The Eight Parts of Speech: Verbs

        Verbs, verbs, verbs. They're so crucial to understanding the English language, yet it seems we couldn't make them more difficult to understand. You have helping verbs (forms and modals), main verbs, and verb particles. But don't let the list intimidate you, it's just a façade to a set of simple, English Language concepts.

        What is a verb? In kindergarten you may remember that T.V. Ad which said, “Verbs, it's what you do.” I'm here to tell you... they were almost right. True, verbs express action, however, they also express something else. For example, what are we to make of the sentence, “The plant is red.” Where is the action? Is the plant doing red? Not quite. Verbs don't only express action, but they also express being. Is is a verb, it expresses being.

Now we'll look at special types of verbs.

 

A. Helping Verbs:

There are twenty-three helping verbs in the English Language – 14 Forms and 9 Modals. The helping verb forms are forms of have, do, and be:
    1) Have, Has, Had
    2) Do, Does, Did

    3) Be, Am, Is, Are, Was, Were, Being, Been

And here is the list of modal helping verbs:

     1) Can, Could, May, Might, Must, Shalt, Should, Will, Would

B. Main Verbs)

Main Verbs can be difficult to identify, however, all of them must pass the following test sentences (they come from The Bedford Handbook):

1) Base Form => Usually I walk/ride.
2) Past Tense => Yesterday I walked/rode.
3) Past Participle => I have walked/ridden many times before.
4) Present Participle => I am walking/riding right now.
5) -S Forms => Usually he walks/rides

If the word which you are using doesn't alter forms in any of the above sentences, then it isn't a verb. For example, try using the word revolution in the above sentences. It won't work because revolution, though it describes an action, isn't an action itself.

Here are a few other tips to help identify the different sorts of main verbs. If Two and Three are the same word (ie. Walked and walked) then it is a regular verb. Otherwise, it is an irregular verb (ie. Rode and Ridden). However, the word be is the most irregular, having eight forms:

1) Base Form => Be

2) Present Tense => Am, Is, Are
3) Past Tense => Was, Were
4) Present Participle => Being
5) Past Participle => Been

C. Verb-Particles

Verb-Particles are simply verbs that are formed by closely related word combinations.


Many problems arise from verbs such as active vs. passive, subject-verb agreement, verb tense and mood, and ESL problems with verbs. I'll address these issues in later blogposts. Until then, enjoy your verbs.