Transitive & Intransitive Verbs
Transitive verb is a verb that usually requires a direct object. E.g read (a book), sing (a song), play (music, sports).
Intransitive verb is a verb that does not require a direct object. E.g go, sit, stand, walk, etc.
Do not confuse the object of preposition with the direct object.
- He goes to school. school is not the direct object; it is the object of preposition (to).
Some verbs can be both transitive and intransitive. E.g sink The navy sank the enemy ship. The verb sink is transitive and the ship is the direct object. The ship’s anchor sank in water. In this example the verb sank is intransitive.
To determine whether a verb is transitive or not, look for the direct object in the sentence. Ask “What” did the verb do. The word that answers the question will be the direct object.
We watched a film last night. What did we watch? A film (direct object). So “watched” is a transitive verb.
|
Transitive verb (forms) |
Meaning |
Direct object |
|
accept, accepted, accepted |
to receive something willingly |
(accept) an invitation, the truth, |
|
beat, beat, beat |
to mix by stirring/ to strike repeatedly/ |
(beat) eggs, a drum |
|
bend, bent, bent |
to apply force to curve or straighten something |
(bend) a bow, a wire |
|
bind, bound, bound |
to make secure by tying |
(bind) hands with a rope, etc |
|
break, broke, broken |
to separate into parts/to violate |
(break) glass, a promise or the law |
|
bring, brought, brought |
to cause to come into a particular state or condition/ to carry |
(bring) water to a boil, a jar of honey |
|
buy, bought, bought |
to purchase |
(buy) a gift, grocery, a car, etc |
|
catch, caught, caught |
to capture/ to grasp/ to be affected |
(catch) a thief, a ball, cold |
|
choose, chose, chosen |
to select freely and after consideration/to have a preference for |
(choose) a career, a book, a car |
|
dig, dug, dug |
to prepare the soil/to form by removing earth |
(dig) a garden, a hole or a canal, |
|
draw, drew, drawn |
to move a covering, to allure, |
(draw)curtains, bees |
|
drink, drank, drunk |
to swallow |
(drink) water, milk, etc |
|
drive, drove, driven |
to operate a vehicle |
(drive) a car |
Exercise: Choose the most suitable transitive verb and form to complete the sentence below.
buy - catch - choose - bend - dug - draw - beat - drive - accept - drink
Answer key: 1 catch – 2 buy – 3 choose – 4 draws – 5 dug – 6 bend – 7 drink – 8 accept – 9 beat – 10 drive
|
Transitive verb (forms) |
Meaning |
Direct object |
|
feed, fed, fed |
to give food to a person, an animal |
(feed)the hungry, a pet |
|
feel, felt, felt |
to suffer, to perceive by a physical sensation |
(feel) pain, heat |
|
find, found, found |
to get back something, to discover sth |
(find) a (lost) pen, a solution, |
|
fly, flew, flown |
to operate a balloon, aircraft, etc in flight, to cause to fly |
(fly) a plane, a kite |
|
forget, forgot, forgot |
to fail to remember sth |
(forget) a lesson, a name, etc |
|
get, got, got/gotten |
to receive or obtain |
(get) a job, something |
|
give, gave, given |
to hand sth to sb |
(give) a watch, a phone, etc |
|
grind, ground, ground |
to crush sth into very small pieces or into a powder |
(grind) coffee, flour, |
|
grow, grew, grown |
to cause or allow sth to grow |
(grow) fruit, |
|
hold, held, held |
to take sth/sb and keep it in your hand. |
(hold) the baby, a gun |
|
know, knew, known |
to recognize or understand |
(know) the truth, a secret, etc |
|
lead, led, led |
to guide on a way; to go through |
(lead) the country, people, life |
|
lend, lent, lent |
to give sth for temporary use |
car, a book, money |
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