Verbs

Verbs Its Not All about Action

In the English language, different components serve different purposes. Nouns identify people, places, things and ideas. However, there are also verbs. Verbs are action words they tell you want a noun is doing. Verbs can be found in all complete sentences. Without a verb for your noun, you only have a fragment. However, there are two types of verbs of which you need to be aware: action verbs and linking verbs.

Action Verbs Move Things Along

Action verbs are exactly what they sound like. These are words that describe an action. They tell what the subject of the sentence is doing. Heres an example:

Bill danced in the hallway.

Here, the verb should be easy to spot its danced. Danced tells us what Bill was doing; it shows action. Bill is the subject of the sentence (a proper noun in this instance). In the hallway only tells us where he was doing the action its an adverbial phrase.

Heres another example of an action verb doing its job:

When the weather is hot, my computer often overheats.

Here, the action verb actually comes at the end of the sentence. The subject of the sentence is computer and the action is overheats. In this sentence, the adverbial phrase telling when the computer overheats comes at the beginning, before the word it modifies. To see things more clearly, remove the adverbial phrase and youre left with this:

My computer often overheats.

Now it should be a bit clearer as to which word is the subject and which word is the action. Overheats is what the computer does; therefore, its a verb.

Linking Verbs Connect Things

Linking verbs are not action-oriented. They are still verbs, but they can be harder to detect. A linking verb simply puts the subject of the sentence in connection with other parts of the sentence. Heres an example:

John is running a race today.

In this sentence, John is the subject. Whats the verb, though? Obviously, John will be running a race, but running is not the verb. The verb here is is, because it links John to the action that he is taking. Its a linking verb. Heres another example:

After eating my breakfast, I am very full.

In this sentence, the linking verb is am. It connects the word I to the rest of the sentence. Again, this sentence can be simplified by removing the adverbial phrase, leaving you with just I am very full. Here, the verb is easier to identify.

Some Action Verbs Are Linking Verbs

Not all linking verbs are so easily identified, though. Some of them actually look like action verbs. Heres an example:

The nutty flavor of the coffee tasted good.

In this sentence, the word tasted is the verb. However, its a linking verb, not an action verb. You can substitute the word is or was for tasted and the sentence still makes sense. Look at the way the verb is used in the sentence to determine if it is a linking verb or action verb.

Verbs are important parts of proper grammar, but they can be a bit confusing. If you remember this information, identifying verbs will be simpler.