Action Verbs

Definition:

As distinguished from Linking Verb, a verb that tells what the subject is doing. When transitive verbs have objects they are connected to, the verb identifies whether the subjects are the ones in action or the ones the action is directed toward.

The action verbs are divided into two classes. Transitive and intransitive. These verbs tell us what the subjects do. The transitive verbs come from Latin “trans”, meaning “across”. When we use a transitive verb, the action is carried across the verb to a complement. When we use an intransitive verb, the action terminates with the verb.

Transitive Verb

A transitive verb is one which takes an object directly.

e.g.

She eats a mango	Take this box
I bought a diamond bracelet	The fish fell off the hook

Intransitive Verb

An intransitive verb is one which does not and cannot take on a direct object but but can have an indirect object. The intransitive verbs clearly and completely communicate without a direct object

e.g.

Dogs bark	What happened?
Children play	The train runs late every day

The same verb may be transitive in one sentence and intransitive in another.

e.g.

Transitive	The engineer stopped the bus
Intransitive	The bus stopped

Verbs of being are really intransitive and they are called Incomplete Verbs or Verbs of Incomplte Predication. An incomplete verb requires a complement to complete the sense.

e.g.

They are great friends

Verbs like seem, appear, become are incomplete verbs.

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