Intransitive Verbs
- In the last lesson, we learned about direct objects and transitive verbs. A transitive verb takes a direct object, something receives the action. Now let's look at the opposite, intransitive verbs. An intransitive verb does not take a direct object.
She arrived early. She is the subject. Arrived is the verb. But what about early? Is that a direct object? No, early is an adverb.
It describes how she arrived. A direct object has to be a noun. So there's no direct object here Here's a good test. Can you put a noun right after arrived? She arrived the train station.
No, that doesn't work in English. Arrived doesn't take a direct object. It's intransitive. The man fell. Man is the subject. Fell is the verb.
That's all we need. An intransitive verb doesn't do anything to anything. It stands on its own. What fell? The man. The verb refers back to the subject.
The bomb exploded. What exploded? The bomb. The action is happening to the subject, not to some other noun. There's no direct object.
Exploded is intransitive. Let's put it all together. She arrived early. No direct object. The verb stands on its own. The man fell.
Subject and verb, nothing else needed. The bomb exploded. The action happens to the subject. An intransitive verb does not take a direct object. Once you can tell the difference, you're ready for verbs that go both ways.
Read full transcriptShe arrived early. She is the subject. Arrived is the verb. But what about early? Is that a direct object? No, early is an adverb.
It describes how she arrived. A direct object has to be a noun. So there's no direct object here Here's a good test. Can you put a noun right after arrived? She arrived the train station.
No, that doesn't work in English. Arrived doesn't take a direct object. It's intransitive. The man fell. Man is the subject. Fell is the verb.
That's all we need. An intransitive verb doesn't do anything to anything. It stands on its own. What fell? The man. The verb refers back to the subject.
The bomb exploded. What exploded? The bomb. The action is happening to the subject, not to some other noun. There's no direct object.
Exploded is intransitive. Let's put it all together. She arrived early. No direct object. The verb stands on its own. The man fell.
Subject and verb, nothing else needed. The bomb exploded. The action happens to the subject. An intransitive verb does not take a direct object. Once you can tell the difference, you're ready for verbs that go both ways.