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verbs

A verb expresses an action or a state of being.

A verb is transitive if it has a receiver of its action (an object). If the subject performs the action, the verb is in the active voice. When the subject is the receiver of the action, the verb is in the passive voice.

Bob ate the cookie.

The verb "ate" is in the active voice because the subject ("Bob") performed the action on the object ("cookie").

The cookie was eaten by Bob.

The verb "was eaten" is in the passive voice because the action was performed on the subject ("cookie"). "Bob" is the object of the preposition "by" and the prepositional phrase modifies the verb "was eaten." The prepositional phrase acts as an adverb to describe by whom the cookie was eaten.

A verb is intransitive if it does not have a receiver of its action.

Bob ate in the kitchen.

The verb "ate" is intransitive in this sentence because it does not have a receiver of its action. What Bob ate is not specified; there is no direct object. The prepositional phrase "in the kitchen" is not an object; it acts as an adverb to describe where the action happened. If the sentence contained an object that Bob ate, the verb would be transitive. Without the object, it is intransitive.

Some intransitive verbs are linking verbs. These verbs link nouns and adjectives with subjects that they describe.

Bob is my friend.

"Bob" is the subject, "is" is the linking verb, and "friend" is the noun linked to the subject. When a noun is linked to a subject, it is called a predicate nominative.

Bob smells good.

"Bob" is the subject, "smells" is the linking verb, and "good" is the adjective linked to the subject. When an adjective is linked to a subject, it is called a predicate adjective.

Linking verbs can be divided into three types:

  1. the 8 forms of "to be" - am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been
  2. the 5 sense words that can be followed with "good" - look ("look good," not "see good"), sound ("sound good," not "hear good"), smell ("smell good"), feel ("feel good," not "touch good"), taste ("taste good")
  3. several words that express a state of being, the most common of which can be remembered using the mnemonic "SGRABS" - stay, grow, remain, appear, become, seem

Learn to recognize linking verbs and their predicate adjectives to avoid the mistake of using an adverb as a predicate adjective.

verb tense sequence

The tense of a verb indicates the time frame of an action's occurrence. Actions that occur now use the simple present tense, actions that already occurred use the simple past tense, and actions that will occur use the simple future tense.

simple present tense: I study. [This is happening now.]

simple past tense: I studied. [This happened in the past.]

simple past tense: I will study. [This will happen in the future.]

The perfect tense of verbs is used to indicate the relative sequence of events in a sentence. The present perfect tense indicates that an action has been occurring and may be continuing to occur now. The past perfect tense indicates that an action occurred in the past before another action. The future perfect tense indicates that an action will occur in the future before another action.

present perfect tense: I have studied, so I will pass the test. [I studied in the past and might still be studying now. I will pass in the future.]

past perfect tense: I had studied, so I passed the test. [First I studied. I completed this action, then I passed the test.]

future perfect tense: I will have studied, so I will pass the test. [In the future, I will study. I will complete this action and then I will pass in the future.]

The college entrance examinations will test your ability to identify and correct errors in verb tense sequence. This will require both a knowledge of the verb tenses and context-reading skills.

By the time we arrived at the concert, the opening band finished its set.

This sentence contains an error in verb tense sequence. The band finished playing before we arrived, so the verb in the main clause should be in the past perfect tense.

By the time we arrived at the concert, the opening band had finished its set.

This sentence is correct.

Remember: when you see a sentence that contains two verbs, ask yourself if one of the actions occurred before the other action. If this is the case, make sure that the verb that describes the first action is in the past perfect tense.

subject/verb agreement

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A singular subject must have a singular verb; a plural subject must have a plural verb.

Look for the subject of the sentence and determine whether it is singular or plural. Then find the verb and make sure it agrees in number with the subject.

If you see a preposition, ignore the nouns or pronouns in the prepositional phrase. Consider crossing out the prepositional phrase so that it does not distract you from the subject of the sentence.

A group of students were studying for the test.

This sentence is incorrect. The subject is "group," which is singular. Ignore the prepositional phrase "of students" and use a verb that agrees with the subject of the sentence.

A group of students was studying for the test.

This sentence is correct.

Ignore any modifying phrase or clause that comes between the subject and the verb when determining subject/verb agreement.

The football player, in addition to the rest of the team, were awarded a trophy.

This sentence is incorrect. The subject is "football player," which is singular. The verb is "were," which is plural. Ignore the phrase between the subject and the verb and correct the number of the verb.

The football player, in addition to the rest of the team, was awarded a trophy.

This sentence is correct.

The following sentence has a dependent clause between the subject and the verb:

The song that they are playing in all the clubs are my favorite.

This sentence is incorrect because the singular subject, "song," does not agree with the plural verb, "are." Ignore the words that come between the subject and the verb to correct the sentence.

The song that they are playing in all the clubs is my favorite.

When subjects in a sentence are linked by "either/or" or "neither/nor," the subject that is closer to the verb will determine the number of the verb. The following sentences demonstrate subject/verb agreement in this type of structure:

Either the dogs or the cat has knocked over the vase.

Either the cat or the dogs have knocked over the vase.

Consider crossing off all the words from "either" to "or" (or "neither" to "nor") to help you determine the number of the subject.

Neither my brothers nor my sister are coming to the show.

This sentence is incorrect. Since "sister" is closer to the verb and is singular, the verb must be singular.

Neither my brothers nor my sister is coming to the show.

This sentence is correct.

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