An active verb is _transitive_, when the action terminates on an object:
but
An active verb is _intransitive_, when the action does _not_ terminate
on an object; as, John _walks_.
You perceive that the verb _walks_, in this example, is _intransitive_,
because the action does not pass over to an object; that is, the action
is confined to the agent John. The following _sign_ will generally
enable you to distinguish a _transitive_ verb from an _intransitive_.
Any verb that will make sense with the words _a thing_ or _a person_,
after it, is _transitive_. Try these verbs by the sign, _love, help,
conquer, reach, subdue, overcome_. Thus, you can say, I love _a person_
or _thing_--I can help _a person_ or _thing_--and so on. Hence you know
that these verbs are transitive. But an intransitive verb will not make
sense with this sign, which fact will be shown by the following
examples: _smile, go, come, play, bark, walk, fly_. We cannot say, if we
mean to speak English, I smile a _person_ or _thing_--I go _a person_ or
_thing_:--hence you perceive that these verbs are not transitive, but
intransitive.
If you reflect upon these examples for a few moments, you will have a
clear conception of the nature of transitive and intransitive verbs.
Before I close this subject, however, it is necessary farther to remark,
that some transitive and intransitive verbs express what is called a
_mental_ or _moral_ action; and others, a _corporeal_ or _physical_
action. Verbs expressing the different affections or operations of the
mind, denote moral actions; as, Brutus _loved_ his country; James
_hates_ vice; We _believe_ the tale:--to _repent_, to _relent_, to
_think_, to _reflect_, to _mourn_, to _muse_. Those expressing the
actions produced by matter, denote physical actions; as, The _dog hears_
the bell; Virgil _wrote_ the Aenead; Columbus _discovered_ America;--to
_see_, to _feel_, to _taste_, to _smell_, to _run_, to _talk_, to _fly_,
to _strike_. In the sentence, Charles _resembles_ his father, the verb
_resembles_ does not appear to express any action at all; yet the
construction of the sentence, and the office which the verb performs,
are such, that we are obliged to parse it as an _active-transitive_
verb, governing the noun _father_ in the objective case. This you may
easily reconcile in your mind, by reflecting, that the verb has a
_direct reference_ to its object. The following verbs are of this
character: _Have, own, retain_; as, I _have_ a book.
Active _in_transitive verbs are frequently made _transitive_. When I
say, The birds _fly_, the verb _fly_ is _in_transitive; but when I say,
The boy _flies_ the kite, the verb _fly_ is _transitive_, and governs
the noun _kite_ in the objective case. Almost any active intransitive
verb, and sometimes even neuter verbs, are used as transitive. The horse
_walks_ rapidly; The boy _runs_ swiftly; My friend _lives_ well; The man
_died_ of a fever. In all these examples the verbs are _in_transitive;
in the following they are _transitive_: The man _walks_ his horse; The
boy _ran_ a race; My friend _lives_ a holy life; Let me _die_ the death
of the righteous.
The foregoing development of the character of verbs, is deemed
sufficiently critical for practical purposes; but if we dip a little
deeper into the verbal fountain, we shall discover qualities which do
not appear on its surface. If we throw aside the veil which art has
drawn over the real structure of speech, we shall find, that almost
every verb has either a _personal_ or a _verbal_ object, expressed or
implied. Verbal objects, which are the _effects_ or _productions_
resulting from the actions, being necessarily implied, are seldom
expressed.
The fire _burns_. If the fire burns, it must burn _wood, coal, tallow_,
or some other combustible substance. The man _laughs_. Laughs what?
Laughs _laughter_ or _laugh_. They _walk_; that is, They walk or take
_walks_. Rivers flow (move or roll _them-selves_ or their _waters_)
into the ocean.
"I _sing_ the shady _regions_ of the west."
"And _smile_ the _wrinkles_ from the brow of age."
The child _wept itself_ sick; and then, by taking (or _sleeping_) a
short _nap_, it _slept itself_ quiet and well again. "He will soon
_sleep_ his everlasting _sleep"_; that is, "He will _sleep_ the _sleep_
of death."
Thinkers think _thoughts_; Talkers talk or employ _words, talk,_ or
_speeches_; The rain rains _rain_. "Upon Sodom and Gomorrah the Lord
_rained fire_ and _brimstone_." "I must _go_ the whole _length_." "I
shall soon _go_ the _way_ of all the earth."
Now please to turn back again, and peruse this lecture attentively;
after which you may parse, systematically, the following exercises
containing nouns in the three cases, and active-transitive verbs.
The printer _prints_ books.
_Prints_ is a verb, a word that signifies to do--active, it expresses
action--transitive, the action passes over from the nominative "printer"
to the object "books"--third pers. sing. numb. because the nominative
printer is with which it agrees.
RULE 4. _The verb must agree with its nominative case in number and
person_.
Declined--1. pers. sing. I print, 2. pers. thou printest, 3. pers. he
prints, or the printer prints, and so on.
_Books_ is a noun, the name of a thing--common, the name of a sort of
things,--neut. gend. it denotes a thing without sex--third pers. spoken
of--plur. num. it implies more than one--and in the objective case, it
is the object of the action, expressed by the active-transitive verb
"prints," and is governed by it according to
RULE 20. _Active-transitive verbs govern the objective case_.
The noun _books_ is thus declined--Sing. nom. book, poss. book's, obj.
book--Plur. nom. books, poss. books', obj. books.
RULE 20. Transitive verbs _govern_ the objective case; that is, they
_require_ the noun or pronoun following them to be in that case; and
this requisition is government. Pronouns have a particular _form_ to
suit each case; but nouns have not. We cannot say, She _struck he_; I
gave the book _to they_. Why not? Because the genius of our language
requires the pronoun following a transitive verb or preposition (_to_ is
a preposition) to assume that _form_ which we call the _objective_ form
or case. Accordingly, the construction should be, She struck _him_; I
gave the book to _them_.--Read, again, the illustration of "government"
on page 52.