Lecture 7. The Verb. Finite Forms.

1.1. Classifications of the Verb: Verb Complementation

The finite verb organises all the other sentence constituents (the organisational function of the verb). The combining power of words in relation to other words in syntactically subordinate positions is called their syntactic valency. The valency of a word is realised when the word is actually combined in an utterance with its corresponding valency partner (valency adjunct).

The syntactic valency falls into two types:

1. Obligatory

The obligatory valency is necessarily realised for the sake of the grammatical completion of the syntactic construction (the subject + the direct object as obligatory parts of the sentence and obligatory valency partners of the verb).Thus the subjective and the direct objective valencies of the verb are obligatory:

We saw a house in the distance.

2. Optional.

The optional valency is not necessarily realised in grammatically complete constructions (most of the adverbial modifiers). So the adverbial valency of the verb is mostly optional:

We saw a house (in the distance).

For link-verbs the predicative valency is obligatory:

The reporters seemed pleased.

The obligatory adjuncts of the verb (except for the subject) is called its complements. The optional adjuncts of the verb are called its supplements.

There may be both objective complements and objective supplements; both predicative complements and predicative supplements; both adverbial supplements and adverbial complements:

We did it for you (the addressee is optional).

The night came dark and stormy (the predicative to a notional link-verb is optional).

Mr. X. was staying in the Astoria Hotel (the adverbials of place is obligatory).

Thus

IV) on the basis of the combining power of the verb in relation to other notional words in the utterance notional verbs can be divided into:

1. complementive (those having the power to take complements):

1.1 Predicative

The predicative complementive verbs are link-verbs (see Lecture 6: a) the pure link be; b) the specifying links become, grow, seem, appear, look, taste, etc.; c) the notional links).

1.2. Objective

The objective complementive verbs are divided into:

a) monocomplementive verbs (taking one object-complement):

• possession objective verb have (normally not passivised).

• direct objective verbs (take, grasp, forget, enjoy, like).

• prepositional objective verbs (look at, point to, send for, approve of, think about).

• non-passivised direct objective verbs (cost, weigh, fail, become, suit).

• non-passivised prepositional objective verbs (belong to, relate to, merge with, confer with, abound in).

b) bicomplementive verbs (taking two complements):

• addressee-direct objective verbs (verbs taking a direct object and an addressee/indirect object):

a) give, bring, pay, hand, show (the addressee object may be both non-prepositional and prepositional);

b) explain, introduce, mention, say, devote (the addressee object is only prepositional).

• double direct objective verbs (verbs taking two direct objects): teach, ask, excuse, forgive, envy, fine.

• double prepositional objective verbs (verbs taking two prepositional objects): argue, consult, cooperate, agree.

• addressee prepositional objective verbs (verbs taking a prepositional object and an addressee object): remind of, tell about, apologise for, write of, pay for.

• adverbial objective verbs (verbs taking an object and an adverbial modifier (of place or of time): put, place, lay, bring, send, keep.