Verbs (क्रिया) | Basic English Grammar for Competitive Exams - Bank Exams PDF Download

Introduction of Verbs (क्रिया का परिचय)

A verb (क्रिया) is a word that expresses an action, an event, or a state of being. In both Hindi and English, verbs play a crucial role in the formation of sentences.
क्रिया वाक्य के वह शब्द होते हैं जो किसी काम, घटना या स्थिति को व्यक्त करते हैं। क्रियाओं को वाक्य के सबसे महत्वपूर्ण अंग में माना जाता है, क्योंकि वे वाक्य का आधार होती हैं और उसे सही ढंग से संरचित करते हैं।

Main Verbs

• Transitive Verbs (सकर्मक क्रिया) - These verbs require a direct object to complete their meaning.
  Example:- Read (पढ़ना)
  Sentence: She read the book. (उसने किताब पढ़ी।)
• Intransitive Verbs (अकर्मक क्रिया) - These verbs do not require a direct object to complete their meaning.
  Example:- Sleep (सोना)
  Sentence: Sushant is sleeping (सुशांत सो रहा है।)

Auxiliary Verbs

• Action Verbs (क्रिया के रूप) - These verbs indicate an action or a physical or mental activity by the subject.
  Example:- Eat (खाना)
  Sentence: He is eating an apple. (वह सेब खा रहा है।)
• Helping Verbs (सहायक क्रिया) - These verbs help the main verb in a sentence to give more information about the action.
  Example:- To be (होना)
  Sentence: I am a doctor. (मैं डॉक्टर हूँ।)
• Modal Verbs (प्रकार क्रिया) - These verbs express necessity, possibility, permission, or ability.
  Example:- Can (सकना)
  Sentence: I can swim. (मैं तैर सकता हूँ।)
• Stative Verbs (अवस्था क्रिया) - These verbs describe a state or condition rather than an action.
  Example:- Know (जानना)
  Sentence: I know him (मैं उसे जानता हूँ।)

Examples of countable verbs in English and Hindi with sentences:

Countable verbs, also known as count verbs, are the verbs that can be counted or quantified. These verbs can be used in both singular and plural forms, and can be used with the indefinite articles 'a' and 'an'. Here are some examples of countable verbs:

• Book - किताब
  Example: I have two books. (मेरे पास दो किताबें हैं।)
• Chair - कुर्सी
  Example: There are five chairs in the room. (कमरे में पाँच कुर्सियाँ हैं।)
• Pen - कलम
  Example: She has a red pen. (उसके पास एक लाल कलम है।)
• Table - मेज
  Example: They need to buy a new table. (उन्हें एक नई मेज खरीदनी होगी।)
• Phone - फोन
  Example: My phone is ringing. (मेरा फोन बज रहा है।)

Note: Countable verbs can be easily identified by asking the question "How many?" or "How much?" before the verb in a sentence. If the answer is a numerical value, then the verb is countable. In Hindi, countable verbs are called "गिनतीय क्रियाएँ" or "संख्यात्मक क्रियाएँ".

Rules Related to Verbs

• Subject-Verb Agreement: The verb must agree with the subject in number (singular or plural). For example, "He runs" and "They run" are both correct, but "He run" and "They runs" are not.
• Regular and Irregular Verbs: Regular verbs follow a consistent pattern when forming the past tense by adding "-ed" to the base form of the verb. For example, "walk" becomes "walked." Irregular verbs, however, have different forms for the past tense, and must be memorized. For example, "go" becomes "went."
• Modal Verbs: Modal verbs express various degrees of possibility, ability, permission, or obligation. Some common modal verbs in English are "can," "could," "may," "might," "must," "shall," "should," "will," and "would." Modal verbs have specific rules for usage, such as the fact that they are always followed by the base form of the verb (without "to").
• Transitive and Intransitive Verbs: Transitive verbs require a direct object to complete their meaning, while intransitive verbs do not. For example, "She ate the pizza" (transitive) versus "She ate quickly" (intransitive).
• Phrasal Verbs: Phrasal verbs are verbs that consist of a main verb and one or more particles (such as "up," "out," "off," etc.). These verbs have specific rules for usage, such as the fact that the particle can often be separated from the main verb by an object.

Function of Verbs with Examples

1. Action Verbs: To run (दौड़ना)

• Function: Expresses physical movement or action. (शारीरिक गति या कार्य को व्यक्त करता है।)
• Example: She runs every morning. (वह प्रतिदिन सुबह दौड़ती है।)

2. Linking Verbs: To be (होना)

• Function: Connects the subject to a description, quality, or state of being. (विषय को किसी वर्णन, गुण या अवस्था के साथ जोड़ता है।)
• Example: He is a teacher. (वह एक शिक्षक है।)

3. Helping Verbs: To have (होना (Hona) or रखना (Rakhna)

• Function: Helps form verb tenses, indicates possession or necessity (क्रिया काल बनाने में मदद करता है, स्वामित्व या आवश्यकता को दर्शाता है।)
• Example: She has studied French. (उसने फ्रेंच पढ़ी है।)

4. Transitive Verbs: To eat (खाना)

• Function: Expresses an action that has a direct object (the receiver of the action) एक क्रिया को व्यक्त करता है जिसका एक प्रत्यक्ष वस्तु होता है (क्रिया का प्राप्तकर्ता)
• Example: She eats an apple. (वह सेब खाती है।)

5. Intransitive Verbs: To swim (तैरना)

• Function: Expresses an action that does not have a direct object (the action does not affect something else) (ऐसी क्रिया को व्यक्त करता है जिसका कोई प्रत्यक्ष वस्तु नहीं होता (क्रिया किसी और चीज पर प्रभाव नहीं डालती)
• Example: He swims in the pool. (वह पूल में तैरता है।)

Verbs play a crucial role in both English and Hindi by expressing actions, states of being, and relationships between subjects and objects. They help create meaning and provide a structure for sentences.

Solved Exercises

Exercise 1: Identify the verb in each sentence and determine whether it is an action verb or a linking verb.
(i) The cat slept on the couch.
Verb: slept (action verb)

In this sentence, the action performed by the cat is sleeping, which makes "slept" an action verb.

(ii) She appears tired after work.
Verb: appears (linking verb)

Here, "appears" is not an action but rather serves to connect the subject (she) to the adjective (tired), making it a linking verb.

Exercise 2: Choose the correct form of the verb in parentheses to complete each sentence.
(i) The children (is/are) playing in the park.
Correct: The children are playing in the park.

Since "children" is plural, the appropriate verb form is "are."

(ii) She (has/have) been studying for hours.
Correct: She has been studying for hours.

In this case, the subject "she" is singular, so the verb "has" is the correct choice.

Exercise 3: Change the verb in each sentence to the past tense.
(i) I walk to the store every day.
Past tense: I walked to the store every day.

The past tense of "walk" is "walked."

(ii) She eats a sandwich for lunch.
Past tense: She ate a sandwich for lunch.

The past tense of "eats" is "ate."

Exercise 4: Identify the helping verb(s) in each sentence.
(i) She has been studying for hours.
Helping verbs: has, been

In this sentence, "has" and "been" are used together to create the present perfect continuous tense, making them helping verbs.

(ii) I will go to the store later.
Helping verb: will

"Will" is a helping verb used to indicate the future tense of the action verb "go."

Exercise 5: Rewrite each sentence using a different verb tense, as indicated.
(i) She walks to the store every day. (past continuous)
New sentence: She was walking to the store every day.

The past continuous tense of "walks" is "was walking."

(ii) They have finished their homework. (future perfect)
New sentence: They will have finished their homework.

The future perfect tense of "have finished" is "will have finished."

Spotting Errors (Verbs)

1. Incorrect: She had read the book before I finished it.
Correct: She had read the book before I had finished it.

Both actions happened in the past, so we use the past perfect tense (had + past participle) for both verbs.

2. Incorrect: If I would have known about the party, I would have come.
Correct: If I had known about the party, I would have come.

For the third conditional, we use "had + past participle" in the if-clause and "would have + past participle" in the main clause.

3. Incorrect: He must has finished his homework by now.
Correct: He must have finished his homework by now.

After modal verbs like "must," we use the base form of the verb. In this case, we need to use "have" instead of "has."

4. Incorrect: She is wanting to buy a new car.
Correct: She wants to buy a new car.

We don't use continuous forms with stative verbs like "want." Instead, we use the simple present tense.

5. Incorrect: The students was studying for their exams.
Correct: The students were studying for their exams.

The subject "students" is plural, so we need to use the plural form of the verb, "were," instead of the singular form "was."

6. Incorrect: Neither the teacher nor the students was happy with the results.
Correct: Neither the teacher nor the students were happy with the results.

When "neither...nor" joins two subjects, the verb agrees with the subject closest to it. In this case, "students" is plural, so the verb should be "were."

7. Incorrect: They has been living in this house for 20 years.
Correct: They have been living in this house for 20 years.

The subject "they" is plural, so we need to use the plural form of the verb, "have," instead of the singular form "has."

8. Incorrect: The dog chased it's tail.
Correct: The dog chased its tail.

The possessive form of "it" is "its," without an apostrophe. "It's" is a contraction of "it is" or "it has."

9. Incorrect: The books is on the table.
Correct: The books are on the table.

The subject "books" is plural, so we need to use the plural form of the verb, "are," instead of the singular form "is."

10. Incorrect: She don't like chocolate.
Correct: She doesn't like chocolate.

For the third person singular (he, she, it), we use "doesn't" (does not) instead of "don't" (do not).