CHAPTER VI
VERBS

CLASSIFICATION OF VERBS

209. A verb is a word which can assert something (usually an action) concerning a person, place, or thing (§ 14).

Most verbs express action. Some, however, merely express state or condition. Thus,—

• 1. We jumped for joy.
• Rabbits burrow into the sides of hills.
• 2. While memory lasts, I can never forget you.
• This mountain belongs to the Appalachian range.

A verb-phrase is a group of words that is used as a verb (§ 15).

• The leaves are turning.
• The money has been found.

210. Certain verbs, when used to make verb-phrases, are called auxiliary (that is, “aiding”) verbs, because they help other verbs to express action or state of some particular kind (§ 16).

The auxiliary verbs are is (are, was, were, etc.), may, can, must, might, shall, will, could, would, should, have, had, do, did.

• I am writing.
• We must go.
• You will fall.
• He has forgotten me.
• We had failed.
• I do see him.

The auxiliary verb may be separated from the rest of the verb-phrase by other words.

• I have always liked him.
• I shall soon send for you.
• Robert was completely bewildered.
• He has hardly ever spoken to me.

211. Verbs are either transitive or intransitive (§ 99).

Some verbs may be followed by a substantive denoting that which receives the action or is produced by it. These are called transitive verbs. All other verbs are called intransitive.

A substantive that completes the meaning of a transitive verb is called its direct object.

In the following sentences, the first four verbs are transitive (with objects), the last five are intransitive (without objects):—

• Lightning shattered the oak.
• Clouds darkened the sky.
• Chemists extract radium from pitchblende.
• The orator quoted Tennyson incorrectly.
• Look where he stands and glares!
• The bankrupt absconded.
• The orange sky of evening died away.
• The words differ in a single letter.

212. A verb which is transitive in one of its senses may be intransitive in another.

Transitive (with Object)	Intransitive (without Object)
Boys fly kites.	Birds fly.
The pirates sank the ship.	The stone sank.
I closed my eyes.	School closed yesterday.
Tom tore his coat.	The cloth tore easily.

213. Many transitive verbs may be used absolutely,—that is, merely to express action without any indication of the direct object.

Transitive Verb with Object expressed	Transitive Verb used absolutely
The horses drank water.	The horses drank from the brook.
The farmer plows his fields.	The farmer plows in the spring.
Charles is drawing a picture.	Charles is drawing.

There is a sharp contrast between a transitive verb used absolutely and a real intransitive verb. To the former we can always add an object; with the latter no object is possible.

214. Is (in its various forms) and several other verbs may be used to frame sentences in which some word or words in the predicate describe or define the subject (§ 17).

Such verbs are called copulative (that is, “joining”) verbs.

Is in this use is often called the copula (or “link”).

• Time is money.
• Grant was a tireless worker.
• Macbeth became a tyrant.
• His swans always prove geese.
• The current is sluggish.
• Lions are carnivorous.
• This village looks prosperous.
• The consul’s brow grew stern.
• The queen turned pale.

In the first four examples, the copulative verb (the simple predicate²⁶) is followed by a predicate nominative (§ 88, 2); in the last five by a predicate adjective (§ 172, 3).

The copulative verbs are intransitive, since they take no object. Sometimes, however, they are regarded as a third class distinct both from transitive and intransitive verbs.

215. The verb is is not always a copula. It is sometimes emphatic and has the sense of exist.

• I think. Therefore I am. [That is, I exist.]
• Whatever is, is right. [The second is is the copula.]

Most of the other copulative verbs may be used in some sense in which they cease to be copulative.

• The lawyer proved his case.
• Walnut trees grow slowly.
• Mr. Watson grows peaches.
• The wheel turned slowly on the axle.
• He turned his head and looked at me.

INFLECTION OF VERBS

216. Verbs have inflections of tense, person and number, and mood. They also have the distinction of voice, which is expressed by the help of verb-phrases.

Tense indicates time; person and number correspond with person and number in substantives; mood shows the manner in which the action is expressed; voice indicates whether the subject acts or is acted upon.

TENSE OF VERBS

217. The tense of a verb indicates its time.²⁷

Verbs have forms of tense to indicate present, past, or future time.

1. A verb in the present tense refers to present time.

2. A verb in the past tense refers to past time.²⁸

3. A verb in the future tense refers to future time.

The present, the past, and the future are called simple tenses.

Present Tense	Past Tense	Future Tense
He lives here.	He lived here.	He will live here.
The sun shines.	The sun shone.	The sun will shine.
I know him.	I knew him.	I shall know him.

FORMS OF THE PRESENT AND THE PAST

218. The present and the past tense have special forms of inflection.

For the moment we will consider the form which the verb has when its subject is the first personal pronoun I.

In the present tense the verb has its simplest form, without any inflectional ending.

• I like it.
• I hope for the best.
• I dwell in the wilderness.
• I find him amusing.

219. The past tense is formed in two ways, and a verb is classed as weak or strong in accordance with the way in which it forms this tense.

1. Weak verbs form the past tense by adding ed, d, or t to the present.

2. Strong verbs form the past tense by changing the vowel of the present, without the addition of an ending.

Weak verbs are sometimes called regular, and strong verbs irregular verbs.

For a list of the strong verbs see pp. 291–297.

Note. The terms strong and weak were first applied to verbs for a somewhat fanciful reason. The strong verbs were so called because they seemed to form the past tense out of their own resources, without calling to their assistance any ending. The weak verbs were so called because they could not form the past tense without the aid of the ending ed, d, or t.

220. The ending that is written ed is fully pronounced only when d or t precedes (as,—thread, threaded; attract, attracted). Otherwise, e is silent, so that the ending becomes, in pronunciation, d or t (as,—entered, pronounced enter’d; rocked, pronounced rockt).

In poetry and the solemn style, however, the silent e in the ending ed is sometimes restored to its ancient rights.

221. Many weak verbs show special irregularities in the past tense.

1. Make has made in the past, and have has had.

2. Some verbs in -nd and -ld form their past tense by changing this d to t.

3. A few verbs add d or t in the past and also change the vowel of the present. Thus,—

sell	sold
tell	told
shoe	shod
say	said (pronounced sed)
hear	heard (pronounced herd)
bring	brought
buy	bought
catch	caught
seek	sought
beseech	besought
teach	taught
methinks	methought

Work has an old past tense wrought, common in poetry; its usual past is worked. For must, would, etc., see p. 299.

4. Some verbs that have a long vowel sound in the present have in the past a short vowel sound before the ending t.

5. Some verbs in d or t preceded by a long vowel sound have a short vowel in the past but add no ending.

6. Some verbs in d or t have in the past the same form as in the present.

Note. The verbs in 5 and 6 might appear to be strong verbs, since they have no ending in the past and some of them change the vowel. They are, however, all weak verbs. Their lack of ending is due to the fact that the d or t of the termination has been absorbed in the final d or t of the verb itself. Thus, the past set was originally settë (dissyllabic), and this form, after the loss of -ë, became indistinguishable in sound from set, the present.

For lists of irregular weak verbs, see pp. 291–299.

PERSON AND NUMBER—THE PERSONAL ENDINGS

222. A verb must agree with its subject in number and person.

Verbs, like substantives, have two numbers (singular and plural) and three persons (first, second, and third).

The singular number denotes a single person or thing. The plural number denotes more than one person or thing.

The first person denotes the speaker; the second person denotes the person spoken to; the third person denotes the person or thing spoken of.

223. The inflections of person and number in verbs may be seen by framing sentences with the personal pronouns as subjects. Thus,—

Present Tense
SINGULAR	PLURAL
1. I walk.	1. We walk.
2. Thou walk-est.	2. You walk.
3. He walk-s [old form, walk-eth].	3. They walk.
Past Tense
SINGULAR	PLURAL
1. I walked.	1. We walked.
2. Thou walked-st.	2. You walked.
3. He walked.	3. They walked.

From the sentences it is evident (1) that the person and number of a verb are usually shown by its subject only, but (2) that some verb-forms have special endings which denote person and number.

224. The endings by means of which a verb indicates person and number are called personal endings.

1. In the present tense a verb has two personal endings, est for the second person singular and s for the third person singular (old form eth).

The first person singular and all three persons of the plural are alike. The simplest form of the verb is used and no personal ending is added.

2. The past tense has but one personal ending,—est or st in the second person singular.³¹

The forms in est or st are confined to poetry and the solemn style. In ordinary language, the second person plural is used to address a single person.

The following table shows the personal endings of the present and the past tense:—

Personal Endings

Present Tense		Past Tense
SINGULAR	PLURAL	SINGULAR	PLURAL
1. [no ending]	1. [no ending]	1. [no ending]	1. [no ending]
2. -est, -st	2. [no ending]	2. -est, -st	2. [no ending]
3. -s [old, -eth]	3. [no ending]	3. [no ending]	3. [no ending]

Conjugation of the Present and the Past

225. The inflection of a verb is called its conjugation (§ 53). When we inflect a verb we are said to conjugate it.

Conjugation of the Weak Verb Walk

Present Tense
SINGULAR	PLURAL
1. I walk.	1. We walk.
2. Thou walkest.32	2. You walk.
3. He walks.	3. They walk.
Past Tense
SINGULAR	PLURAL
1. I walked.	1. We walked.
2. Thou walkedst.	2. You walked.
3. He walked.	3. They walked.

Conjugation of the Strong Verb Find

Present Tense
SINGULAR	PLURAL
1. I find.	1. We find.
2. Thou findest.	2. You find.
3. He finds.	3. They find.
Past Tense
SINGULAR	PLURAL
1. I found.	1. We found.
2. Thou foundest.	2. You found.
3. He found.	3. They found.

Conjugation of the Copula

Present Tense
SINGULAR	PLURAL
1. I am.	1. We are.
2. Thou art.	2. You are.
3. He is.	3. They are.
Past Tense
SINGULAR	PLURAL
1. I was.	1. We were.
2. Thou wast.	2. You were.
3. He was.	3. They were.

Special Rules of Number and Person

226. When the subject is compound (§ 38), the number of the verb is determined by the following rules:—

1. A compound subject with and usually takes a verb in the plural number.

• My brother and sister play tennis.
• The governor and the mayor are cousins.

2. A compound subject with or or nor takes a verb in the singular number if the substantives are singular.

• Either my brother or my sister is sure to win.
• Neither the governor nor the mayor favors this appointment.

3. A compound subject with and expressing but a single idea sometimes takes a verb in the singular number.

The sum and substance [= gist] of the matter is this.

Note. This construction is rare in modern English prose. It is for the most part confined to such idiomatic phrases as end and aim (= purpose), the long and short of it, etc. The poets, however, use the construction freely (as in Kipling’s “The tumult and the shouting dies”).

4. If the substantives connected by or or nor differ in number or person, the verb usually agrees with the nearer.

• Either you or he is to blame.
• Neither you nor he is an Austrian.
• Neither John nor we were at home.
• Neither the mayor nor the aldermen favor this law.

But colloquial usage varies, and such expressions are avoided by careful writers. The following sentences show how this may be done:—

• Either you are to blame, or he is.
• One of you two is to blame.
• Neither of you is an Austrian.
• He is not afraid; neither am I.
• Both John and we were away from home.

227. In such expressions as the following, the subject is not compound, and the verb agrees with its singular subject:—

• The governor with his staff is present.
• John, as well as Mary, is in London.
• Tom, along with his friends Dick and Bob, is taking a sail.

228. Nouns that are plural in form but singular in sense commonly take a verb in the singular number (§ 84).

• Economics is an important study.
• The gallows has been abolished in Massachusetts.

In some words usage varies. Thus, pains, in the sense of care or effort, is sometimes regarded as a singular and sometimes as a plural.

Great pains has (or have) been taken about the matter.

229. Collective nouns take sometimes a singular and sometimes a plural verb.

When the persons or things denoted are thought of as individuals, the plural should be used. When the collection is regarded as a unit, the singular should be used.³³

• 1. The Senior Class requests the pleasure of your company. [Here the class is thought of collectively, acting as a unit.]
• 2. The Senior Class are unable to agree upon a president. [Here the speaker has in mind the individuals of whom the class is composed.]
• 3. The nation welcomes Prince Joseph. [The whole nation unites as a single individual to welcome a distinguished guest.]
• 4. The American nation are descended from every other nation on earth. [The separate qualities of the individuals who constitute the nation are in the speaker’s mind.]

230. A number in the sense of “several” or “many” regularly takes the plural; the number takes the singular.

• A number of sailors were loitering on the pier.
• The number of tickets is limited.

231. Half, part, portion, and the like, take either the singular or the plural according to sense.

• Half of a circle is a semicircle.
• Half of the passengers were lost.

232. A verb which has for its subject a relative pronoun is in the same person and number as the antecedent. For examples, see § 149.

Errors are especially common in such sentences as,—

• This is one of the strangest sights that ever were seen. [The antecedent of that is sights (not one); hence the relative (that) is plural, and accordingly the verb is plural (were, not was).]
• Mr. Winn’s oration was among the most eloquent that have [NOT has] been delivered in this state for many years.
• This is one of the finest paintings there are in the hall. [For the omission of the relative, see § 151.]

THE FUTURE TENSE

233. The future tense is a verb-phrase consisting of the auxiliary verb shall or will followed by the infinitive without to (§ 29).

The following table shows the form of the future for each of the three persons (1) in assertions and (2) in questions:—

Future Tense

Assertions (Declarative)
SINGULAR	PLURAL
1. I shall fall.	1. We shall fall.
2. Thou wilt fall.	2. You will fall.
3. He will fall.	3. They will fall.
Questions (Interrogative)
SINGULAR	PLURAL
1. Shall I fall?	1. Shall we fall?
2. Shalt thou fall?	2. Shall you fall?
3. Will he fall?	3. Will they fall?

234. Common errors are the use of will for shall (1) in the first person in assertions and questions, and (2) in the second person in questions.

In the following sentences the first person of the future tense is correctly formed:—

I shall [NOT will] drown.	Shall [NOT will] I drown?
I shall [NOT will] fail.	Shall [NOT will] I fail?
We shall [NOT will] sink.	Shall [NOT will] we sink?

The verb-phrases with shall express merely the action of the verb in future time. They do not indicate any willingness or desire on the part of the subject.

Contrast the following sentences, in which I will or we will is used:—

• I will go with you.
• I will give you what you ask.
• I will not endure it.
• We will allow you to enter.
• We will have the truth.

Here the verb-phrases with will do not (as in the previous examples of I shall) express the action of the verb in future time. They express the present willingness or desire or determination of the speaker to do something in the future.

Hence such verb-phrases with will in the first person are not forms of the future tense. They are special verb-phrases expressing willingness or desire.

235. In the first person shall, not will, is the auxiliary of the future tense in both assertions and questions. It denotes simple futurity, without expressing willingness, desire, or determination.

Will in the first person is used in promising, threatening, consenting, and expressing resolution. It never denotes simple futurity.

I. Simple Futurity (Future Tense)

• I shall be eighteen years old in July. [Not: will be.]
• Hurry, or we shall miss our train. [Not: will miss.]
• We shall be glad to see him. [Not: will be.]

II. Promises, Threats, etc.

• I will subscribe to your fund. [Promise.]
• We will do our best. [Promise.]
• I will discharge you if you are late again. [Threat.]
• We will permit you to go. [Consent.]
• I will have obedience. [Resolution.]

I’ll and we’ll are contractions of I will and we will and can never stand for I shall and we shall.

• I’ll meet you at noon. [Promise.]
• I’ll never consent. [Resolution.]
• We’ll be revenged on you. [Threat.]

236. When willingness is expressed by an adjective, I shall is correct; when by an adverb, I will. Thus,—

• I shall be glad to help you.
• I will gladly help you.

237. Will, when emphasized, always expresses determination on the part of the subject, even in the second and third persons.

• I WILL go, no matter what you say.
• {You WILL | He WILL} act foolishly, in spite of my advice.

238. In the second person Shall you? not Will you? is the proper form of the future tense in questions.

Will you? always denotes willingness, consent, or determination, and never simple futurity.

Note that in questions in the second person, the auxiliary used is the same as that expected in the answer.

I. Future Tense (Simple Futurity)

• Shall you be disappointed if he does not come? [I shall.]
• Shall you regret his absence? [I shall.]
• Shall you go by boat or by train? [I shall go by boat.]

II. Verb-Phrase denoting Willingness, etc.

• Will you write often? [I will.]
• Will you allow me to help you? [I will.]
• Will you be so kind as to open the window? [I will.]

239. Shall in the second and third persons is not the sign of the future tense in declarative sentences.

It is used in commanding, promising, threatening, and expressing resolution, the volition being that of the speaker.

• Thou shalt not kill. [Command.]
• You shall have the hat before Monday. [Promise.]
• You shall pay for this insult! [Threat.]
• She shall not regret her generosity. [Resolution.]

In prophetic language, shall is common in the second and third persons, even when there is no idea of commanding or the like.

The sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood.—Joel ii. 31.

240. In military orders and official communications, custom permits the more courteous will in the place of shall in the second and third persons.

• You will immediately report for orders.
• Heads of Departments will submit their estimates before January first.

For shall and will in subordinate clauses, see pp. 130–132.

241. Future time may also be expressed by the present tense, or by about or going with the infinitive (§ 319).

• We sail for Havana on Tuesday.
• They are about to begin the study of Greek.

COMPLETE OR COMPOUND TENSES

242. Completed action is denoted by special verb-phrases made by prefixing to the past participle some form of the auxiliary verb have.

These are called the complete or compound tenses.

There are three complete or compound tenses,—the perfect (or present perfect), the pluperfect (or past perfect), and the future perfect.

1. The perfect (or present perfect) tense denotes that the action of the verb is complete at the time of speaking. It is formed by prefixing have (hast, has) to the past participle.

• I have learned my lesson.
• He has convinced me.

Note. With several verbs of motion the auxiliary be is sometimes used instead of have: as,—“My friends are gone” (or “have gone”); “Your time is come” (or “has come”).

2. The pluperfect (or past perfect) tense denotes that the action was completed at some point in past time. It is formed by prefixing had (hadst) to the past participle.

• Before night fell, I had finished the book.
• When Blake had spoken, Allen rose to reply.

3. The future perfect tense denotes that the action will be completed at some point in future time. It is formed by prefixing the future tense of have (shall have, etc.) to the past participle.

Before I hear from you again, I shall have landed at Naples.

The future perfect tense is rare except in very formal writing.

243. The forms of the past participle will be studied in § 334. Meanwhile, the following practical rule will serve every purpose:—

The past participle is that verb-form which is used after I have.

244. A verb-phrase made by prefixing having to the past participle is called the perfect participle.

Having reached my destination, I stopped.

A verb-phrase made by prefixing to have to the past participle is called the perfect infinitive.

I am sorry to have missed you.

245. Three forms of the verb are so important that they are called the principal parts. These are:—

• (1) the first person singular of the present;
• (2) the first person singular of the past;
• (3) the past participle.

Present	Past	Past Participle
(I) walk	(I) walked	walked
(I) think	(I) thought	thought
(I) see	(I) saw	seen
(I) come	(I) came	come
(I) make	(I) made	made

VOICE—ACTIVE AND PASSIVE

246. Voice is that property of verbs which indicates whether the subject acts or is acted upon.

There are two voices, active and passive.

1. A verb is in the active voice when it represents the subject as the doer of an act.

• Richard shot the bear.
• Mr. Hardy builds carriages.
• Dr. Wilson has cured my father.

2. A verb is in the passive voice when it represents the subject as the receiver or the product of an action.

• The bear was shot by Richard.
• Carriages are built by Mr. Hardy.
• My father has been cured by Dr. Wilson.

247. The passive voice of a verb is expressed by a verb-phrase made by prefixing some form of the copula (is, was, etc.) to the past participle.

In the passive voice of the complete tenses, the past participle been follows the proper form of the auxiliary have (as in the third example in § 246, 2).

The passive of the infinitive is made by prefixing to be (perfect, to have been) to the past participle. Thus,—

• Present infinitive passive: to be struck.
• Perfect infinitive passive: to have been struck.

248. The following table gives the conjugation of the verb strike in the active and passive of the six tenses:—

Active Voice	Passive Voice
Present Tense
SINGULAR
1. I strike.	1. I am struck.
2. Thou strikest.	2. Thou art struck.
3. He strikes.	3. He is struck.
PLURAL
1. We strike.	1. We are struck.
2. You strike.	2. You are struck.
3. They strike.	3. They are struck.
Past Tense
SINGULAR
1. I struck.	1. I was struck.
2. Thou struckest.	2. Thou wast (or wert) struck.
3. He struck.	3. He was struck.
PLURAL
1. We struck.	1. We were struck.
2. You struck.	2. You were struck.
3. They struck.	3. They were struck.
Future Tense
SINGULAR
1. I shall strike.	1. I shall be struck.
2. Thou wilt strike.	2. Thou wilt be struck.
3. He will strike.	3. He will be struck.
PLURAL
1. We shall strike.	1. We shall be struck.
2. You will strike.	2. You will be struck.
3. They will strike.	3. They will be struck.
Perfect (or Present Perfect) Tense
SINGULAR
1. I have struck.	1. I have been struck.
2. Thou hast struck.	2. Thou hast been struck.
3. He has struck.	3. He has been struck.
PLURAL
1. We have struck.	1. We have been struck.
2. You have struck.	2. You have been struck.
3. They have struck.	3. They have been struck.
Pluperfect (or Past Perfect) Tense
SINGULAR
1. I had struck.	1. I had been struck.
2. Thou hadst struck.	2. Thou hadst been struck.
3. He had struck.	3. He had been struck.
PLURAL
1. We had struck.	1. We had been struck.
2. You had struck.	2. You had been struck.
3. They had struck.	3. They had been struck.
Future Perfect Tense
SINGULAR
1. I shall have struck.	1. I shall have been struck.
2. Thou wilt have struck.	2. Thou wilt have been struck.
3. He will have struck.	3. He will have been struck.
PLURAL
1. We shall have struck.	1. We shall have been struck.
2. You will have struck.	2. You will have been struck.
3. They will have struck.	3. They will have been struck.

Use of the Passive Voice

249. Any sentence of which the predicate is a transitive verb followed by an object, may be changed from the active to the passive form without affecting the sense.

• Active. Richard shot the bear.
• Passive. The bear was shot by Richard.

In this change, (1) bear, the object of the active verb shot, becomes the subject of the passive verb was shot; and (2) Richard, the subject of the active verb shot, becomes by Richard, an adverbial phrase, modifying the passive verb was shot. Thus we have the rule:—

The object of the active verb becomes the subject of the passive, and the subject of the active verb becomes in the passive an adverbial phrase modifying the predicate verb.

Active Voice	Passive Voice
My cat caught a bird.	A bird was caught by my cat.
Austin thanked Charles.	Charles was thanked by Austin.
The bullet penetrated a tree.	A tree was penetrated by the bullet.
Sargent painted that portrait.	That portrait was painted by Sargent.
The fireman had saved the child.	The child had been saved by the fireman.

250. Intransitive verbs are ordinarily used in the active voice only.

• The bystanders laughed.
• The watchdogs bark.
• Snow is falling.

251. An intransitive verb followed by a preposition is often used in the passive, the object of the preposition becoming the subject of the verb.

Active Voice	Passive Voice
Everybody laughed at him.	He was laughed at by everybody.
The attorney general has not yet passed upon this bill.	This bill has not yet been passed upon.
He has tampered with this lock.	This lock has been tampered with.
The cart ran over me.	I was run over by the cart.