At a glance
- Factitiveobject + complement
- They made him king.
- Cognate objectthe object repeats the verb
- She lived a happy life.
- Quasi-passiveactive form, passive meaning
- This book sells well.
- Reflexivethe object is the subject
- He absented himself from class.
- Impersonal"it" with no meaning
- It is raining.
- Group verbsverb + small word
- Please look after my cat.
Factitive verbs: make, elect, appoint, call, name
The animals made the lion king.
They elected her president.
We named our dog Max.
Cognate objects
The baby slept a sound sleep.
She died a peaceful death.
He ran a good race.
She sang a sweet song.
Quasi-passive verbs
Honey tastes sweet.
The rose smells sweet.
This book sells well. (= is sold a lot)
This shirt washes easily.
- After taste, smell, feel, look, sound use an adjective:
Honey tastes sweetly.→ Honey tastes sweet.
Reflexive verbs
He absented himself from the meeting.
Help yourself to the cake.
She prides herself on her work.
Also: avail oneself of, apply oneself to, enjoy oneself, introduce oneself.
Impersonal verbs
It rains a lot in July.
It is snowing.
It is eight o'clock.
It is five kilometres to the station.
Also: It seems that…, It takes two hours to…, It is said that…
Group verbs
She looks after the baby.
He gave up smoking.
Tom takes after his father.
A verb + a small word (up, after, off…) can have a new meaning. These are phrasal verbs.
Practice
Answer the questions. Get 7 out of 10 to finish this lesson.