Verbs are the drivers of language. All other parts of speech rely on them for momentum. Without effective verb usage, they lose the extra thrust that they\u2019re made to provide and become mere golf-cart motor components.<\/p>\n
Mastering verbs includes understanding the difference between transitive and intransitive action words.<\/p>\n
A\u00a0transitive verb<\/strong>\u00a0is one that requires a direct object to finish its meaning.<\/p>\n Example<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n He\u00a0<\/em>(subject)\u00a0plays\u00a0<\/em>(transitive verb)\u00a0guitar\u00a0<\/em>(direct object).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n An\u00a0intransitive verb<\/strong>\u00a0is one that does not need a direct object to complete its meaning.<\/p>\n Example<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n She\u00a0<\/em>(subject)\u00a0laughs and smiles\u00a0<\/em>(compound intransitive verb).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Linking verbs<\/strong>\u2014those that join a sentence subject to its complement\u2014are likewise intransitive. Common linking verbs are\u00a0become, seem, appear, feel, look, taste, smell, sound,<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0be.<\/em> Subject complements for linking verbs will be adjectives, nouns, pronouns, possessive pronouns, or adverbs of time or place.<\/p>\n Examples<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n They<\/em>\u00a0(subject)\u00a0seem<\/em>\u00a0(linking verb)\u00a0joyful<\/em> (adjective complement).<\/p>\n She<\/em>\u00a0(subject)\u00a0is becoming<\/em>\u00a0(linking verb)\u00a0a superb musician<\/em> (noun complement).<\/p>\n The winner<\/em>\u00a0(subject)\u00a0is<\/em>\u00a0(linking verb)\u00a0you<\/em>\u00a0(pronoun complement).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Some verbs can function as either transitive or intransitive depending on their context.<\/p>\n Examples<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n When I need some light exercise, often I walk <\/em>(intransitive).<\/p>\n When I need some light exercise, often I walk <\/em>(transitive)\u00a0the dog<\/em>\u00a0(direct object).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Other verbs that can be either transitive or intransitive are\u00a0run, provide, enter, read,<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0call<\/em>.<\/p>\n Becoming proficient with transitive and intransitive verbs further includes knowing how they function with direct and indirect objects.<\/p>\n With transitive verbs, an\u00a0indirect object\u00a0<\/strong>appears between the verb and the\u00a0direct object<\/strong>. You can spot a word or phrase as an indirect object by determining if it can follow the direct object with a prepositional phrase that begins with\u00a0to, for,<\/em>\u00a0and occasionally\u00a0of:<\/em><\/p>\n Sentence:<\/strong>\u00a0The teacher gave the students<\/em>\u00a0(indirect object)\u00a0homework<\/em>\u00a0(direct object).<\/p>\n Proof:<\/strong>\u00a0The teacher gave homework<\/em>\u00a0(direct object)\u00a0to the students<\/em>\u00a0(receiving prepositional phrase).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Transitive verbs that often allow indirect objects are\u00a0give, make, tell, show, bring, send, sell,<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0offer.<\/em><\/p>\n Intransitive structures can at times be more tricky, often because they appear transitive but aren\u2019t because of understood omission in context.<\/p>\n Examples<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n The inmate escaped the prison.<\/em><\/p>\n They left the party.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n In the first example, the inmate didn\u2019t escape the prison as a direct action to the object. He escaped\u00a0from\u00a0<\/em>the prison, an intransitive context. The word\u00a0from<\/em>\u00a0is omitted because it\u2019s understood.<\/p>\n In the second sentence, they didn\u2019t leave the party in terms of setting something down in a transitive context (e.g.,\u00a0left a dessert<\/em>). They left\u00a0from<\/em>\u00a0the party, an intransitive context. The word\u00a0from<\/em>\u00a0is once again omitted because it\u2019s understood.<\/p>\n With these principles in mind, we recognize how direct and indirect objects work in transitive and intransitive structures to add color and clarity.<\/p>\n Examples<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n 1)\u00a0Please bring\u00a0<\/em>(transitive verb)\u00a0me\u00a0<\/em>(indirect object with omitted\u00a0to<\/em>)\u00a0the book\u00a0<\/em>(direct object). 2)\u00a0Could you grab\u00a0<\/em>(transitive verb with auxiliary\u00a0could<\/em>)\u00a0me\u00a0<\/em>(indirect object with omitted\u00a0for<\/em>)\u00a0another beer<\/em> (direct object)? 3)\u00a0My feet are really aching\u00a0<\/em>(present progressive intransitive verb)\u00a0me\u00a0<\/em>(reflexive pronoun operating as an indirect object with omitted\u00a0to<\/em>). 4) The following sentence applies both transitive and intransitive structures: By understanding how verbs are classified and related to the rest of the sentence, you\u2019ll do more than write grammatically. You\u2019ll also ensure that together your words will move as high-performance vehicles instead of as putt-putt wagons that meander through long and winding courses.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Identify whether the verbs in the following sentences are transitive or intransitive and whether objects (if present) are direct or indirect. Answers are at the bottom of the newsletter.<\/p>\n 1. For my weekly exercise, I run (transitive \/ intransitive) at the local high school track.<\/p>\n 2. She provided (transitive \/ intransitive) me (direct \/ indirect) the notes (direct \/ indirect) I needed to study.<\/p>\n 3. He feeds (transitive \/ intransitive) his cat (direct \/ indirect) twice a day.<\/p>\n 4. The governor seems (transitive \/ intransitive) uncertain about passing the legislation.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1. For my weekly exercise, I run (transitive \/ intransitive<\/strong>) at the local high school track.<\/p>\n 2. She provided (transitive<\/strong>\u00a0\/ intransitive) me (direct \/\u00a0indirect<\/strong>) the notes (direct<\/strong>\u00a0\/ indirect) I needed to study.<\/p>\n 3. He feeds (transitive<\/strong>\u00a0\/ intransitive) his cat (\u00a0direct<\/strong>\u00a0\/ indirect) twice a day.<\/p>\n 4. The governor seems (transitive \/ intransitive<\/strong>) uncertain about passing the legislation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Verbs are the drivers of language. All other parts of speech rely on them for momentum. Without effective verb usage, they lose the extra thrust that they\u2019re made to provide and become mere golf-cart motor components. Mastering verbs includes understanding the difference between transitive and intransitive action words. A\u00a0transitive verb\u00a0is one that requires a direct […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2581","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-definitions","category-verbs"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2581"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2581"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2581\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7199,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2581\/revisions\/7199"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2581"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2581"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2581"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}A Closer Look at Sentence Objects<\/h2>\n
\nIncluding me\u00a0<\/em>conveys the book is destined for me instead of another person.<\/p>\n
\nOnce again we use an indirect object to communicate destination.<\/p>\n
\nWhile many would argue this is more colloquial speech than proper grammar, our deconstruction reveals the parts\u2019 identities.<\/p>\n
\nThe inmate escaped<\/em> (intransitive verb) the prison<\/em> (prepositional object with omitted\u00a0from<\/em>) and left<\/em> (transitive verb) the warden<\/em> (indirect object) a note<\/em> (direct object).<\/p><\/blockquote>\nPop Quiz<\/h2>\n
Pop Quiz Answers<\/h3>\n