What are Verbs in English?
A verb is a word that expresses what a subject does (action verbs: run, write, decide), what state it is in (stative verbs: know, believe, belong), or what happens to it (passive forms: was approved, is being reviewed). Every grammatically complete English sentence must contain at least one verb.
The same base verb changes form depending on the subject, tense, and voice. The base verb write becomes writes (third person present), wrote (past simple), writing (present participle), and written (past participle). Mastering these forms is foundational to all English tenses.
English also has auxiliary verbs — be, have, do, will, can, should, and others — that combine with main verbs to build tenses, questions, negatives, and modal meanings. Auxiliaries carry no meaning on their own; they are grammatical operators that tell you when, whether, and how an action occurs.
Verb Forms
Regular verbs form their past simple and past participle by adding -ed. Irregular verbs change form unpredictably and must be memorised as base / past / past participle triplets.
Base → base / -s/-es / past / -ing / past participleRegular Verb Forms
| Form | Rule | Example (work) |
|---|---|---|
| Base form | Used with I / you / we / they and after auxiliaries | I work, they work, can work |
| Third person singular | Add -s or -es | She works, he watches, it finishes |
| Past simple | Add -ed (or -d if ends in -e) | They worked, she arrived, he decided |
| Present participle | Add -ing (drop final -e if present) | He is working, she is arriving |
| Past participle | Add -ed (same as past simple for regular verbs) | It has worked, they have arrived |
Common Irregular Verbs
These verbs do not add -ed — the past and past participle forms must be memorised.
| Base | Past simple | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| go | went | gone |
| come | came | come |
| give | gave | given |
| take | took | taken |
| write | wrote | written |
| speak | spoke | spoken |
| know | knew | known |
| see | saw | seen |
| get | got | got / gotten |
| make | made | made |
Types of Verbs
Action Verbs
Action verbs describe physical or mental activities that a subject actively performs. They are the most common verb type and can appear in all tenses including continuous forms.
- Daniyar writes a report every Friday afternoon.
- The committee discussed the proposal for three hours.
- She is learning Portuguese for her move to Lisbon.
Stative Verbs
Stative verbs describe a condition or state rather than an activity — emotions, senses, mental states, or possession. Because they describe how things are rather than what is happening, they do not normally appear in continuous tenses.
- He knows the answer but refused to share it with the group.
- The apartment belongs to her aunt, not to her.
- I believe the flight leaves at noon, not midnight.
Auxiliary Verbs
Auxiliary verbs work alongside the main verb to form tenses, questions, and negatives. The three primary auxiliaries are be (continuous and passive), have (perfect tenses), and do (questions and negatives in simple tenses).
- The results have been published on the institute's website.
- Does the manager approve every request individually?
- The bridge is being repaired until the end of the month.
Transitive and Intransitive Verbs
A transitive verb requires a direct object to complete its meaning — something that receives the action. An intransitive verb does not take a direct object. Many verbs can be both, depending on the sentence.
- She opened the file and found the signed contract. (transitive — the file is the object)
- The door opened slowly on its own. (intransitive — no object)
- He raised his hand to ask a question. (transitive — his hand receives the action)
Patterns That Signal a Verb
Action Verbs vs Stative Verbs
The most important verb distinction for learners is between verbs that describe activities (continuous possible) and verbs that describe states (continuous not used).
Action verb — continuous possible
She <hl>is thinking</hl> about the offer right now.
Think here means 'to consider' — an active mental process, so continuous is correct.
Stative verb — continuous not used
She <hl>knows</hl> the answer already.
Know is a state, not an activity. 'She is knowing' is not standard English.
Action meaning — continuous possible
He <hl>is tasting</hl> the sauce to check the seasoning.
Taste here = performing an action (sampling). Continuous is fine.
Stative meaning — no continuous
The sauce <hl>tastes</hl> too salty.
Taste here = a sensory state. Use simple, not continuous.
Common Mistakes
Using a stative verb in continuous form
✗ I am knowing the answer to your question.
✓ I know the answer to your question.
Stative verbs (know, believe, want, own, understand) describe permanent states. They cannot take the -ing continuous form in standard English.
Missing the third person -s
✗ She work at the hospital on weekends.
✓ She works at the hospital on weekends.
In the present simple, add -s or -es to the base verb for he, she, and it. This rule applies in every positive sentence — no exceptions for regular verbs.
Using an irregular verb as if it were regular
✗ He goed to the conference last Tuesday.
✓ He went to the conference last Tuesday.
High-frequency irregular verbs (go → went, come → came, take → took) do not add -ed for the past simple. They must be memorised as base / past / past participle triplets.
Adding -s or -ed after a modal verb
✗ She can speaks four languages fluently.
✓ She can speak four languages fluently.
Modal auxiliaries (can, will, should, must, etc.) are always followed by the base form of the verb — never by -s, -ed, or -ing.
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