Verb Forms
In English grammar, the original form of a verb is in the present form and in the plural form. There are five forms of verb V1, V2, V3, V4, V5. The details of all these forms are given below:
1. V1:
- It is the first form of the verb or the original form of the verb.
- It is the plural form of the verb.
- It is the present form of the verb.
Uses of V1
It is used in the simple present tense. The structure of the sentence in this form of the verb is: Subject + V1 + other words
Examples:
- You play football.
- They sing a song.
- Ram and Shyam go to the market.
- We love to eat pasta.
- Boys go to school.
Note: In the above sentences, the verb is in the first form and their plural form. Here one important thing is the subject-verb agreement, according to which if the subject is plural verb must be plural. So here, the verb first form is used with the plural subject.
2. V2:
- It is the second form of the verb.
- It is the past form of the verb.
- It is neither singular nor plural.
Uses of V2
It is used with simple past tense. The structure of the sentence in this form of the verb is: Subject + V2 + other words
Examples:
- He bought a new book.
- I went to the movie yesterday.
- They came over here before 5 o’clock.
- John saw a horror dream.
- John and George took a bus for college.
Note: The subject-verb agreement does not apply to the second form of the verb. So it is used with both singular and plural subjects.
3. V3:
- It is the third form of the verb.
- It is the perfect form of the verb.
- It is also neither singular nor plural.
Uses of V3
- It is used in the present perfect tense. The structure of the sentence is:
Subject + has/have + V3 + other words
Examples:- I have finished my homework.
- He has gone to the market.
- We have waited all day.
- They have just left for college.
- John has made the painting colorful.
- It is also used in the past perfect tense. The structure of the sentence is:
Subject + had + V3 + other words
Examples:- She had painted her room red.
- The sun had set when we reached home.
- He had come home by 4 o’clock.
- Mukul had cleared NET in his very first attempt.
- The gatekeeper had locked all the rooms.
- It is also used in the future perfect tense. The structure of the sentence is:
Subject + shall/will + have + V3 + other words
Examples:- You will have played.
- I will have completed this work before you do.
- They will have written the poems.
- John will have helped the poor.
- She will have cooked the food.
4. V4:
- It is the fourth form of the verb.
- It is the (ing) form of the verb.
- It is neither singular nor plural.
- It is the continuous form of the verb.
Uses of V4
- It is used in the present continuous tense. The structure of the sentence is;
Subject + is/am/are + V4 + other words
Examples:- My father is driving the car.
- You are baking a chocolate cake.
- I am playing the guitar.
- Surbhi and Rasmi are dancing well.
- The baby is crying because it is hungry.
- It is used in the past continuous tense. The structure of the sentence is:
Subject + was/were + V4 + other words
Examples:- Ishita was making her chart yesterday.
- We were listening to the breaking news.
- They were studying in their room.
- The animals were hiding in the cave.
- My mother was writing a letter to the municipal corporation.
- It is used in the future continuous tense. The structure of the sentence is:
Subject + shall/will + be + V4 + other words
Examples:- You will be doing this work tomorrow.
- She will be visiting the museum in the afternoon.
- We shall be leaving for the airport in an hour.
- I shall be learning French from next month.
- Rohan and Sohan will be playing football tomorrow.
5. V5:
- It is the fifth form of the verb.
- It is the s/es form of the verb.
- It is the singular form of the verb.
- It is the present form of the verb.
Uses of V5
- It is used in the simple present tense. The structure of the sentence is:
Subject + V5 + other words
Examples:- The sun rises in the east and sets in the west.
- He plays badminton every evening.
- Kartik misses going for a swim in the lake.
- It barks at strangers.
- This plumber fixes the tap very well.
Note: In the above sentences, the verb is in fifth form and their singular form. Here one important thing is the subject-verb agreement, according to which if the subject is singular verb must be singular. So here, the verb fifth form is used with the singular subject.
List of Some forms of verbs
| V1 | V2 | V3 | V4 | V5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Admire | admired | admired | admiring | admires |
| awake | awoke | awaken | awaking | awakes |
| begin | began | begun | beginning | begins |
| cut | cut | cut | cutting | cuts |
| forget | forgot | forgotten | forgetting | forgets |
| know | knew | known | knowing | knows |
| rise | rose | risen | Rising | rises |
| run | ran | run | running | runs |
| hide | hid | hidden | hiding | hides |
| sink | sank | sunk | sinking | sinks |
| wear | wore | worn | wearing | wears |
| Let | let | let | letting | lets |
| Lie | lied | lied | lying | lies |
| put | put | put | putting | puts |
| do | did | done | doing | does |
| get | got | got | getting | gets |
| see | saw | seen | seeing | saws |
Other forms of the verb
To be forms of the verb:
The verbs (is, am, are, was, were) are be forms of the verb.
- These are used in the formation of the continuous tense.
Examples:
He is working in the field.
I am writing a story.
They are going to market.
We are making a display chart.
You are baking a chocolate cake.
They were studying in their room.
Rani was going for a walk every day of last week.
I was cycling when it started raining. - These are also used in the formation of negative and interrogative sentences.
Examples:
He is not working in the field.
Is he working in the field?
I am not writing a story.
Am I writing a story?
They are not going to the market.
Are they going to market?
We are not making a display chart.
Are we making a display chart?
You are not baking a chocolate cake.
Are you baking a chocolate cake?
They were not studying in their room.
Were they studying in their room?
Rani was not going for a walk every day last week.
Was Rani going for a walk every day of last week?
I was not cycling when it started raining.
Was I cycling when it started raining?
To do forms of the verb:
The verbs (do, does, did) are to do forms of the verb.
- These are used in the formation of negative and interrogative sentences in simple present and simple past tense.
Examples:
You do not bake a chocolate cake.
Do you not bake a chocolate cake?
He does not bake a chocolate cake.
Does he not bake a chocolate cake?
They did not bake a chocolate cake.
Did they not bake a chocolate cake? - These are also used with other verbs to emphasize something or to make a statement strong.
Examples:
He does resemble his mother.
Do sit down, please.
I told him not to go, but he did go.
To have forms of the verb:
The verbs (have, has, and had) are to have forms of the verb.
- These are used in the formation of the perfect form of tenses.
Examples:
He has worked.
He has been working.
You have scored well on the test.
You have been scoring well on the test.
She had completed her homework.
She had been completing her homework.
You will have done this work.
You will have been doing this work. - These are also used in the formation of negative and interrogative sentences.
Examples:
He has not worked.
Has he worked?
He has not been working.
Has he not been working?
You have not scored well on the test.
Have you scored well on the test?
You have not been scoring well on the test.
Have you not been scoring well on the test?
She had not completed her homework.
Had she not completed her homework?
She had not been completing her homework.
Had she not been completing her homework?
You will not have done this work.
Will you not have done this work?
You will not have been doing this work.
Will you not have been doing this work?
Regular & Irregular verb
Regular verb: Regular verbs are verbs that follow a pattern by adding ‘ed’ in their past form and past participle form.
Examples:
| Base form | Past form | Past participle form |
|---|---|---|
| Admire | Admired | Admired |
| Flow | Flowed | Flowed |
| Light | Lighted | Lighted |
| Hang | Hanged | Hanged |
| Learn | Learned | Learned |
| Walk | Walked | Walked |
| Laugh | Laughed | Laughed |
| Paint | Painted | Painted |
| Play | Played | Played |
| Lie | Lied | Lied |
| Work | Worked | Worked |
Irregular verb: Irregular verbs are verbs that do not follow the same pattern. They form their past form and past participle form differently. There are three ways of the formation of irregular verbs. They are the following:
i) All three forms of the verb are the same.
Examples:
| Base form | Past form | Participle form |
|---|---|---|
| cut | cut | cut |
| put | put | put |
| let | let | let |
| read | read | read |
| set | set | set |
| shut | shut | shut |
| cost | cost | cost |
| spread | spread | spread |
ii) Two forms of the verb are the same
Examples:
| Base form | Past form | Participle form |
|---|---|---|
| Come | Came | Came |
| Become | Became | Became |
| Bring | Brought | Brought |
| Get | Got | Got |
| Have | Had | Had |
| Keep | Kept | Kept |
| Think | Thought | Thought |
| Pay | Paid | Paid |
| Make | Made | Made |
| Lose | Lost | Lost |
| Light | Lit | Lit |
| Hear | Heard | Heard |
| Win | Won | Won |
| Hang | Hung | Hung |
| Learn | Learnt | Learnt |
iii) All forms of the verb are different
Examples:
| Base form | Past form | Past participle form |
|---|---|---|
| Be (is/am/are) | Was/were | Been |
| Eat | Ate | Eaten |
| Break | Broke | Broken |
| Give | Gave | Given |
| Go | Went | Gone |
| Grow | Grew | Grown |
| Fall | Fell | Fellen |
| Know | Knew | Known |
| Fly | Few | Flown |
| Forgive | Forgave | Forgiven |
Finite & Non-finite verb
- Finite verb: The verb that shows tense, person, and the number is called a finite verb. In other words, if the form of the verb is changed according to the number and person of the subject, that is a finite verb.
Examples:- He goes to the market.
- I go to the market.
- They were looking at the family photos.
- He was looking at the family photos.
- The patient had died before the doctor arrived.
- Non-finite verb: The verb that does not show tense, person, and number is called a non-finite verb. In other words, if the verb form does not change according to the number and person of the subjects, that is a non-finite verb. There are three forms of non-finite verbs:
- Infinitives: To + V1 (E.g., To respect our parents is our duty).
- Gerund: V1 + ing = V4 (E.g., Walking is good for health).
- Participle: present participle (V4) (E.g., Coming downstairs, she saw the man running away).
Past participle (V3) (E.g., Tired after the day’s work, the farmer sat down to rest a little).
Perfect participle (having + V3) (E.g., Having rested, we continued our journey).
Phrasal Verbs
When a verb takes another verb and an adverb and a preposition after it, then it becomes a ‘phrasal verb’. Example: ‘look’ and ‘after’ have their different meaning, but together as a phrasal verb, it makes the meaning “to care of something and someone”. It is also called an idiomatic expression. Examples of phrasal verbs in sentences are given below:
- People with a loose tongue may make enemies easily.
- We should not care for loaves and fishes of office.
- She gave only a lame excuse for her absence.
- He has made a name for himself.
keep in view
Prepositional Verbs
The main verbs that are followed by a preposition are called the prepositional verbs, E.g., wait for. Examples of the prepositional verb in the sentence are given below:
- The man asked for more pay and shorter hours.
- After years of over-work, his health broke down.
- Those in power do not care about public opinion.
- This book deals with the problem of unemployment.
- In the end, I found out what was wrong with my radio set.
Active and Passive forms of the verb
The verb form in the active sentence is not the same as in the passive sentence. When the active sentence is changed into a passive sentence, the verb form of the active sentence changes into its third form (past participle form). Before the III form of the verb, the ‘to be’ form (is, am, are, was, were, been, being) is used according to the tense, number, and person of the sentence. To understand the changes of the verb, from active to passive sentence, look at the below sentences.
i) Verbs in the simple present tense
If the verb of the active sentence is in the simple present tense, then the verb of the passive sentence is am/is/are + V3.
Examples:
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| Rama writes a story. | A story is written by Rama. |
| The teacher teaches the students. | The students are taught by the teacher. |
ii) Verbs in the simple past tense
If the verb of the active sentence is in the simple past tense, then the verb of the passive sentence is was/were + V3.
Example:
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| Rama wrote a story. | A story was written by Rama. |
| The teacher taught the students. | The students were taught by the teacher. |
iii)Verbs in the simple future tense
If the verb of the active sentence is in the simple future tense, then the verb of the passive sentence is shall/will + be + V3.
Examples:
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| Rama will write a story. | A story will be written by Rama. |
| The teacher will teach the students. | The students will be taught by the teacher. |
iv) Verbs in the present continuous tense
If the verb of the active sentence is in the present continuous tense, then the verb of the passive sentence is am/is/are + being + V3.
Examples:
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| Rama is writing a story. | A story is being written by Rama. |
| The teacher is teaching the students. | The students are being taught by the teacher. |
v) Verbs in the past continuous tense
If the verb of the active sentence is in past continuous tense, then the verb of the passive sentence is was/were + being + V3.
Examples:
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| Rama was writing a story. | A story was being written by Rama. |
| The teacher was teaching the students. | The students were being taught by the teacher. |
vi) Verbs in the present perfect tense
If the verb of the active sentence is in the past perfect tense, then the verb of the passive sentence has/have + been + V3.
Examples:
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| Rama has written a story. | A story has been written by Rama. |
| The teacher has taught the students. | The students have been taught by the teachers. |
vii)Verbs in the past perfect tense
If the verb of the active sentence is in the past perfect tense, then the verb of the passive sentence is had + been + V3.
Examples:
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| Rama had written a story. | A story had been written by Rama. |
| The teacher had taught the students. | The students had been taught by the teacher. |
viii) Future perfect tense
If the verb of the active sentence is in the future perfect tense, then the verb of the passive sentence will have + been + V3.
Examples:
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| Rama will have written a story. | Rama will have been written a story. |
| The teacher will have taught the students. | The students will have been taught by the teacher. |
ix) Verbs in modals verbs
If the verb of the active sentence is a modal verb, then the verb of the passive sentence is modal verb + be + V3
Examples:
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| John can win the prize. | A prize can be won by john. |
| Rajeev must send a reply. | A reply must be sent by Rajeev. |
| A doctor should examine him. | He should be examined by a doctor. |