Complete English Grammar Rules_ Examples, Exceptions, Exercises, and Everything You Need to Master Proper Grammar ( PDFDrive )-245

Prévia do material em texto

action.	For	example:
•	“I	consider	my	options	before	I	make	a	decision.”	
✔ 	“I	am	considering	my	options	before	I	make	a	decision.”	(correct—action
verb)
•	“I	consider	myself	a	rational	person.”
✖ 	“I	am	considering	myself	a	rational	person.”	(incorrect—stative	verb)
•	“They	thought	of	an	answer.”
✔ 	“They	were	thinking	of	an	answer.”	(correct—action	verb)
The	stative	verb	understand,	however,	has	some	informal	uses	in	which	the
continuous	form	is	often	considered	acceptable,	as	in:
•	“I’m	sorry,	I’m	not	understanding	your	question.”
•	Am	I	understanding	you	correctly?”
Verbs	of	states	or	qualities
Besides	the	linking	verb	be	and	the	verbs	of	the	senses,	we	can	use	other	verbs,
such	as	weigh,	depend,	involve,	owe,	or	consist,	to	describe	the	state	or	qualities
of	something.	For	example:
✔ 	“He	weighs	160	pounds.”	(correct)
✖ 	“He	is	weighing	160	pounds.”	(incorrect)
✖ 	“This	report	involves	multiple	sites	across	the	world.”	(correct)
✖ 	“This	report	is	involving	multiple	sites	across	the	world.”	(incorrect)
✔ 	“Your	happiness	depends	on	doing	something	you	enjoy.”	(correct)
✖ 	“Your	happiness	is	depending	on	doing	something	you	enjoy.”	(incorrect)
✔ 	“John	owes	me	20	dollars!”	(correct)
✖ 	“John	is	owing	me	20	dollars!”	(incorrect)
✔ 	“The	book	consists	of	research	from	several	prominent	scientists.”	(correct)
✖ 	“The	book	is	consisting	of	research	from	several	prominent	scientists.”
(incorrect)
Using	the	continuous	form
Some	of	these	verbs	can	be	dynamic	or	stative,	depending	on	the	context	and	the
way	they	are	used.	When	the	verb	is	describing	an	attribute	of	the	subject,	it
functions	as	stative	verb	(as	we	saw	above).	When	the	verb	describes	an	action
taken	by	the	subject,	though,	it	is	functioning	as	an	action	verb,	as	in: