17Verbs
Verbsare the words in a sentence that describe the action of a sen-
tence or that introduce the condition or state of someone or some-
thing in the sentence.
Action:Anna throwsthe ball.Introduction of a condition:Trent isvery sick.There are many action verbs. Those that can have a direct object are
often called transitive verbs. Here is a list of some commonly used
transitive verbs. Note that they can be used with a direct object.
Transitive Verbs Used in a Sentencebuy He buys a newspaper.
carry I am carrying the child.
find Can you find the book?
help She helps us.
like I don’t like cabbage.
lose Don’t lose your money.
read She is reading a book.
pull The dentist pulled the tooth.
push The boy pushes the cart.
sell I am selling my car.
speak Father speaks Spanish.
write We are writing some postcards.
understand Do you understand me?Intransitive verbsare not followed by a direct object. They often
show a movement to a place and are sometimes followed by a
prepositional phrase. Following is a list of some commonly used
intransitive verbs:Unit 5
02 (017-043) Unit 5 11/3/04 1:41 PM Page 17
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