Verbs

Verbs can be defined as words of doing or being and typically constitute the grammatical center of a sentence. These words of action constitute a large and important class of words whose forms vary according to tense or mood.

Verbs usually follow the subject of a sentence, although there may be one or more intervening words:

I love that hat.
That man is a stranger.
You very nearly got yourself killed.

There are situations, however, in which a verb may precede the subject:

Floating on the water was a single petal.
Waiting on the mat was a letter.

Types of Verbs

Verbs can be subdivided into two broad groups of regular and irregular verbs. Regular verbs, which account for the majority, follow a standard pattern in their various tenses, whereas irregular verbs follow nonstandard patterns, which are much less predictable.

All grammatically correct sentences must contain a phrase with a finite verb, meaning the verb has both a subject and a specific tense, number, and person, as appropriate (he stands alone; the ball dipped; they are all tired). Verbs that are not finite cannot by themselves constitute a complete sentence and do not change to reflect singular and plural or tense (going to bed, walking by the river). The nonfinite forms of a verb include the infinitive, the present participle, and the past participle.

Verbs can also be subdivided into transitive and intransitive categories. Transitive verbs must have a direct object (find peace, love skiing, see something) unless they are being used in the passive tense (admired by some) (see below about passive verbs). Intransitive verbs do not have to have a direct object (time will tell; the temperature is dropping). They include numerous verbs of movement (the moon is rising; the tide is coming in). Some verbs are always transitive or intransitive, but many may be employed either as transitive or as intransitive in different contexts (he turned the car around; the car turned around). The same verb can have a different meaning depending on whether it is being used transitively or intransitively (they staggered the new arrivals to avoid congestion; he staggered down the road).

In the case of reflexive verbs, the subject and object are the same (she helped herself; the baby amuses itself with a rattle). Note that some verbs (perjure oneself; pride oneself) are always reflexive, whereas others are more versatile (admire oneself/admire someone else; prepare oneself/prepare a meal).

Auxiliary verbs represent another class of verbs that are used in combination with other verbs to vary their meaning or tense. They are usually placed in front of the main verb and include be, can, do, have, may, must, shall, and will, among other verbs (they are lost; she did not approve; he had gone). Most auxiliary verbs can be used only in combination with other verbs (so-called modal verbs):

It might rain later.
I may go with you.
He shall call tomorrow.

The verbs be, have, and do (sometimes called primary verbs), however, can also be used independently:

My dog is a prizewinner.
They have several victories to their credit.
In the event, he did nothing.

The auxiliary verbs can and could are used to express ability (we can run fast; she could tell he was lying), while must and should are used to express obligation (you must come early; he should do what he's told). Would is used to express wishes (we would like to come; would you hold this hammer for me), and may and might are used to express possibility (that may be possible; it might not be too late). With the exceptions of be and have, all auxiliary verbs are followed by the infinitive form (without to) of the main verb (we can hear, you must go, they might disagree). The verb be is widely used to create the passive form of many verbs (she was defeated; they were arrested).

The auxiliary verb do is often employed for emphatic effect:

We do know how to have a good time, don't we?
They did promise to pay us back.

It is also frequently employed in the construction of questions:

Do you know the man who lives next door?
Did you go abroad this year?

Another class of words that closely resembles auxiliary verbs concerns such verbs and verb phrases as be able to, dare, going to, had better, need to, ought to, used to, and would rather. Like auxiliary verbs, these also come before the main verb, which is rendered in the infinitive (without to):

She was able to be of assistance.
They are going to pay for the trip.
She had better go before he gets back.
The system needs to be cleaned up.
His mother used to work for the government.

Not all verbs that appear before the main verb are necessarily categorized as auxiliary verbs. Some may be more accurately categorized as catenative verbs (appear, begin, come, expect, get, happen, help, manage, seem, want):

This appears to be the right door.
Things began to look better.
She happens to be his sister.

Like auxiliary verbs, catenative verbs are used in front of a main verb in its infinitive form (including to). Note that catenative verbs are sometimes used in combination with one another:

She managed to seem to be surprised.
As time passes we begin to get to know each other better.

Verbs that serve to link a subject to a word or phrase describing it are termed linking or copular verbs:

The garden is lovely at this time of year.
The sky became cloudy.

Some words belong to a class of verbs that have their origins in nouns. In recent years the practice of adapting nouns for use as verbs has gathered pace, but it should be treated with caution, as many people dislike verbs created in this manner (trash one's opponents). Some verbs created by this process never win wide acceptance, while others are absorbed into the language over the course of years and become part of the standard vocabulary.

Verbs in which the action of the verb is performed by the subject are termed active verbs (the baby cried, the couples danced). Verbs in which the subject is affected by the action of the verb are termed passive verbs (the door was broken by the force; the protesters were handcuffed by the police). The following examples demonstrate how the subject of an active verb becomes the object of a passive verb (usually preceded by the word by):

The fox caught the bird. [active]
The bird was caught by the fox. [passive]

Passive construction is generally formed by the auxiliary verb be followed by the past participle of the verb concerned:

The table was repaired by an expert.
The road has been reopened.

Note that only transitive verbs can be used in the passive tense, because intransitive verbs lack a subject. Note also that it is not possible to render reflexive verbs in the passive mood. Conversely, some passive verbs cannot be made active (we are supposed to agree).

Passive verbs have many uses, but care should be taken not to fall into the habit of using them in place of more vigorous active verbs. Overuse of passive verbs can make a passage seem contrived and ponderous to read. In many cases it is possible and preferable to replace a passive verb with a simpler active equivalent.

Principal Parts

The principal parts of a verb are those forms of a verb upon which the various inflected versions are based. They include the infinitive, the present participle, the past tense, and the past participle. Regular verbs follow a standard pattern, with an -ing ending being added to the infinitive to form the present participle and an -ed ending being added to form both the past tense and the past participle. Irregular verbs, however, vary considerably, particularly in the form taken for the past participle. Examples of the principal parts of some frequently used verbs follow.

Regular Verbs

Infinitive	Present Participle	Past Tense	Past Participle
aim	aiming	aimed	aimed
arrive	arriving	arrived	arrived
assume	assuming	assumed	assumed
climb	climbing	climbed	climbed
describe	describing	described	described
destroy	destroying	destroyed	destroyed
fail	failing	failed	failed
hate	hating	hated	hated
love	loving	loved	loved
mutter	muttering	muttered	muttered
open	opening	opened	opened
peel	peeling	peeled	peeled
play	playing	played	played
please	pleasing	pleased	pleased
pretend	pretending	pretended	pretended
remember	remembering	remembered	remembered
start	starting	started	started
succeed	succeeding	succeeded	succeeded
turn	turning	turned	turned
visit	visiting	visited	visited
walk	walking	walked	walked
work	working	worked	worked
abide	abiding	abode/abided	abode/abided
arise	arising	arose	arisen
awake	awaking	awoke/awaked	awoken/awaked
be	being	was/were	been
bear	bearing	bore	borne/born
beat	beating	beat	beaten/beat
become	becoming	became	become
begin	beginning	began	begun
bend	bending	bent	bent
bet	betting	bet/betted	bet/betted
bid	bidding	bade/bid	bidden/bid
bind	binding	bound	bound
bite	biting	bit	bitten/bit
bleed	bleeding	bled	bled
bless	blessing	blessed/blest	blessed/blest
blow	blowing	blew	blown
break	breaking	broke	broken
breed	breeding	bred	bred
bring	bringing	brought	brought
broadcast	broadcasting	broadcast/broadcasted	broadcast/broadcasted
build	building	built	built
burn	burning	burned/burnt	burned/burnt
burst	bursting	burst/bursted	burst/bursted
buy	buying	bought	bought
catch	catching	caught	caught
choose	choosing	chose	chosen
cling	clinging	clung	clung
come	coming	came	come
cost	costing	cost	cost
creep	creeping	crept	crept
cut	cutting	cut	cut
deal	dealing	dealt	dealt
dig	digging	dug	dug
dive	diving	dived/dove	dived/dove
do	doing	did	done
draw	drawing	drew	drawn
dream	dreaming	dreamed/dreamt	dreamed/dreamt
drink	drinking	drank	drunk/drank
drive	driving	drove	driven
dwell	dwelling	dwelled/dwelt	dwelled/dwelt
eat	eating	ate	eaten
fall	falling	fell	fallen
feed	feeding	fed	fed
feel	feeling	felt	felt
fight	fighting	fought	fought
find	finding	found	found
flee	fleeing	fled	fled
fling	flinging	flung	flung
fly	flying	flew	flown
forbear	forbearing	forbore	forborne
forbid	forbidding	forbade/forbad	forbidden
forecast	forecasting	forecast/forecasted	forecast/forecasted
forget	forgetting	forgot	forgotten/forgot
forgive	forgiving	forgave	forgiven
forsake	forsaking	forsook	forsaken
freeze	freezing	froze	frozen
get	getting	got	got/gotten
give	giving	gave	given
go	going	went	gone
grind	grinding	ground	ground
grow	growing	grew	grown
hang	hanging	hung/hanged	hung/hanged
have	having	had	had
hear	hearing	heard	heard
heave	heaving	heaved/hove	heaved/hove
hew	hewing	hewed	hewed/hewn
hide	hiding	hid	hidden/hid
hit	hitting	hit	hit
hold	holding	held	held
hurt	hurting	hurt	hurt
keep	keeping	kept	kept
kneel	kneeling	knelt/kneeled	knelt/kneeled
know	knowing	knew	known
lay	laying	laid	laid
lead	leading	led	led
leap	leaping	leaped/leapt	leaped/leapt
learn	learning	learned/learnt	learned/learnt
leave	leaving	left	left
lend	lending	lent	lent
let	letting	let	let
lie	lying	lay	lain
light	lighting	lit/lighted	lit/lighted
lose	losing	lost	lost
make	making	made	made
mean	meaning	meant	meant
meet	meeting	met	met
mislay	mislaying	mislaid	mislaid
mislead	misleading	misled	misled
mistake	mistaking	mistook	mistaken
mow	mowing	mowed	mowed/mown
overtake	overtaking	overtook	overtaken
pay	paying	paid	paid
plead	pleading	pleaded/pled	pleaded/pled
prove	proving	proved	proved/proven
put	putting	put	put
quit	quitting	quit/quitted	quit/quitted
read	reading	read	read
ride	riding	rode	ridden
ring	ringing	rang	rung
rise	rising	rose	risen
run	running	ran	run
saw	sawing	sawed	sawed/sawn
say	saying	said	said
see	seeing	saw	seen
seek	seeking	sought	sought
sell	selling	sold	sold
send	sending	sent	sent
set	setting	set	set
sew	sewing	sewed	sewn/sewed
shake	shaking	shook	shaken
shed	shedding	shed	shed
shine	shining	shone/shined	shone/shined
shoot	shooting	shot	shot
show	showing	showed	shown/showed
shrink	shrinking	shrank/shrunk	shrunk/shrunken
shut	shutting	shut	shut
sing	singing	sang/sung	sung
sink	sinking	sank/sunk	sunk
sit	sitting	sat	sat
slay	slaying	slew	slain
sleep	sleeping	slept	slept
slide	sliding	slid	slid
slit	slitting	slit	slit
smell	smelling	smelled/smelt	smelled/smelt
sneak	sneaking	sneaked/snuck	sneaked/snuck
sow	sowing	sowed	sown/sowed
speak	speaking	spoke	spoken
speed	speeding	sped/speeded	sped/speeded
spend	spending	spent	spent
spill	spilling	spilled/spilt	spilled/spilt
spin	spinning	spun	spun
spit	spitting	spit/spat	spit/spat
split	splitting	split	split
spoil	spoiling	spoiled/spoilt	spoiled/spoilt
spread	spreading	spread	spread
spring	springing	sprang/sprung	sprung
stand	standing	stood	stood
steal	stealing	stole	stolen
stick	sticking	stuck	stuck
sting	stinging	stung	stung
stink	stinking	stank/stunk	stunk
stride	striding	strode	stridden
strike	striking	struck	struck/stricken
string	stringing	strung	strung
strive	striving	strove/strived	striven/strived
swear	swearing	swore	sworn
sweep	sweeping	swept	swept
swell	swelling	swelled	swelled/swollen
swim	swimming	swam	swum
swing	swinging	swung	swung
take	taking	took	taken
teach	teaching	taught	taught
tear	tearing	tore	torn
tell	telling	told	told
think	thinking	thought	thought
thrive	thriving	thrived/throve	thrived/thriven
throw	throwing	threw	thrown
thrust	thrusting	thrust	thrust
tread	treading	trod/treaded	trodden/trod
unbend	unbending	unbent	unbent
undergo	undergoing	underwent	undergone
understand	understanding	understood	understood
undertake	undertaking	undertook	undertaken
undo	undoing	undid	undone
upset	upsetting	upset	upset
wake	waking	woke/waked	woken/waked
wear	wearing	wore	worn
weave	weaving	wove/weaved	woven/weaved
weep	weeping	wept	wept
win	winning	won	won
wind	winding	wound	wound
withdraw	withdrawing	withdrew	withdrawn
withhold	withholding	withheld	withheld
wring	wringing	wrung	wrung
write	writing	wrote	written

Infinitives

The infinitive is the basic form of a verb, unaffected by tense, number, or person. It is usually preceded by to. Without the to, the infinitive also supplies the imperative form of a verb and all the forms of the present tense except the third person singular.

The infinitive is frequently used (without to) after various auxiliary verbs (you must try, they may return). It is also used (with to) after adjectives (hard to understand, quick to agree) and nouns (a chance to excel, the time to move) and, sometimes, in combination with other verbs (try to behave, play to win).

The infinitive may be used in the sense of in order to:

To fly you don't need to grow wings.

It may also be employed as a verbal noun as an alternative to a verb's -ing form (formally called the gerund):

She started to run.
To smile in the face of adversity is a sign of great mental strength.

Note, however, that infinitives are not always interchangeable with gerunds: She wanted to go, for instance, could not be rendered in the form she wanted going. Similarly, he regretted calling cannot be rendered he regretted to call. It should be noted that even when the two are interchangeable, the switch may result in a change in meaning: They stopped to eat does not mean the same as they stopped eating.

Split Infinitives

It is traditionally considered incorrect for an adverb to be placed between the to and the infinitive form of a verb (to boldly go, to gently rock). This most problematic of all grammatical rules has its origins ultimately in Latin grammar, although acute sensitivity over the issue is a relatively recent phenomenon.

In many other modern languages, such as French, the infinitive is usually expressed as a single word and thus can never be interrupted by other words. In English, where the infinitive consists of two words, any associated adverb should either precede the to or follow the verb (boldly to go, to rock gently). In practice, however, this rule is often ignored. The majority of speakers are probably unaware of the convention and may break infinitives with more than one adverb or even whole phrases: We want to definitely and without reservation know what is intended. Those who are aware of the rule may take serious exception to such slips, and the split infinitive remains a bone of contention between those who consider it a bastion against sloppy usage and those who believe it to be nothing more than a manifestation of linguistic pretentiousness. Criticism of the split infinitive is a frequent subject of discussion in the media. For many people it marks the front line in the struggle between good and bad style, particularly when written.

Some careful speakers and writers avoid splitting infinitives at all costs, even when the alternatives are less than ideal (never to let her go/to never let her go). Very occasionally, however, it may be employed deliberately to useful, ironical effect: Everybody has to sometimes break the rules. A compromise position agreed between many contemporary speakers and writers is to accept the splitting of infinitives where the only alternatives available are even more unwieldy and undesirable. In colloquial or poetic contexts, a split infinitive may often sound more natural than the more correct alternative: We hope to really let go on this holiday.

Particular care should be exercised when moving adverbs in relation to split infinitives because doing so can affect the meaning and may lead to ambiguity. Thus, they decided to cautiously advance may be rendered as they decided to advance cautiously or as they decided cautiously to advance, each of which has a different meaning.

Participles

All verbs have present participle and past participle forms. Present participles are formed through the addition of an -ing ending to the infinitive stem (being, trying, walking). Note that when an infinitive has an -e ending, the final e is usually dropped before the -ing is added (coming, solving). Other exceptions include a number of verbs ending with -ie in the infinitive, which replace it with a y in the present participle (dying, tying), verbs that end in -c, which acquire a k (panicking, frolicking), and verbs that end in -d, -m, -n, -r, -t, etc., in which the final letter is doubled (plodding, swimming, running, purring, patting).

Present participles are used in various clauses and to express the continuous forms of verbs (going solo, riding bareback). They can also assume the role of nouns known as gerunds (don't criticize my dancing; swimming is fun) and adjectives (choking gas, a stunning revelation, soaking clothes).

Problems can arise when using a present participle with a pronoun. Many people are uncertain as to which type of pronoun to employ before the participle concerned. The rule is that if the participle has its own subject (meaning that the participle is actually a gerund, acting more like a noun than a verb), then the possessive pronoun is correct.

How about my bringing something to eat?

If the participle is acting more like a verb than a noun, then the possessive form should not be used:

Do you mind me singing?

Past participles are variously formed through the addition of an -ed ending to the infinitive stem (ended, loaded, started) or, in the case of irregular verbs, through the affixing of one of a variety of other established endings (brought, chosen, gotten, sawn, shone, taken, taught). Note that some irregular verbs have identical present tense and past participle forms (cut, hit, let, split). In other instances the past participle differs from the past tense (did/done, flew/flown, went/gone), or there are two alternatives for both the past tense and the past participle (burned/burnt, dreamed/dreamt, leaped/leapt, showed/shown, spilled/spilt, spoiled/spoilt). In U.S. English the -ed form is more commonly used than elsewhere in the English-speaking world.

Participles can be used in a number of different ways. As well as forming the perfect tenses and passive forms of verbs, they are commonly encountered serving as adjectives (a falling star, a broken chair, a startled look). They can also be employed as a means of introducing a sentence:

Tied to the post, a large fierce dog snarled at all passersby.
Being unavoidably detained, he knew he would be late for the meeting.

Caution should be exercised in the use of introductory participles because they can easily become unintentionally attached to the wrong noun in the sentence that follows:

Determined to win, the contest was far from over.
Being ravenously hungry, the meal was a great relief.

In some circumstances an introductory participle may be unrelated, or at least uncertainly connected, to any subject in the ensuing sentence, in which case it is termed a dangling participle (otherwise called an unattached participle or unrelated participle):

Lost in thought, the twilight soon became night.
Listening to the song, her mood improved.

Careful writers avoid creating dangling participles by placing them next to the noun to which they refer and thus making the link between the participle and the subject unambiguous. Participles that are uncertainly linked to the subject that follows still have their uses, however. They are particularly useful as prepositions or conjunctions, regardless of their relationship with the subjects that follow:

Talking of politics, did you see the news tonight?
Bearing in mind the weather, they were lucky to get back home so soon.
Having said that, things may change.

Agreement

Verbs must agree with the subject in terms of number and person. Regular verbs in present tense follow a standard pattern in their expression of the various different persons, with the third person singular being distinguished by the addition of -s or -es:


Person	Present-Tense Regular Verb

I (first person singular)	call/kiss/run/see/talk
you (second person singular)	call/kiss/run/see/talk
he/she/it (third person singular)	calls/kisses/runs/sees/talks
we (first person plural)	call/kiss/run/see/talk
you (second person plural)	call/kiss/run/see/talk
they (third person plural)	call/kiss/run/see/talk

Verbs that end with -y lose the final y in the third person singular and are replaced by an i and -es (flies, spies, tries). Verbs that end with -o usually add an -es ending (does, goes).

Irregular verbs in the present tense may change more dramatically from one person to another, particularly in the case of the third person singular:


Person	Present-Tense Irregular Verb
I (first person singular)	am
you (second person singular)	are
he/she/it (third person singular)	is
we (first person plural)	are
you (second person plural)	are
they (third person plural)	are
I (first person singular)	have
you (second person singular)	have
he/she/it (third person singular)	has
we (first person plural)	have
you (second person plural)	have
they (third person plural)	have

In sentences where the subject consists of more than one noun, confusion can sometimes arise over the identification of the noun with which the verb should agree. Such confusion is particularly troublesome when one competing noun is singular and another plural:

Some of the team, including the captain, have expressed support for the decision.
One of the teams is to be disqualified.

Linking the verb to the correct subject is particularly complicated when the phrase either … or is used. The general rule here is that if both subjects are singular, then the verb is singular, too:

Either the driver or his wife knows the answer.

If one of the subjects is plural, however, then the verb agrees with the subject that immediately precedes it:

Either the president or his advisers are responsible for this change.

The same rule applies to the person of the verb:

Either you or I am going next.
Either you or your parents are going next.

Tenses

In order to express distinctions in time, verbs possess present, future, and past tenses. The present and past tenses are frequently expressed through changes in the form of the main verb, but other tenses tend to rely on the use of auxiliary verbs.

Present Tenses

The present tense is used to describe either events that are currently taking place or states or conditions that exist in a context in which time is irrelevant. It is generally formed by taking the infinitive verb stem and making minor changes specifically to the ending of the third person singular to designate their person (I believe, he pretends, she speaks, it cools). The major exception to this rule is the verb to be (I am, you are, he/she/it is, we are, they are).

The present tense can also be used to refer to events in the future:

We invade next week.
They arrive tomorrow.

It can, in certain circumstances such as newspaper headlines, also be used to refer to past events:

Veteran actor dies in Hollywood.
Masked men rob bank.

In many contexts the verb is required to describe an action that is continuing to take place (crying, falling, wanting). In order to express this sense of a continuous present (as a tense, also called the present progressive), the verb to be is added and conjugated, while the main verb becomes a participle with the -ing ending:

I am writing to you from a hilltop.
They are hoping for an improvement soon.

The pupils are working hard this term.

Past Tenses

The past tense in its various forms refers to events that have already taken place. In its simplest form it is expressed through the addition of an -ed ending to the verb stem (banned, rolled, summoned)

He interrupted me before I could finish.
The response surprised them.

Note, though, the exceptional case of the verb to be, which varies in the past tense according to the persons involved (I was, you were, he/she/it was, we were, they were).

When referring to events in the relatively recent past, the usual course is to employ the present perfect by adding the auxiliary verb have to the past participle (-ed ending) of the verb concerned:

We have traveled through dangerous territory.

Another option is to employ the basic past tense in such contexts:

They already left.
We just arrived.

The perfect tense is often used instead of the simple past tense in questions:

Have you packed yet?

It may also be preferred to the simple past tense in order to emphasize that an action has been completed:

Yes, I have tidied my room.

Finally, when the intention is to describe a past action that is still taking place in the present, the usual solution is to employ the present perfect tense:

She has decided she has no option but to resign.
They have lived here all their lives.

The formula when expressing the continuous past (or past progressive), used to describe something that was still taking place at the time in question, is to apply the verb to be and add the verb ending -ing (present participle):

As we were passing the building, there was an explosion.
He was thinking of applying for the post.

Sometimes it is necessary to refer to something that happened before the past time being described, in which case the usual solution is to employ the past perfect (or pluperfect) tense. The past perfect is formed by combining the past tense of have and the past participle:

They had seen the film before, so they already knew the ending.
When he had completed his rounds, he settled down at his monitor.

Future Tenses

The future tense in its various forms refers to events that have yet to take place. It is usually formed through the addition of the auxiliary verbs will or shall to the infinitive of the verb concerned:

It will be an interesting contest.
We shall arrive at the coast in an hour.

Both will and shall are commonly reduced to 'll (I'll, we'll). In many circumstances both shall and will can be used to express determination or insistence:

You will behave when we get there.
We shall have our revenge.

Note, however, that the present tense can also be used to express events in the future:

She is to resign next week.
It remains to be seen.
He is to be promoted shortly.
The tree is about to fall.
The news may be bad.

Sequence of Tenses

When there are multiple conjugated verbs in a sentence certain set rules come into play to ensure that their tenses harmonize—a system known as the sequence of tenses. The clause containing the most important verb is identified as the main clause (we heard that they had gone), while the clause or clauses containing lesser verbs are identified as subordinate clauses (we heard that they had gone).

The tense of the subordinate clause is often the same as the tense of the main clause:

I think it is time to stop.
He says he is fine.
She thought he was being rude.

This is not always the case, however, since the two clauses may refer to two different times:

I wish that I had met her earlier.
We think that was a bad idea.

If the main clause is in the future tense, then the subordinate clause is most likely to be in the present tense:

They will want to eat as soon as they arrive.
I will contact you once the train pulls into the station.

If the main clause is in the past tense, and the subordinate clause refers to some permanent state of affairs, then the subordinate clause is most likely to be in the present tense:

He realized that some things are too important to leave to chance.

If the main clause is in the past tense, and the subordinate clause refers to the future, then the subordinate clause is most likely to be in the past tense:

We knew they would survive.

Moods of Verbs

Verbs can be rendered in three basic "moods": the indicative, the imperative, and the subjunctive. The indicative mood of a verb is the basic and most frequently encountered form, used in simple statements of fact and in questions (the sky is blue; have you no shame?).

The imperative mood of a verb is used for giving orders and is identical to the infinitive in form. When written down, the imperative is often emphasized with the addition of an exclamation point at the end of the word or the sentence in which it appears:

Be quiet!
Come here!
Stop talking and pay attention!

The same convention applies to the negative form of the imperative, which is usually introduced by the verb do:

Don't do that!
Do not block this driveway!

Note, though, that the imperative may also be used in less emphatic contexts, often in relation to instructions:

Connect the printer to the computer.
Come to our party.
Please close the gate.

The subjunctive mood of a verb relates to the expression of possibilities or wishes. In most verbs it is based on the third person singular of the present tense, with any final -s being removed (be that as it may; lest she disagree). Note, however, that in the case of the verb be, the subjunctive form in past tense is were, not was (if I were to come; as it were)—hence the technical term were-subjunctive.

Clauses containing subjunctives are commonly introduced by that:

We insist that he come at once.
It is important that she sign the agreement today.

These clauses, which typically feature such verbs as ask, demand, and suggest, are formally known as mandative subjunctives.

Other clauses containing subjunctives are introduced by if, as if, as though, or supposing:

If the situation were to change, there might be an opening.
She acted as though she were a young girl.
I am prepared to go, supposing I were chosen.

Other subjunctive clauses include a number of commonly encountered standard phrases, such as if need be and suffice it to say. These are formally termed formulaic, or optative, subjunctives.

A particular source of confusion concerns the use of the verb be as a subjunctive, especially in the past tense, in the context of phrases beginning with if. Where something hypothetical is being proposed were is the correct form to use because the mood is subjunctive:

If that were to happen, I would be worried.

If, however, a statement of fact or probability is being proposed, then was is the correct form, representing the indicative mood:

If he was ill, he seems to have recovered now.

Overuse of the subjunctive mood should be avoided, because it can sound more formal than simpler alternatives. One way to avoid overuse of subjunctives is to insert the word should (lest she should disagree).

Phrasal Verbs

Phrasal verbs are constructed through the combination of an existing verb with an adverb or preposition, or both (carry on, come across, do up, leave out, look after, look forward to, run over, try out). The object of the verb usually follows the adverb or preposition (do up the parcel; look after the child).

Caution should be exercised in relation to phrasal verbs, since they often have secondary, often figurative, meanings that are not obvious from their superficial appearance. Some uses of phrasal verbs are literal in their meaning (go out after dinner; tie up the dog), while others acquire extended meanings (go out with a girl; tie down with work; tie up all day; visit with one's parents). Note that there is some risk involved in extending ordinary verbs in such a way where they are not already well established, because such coinages may be considered nonstandard slang.

Negation

In order to turn a statement into the negative the usual method is to insert the word not after the main verb or the first auxiliary verb:

We are not millionaires.
He was not wearing a suit.
They were not being fair.

In cases where the main verb or the auxiliary verb is not be, the correct procedure is to insert the auxiliary verb do before the word not:

I do not have the documents you are talking about.
We did not go shopping today.

Note, however, that for poetic effect not occasionally follows the main verb:

Where she lives now I know not.

In common use not is habitually shortened to n't (can't, hadn't, mustn't, weren't) to reflect everyday pronunciation, but care should be taken not to use these reduced forms in formal contexts.

Difficulty can arise when clauses containing the phrase used to are put into the negative. One option is to treat used to as a main verb and employ didn't as its auxiliary verb:

We didn't used to come here.

Some people, it should be noted, will reduce used to use in such circumstances:

He didn't use to be so unfriendly.

A better option is to treat used to as an auxiliary verb and add not or n't to make it negative:

She used not to mind such interference.

Not may also be used in combination with such words as any or either to make a sentence negative:

She did not say anything to the police officer.
They may not want either of these dresses.

In other circumstances it is possible to make a statement negative through the use of various words that in themselves express a negative quality. These include such pronouns as nobody and nothing, such adverbs as never and nowhere, and the determiner no:

Nobody saw them enter.
There is nothing in the cupboard.
They will never succeed.
There is nowhere to go around here.
There are no easy solutions.

Particular caution should be exercised in avoiding double negatives, sentences in which two negatives are employed. The result is that the two negatives cancel each other out, and the intended meaning is reversed. The phrase I was not in no holdup, an apparent denial of being present when a crime was committed, actually means I was in a holdup, as the negatives have canceled each other out. Note, however, that very occasionally a double negative is not necessarily incorrect:

He didn't say he wouldn't come.
We couldn't not let her in.

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Verbs

Types of Verbs

Principal Parts

Regular Verbs

Infinitives

Split Infinitives

Participles

Agreement

Tenses

Present Tenses

Past Tenses

Future Tenses

Sequence of Tenses

Moods of Verbs

Phrasal Verbs

Negation

RELATED ARTICLES

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Verbs

Types of Verbs

Principal Parts

Regular Verbs

Infinitives

Split Infinitives

Participles

Agreement

Tenses

Present Tenses

Past Tenses

Future Tenses

Sequence of Tenses

Moods of Verbs

Phrasal Verbs

Negation

RELATED ARTICLES