Study the following example:
A: What does Gary do?
B: He sings in a rock group.
A: What is Gary doing?
B: He’s singing with his band.
Action verbs, like sing, are used in simple forms (e.g. he sings) and in continuous forms (e.g he’s singing). Most verbs (e.g. sing, teach, study, talk, listen, sit, play, etc.) are verbs of action.
But some verbs do not describe actions. Look at these examples:
Gary has a motorbike.
Gary likes Mary.
Non-action verbs (also known as state or stative verbs), like have (= possess), like, know, are not usually used in continuous tenses:
- Gary has a motorbike. (NOT Gary is having a motorbike.)
- Gary likes Mary. (NOT Gary is liking Mary.)
Non-action verbs include:
| know | forget | notice |
| remember | recognise | understand |
- I know the answer. (NOT I’m knowing the answer.)
| hate | like | love | want |
- He likes ice-cream. (NOT He’s liking ice-cream.)
| be | cost | fit | hear |
| include | mean | need | own |
| matter | prefer | smell | sound |
- These shoes cost £100. (NOT These shoes are costing £100.)
Some verbs have two meanings – one that describes an action, and one that does not:
| look: | He’s looking at the car. (action) He looks (= seems) tired. (non-action) |
| taste: | John is tasting the lasagna. (action) The lasagna tastes nice. (non-action) |
| feel: | She’s feeling the cloth. I feel (= am) angry about the situation. |
| have: | What’s she doing? ~ She’s having (= eating) lunch. What’s wrong? ~ I have a headache. |
| think: | Please be quiet. I’m thinking (= considering). I think (= believe) you’re right. |
PRACTICE
Now it is time to practise what you have learned.
- For each Practice Test, read the instructions carefully.
- Complete the exercise and press 'Check' to get your results.
Practice Test A
Practice Test B
Practice Test C
Practice Test D
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