Action and Mental Verbs form the core verbs. Learn them here.

1. Grammar 101
Verbs Action and Mental Verbs

2. Learning Objectives
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To understand the function of verbs in a
sentence
To learn and understand two main types of
verbs – mental and action verbs

3. Introduction
1) James swims.
2) Corrine jogs.
3) David reads.
4) Jamie cycles.
5) David and James study together.
6) Jamie and Corrine play together.
These are complete sentences because they each
have a Noun and a Verb in them. Can you tell
what are they?

4. Nouns and Verbs
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It is important to have nouns as they are normally
the subjects in a sentence. In the previous
sentences, they are all Proper Nouns – specific
names given to specific people or things.
Verbs are important too.
They describe what the subjects (or the Nouns)
are doing. Without verbs, the sentences will be
incomplete.

5. Power Challenge
Q: Can you give an example of a
sentence with a Noun but
without a Verb?

6. Power Challenge
A: You can't because there's no
such sentence!
All sentences must come with a
Noun and a Verb.

7. Types of Verbs
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Verbs describe what your characters and other
subjects are doing and deserve special
attention.
The verb you use in a sentence carries the key
idea.
Verbs are also called action words as they are
all about motion of some kind.
We will talk about two types of Verbs that are
most common in most sentences - Action and
Mental Verbs.

8. Action Verbs

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As the name implies, Action Verbs are verbs
which show some kind of bodily action.
Verbs like swim, study, read, play, run and jog
are all Action Verbs as they involve movement
of the body.
Q: Can you think of other
Action Verbs?

9. Power Challenge
Q: Can you think of other Action
Verbs?

10. Power Challenge
In school :
exercise, study, revise, learn, read,
write, count, draw.
At home :
Sleep, eat, play, dream,
do, clean, nap, feed

11. Mental Verbs
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Mental Verbs are verbs which show mental
action.
Verbs like think, decide, reflect, consider and
pause are all Mental Verbs as they involve
motion too, in this case, mental processes of
the mind.
Q: Can you think of other Mental Verbs?

12. Verbs Change Meanings

Different Verbs, Different Meanings
1) Jamie was playing with her friend. (action)
2) Jamie was fighting with her friend. (action)
3) Jamie was studying with her friend. (action)
4) Mary was mad at her friend. (mental)
5) Mary was thinking about her friend. (mental)
6) Mary remembered her friend. (mental)

13. Power Challenge
Q: Can you see the meanings of the
sentences change totally when
verbs change?

14. Important Point
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Since Verbs are so important, they need to be
part of your study.
The more Verbs you know of, the more
meanings you can create in your sentences.
This will enable to describe what your
characters are doing in your story better.

15. Learning Activity

Complete the following sentences with verbs of
your own.
1) He likes to _______ for his pastime.
2) He likes to _______ for his pastime.
3) He likes to _______ for his pastime.
4) They are _______ ; please don't disturb them.
5) They are _______ ; please don't disturb them.
6) They are _______ ; please don't disturb them.

16. Learning Activity Suggested Answer

Complete the following sentences with verbs of
your own.
1) He likes to sleep for his pastime.
2) He likes to swim for his pastime.
3) He likes to read for his pastime.
4) They are reading ; please don't disturb them.
5) They are studying ; please don't disturb them.
6) They are resting ; please don't disturb them.

17. Discussion
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Why are Verbs important in a sentence?
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What are they often called?
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What are the two types of verbs discussed
today and what do they mean?
What happens if we change the verb in a
sentence, while everything else remains the
same?

18. In summary
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Verbs are important as they convey key ideas.
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They are often called action words.
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We discuss two main types of verbs – action
and mental.
Action verbs describe physical movements
while mental verbs describe processes in the
brain.
Changing a verb changes the entire meaning of
a sentence.