+27.+ After the primitive man had invented names for the things about
him, probably his next step was to invent words of action. He very
naturally wanted to tell what all of these various things _did_. So the
words that tell what things do, the words of action, the words that
assert, came into the language. A child follows much the same
development. As you can readily observe, it first names the objects
about it, then learns the words that tell what these objects do.
So the words that tell what things _do_, become the second class of
words. These words we call _verbs_. The word _verb_, like the word
_noun_, is taken into our language from the Latin. In Latin, the word
_verbum_ means _the word_; and the verb is practically _the_ word in a
sentence, for we cannot have a sentence without a verb. You may string a
number of words together, but if you do not have an asserting word, you
will not have a sentence.
Notice the following sentences:
Men work.
Flowers fade.
Snow flies.
Winds blow.
In these sentences, the words _work_, _fade_, _flies_ and _blow_, are
the words used to assert or say something of the subject, hence they are
the verbs in these sentences.
+28.+ Sometimes it takes more than one word to express the action or
make the assertion. Notice the following sentences:
The men are working.
The boy has been studying.
In the first sentence it takes two words, _are working_, to make the
assertion; in the second, three are required, _has been studying_. These
groups of words are called _verb phrases_.
+29.+ +A verb is a word that asserts.+
+A verb phrase is a group of words used as a single verb.+
The verb is perhaps the most difficult part of speech to master. It is
not hard to find the verb in short sentences, but in longer sentences it
is sometimes difficult.
For example:
The sun shines.
The man walks.
The boys strike.
We very easily see that _shine_, _walk_ and _strike_ are the verbs in
these sentences. But let us add other words, as for example:
The sun shines brightly.
The man walks for his health.
The boys strike the dog.
Now we are very apt to confuse the verb with the words which state _how_
and _why_ the action is performed, or the _object_ towards which the
action is directed. But in these sentences, _shine_ and _walks_ and
_strike_ are still the verbs, just as in the first sentences. The verb
asserts the action; the other words merely give additional information
about _how_ or _why_ or _upon what_ the action is performed.
+30.+ Another thing which makes it difficult for us to distinguish verbs
in English is that the same word may be used both as a noun and as a
verb; but always remember that words are separated into classes
according to the work which they do. When a word is used as a _name_ it
is a _noun_; when it is used as an _asserting_ word it is a _verb_. Note
the following sentences:
The _play_ made the child tired.
The children _play_ in the yard.
In the first sentence _play_ is a noun, the subject of the verb _made_.
In the second sentence _play_ is the verb, telling what the children
_do_. Always classify words according to the work which they perform in
the sentence. This will help you very much in finding your verb.
+31.+ Then we have some verbs which do not assert action but express
rather a connection or relation between the subject and some other word
or words. For example:
The dog belongs to the man.
The girl is happy.
In these sentences _belongs_ and _is_ are the verbs. _Belongs_ asserts
or shows the relation between _the dog_ and _the man_. _Is_ shows the
relation between _the girl_ and _happy_. If we simply say _girl_ and
_happy_, we do not show any connection between them or make any
statement relating the two, but when we say, _The girl is happy_, we are
asserting something, and the word _is_ makes the assertion.
Or when we say, _The girl was happy_, or _The girl will be_ or _may be
happy_, in each of these cases, it is the verb or verb phrase _was_ or
_will be_ or _may be_, that asserts or shows the relation between the
subject _girl_ and the descriptive word _happy_. You will observe that
the verbs _will be_ and _may be_ are composed of more than one word and
are _verb phrases_.
We will study the verb in succeeding lessons, but let us remember from
this lesson that the word or group of words that makes the assertion in
the sentence is the verb. Remember too that every sentence must contain
a verb.
Get this basic principle firmly fixed in mind that what a word _does_
decides what it _is_--to what part of speech it belongs, and that every
class of words fulfills its own function in sentence building.
+32.+ Remember:--
+Every sentence must have a subject and a predicate.+
+Every sentence must express a complete thought.+
+Every sentence must contain a verb.+
+A noun is the name of something.+
+A verb is a word that asserts.+
+What a word does determines what it is.+
Study carefully the following quotation. The verbs are printed in
_italics_.
Slowly, painfully, _proceeds_ the struggle of man against the power of
Mammon. The past _is written_ in tears and blood. The future _is_ dim
and unknown, but the final outcome of this world-wide struggle _is_
not in doubt. Freedom _will conquer_ slavery, truth _will prevail_
over error, justice _will triumph_ over injustice, the light _will
vanquish_ the darkness; and humanity _will rise_ in the glory of
universal brotherhood.--_Warren_.