Towards understanding the English verb: form and meaning.

Jos Ribamar de Castro

A. regular or irregular. Regular verbs have five principal parts from which all the verb forms (ie tenses,participles and gerund) are constructed. 1. base look 2. third person singular simple present looks 3. present participle / gerund looking 4. past form looked 5. past participle looked

Irregular verbs show many variations in 4 and 5. 1. break grow hit 2. breaks grows hits 3. breaking growing hitting 4. broke grew hit 5. broken grown hit The verbs BE and HAVE are also irregular.It is because there are so many useful irregular verbs that we have to learn a list by heart.

The ed in the past form and in the past participle does not make a separate syllable. looked /lukt/ But many adjectives ending in ed do make it into a separate syllable. crooked /krukid/ wicked/wikid/ learned /l3:rnid/ B. singular or plural The subject of the sentence decides whether the verb is singular or plural.

singular plural A cow eats grass. Cows eat grass. My friend likes swimming. My friends like swimming. But this rule is sometimes disobeyed. 1. When the sense demands it,a singular noun can attract a plural verb.This is common in informal conversation. *The local committee are organising visits to schools for teachers attending the conference.

(A committee consists of several people.) 2. On the other hand,an apparently plural subject can take a singular verb. * (The sum of) $ 1,000 per annum is not much of a wage these days. 3. The main verb can be attracted into the plural by the real subject. *The thing that attracts me are the flowers round the rim of the vase. The real subject is the flowers.

4. ONE OF must take a singular verb in spite of the plural noun that goes before it. ONE OF our players WAS hurt in the game. But the verb in a relative clause must match its subject. This is one of the things that HAPPEN. However,in common speech the rule is often ignored. 5. NONE: EVERYONE should take a singular verb.But they are often heard with plural verb

in common speech. None of these cases ARE serious. BETTER None of these cases IS serious. Everyone KNOWS what a computer does, DONT THEY The colloquial usage at least solves the problem of the male pronoun HE representing both sexes: Everyone KNOWS what a computer does,DOESNT HE?

C. Verbs ending in Y Verbs ending in Y have a third person singular of the simple present tense in -IES. Fly flies; try tries. But play-plays; lay-lays. D. Auxiliary 1. An auxiliary verb is not a full verb.It is without an infinitive,a present participle,a gerund and a past participle.As its name implies,it helps to make a full verb.

It assists an ordinary verb to make its tenses,moods (indicative,imperative,subjunctive),aspects (past,present,future;progressive and nonprogressive),and voice (active and passive). I WAS sleeping until a barking dog woke me up. She HAS BEEN sleeping for more than five hours.

Some tenses, of course,are formed without the assistance of auxiliary verbs. 2. Auxiliary verbs are: be;have;do;dare; need. These verbs can also function as full verbs. Shall;will;can;may;might;ought (to);used (to). 3.They make their negatives by adding NOT or NT (as a suffix).

4. Must,may and can are followed by the bare infinitive. You must work harder. I can hear someone coming. The book you want may be in the library. The bare infinitive is used future reference. We MUST GO tomorrow. It MAY RAIN tonight.

5. Ought (to) indicates obligation,whether in the past,present or future. You ought to be ashamed of yourself. 6. An adverb of frequency comes between ought and the infinitive. One ought always to be honest. E. With attached prepositions 1. Some intransitive verbs make their meanings with a preposition.

The preposition is an essential part of the verb and so it must not be omitted,not even when the verb is passive.This means that the preposition can sometimes come ast the end of the sentence,and this is quite acceptable. Listen to me! Look at me! Passive * I dont like being stared at.

About referring to a topic or somebody think/speak/argue/worry/complain about. Across come across= find/meet by chance I came across this quotation in an old book I was reading. After ask after= ask about My mother was asking after you only yesterday.

take after= resemble She takes after her father.(looks or behaves like him) At arrive at= reach somewhere aim at (an intended target) shoot at= (hit or miss:the result is not known) shoot (without preposition)=hit someone or something

look/gaze at =observe Look at me ,not at your books. I gazed at the picture for a long time without understanding it. Shout at (often=abuse:aggression is implied) I object to being shouted at. Shout to = communicate with somebody in a loud voice. smile at / laugh at

FOR Care for a) look after The sick are cared for in hospitals. b) like Would you care for a drink before you eat? Fall for = be attracted to someone:fall in love with someone long for= desire ardently hope for= hope for a desired result look for= seek:try to find

From come from: (place of origin) Where do you come from? I come from Brazil. Differ from= be different/think differently How does life today differ from what it was like in the 19th century. In Succeed in He succeeded in his examination.

Believe in Not everybody believes in miracles. give in= surrender stay in= remain indoors cave in collapse under pressure *The excessive rain caused the roof of the tunnel to cave in. look in= pay a casual visit * The doctor said he would look in later to see how the patient was.

On get on = succeed: make progress *How are you getting on in your new job? depend on a) put trust in someone or something We are depending on you to make all the arrangements for the wedding. B) stand or fall by Whether or not we have a conference overseas next year will depend on our financial situation.

insist on= be firm about something I insist on paying for the lunch. Out fall out (with)= quarrel with make out= understand *I cant make out what hes trying to say. hold out= resist dine/eat out= take a meal outside the home eg at a restaurant or hotel. Speak out= speak boldly and truthfully

Contrast : speak up= speak loud enough to be heard To speak to= converse with *Dont speak unless you are spoken to. Contrast: speak of = mention reply to happen to agree to= accept a proposal or suggestion Contrast:agree with be of the same opinion as somebody

Apply to a) forward a request to somebody or somewhere b) concern or affect *These rules do not apply to you. Contrast: apply for = make a formal request *You will have to apply to the Consulate for a visa. Keep to Keep to the point= Dont stray away from the subject.

Keep to the footpath. With compete with = be in rivalry with sympathise with= share a common feeling or viewpoint not hold with = disapprove of *There is no positive form hold with to express approval. 2. Some transitive verbs,which in other languages have a preposition attached,do not have one in English.

Portuguese English obedecer obey perguntar ask aproximar de approach * Children must obey their parents. *I asked him where he lived. * We approached the house. F. with mixed prepositions Many common expressions consist of a verb or an adjective with a fixed preposition.

Able + to *My grandson was able to walk at ten months. Do not use round-about expressions such as I am able to or I have the ability to when I can is all you mean. *I can swim. Accuse + of *He accused me of cheating at cards. Agree with a person,but at something he does or says.

*The father was very angry with his son. *I was angry at his reply. Approve + of * I do not approve of your friendship with this man. Arrive + at * I usually arrive at the office at nine oclock. When arrive is followed by an adverb of place such as here,there,somewhere,anywhere,nowhere,

No preposition is used.The same is true of home when used as an adverb. *Phone me as soon as you arrive there/home. Boast + of *A modest person does not boast of his achievements. Boast about is also possible. *He is not the sort of person to boast about what he did in the war. Capable + of

*He is capable of all sorts of villany.

Compare + with This preposition is used when we compare things of the same kind. * Compared with the ancient empires,the British Empire lasted a very short time. Compare + to This preposition is used when the things being compared are of different nature. *Shall I compare thee (you) to a summers day. (Shakespeare)

Congratulate + on *They congratulate us on our victory. Cure + of *This medicine will cure you of indigestion in a few hours. But when cure is a noun (meaning a remedy),the preposition used is for. *There is no cure for the common cold.

Die Usage varies.A coroner may bring in a verdict ,of death by strangling,by poisoning:or from natural causes.A doctor may declare on a death certificate that death was the result of(ie the person died of or from)a heart attack or from a drug overdose.

Different + from Popular usage accepts both from and to, but the former is preferable. *What youre saying now is different from what you said before. The noun difference is usually followed by between. The difference between you and me. The verb differ takes from.

*How does this differ from the other? Full + of * The room is full of smoke. Contrast The room was filled with smoke. NB Full up means there is no more room available. No vacancies. Glad + of with noun. *We were glad of a rest after a long walk.

Glad + to-infinitive *Im very glad to see you. Hang + on Hang on means a) wait b) persevere a) Dont ring off yet. Just hang on a minute. b) If you hang on long enough youll get your reward.

Interested + in *Im very interested in what you are saying. The negative is uninterested or,more usually not interested. Both are different from disinterested which means unconcerned. Live + on The source from which one makes a living.

*I can just manage to live on my pension. Live + by The method one uses to make a lving. *He has always lived by taking advantage of his friends generosity. Make+ from When one substance is changed into another so that a new substance is produced. *Flour is made from wheat.

Make + of When the original material is not actually changed,but merely formed into some object. * A table is made of wood. Married + to * He is married to my sister. Married can be used either with or without an object.

* He married when he was twenty-seven. *He married my sister. Pleased + with * I am pleased with your progess. Pleased + to and infinitive * I am pleased to tell you that your wife has given birth to a son. Pleased + that and noun clause * The headmaster is pleased that so many parents have managed to attend the

school concert in spite of the bad weather.

Proud + of *We are proud of our sons record at school. Rid + of * He promissed to (get)rid of the rats. Sit + at (in front of us) * We sat at the table.

Sit + on (beneath us) * The cat sat on the mat. Sit + in (around us or which enfolds us) You sit in the car while I do the shopping. Sorry + for * Im sorry for the delay in answering your e-mail. Sorry + to-infinitive * Im sorry to tell you that your brother has met with an accident.

Take care + of * Take care of yourself. Take care + to-infinitive *Take care to lock and bolt the front door before you go to bed. Take care + that and noun clause. * Take care that I dont catch you cheating again. Useful + to of persons * A white stick is useful to a blind man.

Useful+ for of purpose. *A map is used for finding ones way. Negative useless follows the same pattern. Write + in for material used for writing. *All answers must be written in ink. Write + with for the instrument used in writing *The Japanese write their letters with a brush.

As it is suggested in the title,Towards understanding the English verb: form and meaning , has no other ambitious purpose than the pure practical one of helping Brazilian teachers/students of English to eliminate those errors which repeatedly occur in their writing/speech. If this workshop was somewhat helpful,I will have fulfilled my purpose.

THANKS FOR COMING!