In English grammar, verbs typically have five forms. According to Grammarly, these forms are the root form, third-person singular present, present participle, past form, and past participle.
Verb Forms Explained
The five forms of verbs help indicate tense, aspect, and voice in a sentence. Let's break down each form:
- Root Form (Base Form): This is the infinitive form without "to." It's the form you'll find in a dictionary.
- Example: run, eat, write
- Third-Person Singular Present: This form is used when the subject is a singular noun or pronoun (he, she, it) in the present tense. Usually, an "-s" or "-es" is added to the root form.
- Example: runs, eats, writes
- Present Participle: This form is used to create continuous tenses (e.g., is running, was eating) and as a gerund or participle. It's formed by adding "-ing" to the root form.
- Example: running, eating, writing
- Past Form: This form indicates an action that happened in the past. For regular verbs, it's formed by adding "-ed" or "-d" to the root form. Irregular verbs have unique past forms.
- Example (Regular): ran, ate, wrote
- Past Participle: This form is used to create perfect tenses (e.g., has run, had eaten) and in the passive voice (e.g., was written). For regular verbs, it's the same as the past form. Irregular verbs often have a different past participle form.
- Example (Regular): run, eaten, written
Summary Table of Verb Forms
| Verb Form | Function | Example (The verb "Walk") |
|---|---|---|
| Root Form (Base Form) | Basic form of the verb, used in the infinitive and present tense | walk |
| Third-Person Singular | Present tense, third-person singular subject (he, she, it) | walks |
| Present Participle | Continuous tenses, gerunds, participles | walking |
| Past Form | Simple past tense | walked |
| Past Participle | Perfect tenses, passive voice | walked |
Understanding these verb forms is crucial for constructing grammatically correct and meaningful sentences in English.
