Grammar-Quizzes › Verb Phrases › Verb Complements–Object › Transitive Verbs
Transitive Verbs (verb + direct object)
Indicate the person or thing affected by the action
Transitive vs. Intransitive Verbs
| TRANSITIVE VERB — ACCEPTS AN OBJECT | ||
|---|---|---|
A transitive verb requires a direct object to complete its meaning—an 'agent' performs an action and a "patient" ( or "theme") undergoes the action. The direct object usually takes form as a noun phrase. Note that the meaning of a verb may differ slightly in transitive (below) versus intransitive (right) usage. |
||
| SUBJ + PRED | DIRECT OBJECT | COMP / ADJUNCT |
| NP + V | NP | PP |
Jason studies applies mental activity in detail |
English |
in the afternoons. |
Jason left |
his phone |
at home. |
Jason knocked |
his phone |
on the floor. |
Jason raises |
his hand |
in the air. |
Jason set |
his backpack |
on the floor. |
Jason laid |
his jacket |
on his backpack. |
| INTRANSITIVE VERB — DOES NOT ACCEPT AN OBJECT | ||
|---|---|---|
An intransitive verb does not accept an object (NP) as its complement. Instead, it may take an adverb or a prepositional phrase as its complement (a required element) or as an adjunct (an optional element). A passive structure cannot be formed because there is no object. |
||
| SUBJ + PRED | NONE | COMP / ADJUNCT |
| NP + V | NOUN PHRASE | PP/ADV |
Jason studies follows field(s) of interest |
in his free time. |
|
Jason left |
|
at noon. |
Jason knocked |
|
on the door. |
Jason rises |
with the sun. |
|
Jason sits |
down for breakfast. |
|
Jason lies¹ |
on the sofa. |
|
Word Categories: N – Noun; V – Verb; Aux – Auxiliary; Adj – Adjective; Adv – Adverb; P –Preposition; Det –Determiner. See Word Categories.
Phrasal Categories: NP – Noun Phrase; VP – Verb Phrase; AdjP – Adjective Phrase; AdvP – Adverb Phrase; PP – Prepositional Phrase; DP – Determinative Phrase.
Clausal Categories: Cls – clause; F – finite clause; NF – nonfinite clause: Ger – gerund; Inf – infinitive; PPart – past participle.
Word Functions: Subj – subject; Pred – predicate/predicator; Comp – complement: elements required by an expression to complete its meaning (DO – direct object; IO – indirect object); Adjunct – adjunct: elements not required by an expression to complete its meaning (Subord – subordinator; Coord – coordinator); Supl – supplement: a clause or phrase added onto a clause that is not closely related to the central thought or structure of the main clause.
Also see Transitive Verb List (below) | Verbs with Indirect Objects (ditransitive) and Intransitive Verbs – Never Passive | Transitive Complements: see Grammar Notes.
Terminology
Semantic Roles, Functions and Verb Types
Semantic roles:
- causer/agent—the thing (inanimate) that or the person (animate) who causes the action to occur. (He sang a song. The wind blows.)
- instrument—something used by the agent in performing the action. (He sang a song with a guitar.) See By / With.
- patient (theme)—the person or thing that is affected by the action of the agent; the thing acted upon. (He sang a song.) (topic of this webpage)
- recipient—the person (or entity) that is the receiver or endpoint of the action. (He sang her a song. He sang a song to her. ) See Ditransitives.
- beneficiary—the person (or thing) that something is obtained for or done for. (He sang them a song. He sang a song for them.) See Ditransitives.
- path, source, goal, and location—where the theme moves—starting-point, intermediate point, end-point. (He walked from home to the bus-stop.)
Functions: (uses)
- direct object (DO) — (usually a noun phrase) the person or entity (thing, concept, etc.) that undergoes the action expressed by the predicate. (He sang a song.)
- indirect object (IO) — (usually a noun phrase) the people or things that carry the semantic role (meaning) of goal (location), recipient (receiver), beneficiary of (one who receives the benefit of or enjoyment) an action or event. goal—The teacher sent the students home. [to]; recipient—The teacher gave Jason a book. [to]; beneficiary—The teacher saved Jason a book. [for]
Verbs types:
- dynamic verb – a verb in which an action takes place. (This is not a static/stative verb or copular verb "be".)
- static verb – (stative verb) a verb that is not dynamic; no action takes place (e.g., be, seem, appear, etc.)
- intransitive verb – a verb that does not take an object as its complement (and cannot be passive). (e.g., He lies down.)
- transitive verb – a verb that takes an object as its complement. (e.g., He lay the baby down.)
Pronoun Forms:
- nominative—a pronoun form used when it is the subject of the verb: I, we, she, he, they;
- accusative—a pronoun form used when it is the object of the verb: me, us, her, him, them.
Also see Aarts 4.1.3.1-2 or Huddleston 4 §8.2.1 as referenced in Grammar Notes (below).
Transitive Verbs
Verbs that take objects and other complements
Transitive Verbs
| INTRANSITIVE |
|---|
An intransitive verb usually does not accept an object or any other kind of complement. However, the meaning of some verbs may allow the context to suggest the object (thing/person affected by the action of the agent, "Sophie"). |
*Sophie hugged. (not used) |
Sophie forgot. (understood object or complement) |
| TRANSITIVE |
|---|
An transitive verb requires a noun, a phrase or another structure to complete the meaning expressed by the predicate (verb). In traditional grammar, an "object" is a noun. However, a wide variety of structures can complete (complement) a verb, depending on its meaning. |
Sophie forgot Jason. (object / noun complement) Sophie forgot that Jason called. (clause complement) Sophie forgot to call Jason. (infinitive complement) Sophie forgot calling Jason. (gerund complement) Sophie forgot about Jason's call. (prepositional complement) |
Object vs. Predicate Complement (arguments for separating terms)
accept¹ He accepted the offer. |
add¹ He added the numbers. |
adore¹ He adores his wife. |
attend He attended college. |
beat She beat the eggs. |
bite She bit her fingernails. |
borrow She borrowed some butter. |
change She changed her shoes. |
choose¹ They chose their seats. |
collect They collected the eggs. |
complete They completed the test. |
consider¹ They considered the problem. |
contain The police contained the crowd. |
control The officer controlled the traffic. |
cross They crossed the street. |
count They counted the children. |
cover We covered the food. |
discover We discovered the error. |
divide We divided the tips. |
doubt¹ We doubted his story. |
draw He drew a picture. |
drive He drives a truck. |
drop He dropped his keys. |
enjoy¹ He enjoys movies. |
expect¹ She expects an answer. |
fill She filled the bathtub. |
feel¹ She felt his forehead. |
forget¹ She forgot the key. |
guess¹ We guessed his name. |
hang We hung our coats. |
hate¹ We hate their advertisement. |
held We held our babies. |
hit She hit me. |
hug We hugged them. |
introduce He introduced Gary. |
invite He invited Adele. |
join He joined the army. |
kill He killed a spider. |
kiss He kissed a girl. |
lead He lead a group. |
left He left the house. |
lend He lent some money. |
lift He lifted the weights. |
like¹ He likes the changes. |
love¹ He loves his son. |
marry He married his girlfriend. |
notice¹ We noticed a mistake. |
obtain He obtained a permit. |
offer¹ We offered help. |
order¹ We ordered dinner. |
passed We passed the test. |
permit¹ He doesn't permit dogs. |
pick We picked an apple. |
pour We poured some milk. |
practice¹ We practiced the play. |
prepare¹ We prepared the food. |
prove¹ He proved his theory. |
provide We provided assistance. |
pull We pulled the fire alarm. |
push She pushed the door. |
reach We reached our destination. |
realize¹ She her mistake. |
receive We receive help. |
recognize¹ They recognized him. |
refuse¹ We refused the offer. |
remember¹ We remember him. |
repeat¹ He repeated the word. |
report¹ She reports the news. |
require¹ They require identification. |
save She saved her money. |
search The police search the house. |
separate She separated the egg. |
serve We serve dinner. |
share We share our toys. |
shout He shouted the answer. |
show¹ We showed the pictures. |
sign He signed the contract. |
smell He smelled the flower. |
spell She spelled her name. |
spend We spent our money. |
spread We spread the blanket. |
suck The baby sucks his thumb. |
suggest¹ He suggested a restaurant. |
supply The investor supplied the funds. |
surprise They surprised us. |
surround The wall surrounds the yard. |
taste He tasted the soup. |
tear She tore the paper. |
thank They thanked us. |
wave He waved the flag. |
wear He wears jeans. |
win He won the race. |
The above is a partial (incomplete) list of transitive verbs. Some verbs may occur without an object because it is understood from context. Some verbs may also have other meanings, for example, She realized her mistake. (became aware of) or She realized her dreams. (achieved).
¹This verb accepts one or more of the following complements: Clausal (that-clause), Prepositonal, Infinitival, Gerundial.
monotransitive – term for a predicate that requires one object to complete its meaning – Jason hugged Sophie.
ditransitive – term for a predicate that requires two objects: an indirect object and a direct object – Jason gave Sophie a hug.
†bite – That dog bites. (puts teeth into flesh) or That bites. (is unfortunate, slang)
suck – A baby sucks its thumb. () or He sucks! (is incapable or incompetent)
Intransitive Verbs
Verbs that do not take objects
Intransitive Verbs
| INTRANSITIVE |
|---|
Jason agrees. Jason agrees with me on that matter. (prep phrases) |
| TRANSITIVE |
|---|
*Jason agrees me. *Jason agrees the discussion. |
* not used
agree |
appear |
arrive |
become |
belong |
collapse |
consist of |
cost |
depend |
die |
disappear |
emerge |
exist |
fall |
go |
happen³ |
have¹ |
inquire |
knock (sound) |
laugh |
lie (recline or not tell the truth) |
live |
look |
last (endure) |
occur |
remain |
respond |
rise |
sit |
sleep |
stand |
stay |
swim |
vanish |
wake² |
wait |
¹Except: I was had. (slang) – someone took advantage of me.
²awake (trans. and intrans.) – I awoke / I awoke her.
³happen (intrans.) – *An idea happened. But: We happened upon an idea. We came across an idea. ("unexpectedly discovered/occurred") It happens that we saw him this morning. ("by chance").
*Yellow highlighting indicates example of incorrect usage.
Transitive or Intransitive
Verbs that optionally take objects
Intransitive Form – the Subject is the "Agent"
| INTRANSITIVE |
|---|
| TRANSITIVE |
|---|
answer |
ask |
clean |
dance |
eat |
explore |
finish |
|
give |
help |
hide |
hunt |
injure |
leave¹ |
read |
pass |
talk² |
text (send a text) |
see |
sing |
speak³ |
stand* |
steal |
teach |
telephone (someone) |
try |
wash |
woke up (awake) |
The above list mentions just a few of the many verbs that follow this pattern. (burn, cook, dance, decide, dream, dress, fail, fly, improve, return, sing, fit)
¹He left. (departed) He left me. (abandoned) He left his telephone. (forgot)
²He talked. (chatted) He talked politics./ sense with me. (discussed a subject). He talked me to sleep. (bored me)
³He spoke. He spoke the truth.
*He stood. (on his feet). He stood his teddy bear against the wall.
Intransitive
The object is the "agent"
Intransitive form with no "agent"
| INTRANSITIVE |
|---|
| TRANSITIVE |
|---|
bake |
break |
boil |
burst |
cook |
cool |
crack |
form |
fly |
fry |
heal |
melt |
move |
sail |
shake |
sweep |
tear |
turn |
transform |
reverse |
ring |
run |
roll |
The passive form "The egg is cracked." suggests that there is no agent. (cracked – may be a verb or a modifier)
These are also called "dual-transitivity" verbs (Huddleston 216-7)
"Agent Unknown" see Get-Passives.
Also called "ambi-transitivity" or "ergative".
Other Intransitive Verbs
Copula & Static Verbs
Static Verbs with Intransitive and Transitive Forms
| INTRANSITIVE VERB |
|---|
The meaning of a static verb may be expressed as 'equals' or 'is'. No action is expressed. States of being, sensory states, and measurement states are followed by descriptors rather than "recipients" of actions. |
| COPULA VERBS |
The baby is tired. (static – describes the baby) The baby is hers. (static – specifies the baby) |
| SENSORY STATES |
The baby feels wet. (passive–experience wetness) |
| MENTAL STATES |
The baby is tired. I know. (passive – understand information) |
| POSSESSION STATES |
— |
The baby belongs here (Adv) / to her (PP). |
| MEASUREMENT |
The baby weighs ten pounds(5 kg). (describes – baby = 10 lbs.)
|
| TRANSITIVE VERB |
|---|
In some cases a verb is be used as a static verb with one meaning and as a dynamic verb with another meaning. Only a dynamic verb can be a transitive verb, which has a subject ('doer'), a verb (action) and an object ('recipient'). |
| DYNAMIC VERB |
— none — |
| DYNAMIC VERB |
The mother felt the diaper to see if it was wet. (active–experience with touch) |
| DYNAMIC VERB |
You know our doctor. (active – be familiar or acquainted with) |
| DYNAMIC VERB |
The baby has a bottle. *A bottle is had by the baby. |
—
|
| DYNAMIC VERB– different meaning |
The doctor weighed the baby. (The baby was weighed by the doctor.) The doctor weighed the baby who is ten pounds. |
**not used
In linguistic terms, a transitive verb has at least two 'arguments' – a subject and an object (mono-transitive).
Also see Specifying vs. Ascriptive "be" and Intransitive Verbs.
| STATES OF BEING | SENSORY STATES | MENTAL STATES | POSSESSION STATES | MEASUREMENT STATES |
|---|---|---|---|---|
See States of Being |
See Sensory States |
See Cognitive States |
||
be (am, is, are were, was) (intrans) |
feel (intrans/ trans) |
know, think, suppose, imagine, understand (intrans/ trans) |
have (trans) |
weigh (intrans/ trans) |
seem, appear, look (intrans) |
sound (intrans/ trans) |
forget, remember (intrans/ trans) |
own, hold title to (trans) |
equal. add up to (intrans) |
resemble, looks like (trans) |
taste (intrans/ trans) |
desire, *want / *need / (trans) |
belong (intrans) |
reach, measure (intrans/ trans) |
becomes (intrans/ trans) |
see (intrans/ trans) |
believe, feel (intrans/ trans) |
|
cost, owe (intrans/ trans) |
get (intrans/ trans) |
hear (intrans/ trans) |
recognize (trans) |
include, contain, (trans) |
Common Mistakes
Errors & Solutions
Error and Solution
| ERROR |
|---|
*He spoke me about that. |
*An idea happened to us. *We happened an idea. |
*She laid down for a few minutes. |
*Angela studies her lessons hard.
|
| SOLUTION |
|---|
He spoke about that. (Remove the indirect object.) |
An idea occurred to us. "came by chance" We happened upon an idea. "discovered by chance" We happened to come across an idea. "thought of it unexpectedly" |
She lay down for a few minutes. (Use the correct past tense form for lie.) |
Angela studies a lot. (Follow studies with an adverb expressing intensity.) See Pop-Q "Study" |
Grammar Notes (Advanced)
Traditional and Linguistic Description
Traditional and Linguistic Description
| TRADITIONAL GRAMMAR |
|---|
In traditional grammar, a verb is either transitive (takes an object), intransitive (does not take an object), or both. |
| TRANSITIVE / INTRANSITIVE VERBS |
Jason answered. (intransitive use) / Jason answered me. (transitive use) Jason answered the question. (transitive use) He spoke the truth. (transitive use) He spoke to me about the matter. (intransitive use) He told me the truth. (transitive use) Thank you for your gift. (transitive use – "you" is the direct object; "for your gift" is a prep. phrase)
|
|
| REED-KELLOGG SYSTEM |
|
| LINGUISTIC DESCRIPTION |
|---|
In current linguistic analysis, a verb can be complemented by (take / require / be followed by) a variety of words or structures. A verb's complementation depends on its meaning. A verb is "typed" according to its complementation (by what can follow it). (Swan 606) A transitive verb can be "monotransitive" having one direct object or "ditransitive" having two objects — direct and indirect. Other NP complements may be "complex intransitive" as shown below. (Huddleston 216-20, 244-51, 296-321) |
| NP COMPLEMENTS (TRANSITIVE) |
Jason answered. (no complementation) / Jason answered me. (NP) Jason answered the question. (NP) He spoke the truth. (NP) He told the people the truth². (NP + NP) ditransitive Thank you for your gift. (NP + PP) monotransitive Buy vs. Thank Jason broke the egg. / The egg broke. (NP/ __j) dual-transitivity Jason looked up the problem. (particle + NP) Phrasal Verbs Jason considers you weak. (NP + Adj) complex-transitive Jason wants you to leave. (NP + infinitive) complex-transitive Infinitive Cls w/Subj Jason made me leave. (NP + plain form verb) complex-transitive Plain Form Infinitives Jason slammed the door shut. (NP + adjective) complex-transitive Adj as Complements |
| OTHER VERB COMPLEMENTATION (INTRANSITIVE) |
He spoke to me about the matter. (PP + PP) Jason looked at the problem. (PP) Jason arrived at the station / here. (PP – place) Jason arrived in the morning / today. (PP – time) Jason looks nice. (AdjP) complex-intransitive States of Being Jason enjoys researching. (Gerund) intransitive Verb + Gerund Jason likes to research. (Infinitive) intransitive Verb + Infinitive
|
| TREE DIAGRAM |
|
Word Categories: N – Noun; V – Verb; Aux – Auxiliary; Adj – Adjective; Adv – Adverb; P –Preposition; Det –Determiner.
Phrasal Categories: NP – Noun Phrase; VP – Verb Phrase; AdjP – Adjective Phrase; AdvP – Adverb Phrase; PP – Prepositional Phrase; DP – Determinative Phrase.
Clausal Categories: Cls – clause; F – finite clause; NF – nonfinite clause (Ger – gerund; Inf – infinitive; PPart – past participle).
Word Functions: Subj – subject; Pred – predicate/predicator; Comp – complement: elements required by an expression to complete its meaning (DO – direct object; IO – indirect object); Adjunct – adjunct: elements not required by an expression to complete its meaning (Subord – subordinator; Coord – coordinator); Supl – supplement: a clause or phrase added onto a clause that is not closely related to the central thought or structure of the main clause.
Works Cited
- Aarts, Bas. Oxford Modern English Grammar. Oxford UP, 2011.
- Azar, Betty Schrampfer, and Stacy A. Hagen. Understanding and Using English Grammar. 4th ed., Pearson Education, 2009.
- Huddleston, Rodney D., and Geoffrey K. Pullum. The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language. Cambridge UP, 2002.
- Swan, Michael. Practical English Usage. 3rd ed., Oxford UP, 2005.
Practice 1
A Visitor
Read for Errors
Last month, I was taking a nap when something strange happened me. I was resting myself on the couch when a sound awoke me. Someone was knocking. I got up and answered. When I opened, I saw a man who was about forty.
He smiled me and said, "Hi, I'm your cousin." I laughed. "Impossible," I said, "both my parents were only-children." I told to check the address again. The man understood his mistake and left me.
only-child (N) – the only child born to parents, having no siblings
Does the verb take a direct object?
- Select the response from the list that best completes the sentence.
- Compare your response to the feedback by clicking the "check" or "check 1-10" button.
Practice 2
My Morning Routine
Is the verb intransitive, transitive, or both?
- Select an option—intransitive, transitive, or both.
- Compare your response to the feedback by clicking the "check" or "check 11-21" button.
Practice 3
Laptop Topper
Read for Errors
I have a roommate with two cats. One of the cats that belongs him he likes to sleep on my computer. The cat lays down the top of the computer and purrs. She waits me until I come over and shoo her away. This amuses her because she wants to play.
However, this delays me because I have to work. I think the computer warms her so she likes. Unfortunately, she weighs too much and could crush my computer. I should put away my computer, but I need for my research.
purr (V) – sound a contented cat makes
research (N) – inquiry or investigation into a subject
shoo (V) – make a sound to drive a cat, dog, bird away
Does the verb take a direct object?
- Edit the sentence(s) in the text box.
- Compare your response to the feedback by clicking the "check" button.
