Shake hands with the most powerful word in the English language: the verb. You learned the basics in our discussion above. Now let’s carefully explore the five functions of verbs, see what they do, and then understand why F. Scott Fitzgerald once said: “All fine prose is based on the verbs carrying the sentence.”
Five Functions of Verbs
Verbs appear in five basic ways in our language, and in those various ways they can perform a wide variety of functions in the English sentence. Here are the five things verbs do in the English language. You must commit them to memory if you’re ever to become a member of The Writers’ Club:
1. Conjugated Verb 2. Infinitive Phrase 3. Present-Participial Phrase 4. Past-Participial Phrase 5. Participial Adjectives
Let’s look closely at these forms and the many functions they perform.
Hard Copy
You may download our entire discussion of the Parts of Speech. Simply download the Grammar eBook Understanding the Parts of Speech.
Previous: A Summary of Verbs
Next: Verb Function 1 - Conjugated Verb
Grammar Tips & Articles »
Verbs - What They Do
This Grammar.com article is about Verbs - What They Do — enjoy your reading!
- 52 sec read
- 1,947 Views
Font size:
Citation
Use the citation below to add this article to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Verbs - What They Do." Grammar.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 8 Dec. 2024. <https://www.grammar.com/verbs-what-they-do>.
Have a discussion about this article with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In