English for Careers

1. English for Careers Chapter 7 Mastering Verbs

2. Your goals for Chapter 7: Use correct verb tenses Recognize regular and irregular verbs Use subjects and verbs that agree in number and person

3. A VERB may consist of one word The class studies every night. action verb Every student is in the room. being verb

4. Verbs also consist of two or more words. We had been studying all week. had been = helping verbs studying = main verb/action verb

5. INFINITIVES are the basic forms of verbs preceded by to An infinitive does not serve as a verb. David wantsto dance with you. We are goingto study for the test. The children went outside to play.

6. VERB TENSE Action or being takes place in the past, present, or future work, works, is working worked, had worked, has worked will work, will have worked

7. Choosing a verb form depends on tense (time), number, and person. Tense - When does the action or being take place—past, present, or future? Number - Does the verb have a singular or plural subject? Person - Is the subject of the verb in first person, second person, or third person?

8. Regular verbs change tense by adding s, ed, or ing Please work on the report tonight. Jay works well with a team. He worked hard all this year. He is working toward earning a college scholarship.

9. PRESENT TENSE Add s if the subject is singular, except you or I He works really hard. You work hard. I work just as hard. Don’t add s if the subject is plural. Teachers work hard, too.

10. PRESENT PARTICIPLE When action is in progress, use the – a helping verb(s) before a main verb ending with ing. If you are working late, please say so. He is goinghome by bus.

11. PAST TENSEAdd d or ed He workedhard on the report. PAST PARTICIPLE Use a helping verb He has workedhard all week to finish it.

12. FUTURE TENSEUse will, shall, would, or should before the basic verb form I will work late if I can get a ride home. I would work late tonight, but I have a date.

13. Irregular verbs do not follow the pattern set by regular verbs Some change spelling for past, present, and future; some change spelling only for one tense. Use your dictionary when you are unsure of how to form the tense of irregular verbs.

14. Some irregular verbs Present Past Past Participle begin/begins began begun choose/chooses chose chosen do/does did done drink/drinks drank drunk go/goes went gone

15. More irregular verbs Present Past Past Participle ring/rings rang rung run runs ran run speak/speaks spoke spoken take/takes took taken wear/wears wore worn

16. When a sentence has two or more verbs, generally express them in the same tense. Bill thinks I am a hard worker. He gave me a note in which he wrote that I worked hard.

17. For a general truth or something still going on, use the present tense, even if a verb elsewhere in the sentence is past tense. The guide told us that Tokyo is larger than Kobe or Kyoto. What are the names of the books you purchased? The sales rep claimed that his software is better.

18. Poor verb usage sounds uneducated! He brung it to me yesterday. I seen it with my own eyes. She had showed him the house. I be going to the mall. Joe drunk the whole bottle They was very nice people.

19. Correct! He brought it to me yesterday. I saw it with my own eyes. She had shown it him the house. I am going to the mall. Joe drank the whole bottle! They were very nice people.

20. SUBJECTS and VERBS in sentences A sentence must have at least one independent clause (a subject and a verb). The verb is the action or being word; the subject is the noun or pronoun that tells who or what is doing or being.

21. Recognizing clauses Sentences can have more than one clause. A clause may be dependent or independent. Every sentence must have one independent clause.

22. Independent and dependent clauses A clause has both a subject and a verb. Independent clauses communicate a complete thought and can stand alone. Dependent clauses cannot stand alone; they depend on the rest of the sentence for their meaning.

23. Which clauses are independent? Some designers are talented, some aren’t. When she graduates, Tia wants to be a designer. Melissa is a professional model. George is a model and he also goes to school.

24. A phrase lacks either a subject or a verb. The bride and groom drove away in a white limousine. Walking tall, she appeared to be proud of herself. Being in the spotlight is fun, but also exhausting.

25. Make sure subjects and verbs agree in number. The dog runs. (singular) The dogs run. (plural) The dog and cat run. (plural) The dogs and cats run. (plural)

26. Recognizing subjects and verbs First find the verb. Then look for the “who” or “what” word. That’s the subject. Usually the subject comes before the verb. Sometimes it comes after the verb.

27. A subject may look like a verb when it names an activity: Running is my favorite way to exercise. The understood subject may be you. [You]Take these books back to the library. Some sentences have more than one subject; some have more than one verb. George and Henry are going to read and perform all the parts in the play.

28. Singular subjects Except you or I, typically add an s to the verb form for the present tense and use helping verbs that end in s, such as is, has, and was. She speaks well. She has spoken at all of our seminars.

29. Plural subjects and you and I Require a verb (or helping verb) that does not end with s. You speak well. I speak well. The graduates speak well. They have spoken at all of the meetings.

30. Compound subjects When joined by or or nor, make the verb agree withthe noun or pronoun following the or or nor. The clerk or the assistantssort the mail. Neither the workers nor the bossis getting a raise this year.

31. Indefinite pronoun subjects Plural indefinite pronoun subjects—both, many, several, few—require a plural verb form. Manychoose the hardest task first. Severalask for assistance when needed. Bothtake a long time to bake.

32. Singular indefinite pronoun forms - each, every, many, a, an, one, either, neither, another, or a pronoun ending with one, body, or thing requires a singularverb form. Each student and teacher needs a tutorial on the new software. Another error makes four in two days. Everyoneleaves at 5 p.m. on the dot.

33. Are these sentences right or wrong? You are the winner. I work across the street. They ship products everywhere on earth. Either Bill or Mary has the key. Each man and woman needs a form. Many an applicant is turned down. They are all right!

34. Right or wrong? Several have been chosen. The box of tools is on the table. Supervisors, as well as the CEO, are here. The reasons his job was difficult seem clear. There were several boxes of tools on the table. The number of restaurants here is growing. They are all right!

35. Collective nouns represent a unit: jury, group, committee, class, audience When the unit is united, it is singular. The faculty agrees to meet. When the unit is divided, it is plural. The faculty disagree about the issue. OR The faculty members disagree about the issue.

36. Let’s review: I paint. I painted. I have painted. I will paint.

37. I will have painted by tomorrow. I should have painted more often. If I were talented, you’d buy my paintings.

38. Checkpoint You have the ability to use verb tenses correctly and make subjects and verbs agree in number and person.