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Note on verbs. For a primary 5 pupils make it lengthy
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Note on Verbs
(For Primary 5 pupils — detailed and easy to understand)
1. What is a verb?
- A verb is a word that shows an action (what someone or something does), or a state of being (how someone or something is).
- Examples:
- Action verbs: run, eat, write, jump, sing. (She runs. He eats cake.)
- State of being verbs: am, is, are, was, were, be. (I am happy. They were tired.)
2. Why verbs are important
- Every complete sentence needs a verb. Without a verb, the sentence will not tell what is happening.
- Correct: The dog barks. (barks = verb)
- Wrong: The dog. (no verb — not a complete sentence)
3. Main kinds of verbs
- Action verbs: show physical or mental actions.
- Physical: She kicks the ball. He swims.
- Mental: She thinks, he remembers, they believe.
- Linking verbs (state of being verbs): join the subject to more information about the subject.
- Common linking verbs: am, is, are, was, were, seem, become.
- Example: The soup smells good. (smells links soup to good)
- Helping (auxiliary) verbs: help the main verb to make tense, questions, negatives, or continuous forms.
- Common helping verbs: be (am/is/are/was/were), have (has/have/had), do (do/does/did), will, shall, can, could, may, might, must.
- Example: She is running. (is helps running)
- Modal verbs: a kind of helping verb that shows ability, possibility, permission or obligation.
- Examples: can, could, may, might, shall, should, will, would, must.
- Example: You must finish your homework.
4. Verb forms (useful to know)
Most verbs have different forms. Here are the usual ones:
- Base form (infinitive without "to"): play, go, write
- Present participle (–ing form): playing, going, writing
- Past simple: played, went, wrote
- Past participle: played, gone, written
Notes:
- Regular verbs form the past and past participle by adding –ed: play → played, walk → walked.
- Irregular verbs do not follow the –ed rule: go → went → gone; eat → ate → eaten; write → wrote → written.
5. Some spelling rules for regular verbs
- If the verb ends in e, add only d: like → liked.
- If the verb ends in consonant + y, change y to i and add –ed: try → tried. (But if vowel + y, just add –ed: play → played.)
- If a short one-syllable verb ends in vowel + consonant, double the final consonant and add –ed: stop → stopped. (But don’t double after two vowels or in words with more than one syllable in many cases: open → opened.)
6. Tenses (simple explanation)
Tense tells us when the action happens: past, present, or future.
- Present simple: talk about things we do regularly or facts.
- I/You/We/They play. He/She/It plays. (Notice the –s for he/she/it.)
- Example: She reads a book every day.
- Past simple: talk about something that already happened.
- I/He/She/You/We/They played. (regular) I went to school. (irregular)
- Example: They watched a movie yesterday.
- Future simple: talk about what will happen.
- I/You/He/She/We/They will play. (will + base form)
- Example: We will visit the zoo tomorrow.
- Present continuous (progressive): action happening now or around now.
- am/is/are + verb–ing. Example: They are playing football now.
- Past continuous: was/were + verb–ing. Example: I was reading when the phone rang.
- Present perfect: have/has + past participle. Shows action that happened at an unspecified time or that continues to now.
- Example: She has finished her work. (time not told)
- Simple ways to explain: start with simple present, past and future for P5. If you want, you can include present continuous and present perfect as extra.
7. Subject-verb agreement
- The verb must agree with the subject (person or thing doing the action) in number (singular or plural).
- Singular subject (he, she, it, or a single noun): add s/es in present simple.
- He runs. The cat likes milk.
- Plural subject (we, you, they, or more than one noun): no s in present simple.
- They run. We like milk.
- Examples:
- The boy eats. (correct)
- The boys eat. (correct)
- Wrong: The boys eats.
8. Transitive and Intransitive verbs
- Transitive verb: needs an object (something that receives the action).
- Example: She reads a book. (reads what? a book = object)
- Intransitive verb: does not need an object.
- Example: He sleeps. (no object)
- Some verbs can be both, depending on the sentence:
- She sings a song. (transitive)
- She sings beautifully. (intransitive)
9. Making negatives and questions
- Negative (present simple): use do/does + not + base verb.
- I/You/We/They do not (don’t) play. He/She/It does not (doesn’t) play.
- Example: She does not like spinach.
- Negative (past simple): use did + not + base form.
- I/He/She/You/We/They did not (didn’t) play.
- Example: They did not go to school yesterday.
- Questions (present simple): do/does + subject + base verb?
- Do you play cricket? Does she play cricket?
- Questions (past simple): did + subject + base verb?
- Did they finish their work?
10. Imperative verbs (commands)
- Use the base form to give orders, instructions or advice.
- Example: Sit down. Close the door. Please be quiet.
11. Common irregular verbs (useful list for practice)
- be — was/were — been
- have — had — had
- do — did — done
- go — went — gone
- come — came — come
- eat — ate — eaten
- see — saw — seen
- take — took — taken
- write — wrote — written
- speak — spoke — spoken
Practice these often because they do not follow the –ed rule.
12. Examples in many sentences (to see verbs clearly)
- The children play in the park every Saturday. (play — present simple)
- Mother cooked dinner last night. (cooked — past simple)
- We will visit our grandparents next week. (will visit — future)
- The baby is sleeping. (is sleeping — present continuous)
- She has finished her homework. (has finished — present perfect)
- Birds fly. (fly — general truth)
- The bell rang suddenly. (rang — past simple)
- Please open the window. (open — imperative)
13. Tips to find the verb in a sentence
- Ask: What is the subject doing? The answer is usually the verb.
- Look for action words (run, sing, think) or be-verbs (am, is, are, was, were).
- In questions, the verb may come before the subject: Are you ready? (are = verb)
14. Exercises (do these to practise). Try them first on your own.
A. Underline the verb(s) in each sentence:
1. The dog chased the cat.
2. She is reading a book.
3. They will travel to Lagos.
4. He wrote a letter yesterday.
5. We are happy.
B. Write the past form of these verbs:
1. play
2. go
3. eat
4. watch
5. write
C. Make these sentences negative (present simple):
1. She likes apples.
2. He goes to school.
3. They play football.
D. Change to questions (past simple):
1. You saw the movie. → _____________________?
2. They finished the test. → _____________________?
E. Fill the blanks with the correct verb form (present simple or present continuous):
1. I (do) my homework every day.
2. She (read) a story now.
3. The boys (play) cricket on Sundays.
4. He (study) for his exams at the moment.
F. Identify whether the verb is transitive (T) or intransitive (I):
1. She opened the door.
2. He laughed loudly.
3. We built a sandcastle.
4. The baby cried.
15. Answers
A.
1. chased
2. is reading (both words are part of the verb phrase)
3. will travel
4. wrote
5. are
B.
1. played
2. went
3. ate
4. watched
5. wrote
C.
1. She does not (doesn’t) like apples.
2. He does not (doesn’t) go to school.
3. They do not (don’t) play football.
D.
1. Did you see the movie?
2. Did they finish the test?
E.
1. I do my homework every day.
2. She is reading a story now.
3. The boys play cricket on Sundays.
4. He is studying for his exams at the moment.
F.
1. She opened the door. — T (opened what? the door)
2. He laughed loudly. — I (no object)
3. We built a sandcastle. — T (built what? a sandcastle)
4. The baby cried. — I (no object)
16. Short practice paragraph (find verbs and their tenses)
Read the paragraph and underline all verbs. Then say the tense of each.
"Yesterday, I played with my friends. We ran, jumped and laughed. Now I am doing my homework. Tomorrow we will go to the park."
Hints: played, ran, jumped, laughed (past simple). am doing (present continuous). will go (future simple).
17. Final reminders
- Learn common irregular verbs by heart — they appear a lot.
- Always check subject-verb agreement in the present simple (he/she/it needs -s).
- Practice changing sentences into negatives and questions. This helps you understand how helping verbs work.
- The more you read and write, the easier it will be to recognize and use verbs correctly.
If you want, I can give you more exercises, a worksheet, or a short test on verbs for practice. Which would you like next?
(For Primary 5 pupils — detailed and easy to understand)
1. What is a verb?
- A verb is a word that shows an action (what someone or something does), or a state of being (how someone or something is).
- Examples:
- Action verbs: run, eat, write, jump, sing. (She runs. He eats cake.)
- State of being verbs: am, is, are, was, were, be. (I am happy. They were tired.)
2. Why verbs are important
- Every complete sentence needs a verb. Without a verb, the sentence will not tell what is happening.
- Correct: The dog barks. (barks = verb)
- Wrong: The dog. (no verb — not a complete sentence)
3. Main kinds of verbs
- Action verbs: show physical or mental actions.
- Physical: She kicks the ball. He swims.
- Mental: She thinks, he remembers, they believe.
- Linking verbs (state of being verbs): join the subject to more information about the subject.
- Common linking verbs: am, is, are, was, were, seem, become.
- Example: The soup smells good. (smells links soup to good)
- Helping (auxiliary) verbs: help the main verb to make tense, questions, negatives, or continuous forms.
- Common helping verbs: be (am/is/are/was/were), have (has/have/had), do (do/does/did), will, shall, can, could, may, might, must.
- Example: She is running. (is helps running)
- Modal verbs: a kind of helping verb that shows ability, possibility, permission or obligation.
- Examples: can, could, may, might, shall, should, will, would, must.
- Example: You must finish your homework.
4. Verb forms (useful to know)
Most verbs have different forms. Here are the usual ones:
- Base form (infinitive without "to"): play, go, write
- Present participle (–ing form): playing, going, writing
- Past simple: played, went, wrote
- Past participle: played, gone, written
Notes:
- Regular verbs form the past and past participle by adding –ed: play → played, walk → walked.
- Irregular verbs do not follow the –ed rule: go → went → gone; eat → ate → eaten; write → wrote → written.
5. Some spelling rules for regular verbs
- If the verb ends in e, add only d: like → liked.
- If the verb ends in consonant + y, change y to i and add –ed: try → tried. (But if vowel + y, just add –ed: play → played.)
- If a short one-syllable verb ends in vowel + consonant, double the final consonant and add –ed: stop → stopped. (But don’t double after two vowels or in words with more than one syllable in many cases: open → opened.)
6. Tenses (simple explanation)
Tense tells us when the action happens: past, present, or future.
- Present simple: talk about things we do regularly or facts.
- I/You/We/They play. He/She/It plays. (Notice the –s for he/she/it.)
- Example: She reads a book every day.
- Past simple: talk about something that already happened.
- I/He/She/You/We/They played. (regular) I went to school. (irregular)
- Example: They watched a movie yesterday.
- Future simple: talk about what will happen.
- I/You/He/She/We/They will play. (will + base form)
- Example: We will visit the zoo tomorrow.
- Present continuous (progressive): action happening now or around now.
- am/is/are + verb–ing. Example: They are playing football now.
- Past continuous: was/were + verb–ing. Example: I was reading when the phone rang.
- Present perfect: have/has + past participle. Shows action that happened at an unspecified time or that continues to now.
- Example: She has finished her work. (time not told)
- Simple ways to explain: start with simple present, past and future for P5. If you want, you can include present continuous and present perfect as extra.
7. Subject-verb agreement
- The verb must agree with the subject (person or thing doing the action) in number (singular or plural).
- Singular subject (he, she, it, or a single noun): add s/es in present simple.
- He runs. The cat likes milk.
- Plural subject (we, you, they, or more than one noun): no s in present simple.
- They run. We like milk.
- Examples:
- The boy eats. (correct)
- The boys eat. (correct)
- Wrong: The boys eats.
8. Transitive and Intransitive verbs
- Transitive verb: needs an object (something that receives the action).
- Example: She reads a book. (reads what? a book = object)
- Intransitive verb: does not need an object.
- Example: He sleeps. (no object)
- Some verbs can be both, depending on the sentence:
- She sings a song. (transitive)
- She sings beautifully. (intransitive)
9. Making negatives and questions
- Negative (present simple): use do/does + not + base verb.
- I/You/We/They do not (don’t) play. He/She/It does not (doesn’t) play.
- Example: She does not like spinach.
- Negative (past simple): use did + not + base form.
- I/He/She/You/We/They did not (didn’t) play.
- Example: They did not go to school yesterday.
- Questions (present simple): do/does + subject + base verb?
- Do you play cricket? Does she play cricket?
- Questions (past simple): did + subject + base verb?
- Did they finish their work?
10. Imperative verbs (commands)
- Use the base form to give orders, instructions or advice.
- Example: Sit down. Close the door. Please be quiet.
11. Common irregular verbs (useful list for practice)
- be — was/were — been
- have — had — had
- do — did — done
- go — went — gone
- come — came — come
- eat — ate — eaten
- see — saw — seen
- take — took — taken
- write — wrote — written
- speak — spoke — spoken
Practice these often because they do not follow the –ed rule.
12. Examples in many sentences (to see verbs clearly)
- The children play in the park every Saturday. (play — present simple)
- Mother cooked dinner last night. (cooked — past simple)
- We will visit our grandparents next week. (will visit — future)
- The baby is sleeping. (is sleeping — present continuous)
- She has finished her homework. (has finished — present perfect)
- Birds fly. (fly — general truth)
- The bell rang suddenly. (rang — past simple)
- Please open the window. (open — imperative)
13. Tips to find the verb in a sentence
- Ask: What is the subject doing? The answer is usually the verb.
- Look for action words (run, sing, think) or be-verbs (am, is, are, was, were).
- In questions, the verb may come before the subject: Are you ready? (are = verb)
14. Exercises (do these to practise). Try them first on your own.
A. Underline the verb(s) in each sentence:
1. The dog chased the cat.
2. She is reading a book.
3. They will travel to Lagos.
4. He wrote a letter yesterday.
5. We are happy.
B. Write the past form of these verbs:
1. play
2. go
3. eat
4. watch
5. write
C. Make these sentences negative (present simple):
1. She likes apples.
2. He goes to school.
3. They play football.
D. Change to questions (past simple):
1. You saw the movie. → _____________________?
2. They finished the test. → _____________________?
E. Fill the blanks with the correct verb form (present simple or present continuous):
1. I (do) my homework every day.
2. She (read) a story now.
3. The boys (play) cricket on Sundays.
4. He (study) for his exams at the moment.
F. Identify whether the verb is transitive (T) or intransitive (I):
1. She opened the door.
2. He laughed loudly.
3. We built a sandcastle.
4. The baby cried.
15. Answers
A.
1. chased
2. is reading (both words are part of the verb phrase)
3. will travel
4. wrote
5. are
B.
1. played
2. went
3. ate
4. watched
5. wrote
C.
1. She does not (doesn’t) like apples.
2. He does not (doesn’t) go to school.
3. They do not (don’t) play football.
D.
1. Did you see the movie?
2. Did they finish the test?
E.
1. I do my homework every day.
2. She is reading a story now.
3. The boys play cricket on Sundays.
4. He is studying for his exams at the moment.
F.
1. She opened the door. — T (opened what? the door)
2. He laughed loudly. — I (no object)
3. We built a sandcastle. — T (built what? a sandcastle)
4. The baby cried. — I (no object)
16. Short practice paragraph (find verbs and their tenses)
Read the paragraph and underline all verbs. Then say the tense of each.
"Yesterday, I played with my friends. We ran, jumped and laughed. Now I am doing my homework. Tomorrow we will go to the park."
Hints: played, ran, jumped, laughed (past simple). am doing (present continuous). will go (future simple).
17. Final reminders
- Learn common irregular verbs by heart — they appear a lot.
- Always check subject-verb agreement in the present simple (he/she/it needs -s).
- Practice changing sentences into negatives and questions. This helps you understand how helping verbs work.
- The more you read and write, the easier it will be to recognize and use verbs correctly.
If you want, I can give you more exercises, a worksheet, or a short test on verbs for practice. Which would you like next?
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