Learn types of verbs in English that are helpful for recognizing various kinds of verbs that we use in our daily routine.

The verb talks about the action that is performed by a subject in any kind of sentence. So, actually, an action is called a verb. This action can be mental or physical. Most of the sentences have at least one verb. Verbs are mostly present after the noun or pronoun, so you can easily recognize them.
Verbs play a crucial role in English grammar as they are the action words that express what a subject does or experiences. They are essential for constructing meaningful sentences and conveying information effectively. There are several types of verbs in English, each serving a distinct purpose. For instance, action verbs depict physical or mental actions, such as “run” or “think.” Helping verbs, also known as auxiliary verbs, assist the main verb in forming tenses or expressing possibilities, like “am,” “is,” or “can.” Linking verbs connect the subject to a word or phrase that describes or identifies it, such as “is,” “seems,” or “becomes.” Modal verbs express abilities, permissions, obligations, or possibilities, such as “can,” “must,” or “may.” Irregular verbs have unique conjugations that do not follow standard patterns, like “go” or “have.” Understanding the different types of verbs is essential for constructing accurate and meaningful sentences in English, as they provide the foundation for expressing actions, states, conditions, and relationships between different elements in a sentence.

Types of Verbs

1. Action verbs
2. Modal verbs
3. Transitive verbs
4. Intransitive verbs
5. Phrasal verb
6. Helping verbs (also called auxiliary verbs)
7. Stative verbs
8. Regular verbs
9. Irregular verbs
10. Linking Verbs
11. Compound Verbs

1-Action verbs

Action verbs represent the actions that can be done.

List of Action Verbs

• Run
• Jump
• Sing
• Dance
• Write

Examples of Verbs in Sentence

1. She runs every morning to stay fit.
2. The children played in the park for hours.
3. The dog chased the squirrel up the tree.
4. He built a beautiful sandcastle on the beach.
5. She washed her clothes at night.

2-Modal verbs

Modal verbs are a kind of auxiliary verbs that represent the possibility, ability, obligation, and permission of doing something like, must, would, can, should, could etc.

List of Modal Verbs

• can
• may
• might
• must
• would

Examples of Modal Verbs in Sentence

1. I can play the guitar.
2. She must finish her homework before going out.
3. They should arrive on time for the meeting.
4. We might go to the movies tonight.
5. I must attend the party.

3-Transitive verbs

These verbs express any action that affects or relates to someone else, like love, maintain, tolerate, trust, belief etc.

List of Transitive Verbs

• Throw
• Give
• Open
• Eat
• Write

Examples of Transitive Verbs in Sentence

1. She bought a new book.
2. They ate the delicious cake.
3. He wrote a letter to his friend.
4. We built a sandcastle on the beach.
5. She loves her kids.

In these sentences, the transitive verbs “bought,” “ate,” “wrote,” and “built” are followed by direct objects (a new book, the delicious cake, a letter, and a sandcastle, respectively). Transitive verbs require an object to receive the action of the verb, making them different from intransitive verbs, which do not require a direct object.

4-Intransitive verbs

These verbs always express actions and are different from transitive verbs in that no direct object is following them, like walk, cough, play, run etc.

List of intransitive Verbs

• Arrive
• Sleep
• Laugh
• Run
• Disappear

Examples of Transitive Verbs in Sentence

1. The birds sing in the morning.
2. The child ran around the playground.
3. The flowers bloomed in the garden.
4. The sun rises in the east.
5. The river flows downstream.

In these sentences, the intransitive verbs “sing,” “ran,” “bloomed,” “rises,” and “flows” do not require a direct object to complete their meaning. They describe actions or states that do not transfer to an object and can stand alone in a sentence.

5-Phrasal verbs

Instead of single words, phrasal verbs consist of a combination of words, which is used to represent an action like hand over, take over, look forward, etc.

• Break down
• Get up
• Turn off
• Put on
• Take out

Examples of Phrasal Verbs in Sentence

1. I need to catch up on my assignments before the deadline.
2. The teacher called off the class due to the snowstorm.
3. Can you look after my dog while I’m on vacation?
4. She broke down in tears when she heard the news.
5. I look forward to hearing from you.

In these sentences, the phrasal verbs are “catch up,” “call off,” “look after,” and “broke down. Look Forward” Phrasal verbs consist of a verb and one or more particles (prepositions or adverbs) that change or add to the original verb’s meaning.

6-Auxiliary verbs

These verbs are followed by the main verbs and are also known as auxiliary verbs. These verbs are used to express the type of tense, to express the question or negative thoughts in a sentence like might, will, did, can, may etc.

List of Auxiliary Verbs

• Be
• Do
• Have
• Can
• Will

Auxiliary verbs, also known as helping verbs, are used in conjunction with main verbs to create different verb forms, tenses, moods, and voices. They assist in expressing actions, negations, questions, possibilities, and more. While these are the auxiliary verbs, they are typically used alongside main verbs to form complete sentences and convey specific meanings.

Examples of Auxiliary Verbs in Sentence

1. She is studying for her exams.
2. They do not like spicy food.
3. I have finished my homework.
4. We can go to the park tomorrow.
5. You might think of it as a wrong task.

In these sentences, the auxiliary verbs “is,” “do,” “have,” and “can, Might” are used to form different verb forms or express various aspects of the action. They assist the main verbs “studying,” “like,” “finished,” and “go” respectively, in conveying specific meanings or grammatical structures.

7- Stative verbs

Stative verbs represent states and not actions. These verbs mostly demonstrate mental actions like thinking, planning, emotions, feelings and sometimes measurements.

List of Stative Verbs

• Believe
• Love
• Understand
• Hate
• Know

Stative verbs, also known as non-action or non-continuous verbs, express a state or condition rather than an action. They describe thoughts, emotions, senses, possession, or states of being. Unlike dynamic verbs that indicate actions, stative verbs typically do not have a continuous or progressive form.

 

Examples of Stative Verbs in Sentence

1. She believes in the power of positive thinking.
2. I love spending time with my family.
3. He knows the answer to that question.
4. They hate Mondays.
5. What are you thinking?

In these sentences, the stative verbs “believes,” “love,” “knows,” and “hate, Thinking” describe states or conditions rather than actions. They express beliefs, emotions, knowledge, and preferences respectively. Stative verbs typically describe long-lasting or permanent states, and they are not typically used in continuous or progressive forms

8-Regular verbs

These are verbs in which we can add “d or ed” in verbs to the second or third form. And most of the verbs are regular verbs example, played, lied, walked, baked, washed etc.

List of Regular Verbs

• Walk
• Talk
• Play
• Work
• Jump
• Cook
• Watch
• Dance
• Study
• Call

Examples of Regular Verbs in Sentence

 

1. She walked to the store to buy some groceries.
2. They played basketball in the park yesterday.
3. He worked late to finish his project.
4. I watched a movie with my friends last night.
5. She washed the clothes.

In these sentences, the regular verbs “walked,” “played,” “worked,” and “watched, Washed” are used to describe past actions or activities. They follow the regular pattern of adding “-ed” to the base form of the verb to indicate the past tense.

9-Irregular verbs

These verbs don’t include “d or ed” in past forms like slept, read, was, spoke, felt, etc.

List of Irregular Verbs

• Go
• Eat
• Take
• Sing
• Swim
• Break
• Write
• Drive
• Speak
• Give

Irregular verbs do not follow the typical “-ed” pattern for their past tense and past participle forms. Instead, they have unique forms that must be memorized.

Examples of irregular Verbs in Sentence

1. She went to the park yesterday.
2. They ate dinner at a fancy restaurant.
3. He wrote a heartfelt letter to his best friend.
4. We spoke to the manager about our concerns.
5. I felt you misunderstood me.

In these sentences, the irregular verbs “went,” “ate,” “wrote,” and “spoke, Felt” do not follow the regular “-ed” pattern for their past tense forms. Instead, they have unique forms that need to be memorized.

10-Linking verb

Linking verbs Instead of showing any action, these verbs describe the subject to add more detail about the subject, like am, is, became, seem, looks etc.

List of Linking Verbs

• Be
• Seem
• Appear
• Become
• Feel

Linking verbs are verbs that connect the subject of a sentence to a noun, pronoun, or adjective that describes or identifies it. They do not show action but rather express a state of being or a condition.

Examples of Linking Verbs in Sentence

 

1. She is a talented musician.
2. The flowers smell beautiful.
3. The cake tastes delicious.
4. He became a doctor after years of studying.
5. She looks fine.

In these sentences, the linking verbs “is,” “smell,” “tastes,” and “became, Looks” connect the subject to a noun or adjective that describes or identifies it. Linking verbs help to establish a relationship between the subject and the complement in the sentence, conveying a state of being, perception, or transformation.

11-Compound verbs

In compound verbs, two words combine and give a new meaning that represents an action like babysit, overlook, proofreading etc.

List of Compound Verbs

• Break up
• Give in
• Wake up
• Take off
• Settle down

Examples of Compound Verbs in Sentence

1. She broke down and started crying when she heard the news.
2. They set up a new business together.
3. He looked after his younger sister while their parents were away.
4. We fall behind if we don’t keep up with our studies.
5. I’ll proofread your documents.

In these sentences, the compound verbs are “broke down,” “set up,” “looked after,” and “fall behind, Proofread.” Compound verbs are formed by combining a verb with an adverb or a preposition, creating a new verb with a distinct meaning. These compound verbs add depth and nuance to the actions being described.

Learn Types of Adverb in English