Chapter 4 · English Grammar

Verbs

Beginner ⏱ 35–45 minutes 🎓 Grade 6

What you will be able to do

  • Define a verb and find the verb in any sentence
  • Tell apart action, linking and helping verbs
  • Decide whether a verb is transitive or intransitive
  • Use the three principal parts of regular and irregular verbs
  • Apply basic subject–verb agreement

1 Quick Introduction

English

A verb is a doing word or a being word — it tells what the subject does (run, eat, think) or what it is (is, seems, becomes). A sentence is not complete without a verb; it is the engine that makes the sentence move.

हिन्दी

क्रिया (Verb) काम या अवस्था बताने वाला शब्द है — यह बताता है कि कर्ता क्या करता है (run, eat, think) या क्या है (is, seems, become)। बिना क्रिया के वाक्य पूरा नहीं होता; यह वाक्य का इंजन है।

2 A Real-Life Situation

Imagine this

Your coach shouts during practice:

Coach: Pass the ball! Run faster! You are doing well!

Why this form? Pass and run are action verbs, are is a helping verb (with 'doing'), and in 'You are well' it would link the subject to a description. One short burst of speech shows all the verb types you'll learn here.

3 The Grammar Rule

Rule & Formula
TypeJobExample
Action / Mainshows an actionShe writes.
Linkingjoins subject to a descriptionShe is happy.
Helping / Auxiliarysupports the main verbShe is writing.
Action verbs DO · Linking verbs BE/BECOME · Helping verbs SUPPORT
In "They have finished," 'have' helps and 'finished' is the main verb.

4 Action, Linking & Helping Verbs

Action verbs show what the subject does — physical (jump, write) or mental (think, believe).

Linking verbs do not show action; they link the subject to a word that describes or renames it. The common ones are forms of be (is, am, are, was, were) and seem, appear, become, feel, look, taste.

  • The soup is hot. (links soup → hot)
  • He became a doctor. (links he → doctor)

Helping (auxiliary) verbs work with a main verb to show tense, question or negative: be, have, do, will, shall, can, may — She does not play; will they come?

Visual — Action, Linking & Helping Verbs
ACTIONrun, write, thinkLINKINGis, seem, becomeHELPINGbe, have, do, willThree jobs a verb can do
1
Worked Example
Action or linking? The flowers smell sweet.
Solution

Linking — here 'smell' links the flowers to the description 'sweet' (it isn't an action). Compare: 'She smells the flowers' (action).

2
Worked Example
Find the helping verb: We are watching a film.
Solution

are — it helps the main verb 'watching' show the present continuous.

Key Points

  • Action verbs show doing (physical or mental)
  • Linking verbs (be, seem, become, look) join subject to a description
  • Helping verbs (be, have, do, will, can) support the main verb

5 Transitive & Intransitive Verbs

A transitive verb needs an object to complete its meaning — it answers what? or whom?

  • She reads a book. (reads what? → a book)

An intransitive verb does not take an object; the meaning is complete on its own.

  • She sleeps. The baby cried.

Many verbs can be both: He sings (intransitive). He sings a song (transitive). Ask 'what?' after the verb — if there's an answer, it's transitive.

1
Worked Example
Transitive or intransitive? The dog barked loudly.
Solution

Intransitive — 'barked what?' has no answer; there is no object.

2
Worked Example
Find the object: Mother cooked delicious food.
Solution

Object = food (cooked what? → food). So 'cooked' is transitive here.

Key Points

  • Transitive verbs take an object (read a book)
  • Intransitive verbs need no object (she slept)
  • Test: ask 'what?' or 'whom?' after the verb

6 Principal Parts & Subject–Verb Agreement

Every verb has three principal parts: the base (V1), past simple (V2) and past participle (V3).

  • Regular verbs add -ed: walk – walked – walked.
  • Irregular verbs change form: go – went – gone; eat – ate – eaten; write – wrote – written.

Subject–verb agreement: a singular subject takes a singular verb; a plural subject takes a plural verb.

  • The dog barks. (singular → -s)
  • The dogs bark. (plural → no -s)

Note the twist: the verb adds -s for he/she/it, while the noun adds -s to become plural.

1
Worked Example
Give the three parts of 'eat'.
Solution

eat – ate – eaten (V1 – V2 – V3), an irregular verb.

2
Worked Example
Choose: The boys ___ (play / plays) football.
Solution

play — 'boys' is plural, so the verb takes no -s.

Key Points

  • Principal parts: base (V1), past (V2), past participle (V3)
  • Regular verbs add -ed; irregular verbs change (go/went/gone)
  • Singular subject → singular verb (adds -s); plural subject → plural verb

7 Vocabulary Builder

WordMeaningहिन्दी
Transitiveneeds an objectसकर्मक
Intransitiveneeds no objectअकर्मक
Auxiliarya helping verbसहायक क्रिया
Participlethe V3 form of a verbकृदंत
Agreementmatching subject and verbमेल
✎ Vocabulary Quick Test0 / 1
Q.A transitive verb must have:
Explanation: Transitive verbs need an object to complete their meaning (read a book).

8 Common Mistakes to Avoid

✗ IncorrectHe go to school daily.
✓ CorrectHe goes to school daily.
Third-person singular adds -s/-es to the verb.
✗ IncorrectThey was playing.
✓ CorrectThey were playing.
Plural subject 'they' takes 'were'.
✗ IncorrectShe has wrote a letter.
✓ CorrectShe has written a letter.
After 'has', use the past participle 'written', not 'wrote'.
✗ IncorrectThe news are good.
✓ CorrectThe news is good.
'news' is singular and takes 'is'.

9 Practice Exercises

Fill in the BlanksLevel 1
Write the past tense (V2) of each verb.
  1. play →
  2. go →
  3. write →
  4. eat →
  5. stop →
Answer Key
  1. played
  2. went
  3. wrote
  4. ate
  5. stopped
Fill in the BlanksLevel 2
Choose the correct verb form.
  1. She ______ (sing/sings) very well.
  2. The children ______ (was/were) sleeping.
  3. He has ______ (gone/went) home.
  4. Water ______ (boil/boils) at 100°C.
  5. They ______ (don't/doesn't) like tea.
Answer Key
  1. sings
  2. were
  3. gone
  4. boils
  5. don't
Error Detection
  1. He do not like coffee.
  2. The dogs barks at night.
  3. She have finished her work.
  4. I has a new bicycle.
Answer Key
  1. He does not like coffee. (error: do)
  2. The dogs bark at night. (error: barks)
  3. She has finished her work. (error: have)
  4. I have a new bicycle. (error: has)
Sentence Correction
  1. My friend go to college by bus.
  2. The team are winning.
  3. He have ate his lunch.
Answer Key
  1. My friend goes to college by bus.
  2. The team is winning.
  3. He has eaten his lunch.
Rearrange the Words
  1. a / wrote / she / letter
  2. barks / the / loudly / dog
  3. playing / are / they / football
Answer Key
  1. She wrote a letter.
  2. The dog barks loudly.
  3. They are playing football.
Match the Following
Column AColumn B
1. goa. transitive verb
2. isb. linking verb
3. have (helping)c. irregular: went/gone
4. read a bookd. auxiliary verb
Answer Key
go → irregular: went/goneis → linking verbhave (helping) → auxiliary verbread a book → transitive verb

10 Micro Quiz

✎ Quick Check — 5 questions0 / 5
Q1.Which is a linking verb in 'The cake smells good'?
Explanation: 'smells' links the cake to 'good' — no action here.
Q2.The verb in 'She reads a novel' is:
Explanation: 'reads' takes the object 'a novel' — transitive.
Q3.Past participle of 'write':
Explanation: write – wrote – written.
Q4.Choose: 'He ___ to school daily.'
Explanation: Third-person singular 'he' takes 'goes'.
Q5.Helping verb in 'They will come tomorrow':
Explanation: 'will' helps the main verb 'come' show the future.

11 Reading Practice

Every morning, Arjun wakes early and runs in the park. He feels fresh afterwards. His sister Tara reads the newspaper while their mother cooks breakfast. By eight o'clock they have eaten, packed their bags, and left for school.

Comprehension Questions
  1. Find one linking verb in the passage.
  2. Find one transitive verb with its object.
  3. Identify a past participle (V3) used with a helping verb.
Answer Key
  1. feels — it links 'He' to the description 'fresh'.
  2. reads the newspaper (or cooks breakfast) — the verb takes an object.
  3. eaten (in 'have eaten') — the past participle of 'eat'.

12 Speaking, Writing & Daily Use

Say these aloud
  • She writes a letter every week.
  • The baby is sleeping now.
  • They have finished the project.
  • The soup tastes delicious.
  • He does not like loud music.
Write five sentences about your daily routine, using one action, one linking and one helping verb.
Example: I wake up at six. I am brushing my teeth. The morning feels calm.

13 Challenge Zone

🔥 Higher-Level Questions — 30 / 3
Q1.Identify the verb type in 'The milk turned sour.'
Explanation: 'turned' links the milk to the description 'sour' — linking.
Q2.Which sentence has a transitive verb?
Explanation: 'painted a picture' has an object — transitive.
Q3.Choose the correct sentence.
Explanation: 'Neither' is singular → 'has come'.

14 Chapter Mind Map

Mind Map
              VERBS
                |
   +------+------+------+--------+
   |      |             |        |
 TYPES  TRANS/      PRINCIPAL  AGREE
 action INTRANS      PARTS     -ment
 linking +object    V1 V2 V3   sing>-s
 helping no object  reg -ed    plural>
                    irregular   no -s

15 One-Minute Revision

Remember these

  • A verb shows action or being
  • Types: action, linking, helping
  • Transitive verbs take an object; intransitive do not
  • Principal parts: V1 (base), V2 (past), V3 (past participle)
  • Singular subject → verb adds -s; plural subject → no -s