Verbs, by their nature, can either be transitive or intransitive. When a verb is said to be transitive, it means the verb requires an object. For example,
He slapped his younger brother.
('slapped' in the sentence above is a transitive verb because it has an object - his younger brother)
For avoidance of doubt, an object isn't just any word that comes after the verb in a sentence; an object is the receiver of the action of the subject in a sentence.
The object can also be said to be the recipient, beneficiary or sufferer of the action of the subject in a sentence.
In the example above, the subject is He; the action is slapped; while the recipient of the action of the subject (which is the object) is his younger brother.
The object can be someone or something . In our example, the object is someone. However, consider the following example,
James kicked a ball.
(James is the subject; kicked is the action; and the object is a ball)
Another way of recognising the object in a sentence is that the object will answer the question WHO or WHAT after an action verb in a sentence. Let's apply this to our examples.
i. He slapped his younger brother.
(He slapped WHO?)
ii. James kicked a ball.
(James kicked WHAT?)
So, a transitive verb is that verb that requires an object. Examples include have (I have a book); gave (I gave him a bag); presented (She presented a seminar yesterday).
But someone may say, the last two examples of verbs provided above are in the past tense form. Yes, they are; but you can also use them in the present tense form. For example,
He gives a token to widows. (present tense - singular)
They give a token to widows. (present tense - plural)
All members of staff present a seminar every week. (present tense - plural)
Only the secretary presents two seminars every week. (present tense - singular)
Can you identify the objects in the sentences above?
Other examples of transitive verbs include sing (Ebenezer Obey sings secular songs); read (I read a novel every week); tasted (She tasted the food); see (I see a movie every weekend).
REVISION
The object in a sentence isn't just any word or group of words that come after the (action) verb in a sentence. Before a word or group of word in a sentence can be said to be an object, it must answer the question WHO or WHAT after an action verb.
Consider the following examples,
i. He saw her.
ii. He sat outside.
In example (i) above, the object is her. How do we know this? Do not forget it has been said earlier that the object answers the question WHO or WHAT after an action verb in a sentence - He saw WHO? The answer to this question is the object.
But let's consider the second example - He sat outside. The word after the action verb - outside - isn't the object because it cannot (and does not) answer the question WHO or WHAT after the verb. Hence, the question He sat WHO? or He sat WHAT? cannot be asked. It therefore means that in the sentence He sat outside, the verb - sat - isn't transitive. We can safely say that the verb is intransitive.
Intransitive Verbs
Intransitive verbs, on the other hand, are verbs that do not require an object. For example,
i. All the students roared.
ii. The baby cried.
iii. He laughed.
iv. Jesus wept.
Please note that, going by the examples above, it does not mean that NO WORD or group of words will always come after an intransitive verb.
Consider the examples below.
v. All the students roared excitedly.
vi. The baby cried in pain.
vii. He laughed because of the situation.
viii. Jesus wept at the tomb of Lazarus.
When a word or group of words comes after an intransitive verb, however, that word or group of words isn't an object (because they cannot answer the question WHO or WHAT after the action verb). The word or group of words would be an adverb or adverbial phrase (which sometimes is referred to as prepositional phrase).
But how would you know that the words coming after the verb in examples v - viii above aren't objects? Because they cannot answer the question WHO or WHAT after the action verb.
All the students roared HOW?
The baby cried HOW?
Why did the man laugh?
Jesus wept WHERE?
Some verbs, by their nature, are intransitive. All the examples in the examples above are inherently intransitive.
THE DUAL NATURE OF VERBS
Some verbs can, however, be used as transitive and intransitive. For example,
i. John reads novels. (Transitive)
ii. John reads. (Intransitive)
iii. John reads a lot. (Intransitive)
i. She sings R&B. (Transitive)
ii. She sang R&B. (Transitive)
iii. She sings. (Intransitive)
i. Ray Charles played the piano. (Transitive)
ii. Ray Charles played before renowned audiences all around the world. (Intransitive)
i. He preaches convincingly. (Intransitive)
ii. He preached a powerful sermon. (Transitive)
Thank you for reading.
The blogger, Ọlábánjì O. Odùrómbì, can be contacted via SMS/WhatsApp/Phone call on 08037699294.
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