Two Types of English Verbs: Transitive vs Intransitive Verbs
Two Types of Verbs
In English, every verb can be categorized as either intransitive or transitive. Understanding this distinction is important because the type of verb determines the sentence structure, especially whether an object is required after the verb.
Here is a brief summary of intransitive and transitive verbs:
- Intransitive verbs: do not take an object directly after the verb.
- Transitive verbs: require an object to complete the meaning of a sentence.
In this article, we will explore how intransitive and transitive verbs function differently in a sentence.
Intransitive Verbs
You can think of intransitive verbs as representing actions that can be completed by the subject itself. For example, “sleep” is an intransitive verb, and you can see that sleeping can be done without affecting anything else and can be completed by the subject alone.
Since an intransitive verb doesn’t act on an object, it does not take an object in a sentence. Therefore, when an intransitive verb functions as the main verb, the sentence structure is typically SV.
If you want to add information such as place, time, or other details, you usually use a prepositional phrase after the verb.
Example 1 (Intransitive Verbs)
Here is an example sentence using an intransitive verb:
My dog sleeps on the floor.
If we break the sentence down into its constituents, we get the following:
- Subject: My dog
- Verb: sleeps
- Prepositional phrase: on the floor.
Note that the prepositional phrase “on the floor” provides additional information about where the action takes place. The core of the sentence is simply “My dog sleeps,” which follows the SV structure.
A phrase is a group of words that functions as a noun, adjective, verb, or adverb depending on the word that serves as its head.
Example 2 (Intransitive Verbs)
Here’s another example:
I listen to various genres of music.
You can tell that “listen” is an intransitive verb because it cannot take a direct object. Instead, it requires a preposition such as “to” before the noun phrase.
Even if the prepositional phrase is removed, the sentence “I listen” still makes grammatical sense, showing that the core sentence follows the SV structure.
- Subject: I
- Verb: listen
- Prepositional phrase: to various genres of music.
Transitive Verbs
In contrast to intransitive verbs, transitive verbs require an object that receives or is affected by the action of the verb. Therefore, an object typically follows a transitive verb.
Since a transitive verb must be directly followed by an object, sentences with transitive verbs can take the following structures: SVO, SVOO, and SVOC, depending on the verb and the intended meaning.
For example, “make” is one of the most commonly used transitive verbs. It usually requires an object that indicates what is being created.
What happens if you use the verb without an object?
× I made.
If a sentence ends without referring to an object, it often sounds incomplete. This is because the transitive verb “make” normally requires an object.
✓ I made a cake.
Remember that if you place a preposition before referring to an object, the sentence ends up ungrammatical.
Example 1 (Transitive Verbs)
I discussed the matter with my classmates.
- Subject: I
- Verb: discussed
- Object: the matter
- Prepositional phrase: with my classmates.
You may notice that the object directly follows the transitive verb. “Discuss” is one of the transitive verbs that learners often mistakenly treat as an intransitive verb.
For example, the following sentence is ungrammatical:
× I discussed with my classmates.
This sentence is incorrect because the transitive verb “discuss” requires a direct object. In this sentence, the verb is followed only by the prepositional phrase “with my classmates” instead of an object.
Example 2 (Transitive Verbs)
My friend married my colleague.
- Subject: My friend
- Verb: married
- Object: my colleague.
“Marry” is another transitive verb that learners often mistakenly treat as an intransitive verb. For example, some people produce sentences such as
× He married to my friend.
However, since “marry” is a transitive verb, it must be directly followed by an object, not a preposition.
✓ He married my friend.
Only Transitive Verbs Can Be Used in the Passive Voice
One important property of transitive verbs is that they can be used in passive voice constructions. For example, the transitive verb “build” can appear in a passive sentence such as the following:
This house was built by my grandfather.
In this sentence, the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence.
On the other hand, using an intransitive verb in the passive voice results in an ungrammatical sentence. For instance, the verb “sleep” cannot normally be used in the passive voice.
× He was slept in the park.
This sentence is ungrammatical because “sleep” doesn’t take an object. Since passive sentences are formed by promoting the object of an active sentence to the subject position, verbs without objects can’t normally form passive constructions.
Frequently Misunderstood Transitive Verbs
Some transitive verbs are often mistakenly used as if they were intransitive. Because a transitive verb requires a direct object, using it without one can result in an ungrammatical sentence. Consider the following common error:
× I discussed with my classmates about the news.
Remember that “discuss” is a transitive verb, so it must be followed directly by its object, in this case, what was discussed. In the sentence above, the verb “discussed” is followed by prepositions instead of a direct object, which makes the sentence ungrammatical.
To make the sentence grammatical, we need to rewrite it as follows:
I discussed the news with my classmates.
Now, the object “the news” directly follows the transitive verb “discussed.” Once the verb-object structure is in place, additional information can be added with a prepositional phrase, such as “with my classmates.”
Similar to “discuss,” there are several transitive verbs that many learners mistakenly use as if they were intransitive. The following is a list of commonly confusing transitive verbs:
- discuss
- approach
- enter
- marry
- resemble
- accompany
- join
Again, these are transitive verbs, which means that their objects should come directly after the verb. Let us now look at how transitive and intransitive verbs are used in sentences.
Practice Questions
Question 1
Explanation
In this sentence, approach is a transitive verb. This means it should be followed directly by an object.
So we say:
He approached the cat.
We don’t say:
He approached to the cat.
The preposition to is unnecessary after approach when it means “move closer to someone or something.” Also, He approached with care the cat is unnatural because the object the cat should normally come right after the verb:
He approached the cat with care.
So the only natural and grammatical sentence is the following:
He approached the cat.
