The predicate. Monotransitive verbs.

The predicate is the verbal component of a sentence or clause which expresses a state, an action, or an event. The predicate may consist simply of a verb as in Tom disappeared or of a verb followed by one or more complements, that is words or phrases added to a verb to complete the predicate, without which sentences would be incomplete as in All the men wore* [dark suits], or have a different meaning as in They found the test [difficult].

Every verb or class of verbs can be followed by the particular number and type of objects and complements.

MONOTRANSITIVE VERBS

Monotransitive verbs describe events which in addition to the subject involve someone or something else. These verbs take one object (a direct object or a prepositional object).

Children seek independence. How can you account for his mistake?

Here is a list of some verbs which are monotransitive: achieve, create, favour, maintain, rent, address, damage, get.

There are a small number of verbs which are usually intransitive, but which can be transitive when used with one particular object, a cognate object. The object is usually directly related to the verb. dance (a,dance), laugh (a laugh), die (a death), live (a life)

He smiled a patient smile.

The complement following a transitive verb is not necessarily a noun group representing a person or thing, but it can also be an infinitive or gerundial phrase, an infinitive, gerundial or participial complex, or a clause, which represents a fact, a report, or a situation, makes a proposal or expresses an indirect question. He doesn't enjoy dancing. He wants to stay. • Some verbs are always followed by a gerund, gerundial phrase or gerundial predicative complex: delay, deny, detest, dislike, dread, enjoy, fancy, finish, imagine.

• Other verbs are used with an infinitive, infinitive phrase or infinitive construction: afford, claim, hesitate, plan, agree, decide, intend, pretend, aim.

• A few verbs can be used with either a gerund or an infinitive without altering the meaning of the verb: attempt, cease, fear, love, begin, continue, hate, prefer, bother.

• With a few verbs the meaning is altered depending on whether you use a gerund or an infinitive:

If you go on to do smth, you subsequently start doing it. If you remember to do smth, you have to do it at the present time.

If you try to do smth, you make an effort, attempt to do something difficult. If you go on doing smth, you

continue to do it.

Some monotransitive verbs take direct objects that can be followed by object complements. These are complex transitive verbs. The direct object generally represents a person or thing, and the object complement adds information about it. This information can

• describe a state or characteristic of the referent of the direct object: He keeps the garden beautiful.

• identify it: They elected her Miss America.

• express a role: His friends regard him as a genius at chess.

• a circumstance or a situation in which the referent is said to be: / found her lying on the floor.

With some complex transitive verbs object complements (denoting a state or characteristic) are expressed by adjectives and adjective groups. These are • verbs of causing: The news left me speechless.

• verbs of opinion: I imagined him much older.

• verbs of declaring: They declared the bridge unsafe.

The verbs of appointing (such as appoint, christen, crown, designate, make, name, proclaim and term) introduce noun groups or prepositional groups as object complements denoting identity: The referee proclaimed him world champion.

Situations as object complements are realized by non-finite forms of the verb describing some action or situation in which the object is involved. There are four such types of complex transitive verb complementation:

l. with to-infinitive after mental process verbs such as assume, believe, consider, understand, feel, imagine, know (with optional to):

We believe John to be honest.

2. with bare infinitive after verbs of perception: see, hear, feel, notice, smell, watch: She saw them enter the shop.

3. with Participle I after verbs of perception: see, hear, feel, notice, smell, watch and verbs of finding or leaving: catch, come across, discover, find, leave: I can smell something burning. With verbs of perception we can make a distinction between a completed action, with the complement expressed by the bare infinitive, and an uncompleted action or action in progress, expressed by Participle I. Compare: We watched the house burn down and We watched the house burning.

4. with Participle II after causative verbs get and have; volitional verbs like, need, prefer, want; verbs of perception see, feel, hear, watch, and verbs of finding and leaving discover, find, leave: We'll have the computer repaired within a week.

Some monotransitive verbs can be followed by predicate complements, an obligatory constituent which cannot become subject in the passive and thus cannot be considered a direct object. These include relational verbs (have, lack, contain, fit, suit), verbs of measuring (measure, weigh, cost, take) and verbs of equal reciprocity (marry, resemble). She resembles her sister in character. * Her sister is resembled in character. There are a number of very common verbs which are used with nouns to indicate that someone performs an action, often a brief one. The noun is often in the singular and is usually preceded by the indefinite article. These verbs have very little meaning when they are used in this way, so they are sometimes called delexical verbs. The most common delexical verbs are: give, have, make, take. Roger gave a grin of delight. He took a step forward.

Monotransitive verbs also take a prepositional object. Many verbs typically or always have a particular preposition after them when they are used with a particular meaning: plot against, shrink from, spy on, hint at, result in.

Prepositional objects are also used after phrasal-prepositional verbs: catch up with /end up with /get out of /give in.

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