Right Form of Verb: 30+ Rules with Practical Examples
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Here are 30+ Rules of the Right form of verbs in English, which you should definitely master:
Right form of verb Rule #1: 3rd Person & singular number
If your subject is 3rd Person & a singular number and the verb is in Simple Present Tense, then
Add ‘s’/’es’ to the verb to make it plural.
Example: He drinks coffee.
Right form of verb Rule #2: Universal Truths
In the case of Universal truth & the habitual fact:
The sentence is in Simple Present Tense.
Example: The sun gives us light.
Right form of verb Rule #3: Present Continous
If the work is continuing at present:
The verb is in the present continuous. Indicative words: now, at present, at this moment, etc.
Example: She is singing now.
Right form of verb Rule #4: ‘just’, ‘just now..’, etc
If a sentence contains just, just now, already, yet, ever, lately, recently, etc., then:
The verb will be in the present perfect tense.
Example: He has just left the house.
Right form of verb Rule #5: Past time
If a sentence contains words indicating past time, such as yesterday, ago, long since, etc., then:
The verb will be in the past form.
Example: I went to my village home last week.
Rule #6: ‘No sooner had…than’
If a sentence contains “No sooner had …. than”, “scarcely had when”, “hardly had before”, etc., then:
The first verb will be in the past participle form and the second verb will be in the past form.
Example: No sooner had the thief seen the police than he ran away.
Rule #7: ‘since’
If the first part of ‘since’ is in present indefinite or present perfect tense then the next part will be past indefinite.
Example: It has been many years since I came to Paris.
If the first part of ‘since’ is in past indefinite tense then the next part becomes past perfect.
Example: It was many years since they had first met.
Rule #8: ‘nor, or, either..’
When nouns or pronouns are joined by ‘or, nor, either…or, neither… nor’:
The verb form usually agrees with the noun that is closest to the verb.
Example: Neither the President nor the two houses are governing now.
Rule #9: ‘after’
If the first part of ‘after’ is in past indefinite tense, then the next part will be past perfect.
Example: The teacher started the class after Raju had come.
Rule #10: ‘while’
If the verb
- comes after ‘while’, then the verb will take ‘ing’ with it.
- if comes after ‘while + subject’, then the verb will be in the past continuous tense.
Example: While going to school, I saw a snake.
Rule #11: ‘to be’ and ‘having’
The main verb after ‘to be’ and ‘having’ takes past participle form.
Example: He ran away having taken the money.
Rule #12: Future indicative words
For future indicative words like ‘by this time, by morning, by Sunday’, etc., then:
the verb will be in the future perfect tense.
Example: They will have reached by this time.
Rule #13: ‘tomorrow’, ‘next year’, etc
If a sentence contains tomorrow, next year, coming month, etc., then:
the verb will be in the future indefinite tense.
Example: I will leave for Kolkata tomorrow.
Rule #14: two verbs
If a simple sentence contains two verbs, then:
The 2nd verb will take ‘ing’ or ‘to’ before it or will take the past participle form.
Example: I saw him running
Rule #15: ‘had rather’, ‘had better’, etc.
If a sentence contains ‘had rather’, ‘had better’, ‘would better’, ‘let’, ‘would rather’, ‘dare’, ‘must need’, etc, then:
- The verb is in the present form.
- If there is ‘to’ before that verb, the ‘to’ will be omitted.
Example: You had better go to the class.
Rule #16: ‘it is time’
The verb after it is high time, it is time, wish, fancy, etc. will be in the past form.
Example: It is high time we did the work.
Rule #17: ‘though’, ‘as if’, etc.
After as though, as if, wish, etc., the ‘to be verb’ transforms into ‘were’.
Example: I wish I were a butterfly.
Rule #18: ‘as though/as if’
If the first part of ‘as though/as if’ is present indefinite, then the next part will be past indefinite.
If the first part is past indefinite, the next part will be past perfect.
Example: He speaks as though he knew everything.
Rule #19: Modal auxiliaries
The principal verb takes the present form after modal auxiliaries.
Example: One should not waste time.
Rule #20: ‘am’, ‘is’, ‘are’, etc.
The verb after
- am, is, are, was, were, takes ‘ing’ inactive form,
- But it will be in the past participle in passive form.
Example: He is doing the work
Rule #21: Causative Verb
If have, has, had, got, etc. work as a causative verb in a sentence, then:
The verb after them will be a past participle.
Example: I got the work done.
Rule #22: ‘get used to’, ‘without’, etc.
After phrases such as get used to, without, cannot help, past, could not help, with a view toward, look forward to, would you mind, etc., the:
Given verb takes ‘ing’ form
Example: I went to Chittagong with a view to attend the wedding.
Rule #23: ‘there’
Sentences starting with ‘there’
- If there is a singular number, the verb will be singular
- If there is a plural number, the verb will be plural
Example: There is a high school in our town, there are 2 high schools in our town.
Rule #24: ‘lest’
With ‘lest’ in the sentence:
‘might/should’ follows the subject.
Example: He worked hard lest he might miss the deadline.
Rule #25: ‘while’
After ‘While’
- The verb takes ‘ing’
- But if there is a subject, the sentence is past continuous tense.
Example: While walking at the station, I met him.
Rule #26: ‘would that’
For sentences starting with ‘would that’, there comes a ‘could’ after the subject and the verb is in present form.
Example: Would that I could see a lion.
Rule #27:‘to be’ and ‘having’
After ‘to be’ and ‘having’:
The verb is in past participle
Example: The game is yet to be played
Rule #28:
A verb must agree with its subject, regardless of the verb coming after or before the subject.
Example: At the end of the road is the secretary’s Office.
Rule #29: Multiple subjects
If multiple subjects are joined with ‘and’, then:
The verb takes the plural form.
Example: She and Mahir are friends.
Rule #30: ‘every, ‘each’ and ‘one’
After ‘every’, ‘each’, ‘one’ :
The verb is in the singular form.
Example: one of the managers is ill today
Rule #31:
Subjects that are singular in meaning but plural in a form such as poetry news, politics, information, economics, scenery, advice, furniture, wages, etc., have singular verbs.
Example: The news is spreading fast.
Rule #32: Interrogative sentances
If interrogative sentences start with who, which, what, where, etc., then:
There comes an auxiliary verb according to tense and person.
Example: Where do you live?
#Rule 33: Uncountable nouns
In the case of uncountable nouns such as oxygen, water, air, etc., the verb takes a singular form.
Example: Milk is white.
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