English 212/ English Grammar and Usage

WHAT IS A VERB?

WHAT CAN A VERB DO?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Verb forms:

1. PRESENT TENSE

Regular present tense: The 3rd person singular form is marked with s (sometimes spelled es). The rest
of the forms are unmarked (I see, you see, she sees, we see, yall see, they see)

Irregular present tense: i. BE (I am/she is/we are)

ii. HAVE (I have/she has)

iii. DO (I do/she does) < This one looks regular, but pronounce them and youll
see that the vowel changes from do > does.

Dialectal variation: Lots of English dialects have regularized the present tense, either by removing the
s from the 3rd person singular form (e.g., I see, you see, she see), or by using s
in all the forms (e.g., I sees, you sees, she sees)

2. PAST TENSE

Patterns in past tense formation:

weak verbs The past tense is formed by adding a suffix ed (though it has different
pronunciations depending on the preceding sound)

strong verbs The past tense if formed via a vowel change in the verb itselt (e.g., I see/saw, I
eat/ate, drive/drove, etc.)

3. PAST PARTICIPLE

The past participle is often identical to the past tense (e.g., I walked, I have walked), but not always.
Sometimes its formed with a suffix en (I have eaten, I have seen, I have written) or with another
vowel change (I have sung, I have drunk, etc.)

4. PRESENT PARTICIPLE

The present participle is always formed by adding ing (e.g., I am eating, I am walking, I am seeing, I
am writing, I am singing, I am drinking, etc.)
5. INFINITIVE

This is the bare form of the verb. Its always identical to the present form except for be (which, at least
in Standard American English, has be as the infinitive, but am, is, are in the present

Which of the English verb forms can stand alone as the main verb in a sentence?

Only the present and the past stand alone as the main verb in a sentence.

When is the present participle used as the main verb in the sentence?

The present participle is used as the main verb in the sentence when its following a form of be (e.g., I
am dancing, I was dancing, I might have been dancing, etc.)

When is the past participle used as the main verb in the sentence?

The past participle is used as the main verb in the sentence when its following a form of have (e.g., I
have danced, I will have danced, etc.). It is also used in passive constructions (i.e., following passive
be, e.g., It was eaten, It had been eaten. It might have been eaten, etc.)

When is the infinitive used as the main verb in the sentence?

The infinitive is used after a modal verb, e.g., I might be, I can be, I could be, I should be, etc.)

What are auxiliaries? How do they differ from main verbs in the sentence?
Auxiliaries and modals cant stand alone.

English auxiliaries: 1. BE (progressive), e.g., She is running/seeing/eating/dancing/walking/etc.

Always followed by the present participle (-ing) form of the verb

2. HAVE, e.g., She has run/seen/eaten/danced/walked/etc.

Always followed by the past participle of the verb

3. BE (passive), e.g., It was seen/eaten/called/read/observed

Always followed by the past participle of the verb

(4) DO (used obligatorily in question/negative formation & for emphasis in declarative

sentences e.g., She does run/see/eat/dance/walk/etc. Does she
run/see/eat/dance/walk/etc.?

What are modals? How do they differ from main verbs in the sentence?
do not inflect for person or tense
Usually give a sense of obligation (e.g., must), possibility (e.g., may), ability (e.g., could)

English modals: WANT WOULD

MAY MIGHT
SHALL SHOULD
CAN COULD
MUST