Chapter 18 Using Verbs Correctly The Principle Parts

Chapter 18 Using Verbs Correctly

The Principle Parts of Verbs • There are four principle parts of a verb: • Base form (Present Tense/Infinitive form) • Present Participle • Past Tense • Past Participle ***Present Participle and Past Participle are not tense forms.

Base Form—Root Verb and Present Tense of a Verb • The base form is sometimes referred to as the infinitive form (to+ verb). I refer to it as the root verb. It is easier to remember it as the present tense of the verb. • All of the tenses and forms have sayings that can help you figure out the correct form of the verb if you do not have your grammar book or a dictionary handy. • The saying for the root verb: “Today, I ______. ” Remember that if you are dealing with action verbs, there are different forms for the verb. • Example—THINK • Today, I think; Today, he thinks, Today, she thinks (Capiche? !!)

Present Participle • Uses a helping verb + the verb + ing • List of helping verbs: is, am, are, was, were, being, been, do, did, does, have, having, had, may, might, must, can, could, will, would, shall, should, ought • Understand that not ALL of these helping verbs will work to form the present participle—these helping verbs are used in other forms and tenses. • The most common helping verbs for present participle are is, am, are • Example: I am walking. He is walking. They are walking. (Cannot use more than one helping verb).

Past Tense • Past Tense is formed with the root verb + “d” or “ed” on regular verbs. With irregular verbs, there is no set pattern; it must be memorized. • For the irregular verbs, the majority of them you have heard before or read before, so you will know them. There are some, however, that we use informally that are not correct. When in doubt, consult a dictionary. • Saying for the past tense: “Yesterday, I ____. ” • Examples: Yesterday, I walked. Yesterday, I bought. Yesterday, I cut.

Past Participle • The past participle is a form that regularly mimics the past tense, it just needs a helping verb to get there. That means that if you know the past tense, you likely know the past participle. • More often than not, the past participle will use an “H” helping verb: has, have, had. • Sometimes, past participle can be formed with the “Be” verbs: is, am, are, was, were, (be, being, been). This moves your sentence into passive voice---be careful with that, as it should be used sparingly. • Saying for past participle: “And many times I have _____. ” And many times I have played. And many times he has played. And many times they have played.

Examples • Regular verb—most verbs • Today, I talk. Today, I am talking, Yesterday, I talked. And many times I had talked. • Irregular verb • Today, I buy. Today, I am buying. Yesterday, I bought. And many times I had bought. • Really Irregular verb • Today, I put. Today, I am putting. Yesterday, I put. And many times I had put. • There are verbs that we use wrong on a consistent basis: • Use—I use to live in Hettinger. NO. I used to live in Hettinger. • Suppose—Are you suppose to read these. NO. Are you supposed to read these. • Ask—I ask you to take home your books. No. I asked you to take home your books. (This is usually a lack of pronunciation—we know it is asked; we just don’t pronounce the “ed”. )

A Few Irregular Verbs with Alternative Past/Past Participle Endings • This is an are where the dictionary can be your best friend! • Burn—Today, I burn. Today, I am burning. Yesterday, I burned or burnt. And many times I have burned or burnt. • Leap—Today, I leap. Today, I am leaping. Yesterday, I leaped or leapt. And many times I have leaped or leapt. • Dream—Today, I dream. Today, I am dreaming. Yesterday, I dreamed or dreamt. And many times I have dreamed or dreamt. • Mean—Today, I mean. Today, I am meaning. Yesterday, I meant. And many times I have meant. • Deal—Today, I deal. Today, I am dealing. Yesterday, I dealt. And many times I have dealt.

The best advice for Principle Parts • Use the sayings: • Today, I ____ • Today, I am _____(ing) • Yesterday, I _____(d, ed, n, en, t usual endings) • And many times I have ______ (usually the same as the verb for past tense saying) • Try it with these irregular verbs: bend, send, catch. • Try it with these irregular verbs that do not follow any pattern: sing, go, fly, set, drink, cost.

Your answers—Page 577 -579 • Bend—is bending—bent—have bent • Send—am sending—sent—has sent • Catch—are catching—caught—had caught • Sing—is singing—sang—have sung • Go—am going—went—has gone • Fly—are flying—flew—had flown • Set—is setting—set—have set • Drink—am drinking—drank—has drunk • Cost—are costing—cost—had cost

The Six Troublesome Verbs • Called this name because most people do not know which one to use correctly! I’d guess, most people guess and are happy when they are right. There is a really easy way of knowing which is right, but you must first know two things: • The difference between “Transitive” and “Intransitive” verbs. Answer: Transitive will have a direct object (S+V+whom/what+DO). Intransitive cannot have a direct object. • You must know the principle parts of each verb—not guess—know them and memorize them.

Lie vs Lay • Lie—is lying—lay—has lain • Lay—is laying—laid—has laid • In the root form—Lie’s second letter is an “I”—it means intransitive. All forms of “Lie” are intransitive and will not take a DO. • Lay is the winner and is transitive. All forms of “Lay” will take a DO. • Another helpful hint is using replacement words (if the DO is still out of reach for you). For lie and its forms, replace with the words rest/recline. For lay and its forms, replace with put/place.

Continued… • The packages (are lying/ are laying) here. • For those who use the DO formula: We know the verb, just not sure which one, so find the subject: Who or what are lying or laying? Packages are lying or laying who/what? Do not answer with here---here tells you where—here is triple A (always an adverb). That means that we do not have a DO—the answer has to be are lying. • The other way: The packages are resting here or the packages are putting here? • Resting sounds better—answer is are lying

Continued… In his speech, Lee lay/laid the responsibility for change at the feet of society. Who/What lay or laid? Lee lay/laid what? Responsibility is a direct object. The verb has to be laid. In his speech, Lee rested or reclined the responsibility at the feet of society. In his speech, Lee put the responsibility at the feet of society. Which sounds better?

Sit vs Set • Sit—is sitting—sat—has sat • Set—is setting—set—has set • In the root form, sit’s second letter is an “I”—yes, it stands for intransitive. No direct objects taken or given! • Set is the winner; set is transitive. • If you like replacement words, sit and all its forms can be replaced with rest/recline. • Set and all its forms can be replaced with put.

Continued… • You may sit/set in the chair. • Who/What may sit or set? You may sit or set whom/what? No! In the chair is a prepositional phrase—no DO there. So, the answer is may sit. • Replacement: • You may rest or recline in the chair. • You may put in the chair. • Which sounds better?

Continued… • He had sat/set in the rocker since dusk. • Who had sat or set? He. He had sat or set whom/what? Nothing— prepositional phrases. No DO--sat • Replacement • He had rest or reclined in the rocker since dusk OR • He had put or placed in the rocker since dusk. • Which sounds better?

Rise vs Raise • Rise—is rising—rose—has risen • Raise—is raising—raised—has raised • In its root form, rise’s second letter is an “i”—I bet you know what is coming? !? !? The letter “I” stands for intransitive—no DO taken or given in any of the forms. • In its root form, raise and all of its forms are transitive—each will take a DO. • For replacement, rise and all of its forms can be replaced with to go up or to get up. Raise and all of its forms can be replaced with to lift or to cause to go up. Being honest, the replacements don’t always work so well with these two verbs.

Continued… • The banner rose/raised in the gust of wind. • Who/What rose or raised? Banner rose or raised whom or what? Nothing—only prepositional phrases. Rose is correct • Replacement • The banner went up in the gust of wind OR • The banner went up or was caused to go up in the gust of wind? • Little tougher because they both sound similar. With raise and all of its forms, something has to cause the lift to occur---a force behind it. • The replacement method is not the best way to do this one.

Continued… • The gust of wind rose/raised the banner. • Who/What rose or raised? Gust rose or raised what? Banner is the receiver of the action---raised is the correct answer. • Replacement • The gust of wind went up or got up the banner OR • The gust of wind lifted the banner or caused the banner to go up. • Replacement makes more sense this way.

Enough for today! • The next packet will have the tense Power. Point notes. If I need to explain anything---send me an e-mail or call me at school—I will be there for certain on Monday and Tuesday until probably four. I miss your smiling faces, corny jokes, and energy. We may have to figure out how to Noom/Loom/Zoom so I can see your faces---notice I used the pronoun “we” knowing full good and well, that I am the one who needs to learn! Much love to you all. Miss you all dearly.

Tense • Tense tells time. • Verbs in a sentence tell time—tell when the action occurred. • For this chapter, we will deal with 12 tenses: • The three basic tenses • The three perfect tenses • And the six progressive tenses The key to figuring out tenses is to use your notes---do not guess—match what is there with words given.

Three Basic Tenses Present—Past--Future • Consider these notes as how do you form each tense! • Present tense—now time—formed with the root verb (also called the base or infinitive form)—The saying is “Today, I…” • Past tense—action completed—formed with the root verb the “ed” or “d” OR if the verb is irregular, it needs to be memorized. The saying is “Yesterday, I…” • Future tense—tells what will happen—formed with “will” or “shall” plus the root verb. The saying is “Tomorrow, I will/shall…” • Today I watch the show. Yesterday I watched the show. Tomorrow I will watch the show. Today I swim. Yesterday I swam. Tomorrow I will swim. Today I cut the paper. Yesterday I cut the paper. Tomorrow I will cut the paper.

Present and Past Emphatic Form • Used to show emphasis • Used in questions and negative statements • Present Emphatic—formed with “do/does” plus root • Past Emphatic—formed with “did” plus root • I do talk. I did talk. • Why didn’t he talk? • Why did he talk? • If he doesn’t talk, I will raise my hand.

The Perfect Tenses Present Perfect—Past Perfect—Future Perfect • Perfect tenses require helping verbs—the “H” verbs: has/had/have • Present perfect tense—something that started in the past and is still going on—formed with has/have plus the past participle (previous notes). Saying is “And many time I have…” • Past perfect tense—tells which of two past actions happened first— formed with had plus the past participle. Saying is “And many times I had…” • Future perfect tense—tells which of two future actions will happen first—formed with “will/shall” plus have plus past participle. The saying is “And many times I will have…”

Perfect Tenses Examples • He has walked to the store. He had walked to the store. He will have walked to the store. • She has bought from the store. She had bought from the store. She will have bought from the store. • They have put the flowers away. They had put the flowers away. They will have put the flowers away. • Questions?

The Progressive Tenses Present/Past/Future Progressive • Some progressive tenses wull use a form of the “be” verb—future on up. • Present Progressive—going on right now—formed with “is/am/are” plus root plus “ing”—I am going. He is going. They are going. • Past Progressive—going on in the past—formed with “was/were” plus root plus “ing”—I was going. He was going. They were going. • Future Progressive—going on in the future—formed with “will/shall” plus “be” plus root plus “ing”—I will be going. He shall be going. They will be going.

Perfect Progressives • Present Perfect Progressive—started in the past and is still going on— formed with “has/have” plus “been” plus root plus “ing”. I will have been talking. He has been talking. They have been talking. • Past Perfect Progressive—tells which of two past actions had been going on first—formed with “had” plus “been” plus root plus “ing”. I had been talking. He had been talking. They had been talking. • Future Perfect Progressive—tells which of two future events will be going on first—formed with “will/shall” plus “have” plus “been” plus root plus “ing”. I will have been talking. He shall have been talking. They will have been talking.

Specific Uses of Tense—Present Tense • To show habitual (habits) action or state of being: I eat every, single day! • To state something that is always true: The sun rises in the east. • To summarize plot or subject matter of a literary work: Miss Strangeworth sends nasty notes to the townspeople to scare them. • To make a historical event seem current—called historical present: During the 9 -11 crisis, President Bush and his cabinet meet every morning. • To express future time: I work in my classroom next week.

Past Tense Use • Past tense tells the time of an action that occurred in the past and did not continue forward. Think of it as action done and over. The action is not habitual and not recurring. • I ran from the bear (that’s a lie—I never run!). (past) • I did not think about teaching during a pandemic. (past emphatic) • The children were taking their tests at home. (past progressive)

Future Tense Uses • Usually formed with “will/shall” plus root verb • Can be formed with “is/am/are” plus “going to” plus root—think infinitive—He is going to run to the store. —For sentences, this is wordy. Save this formation for questions—Is he going to run to the store? • Can be formed with “is/am/are” plus “about to” plus root verb— infinitive again—We are about to learn over e-mail! • Can be formed with a present tense of the verb but followed with word(s) that express future time—She has her doctor’s appointment next month.

Present Perfect Tense Uses • Used to express an action that happened at an indefinite time in the past • Used to express an action that began in the past but is still going on (continues into the present) • Be Careful! Make sure that you use the present tense, not the present perfect tense, to express an action that has a definite past time. • We saw (not have seen) the movie last night. This is not a huge problem, but usually happens when revising writing and adding in detail words.

Past Perfect Uses • Past Perfect expresses an action that ended before another past action occurred. In other words, the verb that is in past perfect/past perfect progressive (had + past participle or had+been+root+ing) is the action that happened first in the past. • After Torrey had burned the macaroni, I washed the casserole dish. (True story!) • Mrs. Anson told the class that she had eaten the cinnamon roll! • Mrs. Anson realized that she had been texting all wrong this morning! (True story!) • Notice the use of noun clauses for the second and third examples.

Future Perfect Uses • Used to express a future action that will end before another future action—thus, tells which of two future action happen first—the one in future perfect tense happens first. • By the time I send this e-mail, you will have figured out the lesson on your own. • By the end of the pandemic, I will have learned how to use e-mail and text efficiently (notice there is no mention of Zoom/Loom/Noom— bing, badda, boom!)

Consistency of Tense • Do not change from one tense to another in your writing without good reason—we call this tense shifting • Actions that happen at the same time use verbs in the same tense— think compound verbs—I saw the bird and photographed it as it flew away. • Actions that occur at different times use different tenses to show sequence of the events—I told you last week that today’s work is grammar. Told is correct—in the past. Is is correct for today.

Modals Helping (Auxiliary) Verbs • Modals are used with main verbs or infinitives to express an attitude about an action or state of being of the main verb (last verb in the phrase) • Can and Could express ability—”Mrs. Anson, can I go to the bathroom? ”—”I don’t know. Do you have the ability to go to the bathroom? ” Now you know why we English teachers correct this!!! • May expresses permission or possibility— “Mrs. Anson, may I go to the bathroom? ” “Yes, you have my permission to go to the bathroom. ” “Are you going to the game? ” “I may go. ”—there’s a possibility.

Modals Cont. • Might expresses possibility, but the possibility is less likely than the possibility expressed by may. • “Will you study for the test? ” • “I may study tonight. ”—possibility • “I might study tonight. ”—possibility is slim to none • Must expresses a requirement, but can also be used to express an explanation • For a grade of twenty-five points in the gradebook, you must respond to today’s e-mail before nine in the morning next Tuesday. (True) and shows that this is a requirement—also shows me who is reading the notes! • Lisa is late with her Power. Point. She must have been working on it. Explains why the Power. Point is late.

Modals Cont. • Ought—seems very archaic to children today, but was used quite often in previous generations!—expresses and obligation or likelihood. • You ought to read through the notes to learn about verbs. --obligation • The classroom ought to be quiet without students. --likelihood • Will and Shall express future time—stated already in tense notes • Should expresses recommendation, obligation, or possibility. • You should read my notes. —obligation • You should stay home to be safe. —recommendation • Should you have questions about my notes, please e-mail me. --possibility

Modal Cont. • Would expresses a conditional form of a verb (“If” clauses), future time in a dependent clause when the independent clause’s verb is in the past tense (toughest one to remember), or an action that is repeated in the past, an invitation or offer, or a polite request. Lots of uses for would! • If the pandemic had not happened, we would have taken these notes in class. —If clause—based on the condition • The President promised that Congress would pass an economic stimulus bill. — independent clause and dependent clause • Every day I would get up and go to school. —repetitious action • Would you like more homework? —invitation or offer • Would you please respond to my e-mail and let me know you are okay? polite request

Passive and Active Voice • Voice is the form a transitive verb (verb that has a direct object) takes to tell whether the subject is the doer of the action or the receiver of the action • Active Voice—the subject is the doer of the action and the verb will be followed by a direct object • Passive Voice—the subject of the verb is the receiver of the action and there will be no direct object—cannot be a direct object • Remember that we want you to write in active voice—use passive sparingly—for emphasis or when you do not know who the doer of the action is/was.