Verbs

Yesterday, I drove to the grocery store. I discussed what I needed to buy with my mother. She was depending on me to buy exactly what was needed. I knew that we needed apples, bananas, carrots, tomatoes, and milk. I enjoyed the drive to the grocery store because I was able to listen to my favorite music. When I arrived at the dairy isle, I could not find the brand of milk that I was looking for. After I searched for a few minutes, I found the correct brand that I was searching for. 

Grammar Point

The short story above describes my visit to the grocery store. All of the words that are bolded help you (the reader) to see what I did during my visit. These words are commonly known as verbs. There is at least one verb in every sentence. Verbs describe actions, as well as express existence, mental conditions and processes, and relationships.
Examples:
Action verbs: drove, discussed, looking, buy, find, searched
Verbs expressing existence: was
Verbs expressing mental conditions and processes: enjoyed
Verbs expressing relationships: depending

Types of Verbs

Main Verbs

• These verbs do not usually need to be accompanied by other verbs and convey the key meaning in any group of verbs.
• Ex: I drive to the beach.
• I broke the glass.
• However, when they do need to be accompanied by another verb, they are followed by objects or complements.
• Object Ex: Jamie ran a mile.
• "Ran" is the verb, followed by "a mile," which is the object.
• Complement Ex: We are late.
• "Are" is the complement verb, which is used to connect the subject (we) to the complement (late).
• Main verbs can also be used to describe events or states.
• Event verbs are used to refer to events that begin/end at a definite time.
• Ex: I broke the plate.
• State verbs are used to refer to existence, possession, or long-term mental states.
• Ex: The shirt belongs to Jenny. (Possession)
• Ex: I don't know her name. (Mental state)
• Ex: You have a pretty necklace. (Existence)

Auxiliary Verbs

•  Auxiliary verbs are used to create phrases containing two or more words (ex: has been sleeping)
• Common auxiliary verbs: am, is, are, was, were, being, been, have, has, had, do, does, and did.
• Ex: The boys are having dinner.
• Subject: "The boys"
• Auxiliary: "are"
• Main verb: "having"

Try It Yourself!

Activity 1 - Main Verbs

Choose from the verbs below and fill in the blanks. Once you are finished, use the same verbs to create sentences of your own!

Word Box
shot, ate, packed

1. I ______ dinner.

2. I ______ the basketball.

3. He _____ his suitcase.

Activity 2 - Object and Complement Verbs
Choose from the verbs below and fill in the blanks. Once you are finished, use the same verbs to create sentences of your own!

Word Box

scratched, stepped, felt, is, was

1. I _______ sad. (Complement)

2. John _______ his knee. (Object)

3. Sally _______ tired. (Complement)
4. Andrew ______ late. (Complement)
5. Bella _______ on the bug. (Object)

Activity 3 - Event and State Verbs
Choose from the verbs below and fill in the blanks. Once you are finished, use the same verbs to create sentences of your own!

Word Box
described, broke, belong, know, has

1. Sheana ______ a nice bracelet. (State)
2. Kyle doesn't ______ her name. (State)
3. The shoes ______ to Maria. (State)
4. She ______ the glass. (Event)
5. Luke ______ the movie to his mom last night. (Event)

Activity 4 - Auxiliary Verbs
Choose from the verbs below and fill in the blanks. Once you are finished, use the same verbs to create sentences of your own!

Word Box
has, is, are

1. The boys _____ being childish.
2. Ariana _____ been outside all day.
3. Kayla ______ acting silly.

Words to Know...

1. Discussed - the past tense of discuss, which means to talk about something.

2. Depending - the continuous tense of depend, which means to rely on.

3. Arrived - the past tense of arrive, which means to show up at a location.

4. Searching - the continuous tense of search, which means to look for.

5. Accompanied - the past tense of accompany, which means to go somewhere with someone.

6. Convey - to make a thought known or understandable.

Activity 5

Complete the following activity by unscrambling the words.

Hint: the words that are being unscrambled are taken from the "words to know" section above

1. Hilary _______ (ccaompieand) George on the bus to school.

2. The teacher tried to ______ (eyoncv) her thoughts to the class.

3. After an hour of driving, they finally ______ (devarri) at the mall.

4. Theo spent all afternoon _______ (ingchsear) for his math book.

5. Oliver called Nicole yesterday. They ________ (eddissscu) the issue they were having.

6. Ally was ______ (penddeing) on Carl to pick her up.

Answer Keys

Activity 1

1. ate

2. shot

3. packed

Activity 2

1. felt

2. scratched

3. is/was

4. is/was

5. stepped

Activity 3

1. has

2. know

3. belong

4. broke

5. described

Activity 4

1. are

2. has

3. is

Activity 5

1. accompanied

2. convey

3. arrived

4. searching

5. discussed

6. depending

References

Parrott, M. (2010). Grammar for English language teachers (2 nd ed.). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.