Verb is a part of speech with grammatical meaning of process, action. Verb performs the central role of the predicative function of the sentence.
Verb is a very complex part of speech and first of all because of it’s various subclass division. If we admit the existence of the category of finitude as Prof.Blokh does that we’re divide all the verbs into 2 large sets: the finite set and non-finite set.
They are profoundly different from each other. Here we will talk about the finite verbs. As we have said the general processual meaning is in the semantics of all the verbs including those denoting states, forms of existence and combinability. It mainly combines with nouns and with adverbs. Syntactical function is that of the predicate, because the finite verb expresses the processual categorial features of predication that is time, voice, aspect and mood. Verbs are characterized by specific forms of word-building. The stems may be simple ex: go, take, read. Sound replacive: food-feed, blood-bleed. Stress replacive ex; Import-impOrt
The composite verb stems ex: to black mail.
According to their semantic structure the finite verbs are divided into:
- notional which possess full lexical meaning
- seminotional – they have very general faded lexical meaning
a. auxiliary verbs - they perform purely grammatical function
b. modal verbs - they express relational meaning, ability, obligation and so on.
auxiliary – no lexical meaning, only grammatical //do, be
c. link verbs -introducing predicative which is expressed by noun,adj,phrase (to seem)
Here we’re to mention of the existence of the notional link verbs, this are verbs which have the power to perform the function of link verbs and they preserve their lexical value. Ex:The Moon rose red. Due to the double syntactic character, the hole predicate is reffered to as a double predicate (a predicate of double orientation)
- Notional verbs - the 1-st categorization on the basis of the subject process relation. The verbs are divided into actional and statal.
- Actional - express the action, performed by the subject (do, act, make)
- Statal verbs - they denote the state of their subject (be, stand, know)
This criteria apply to more specific subsets of words: ex: The verbs of mental process, here we observe the verbs of mental perception and activity, sensual process (see-look)
The 2-nd categorization is based on the aspective characteristic. Too aspective subclasses of verbs should be recognized in English limitive (close,arrive) and unlimitive (behave,move). The basis of this division is the idea of a processual limit. That is some border point beyond which the process doesn’t exist.
The 3-rd categorization is based on the combining power of the verbs. The combing power of words in relation to other words in syntactically subordinate positions is called their syntactic valency. Syntactic valency may be obligatory & optional. The obligatory adjuncts are called complements and optional adjuncts are called supplements. According as verbs have or don’t have the power to take complements, the notional words should classed as complimentive (transitive and intransitive)or uncomplimentive (personal and impersonal)
Terminative – denote actions which can’t develop beyond a certain limit (to stand up, to sit down, to come, to take).
Non-terminative – have no limit (to love, to sit, to work, to walk)
