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Tuesday, June 16, 2020

Grammar work: Finding verbs


# 6/20/2020

https://examples.yourdictionary.com/simple-sentence-examples.html

> Misha walked and looked around.

walked, looked

> My mother hemmed and hawed over where to go for dinner.

hemmed, hawed

> He was eating and talking.

eating, talking, was (helper verb)

I considered that "was" is a linking verb and "eating and talking" is the complement. But I don't think that makes sense because a linking verb is supposed to, for example, describe a quality of the subject. And in this case, that's what the sentence is about.

> I rinsed and dried the dishes.

rinsed, dried

> Joe stood up and spoke to the crowd.

stood up, spoke

> The mangy, scrawny stray dog hurriedly gobbled down the grain-free, organic dog food.

gobbled down

> I quickly put on my red winter jacket, black snow pants, waterproof boots, homemade mittens, and handknit scarf.

put on

> The incessant ticking and chiming echoed off the weathered walls of the clock repair shop.

echoed

> Nervously, I unfolded the wrinkled and stained letter from my long-dead ancestor.

unfolded

> Into the suitcase, I carelessly threw a pair of ripped jeans, my favorite sweater from high school, an old pair of tube socks with stripes, and $20,000 in cash.

threw

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# 6/16/2020

https://examples.yourdictionary.com/simple-sentence-examples.html

> Sarah and Ira drove to the store.

drove

> Jenny and I opened all the gifts.

opened

> The cat and dog ate.

ate
> My parents and I went to a movie.

went

> Mrs. Juarez and Mr. Smith are dancing gracefully.

I'm not sure. I see "are" and "dancing". "Are" is a variation of "is", which is a linking verb. If that's the case, then "dancing" would be the complement, a noun. I checked Merriam Webster for "dancing" and I see that it can be a verb or a noun.

I googled ""are dancing" which is the verb?" and found this explanation.

> In “I am dancing,” the word “dancing” is the present participle of “to dance.” The 
> verb “am” is the auxiliary verb (present tense of “to be”) of the verb phrase “am 
> dancing.”
>
> To make “dancing” into an adjective or gerund, you would need to rewrite the 
> sentence. Below are some examples of how to use “dancing.”
>
> - PARTICIPLE (part of a verb phrase that includes an auxiliary verb or two): I am 
> dancing. They are dancing. We have been dancing.
> - ADJECTIVE (describes a noun): The dancing stars twinkled in the dark sky. That 
> dancing couple really knows how to keep up with the music.
> - GERUND (acts like a noun): Dancing has always been her passion. She enjoys 
> dancing, sketching, and playing the violin.

So the verb phrase is "are dancing". "are" is the helper verb, and "dancing" is the verb.

Back to the simple sentences article:

> Samantha, Elizabeth, and Joan are on the committee.

are

> The ham, green beans, mashed potatoes, and corn are gluten-free.

are

> The paper and pencil sat idle on the desk.

sat

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# 6/15/2020

https://examples.yourdictionary.com/simple-sentence-examples.html

> The cat stretched.

stretched

> Jacob stood on his tiptoes.
stood

> The car turned the corner.

turned

> Kelly twirled in circles.

twirled

> She opened the door.

opened

> Aaron made a picture.

made

> I'm sorry.

am

> I danced.

danced

> Run!

run

> Open the jar carefully.

open

> Read the directions.

read

> Don't cry.

cry
helper verb: do

> Use common sense.

use

> Make the best of things.

make

> Catch up!

catch up. But I wasn't sure. So I looked it up in Merriam Webster dictionary. "catch up" is listed as a verb and I think it said it's a "phrasal verb".

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