Notional, Semi-Auxiliary and Auxiliary Verbs

The Verb

The verb is a part of speech which includes words expressing actions or states conceived as process.

According to their morphological structure verbs are divided into:

a) simple (to read);

b) derived (to magnify, to fertilize, to decompose);

c) compound (to daydream, to whitewash, to browbeat);

d) composite (to sit down, to go away, to give up).

The various forms that a verb can take fall under two main divisions: finite and non-finite.

Finite forms of the verb have the function of the predicate in the sentence. These forms are bound to some subject with which it agrees in person and number.

‘I’m ready to do it to-morrow…’(Chesterton)

The non-finite forms of the verb are three in number: the infinitive, the participle, the gerund. They may fulfil various functions in the sentence.

The finite forms of the verb express the following grammatical categories: person, number, mood, aspect, tense and voice.

These categories are expressed partly by synthetical forms (inflexions, and vowel or consonant interchange); partly by analytical forms.

Verb-forms of the English Conjugation

The conjugation of the English verb is based on three forms:

- the present tense stem.

- the past tense stem

- participle two stem

All verbs in ME are divided into two main classes: regular and irregular, distinguished by the formation of the past tense and participle two.

Notional, Semi-Auxiliary and Auxiliary Verbs

Verbs may be divided into three classes: notional (полнозначные), semi-auxiliary (служебные), and auxiliary (вспомогательные).

1. A notional verb is a verb which has an independent meaning and function in the sentence.

I woke and looked at my watch… (Galsworthy)

2. A semi-auxiliary verb has no independent meaning and consequently no independent function in the sentence.

…it was a very fine day… (Bronte)

3. An auxiliary verb has no lexical meaning: its meaning is purely grammatical.

‘Rip’s story was soon told.’(Irving)

Subjective and Objective, Transitive and Intransitive Verbs

1. A verb which denotes an action associated only with its subject is called a subjective verb. All subjective verbs are intransitive.

Ex.: The river…glistened and sparkled as it flowed noiselessly on… (Dickens)

2.A verb which expresses an action connected not only with its subject but also with an object is called an objective verb; objective verbs may be transitive and intransitive.

Ex.: I’ve just had a letter from Aunt Augusta. (Mazo de la Roche)

3. An objective verb which requires a direct object to complete its meaning is a transitive verb. All other verbs are intransitive, that is, all subjective verbs and those objective verbs which do not require a direct object.

a)Transitive:

Ex.: ‘I’ve known these people a long time ’.(Cronin)

b)Intransitive:

Ex.: The moon rose very late that night. (Dodge)

4. Many transitive verbs may be used absolutely, that is, simply to express actions without any indication of the direct object. This takes place:

a) When the object is clear from the context:

I wrote(a letter) to him a month ago, but he hasn’t answered(my letter) yet.

b) When the object is of general meaning; then the verb denotes to have the faculty of…:

Ex.: She reads and writes well.

The difference between a transitive verb used absolutely and an intransitive verb is as follows: the former may be used with a direct object, the latter can never have a direct object.

· Such intransitive verbs as to live, to go, to sleep, to rest, to swim can never have a direct object.

A peculiarity of ME is that the same verb may be transitive in one of its meanings and intransitive in another. In a great many cases the intransitive meaning is the result of the omission of the reflexive pronoun. In Russian these two meanings (transitive and intransitive) are expressed by two different verbs: to stop- a) останавливать, b) останавливаться; to close –a) закрывать b) закрываться.

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