developing an academic writing style and building english vocabulary

Verb Forms Infinitive to walk, to speak Base form walk, speak Gerund or walking, speaking present participle Past participle walked, spoken Simple past walked, spoke Verb phrase am

Verb Forms

Intensive Course in Research Writing Texas A&M University July 11-15, 2011

Susan E Aiello, DVM, ELS

susan@words-world.net

WordsWorld Consulting www.words-world.net

ESL Short Subject

Verb Forms

Infinitive to walk, to speak

Base form walk, speak

Gerund or walking, speaking present participle

Past participle walked, spoken

Simple past walked, spoke

Verb phrase am speaking,

has spoken, has been speaking, will have spoken

Verb-form Error

An error in the formation of the main verb or any part of a verb phrase

Can significantly affect reader’s ability to

understand the meaning

Essential to know formation of verb tenses

in English, but some specific situations (eg, verbals that follow verbs) don’t follow rules

Common Problems

Main verb incorrectly formed

Past participle in a verb phrase incorrectly formed Main verb or adjective incorrectly used instead of

[be + past participle]

Auxiliary verb and main verb that do not go together have been used in verb phrase

Form of a verbal following a verb is incorrect

Infinitive incorrectly formed

Base form of verb has been used instead of gerund

or infinitive

All are compounded by the many irregular verbs in English

Common Problems

Main verb incorrectly formed

Examples:

My comment my cousin’s feelings (to hurt) Susan to Los Angeles for an Editorial Board meeting (to fly)

Past participle in a verb phrase incorrectly formed

Examples:

One of my colleagues was because of work issues that could not be resolved (to fire)

The choir had _ their last song before I arrived (to sing)

Common Problems

Main verb or adjective incorrectly used instead of

[be + past participle]

Examples:

I about what you just said (to confuse)

San Francisco on the northern coast of California (to locate)

Auxiliary verb and main verb that do not go together have been used in verb phrase

Examples:

John felt he deserved his low grade because he

enough (to study)

Tina was discouraged because she very quickly (to progress)

Common Problems

Form of a verbal following a verb is incorrect

Examples:

He decided to the concert tonight (to go)

David avoided the issue (to discuss)

Remember:

The form of a verbal (infinitive, gerund, or base form) that follows a verb is not rule-based and is

determined on a case-by-case basis (see handout for list of common verbs)

Common Problems

Infinitive incorrectly formed

Examples:

I rarely forget my e-mail on the weekend (to check)

It was hard for Sandy that she used the wrong files for data entry (to admit)

Remember:

Infinitives consist of either [to + base form] with no -ed ending, or [to + have + past participle] for the past form of an infinitive

Common Problems

Base form of verb has been used instead of gerund

or infinitive

Examples:

Jim says that his divorce would be too painful (to discuss)

After hearing Karen’s argument, she changed her way of at the problem (to look)

Rules for Verb-Phrase Formation

DO (do, does, did) + BASE FORM

I do not know She does not…

HAVE (have, has, had) + PAST PARTICIPLE

I have already left She has left She had…

BE (am, is, are, was, were, have been, has been, had been) + PRESENT PARTICIPLE

I am studying She is studying We are…

Gerunds and Infinitives

Use an infinitive or gerund, not a base form, when a

verbal functions as a subject or an object

lectures

Reading is one of my favorite hobbies

Use a gerund, not a base form, as an object of a

preposition

Use an infinitive, not a base form, after many adjectives

Gerunds and Infinitives

Use an infinitive, not a base form, to express a purpose

Use a perfective infinitive (to + have + past participle) in cases in which the event or condition expressed by the

infinitive is in the past

To have won the election fulfilled all his dreams

(He already won the election.)

(I saw that Mike was unhappy at the last meeting, and I am

sorry about this fact.)

(You already did something thoughtful, and the speaker is

acknowledging it now.)