Transitive and Intransitive Verbs for intermediate learners
'She smiled beautifully'. 'She started a rumor'. One of these sentences has an intransitive verb and one has a transitive one. Want to know the difference?
What Are Transitive and Intransitive Verbs?
Based on whether or not the verbs need objects, they can be divided into two groups:
- Transitive verbs
- Intransitive verbs
Transitive Verbs
Transitive verbs only have a complete meaning if they have an object, whereas intransitive verbs can make sense without one.
I
I
Direct and Indirect Objects
A transitive verb takes a direct object; that is, the noun that receives the action. It can also have an indirect object that comes before the direct object. The indirect object tells 'to' or 'for' whom the action is done.
She
Can I
Examples of Common Transitive Verbs
Here is the list of common transitive verbs in English:
- Offer
- Pay
- Borrow
- Bring
- Send
- Kiss
- Love
- Take
- Sell
- Give
Intransitive Verbs
Intransitive verbs do not need an object. They can have other information after them, such as a prepositional phrase or an adverb.
I
Jimmy
Examples of Common Intransitive Verbs
Here is the list of common intransitive verbs in English:
- Sleep
- Laugh
- Purr
- Run
- Sail
- Talk
- Arrive
- Fall
- Wait
- Sit
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Actions and States
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Auxiliary Verbs
Auxiliary verbs help the main verb to express tense or voice or help make questions and negative sentences. That's why they're also called 'helping verbs'.
Phrasal Verbs
Phrasal verbs are used very commonly in English, even more so in informal situations. Phrasal verbs consist of a verb and a preposition or a particle.
Ditransitive Verbs
Ditransitive verbs are transitive verbs that take two objects. A direct object and an indirect object. Follow the article to read more about them.
