Verbs are the powerhouse of every sentence. They tell us what’s happening, what someone is doing, or what state something is in. Without verbs, we couldn’t express actions or describe situations. Let’s explore everything you need to know about basic verbs in English.
What is a Verb?
A verb is a word that shows action or state of being. Every complete sentence must have a verb.
Examples:
- The dog barks. (action)
- She is happy. (state of being)
- They run fast. (action)
- We are students. (state of being)
Types of Verbs
Action Verbs
Action verbs describe what someone or something does. They show physical or mental actions.
Physical actions: run, jump, eat, write, play, swim, dance, throw
Mental actions: think, believe, know, remember, understand, imagine
Examples in sentences:
- I eat breakfast every morning.
- She writes in her journal.
- They play football on Sundays.
- We think about our future.
- He remembers the story.
Being Verbs (State of Being)
Being verbs (also called “be” verbs) describe a state or condition rather than an action.
The being verbs are: am, is, are, was, were
Present tense:
- I am a teacher.
- You are smart.
- He/She/It is happy.
- We/You/They are students.
Past tense:
- I/He/She/It was tired.
- You/We/They were busy.
Present Tense Verbs
The present tense describes actions happening now or regularly.
Basic Rules:
For I, you, we, they: Use the base form of the verb
- I play tennis.
- You study hard.
- We live in London.
- They work together.
For he, she, it: Add -s or -es to the verb
- He plays tennis.
- She studies hard.
- It works well.
When to Add -es Instead of -s:
Add -es when the verb ends in: -s, -ss, -sh, -ch, -x, -z, or -o
Examples:
- miss → He misses the bus.
- wash → She washes the dishes.
- watch → He watches TV.
- fix → She fixes computers.
- go → It goes fast.
Consonant + y: Change y to i and add -es
- study → He studies English.
- cry → The baby cries.
- try → She tries hard.
Past Tense Verbs
The past tense describes actions that already happened.
Regular Verbs: Add -ed
Most verbs form the past tense by adding -ed to the base form.
Examples:
- play → played (I played football yesterday.)
- walk → walked (She walked to school.)
- watch → watched (We watched a movie.)
- clean → cleaned (They cleaned the house.)
Spelling rules:
- Ends in -e: just add -d (like → liked, love → loved)
- Consonant + y: change y to i, add -ed (study → studied, carry → carried)
- Short vowel + consonant: double the consonant (stop → stopped, plan → planned)
Irregular Verbs
Irregular verbs don’t follow the -ed rule. They have special past tense forms that must be memorized.
Common irregular verbs:
Base Form | Past Tense | Example |
---|---|---|
go | went | I went to school. |
see | saw | She saw a movie. |
eat | ate | We ate dinner. |
come | came | They came yesterday. |
take | took | He took the bus. |
make | made | I made a cake. |
have | had | We had fun. |
do | did | She did her homework. |
get | got | They got a gift. |
give | gave | He gave me a book. |
Important: There’s no pattern for irregular verbs – you must learn them individually!
Verbs in Sentences
Understanding how verbs work with nouns and pronouns is essential for building correct sentences.
Basic sentence pattern: Subject + Verb
- Birds fly.
- She sleeps.
- We study.
With an object: Subject + Verb + Object
- I read books.
- She plays piano.
- They eat lunch.
For more on sentence structure, see our guide on subjects and predicates.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Mistake 1: Forgetting -s with he/she/it
❌ He play football.
✅ He plays football.
Mistake 2: Using wrong past tense form
❌ I goed to school.
✅ I went to school.
Mistake 3: Adding -ed to irregular verbs
❌ She seed the movie.
✅ She saw the movie.
Practice Exercise
Fill in the correct present tense form:
- I _____ (play) football.
- He _____ (watch) TV.
- They _____ (study) English.
Write the past tense:
- walk → _____
- go → _____
- eat → _____
- study → _____
What’s Next?
Now that you understand verbs, continue your grammar journey:
- Learn about adjectives to describe nouns
- Explore adverbs to describe verbs
- Study future tense for talking about tomorrow
- Practice with present continuous tense
- Return to the Basic English Grammar homepage
Verbs are the heart of every sentence. Master them, and you’ll be able to express actions, states, and everything that happens in your world!
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