Most native speakers dont know these terms or classes of verbs. Free interactive exercises to practice online or download as pdf to print. The ergative verb in english refers to verbs that are normally transitive but that can be used without specifying the object because the object is also the subject. Passives exercise 1 here is the text for the stolen on the outback express video story.
Subject verb agreement a subject is a noun or pronoun. With ergative verbs, the meaning of the sentence doesnt change when the object of the sentence becomes the subject of the sentence. In this context, it makes no sense to talk about ergative verbs. Break is an ergative verb because when we say the window broke, the window is the thing getting broken, it is not the vandal. Although it is both transitive and intransitive, paint is not an ergative verb.
Usually, when we think about the subject of a verb in english, we think about a person who does the action of the verb. There is a theoretical reason for this, but it lies beyond scope of this class. Exercise 3b look at the underlined verbs and decide whether they are ergative verbs in the sense that they are used here. To check if a verb can be used in this way, look at the ergative verbs list. English current is a free website for esl students and teachers. The noun group following the verb, the vase, may also be the subject of the verb. Here, we have a sentence with a standard subject, a transitive verb and a direct object the butter melted. Ergative and unaccusative verbs perfect english grammar. Negative forms of the verb to be exercise complete the gaps with the negative forms of the verb to be. Matching subjects with verbs verbs must agree with subjects in number and in person 1st2nd3rd.
Chan ideas for teaching ergative verbs to esl students. Linguists often call them ergative verbs lock, 1996, pp. Acquisition of english ergative verbs by turkish students core. See if you can find and correct all 34 common english mistakes.
Fill in the blanks in the second sentence in each group, keeping the same meaning as the first sentence. Put the following verbs into the correct tenseeither the present simple or the present progressive. Ergative verbs are a step further on from the active and. Exercise 5 tidying and cleaning this exercise is about phrasal verbs which describe cleaning or tidying actions. Verbs such as increase are unusual verbs in everyday english but they are very common in academic language. In english, there is a category of verbs known as ergative verbs. The object when it is transitive is the same as the subject. Ergative link verbs cobuild grammar pattern collins.
Use either the present simple or the present continuous. It is primarily designed as a selfstudy reference and practice text but it can also be used for classroom work. The object shows who or what completes the action expressed in the verb. A verb which can be either transitive or intransitive is called an ergative verb. A transitive verb always has a direct object a noun or pronoun that receives the action of the verb. Unaccusative verbs assign theme or patient to the internal position. To make sure that you understand the correct answers, our answer keys offer simple explanations as well as handy tips and tricks. Chan city university of hong kong hong kong, china enalice at cityu. Dixons usage, or ergative, following lyonss influential textbook from 1968.
For example, the verb puff has the pattern v n but not the pattern v. View the video, then try the passive voice exercises to test your knowledge. Some ergative verbs have combinations of patterns that are asymmetrical, that is, the patterns are different in more ways than the presence or absence of a noun group. English grammar exercises online with answers pdf on this page you will find various free grammar worksheets of increasing difficulty that can be completed directly online, or at home. Can you identify which of the underlined verbs are in the active voice and which are in the passive voice. English intransitive verbs that become causatives when used transitively. Though there is something right about saying that ergative verbs are intransitive verbs with passive meanings, this is also confusing, since as the lead states, an ergative verb can be either transitive or intransitive emphasis mine.
Ergative link verbs there are a few verbs which are ergative and which in one of their patterns only are link verbs see also chapter 5. Do article exercises for beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels. The use of ergative verbs results in the agent being backgrounded in an english sentence, and it is often used in the media together with other means such as the use of intransitive verbs. An ergative verb assigns its argument to the external position. Syntax and semantics of ergative and middle constructions sspace. Aug 23, 2019 a verb which can be either transitive or intransitive is called an ergative verb. English current is a free website for esl students and. Phrasal verbs worksheets, printable exercises pdf, handouts.
For example, the verb turn, in the pattern v colour, is a link verb. All downloads are in pdf format and consist of a worksheet and answer sheet to check your results. However, the term ergative verb has also been used for unaccusative verbs, 5 and in most other contexts, it is used for ergative constructions. Using ergative verbs will make you sound more like a native speaker of english. An ergative verb is a verb that can be either transitive or intransitive. In practice, unaccusatives and unergatives are divide. Labile verbs can also be called soambitransitive following r. This worksheet is free to use for personal or classroom use. Note that one of the prepositionsadverbs will be used twice.
Ergative verbs can appear in the active, passive or middle voice. The explanation can be downloaded as a pdf or word document, as can the exercises pdf word document. Ideas for teaching ergative verbs to esl students alice y. But these verb classes are of interest to linguists. Free download this grammar sheet in pdf format by clicking on the. Verbs transitive and intransitive verbs can be classified as transitive or intransitive. Jan 22, 2017 the verb think has a state meaning and an action meaning as well. In this sentence, there is focus on actor i in the passive voice, with the recipient of the verb s action as the subject of the.
The butter didnt melt itself it required the heat of the sun. They decide to run or eat and then they run or eat by themselves. The terminology in general linguistics is not stable yet. There is a separate list of ergative verbs and an explanation about. The term ergative literally meansworking was devised by grammarians, in the mid20th century, to describe a verb that can be used in the active voice with a normal subject the actor and object the thing acted on for example. The agent seems to be universally assigned to the external position. In the second sentence can something take in this sense. Roughly, ergative languages focus their articulation on the agency of the utterance, while nominative. An ergative verb in english is an intransitive verb with a passive meaning that alternates with a transitive verb with active meaning a normal transitive verb like destroy in active form takes an actor the doer of an action subject and an undergoer the personthing having something done to it object. Here, the subject was the object of the original sentence. Tamar makharoblidze the georgian verb gives full information about georgian verbal categories and all possible variations of verbal conjugation often not covered by other grammars. Choose an adverb or preposition from the box below to make a phrasal verb in sentences 1 5. However, the term ergative verb has also been used for unaccusative verbs, and in most other contexts, it is used for ergative constructions. Usually ergative verbs can be used transitively, followed by the object, or intransitively, without the original actor being mentioned, as examples in this study show.
If a verb is transitive, underline the direct object. Pdf in the past 20 years, a new class of verbs has seen the light of existence. Ergative link verbs cobuild grammar pattern collins education. The object when it is transitive is the same as the subject when it is intransitive. They are verbs which allow the threevoice option of active, middle or passive lock, 1996. English grammar exercises online with answers pdf on this page you will find various free grammar worksheets of increasing difficulty that can be completed directly online, or at home theyll help you to put into practice all the key notions of the english grammar previously shown in the grammar lessons part of the website, and if you are a beginner you can use them to familiarize.
Ergative verbs are found in sentences where the verb affects the subject. Pdf the application of ergative verbs to avoid accusations. The wiley blackwell companion to syntax, second edition. A transitive verb is a verb that has a direct object. I believe blue is nice in my opinion, blue is nice. This particularly important when the passive is used. Passive voice english for uni university of adelaide. Pdf a tentative corpusbased approach to english ergative verbs. For example, in the sentence john ran or lucy ate the cake, john and lucy do the eating and running. Just ergative constructions or ergative case marking on the agent andor absolutive on the patient. It also has the pattern v n colour, in which it is not a link verb.
Nov 04, 2019 in an ergative language such as basque or georgian, but not english, ergative is the grammatical case that identifies the noun phrase as the subject of a transitive verb. With many ergative verbs, the noun group following the verb is sometimes a reflexive pronoun. However, when it is intransitive, its subject corresponds to its direct object when transitive. Pdf the georgian verb tamar makharoblidze academia. Here, we have a sentence with a standard subject, a transitive verb and a direct object. Ergative and unaccusative verbs usually, when we think about the subject of a verb in english, we think about a person who does the action of the verb. Aug 01, 2011 exercise 3b look at the underlined verbs and decide whether they are ergative verbs in the sense that they are used here.
Some languages treat unergative verbs differently from other intransitives in. The baggage transfers easily but not the baggage transfers. Pdf this dissertation is a tentative attempt to address english ergative verbs and kindred verbs such as unaccusative verbs. Examples include close, evaporate, bend, increase, sink, shrink, drown, break, change, drop, etc. Theyll help you to put into practice all the key notions of the english grammar previously shown in the grammar lessons part of the website, and if you are a beginner. Actives, passives and ergatives english has active and passive. The direct object in the sentence above is the door. Ergative verbs are a subclass of verbs which can have the same thing as their object, when transitive, or their subject, when intransitive. Discussions on ergative and middle constructions are related to the study of transitive vs. Trask draws this broad distinction between ergative languages and nominative languages which include english. We have just seen that a verb like break can appear in a vp with a single theme argument which in the absence of a light verb will be the. Phrasal verbs pdf worksheets english vocabulary and. Here are some more pairs of sentences showing verbs used ergatively. Exercise on separable and inseparable phrasal verbs in english.
English phrasal verbs in use intermediate is a vocabulary book for good intermediate level learners and above. Passives exercise 1 can you put the active verbs into the. Under the framework of lexical semantics, this dissertation presents a semantic analysis of. Jul 21, 2017 fundamental all languages english lemmas verbs ergative verbs. On the other hand, an intransitive verb has no direct object. Ergativity, collocations and lexical functions euralex. An introduction to functional grammar second edition. Ergative verbs can be used both transitively and intransitively. An ergative verb can change an object into a subject without needing to use. Exercises for practicing prepositions in, on, about, etc. Ergative verbs should be distinguished from middle verbs which require the support of some adverbial e. Students often misuse words like increase and decrease.
Ergative verbs are both transitive and intransitive. Phrasal verbs pdf worksheets english vocabulary and grammar. Ergative verbs are a step further on from the active and the passive. For example, in the first sentence ask yourself can something melt.
Decide whether the phrasal verbs are separable or inseparable. This kind of verb is called an ergative or unaccusative verb. Contracted negative forms of the verb to be im not a singer. Our online exercises for english help you to learn and practice grammar rules in an interactive manner.
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