English verbs are divided into three groups: Normal Verbs, Non-Continuous Verbs, and Mixed Verbs.

Group I Normal Verbs

Most verbs are "Normal Verbs." These verbs are usually physical actions which you can see somebody doing. These verbs can be used in all tenses.

Normal Verbs

to run, to walk, to eat, to fly, to go, to say, to touch, etc.

Examples:

Group II Non-Continuous Verbs

The second group, called "Non-Continuous Verbs," is smaller. These verbs are usually things you cannot see somebody doing. These verbs are rarely used in continuous tenses. They include:

Abstract Verbs

to be, to want, to cost, to seem, to need, to care, to contain, to owe, to exist...

Possession Verbs

to possess, to own, to belong...

Emotion Verbs

to like, to love, to hate, to dislike, to fear, to envy, to mind...

Examples:

Group III Mixed Verbs

The third group, called "Mixed Verbs," is the smallest group. These verbs have more than one meaning. In a way, each meaning is a unique verb. Some meanings behave like "Non-Continuous Verbs," while other meanings behave like "Normal Verbs."

Mixed Verbs

to appear, to feel, to have, to hear, to look, to see, to weigh...

List of Mixed Verbs with Examples and Definitions:

to appear:

to have:

to hear:

to look:

to miss:

to see:

to smell:

to taste:

to think:

to weigh:

Some Verbs Can Be Especially Confusing:

to be:

NOTICE: Only rarely is "to be" used in a continuous form. This is most commonly done when a person is temporarily behaving badly or stereotypically. It can also be used when someone's behavior is noticeably different.

to feel:

NOTICE: The second meaning of "feel" is very flexible and there is no real difference in meaning between "I don't feel well today" and "I am not feeling well today."

Action verbs are verbs that specifically describe what the subject of the sentence is doing. These types of verbs carry a great deal of information in a sentence and can convey emotion and a sense of purpose that extends beyond the literal meanings of the words. A sentence like "The band appeared on the scene" sounds much more less impressive than the sentence "The band erupted onto the scene." The power of the action verb lies in the meaning and intention that they contain and how they bring direction and force to the sentence. Understanding the types of action verbs will make students better writers and communicators.

List of tenses shows the different verb forms for regular verbs

Base - To discover
  • Present - I discover something new every day.
  • Present progressive - I am discovering myself.
  • Present perfect - I have discovered a new way.
  • Present perfect progressive - I have been discovering new music.
  • Past - I discovered that already.
  • Past progressive - I was discovering something this morning.
  • Past perfect - I had discovered that I was lost.
  • Past perfect progressive - I had been discovering an interesting place.
  • Future - I will discover that when I get there.
  • Future progressive - I am discovering that tomorrow.
  • Future perfect - I will have discovered that by the time I get home.
  • Future perfect progressive - I will have been discovering that for week by the time you arrive.

 

 

Stative Verbs

Stative verbs are verbs that express a state rather than an action. They usually relate to thoughts, emotions, relationships, senses, states of being and measurements. These verbs are not usually used with ing in progressive (continuous) tenses even though they may take on time expressions such as now and at the moment. We use the simple tenses for them.

  1. Paul feels rotten today. He has a bad cold.
  2. Do you recognize him? He is a famous rock star.
  3. Our client appreciated all the work we did for him.
  • Incorrect: I’m smelling your wife’s wonderful spaghetti sauce.
  • Correct: I smell your wife’s wonderful spaghetti sauce.

However, there are some verbs that look like they should be stative, but may appear in the ing form. These verbs differ in meaning to the stative verbs.

Examples:

see

  1. I see Michael, but he can’t see me. I’m too far away. (I see him with my eyes.)
  2. James is seeing Marsha. They’ve been together for a month. (He’s dating her.)

hear

  1. I hear music coming from the Smith’s apartment. Someone must be home now. (To experience sound)
  2. I’m hearing voices. (I’m imagining it)

have

  1. Jeremy has a Mercedes. (He owns it.)
  2. Sara is having lunch with her editor. (She’s eating lunch)

List of Stative Verbs

  • adore
  • agree
  • appear (seem)
  • appreciate
  • be (exist)
  • believe
  • belong to
  • concern
  • consist of
  • contain
  • cost
  • deny
  • depend on
  • deserve
  • detest
  • disagree
  • dislike
  • doubt
  • equal
  • feel
  • hate
  • have (possession)
  • hear
  • imagine
  • include
  • involve
  • know
  • lack
  • like
  • loathe
  • look (seem)
  • love
  • matter
  • mean
  • measure
  • mind
  • need
  • owe
  • own
  • possess
  • promise
  • realize
  • recognize
  • remember
  • resemble
  • satisfy
  • see
  • seem
  • smell
  • sound
  • suppose
  • surprise
  • taste
  • think (opinion)
  • understand
  • want
  • weigh
  • wish

A phrasal verb is a combination of words (a verb + a preposition or verb +adverb) that when used together, usually take on a different meaning to that of the original verb.

Verbs drawn from various lexical fields are commonly classified as either manner or result verbs: (1) a. MANNER VERBS: specify a manner of carrying out an action. cry, hit, pound, run, shout, shovel, smear, sweep, . .

 b. RESULT VERBS: specify the result of an event. arrive, clean, come, cover, die, empty, fill, put, remove, . . . As the examples illustrate, this distinction crosscuts the transitive/intransitive verb distinction.

• Manner and result meaning components are in complementary distribution (L&RH 1991, 1995): a verb typically lexicalizes only one.

(5) a. A manner verb can combine with a result XP: Pat wiped the table clean. b. A result verb can be accompanied by an adverbial XP expressing manner: Pat cleaned the table by wiping it.

 

Non-continuous Verbs

Non-continuous verbs; verbs that cannot be used in continuous forms are usually verbs that you cannot see somebody doing. These verbs are rarely used in continuous forms. They are:
Abstract verbs  Be, want, cost, need, care, contain, owe, exist etc.
Possession verbs Own, belong, possess etc.
Emotion Verbs Like, love, hate, dislike, fear, envy etc.;
She needs help.  Not She is needing help.
He wants a break. Not He is wanting a break.

Verbs with different meanings

Stative Verbs

Stative verbs (or state verbs) describe a status or quality of something… NOT an action. Verbs of perception, opinion, the senses, emotion, possession, and state of being are often stative verbs.
Stative verbs are verbs that express a state rather than an action. They usually relate to thoughts, emotions, relationships, senses, states of being and measurements. These verbs are not usually used with ing in progressive (continuous) tenses even though they may take on time expressions such as now and at the moment. We use the simple tenses for them.

Here are some examples:

STATIVE VERBS OF OPINION / PERCEPTION:

know, believe, understand, recognize, prefer, agree/disagree, approve/disapprove, suppose, suspect

STATIVE VERBS OF POSSESSION:

have, own, belong, possess, include, owe

STATIVE VERBS OF THE SENSES:

hear, smell, see, feel, appear, seem, resemble

STATIVE VERBS OF EMOTION:

love, hate, like, want, need, desire, wish

STATIVE VERBS OF STATES/QUALITIES:

weigh, contain, consist, measure, cost, exist, depend, deserve, involve, matter

Verbs That Can Be Both Dynamic And Stative Verbs

Some verbs can function as BOTH action verbs and stative verbs!

Here are some examples:

BE

HAVE

SEE

LOOK

SMELL / TASTE

THINK / FEEL

WEIGH / MEASURE

State verbs express states or conditions which are relatively static. They include verbs of perception, cognition, the senses, emotion and state of being:

Examples of state verbs
appear
believe
belong
consider
consist
contain
 		 cost
doubt
exist
fit
hate
hear
 		 have
know
like
love
matter
mean
 		 need
owe
own
prefer
remember
resemble		 seem
suppose
suspect
understand
want
wish

State verbs are not normally used in continuous forms:

Action verbs

Action verbs (also called dynamic verbs) express activities, processes, momentary actions or physical conditions:

Examples of action verbs
ache
arrive
ask
call
change
cook
 		 dance
eat
fall
feel
go
grow
 		 have
help
hit
hurt
itch
kick
 		 knock
leave
melt 
read
say
shrink		 sing
speak
talk
throw
travel
watch