train had been delayed until 18.15.
office
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Verbs in all patterns can occur with optional adverbials. For example:
 intransitive with optional adverbial (S + V+ (A)):

subject verb optional adverbial

He went to the corner shop.
[Then] they fell in the sea.
 transitive with optional adverbial (S + V+ O + (A)):
subject verb object optional adverbial
He ate nearly all those chips tonight.
He left it in the bushes.

6.1 Verbs with multiple valency patterns

Grammarians sometimes identify a verb as 'an intransitive verb' or 'a transitive verb', as
if one verb normally takes just one pattern. However, the reality is different from this. Most
common verbs allow more than one valency pattern, and some allow a wide range. For
example, speak and help can occur with intransitive or monotransitive patterns:
intransitive monotransitive
Simon spoke first. The stewards all spoke French.
Money helped, too. As Australia's forward coach, Evans did great work when he helped Alan Jones.

Similarly, find and make can occur in the monotransitive or complex transitive patterns:

intransitive complex transitive

We might find a body. You might find these notes useful.
Malcolm made no sound. The sheer intensity of the thing made me nervous.
Further, verbs that have the same possible valency patterns often use them with different
meanings and very different frequencies. We illustrate this point below with a brief case study of
three verbs.

6.2 Intransitive and monotransitive patterns

Many verbs can take both intransitive and monotransitive patterns, but these verbs
differ in their preference for one pattern over another. For example, stand, change, and meet are
possible with both valency patterns. However, stand usually occurs as an intransitive verb, while
change and meet most commonly occur in the monotransitive pattern.

A Stand
The most common pattern is intransitive with an optional adverbial (S+V + (A)):

subject adverbial verb optional adverbial

/ just stood there

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 Monotransitive stand is rare and found primarily in conversation and news in idiomatic
expressions, such as to stand a chance or can't stand someone or something:

subject verb direct object

You don't stand a chance.

subject adverbial verb direct object

I really couldn't stand him.
Monotransitive stand with a complement clause as the direct object is rare and found
primarily in fiction:

subject verb direct object (complement clause)

[Could] you stan being alone with me for five or six days?
d

B Change and meet

With these verbs, monotransitive (S+ V + DO) is the most common pattern:

subject verb direct object

/ [want to] change my clothes.
You [will never] change the world.
She met several leading actors and musicians.
Intransitive (S + V) is the second most common pattern, especially for change:

subject verb
People's circumstances change.
Intransitive with optional adverbials (S + V+(A)) is also found:
subject verb optional adverbial
We could meet in Tucson.
The work had changed in the post-war period.

Conclusions

 Two areas are important in the structure of lexical verbs:

otheir inflectional morphology, which marks person, tense, aspect, and voice.
otheir derivational morphology, which shows how verbs have been created.
 In their inflectional morphology, most verbs occur with regular suffixes.
oMany of the most common verbs have irregular morphology.
oSome verbs allow both regular and irregular morphology.
 New verbs can be formed with derivational morphology.
oThe prefix re- is frequently used for forming new words.
oThe suffix -ize is also frequently used for forming new words.

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 oFour derivational suffixes are all common and are used with similar meanings: -ize, -ate, -
(i)fy, and -en.
 The main verb determines the other elements that are necessary for the clause—i.e. the
valency pattern.
oThere are five major valency patterns: intransitive, monotransitive, ditransitive,
complex transitive, and copular.
oMany verbs can occur with more than one valency pattern, and they often have
different meanings with each pattern. Further, each verb occurs with very
different frequencies for the different patterns.

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