12.4: Intransitive and Transitive

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Intransitive

An intransitive verb has no complement (noun phrase or adjectival). Though an intransitive verb requires nothing more than a subject, it is often accompanied by adverbial information. In fact, a handful of intransitive verbs, such as reside, sneak, and glance, require an adverbial of place in order to be complete.

(subject)+(intransitive verb)

Subject	Intransitive
The children	Wept
My dog	Sleeps

(subject)+(intransitive verb)+(optional adverbial)

Subject	Intransitive	Optional adverbial
The children	Played	On the jungle gym
The meeting	Concluded	Without a hitch
My dog	Snores	Loudly

Review Questions

Identify the subject, intransitive verb, and optional adverbial (if present) of each sentence.

We went to the bowling alley on Friday.
Mr. Billingsworth laughed at the antics of the class clown.
The ambassadors from Albania arrived.
Rosa walked to the park.
The party of boy scouts rested.

Transitive

All transitive verbs have a subject and take one or more complements. Furthermore, all transitive verbs have one complement in common—the direct object, which receives the action of the verb.

(subject)+(transitive verb)+(direct object [NP])

Subject	Transitive	Direct object [NP]
The children	Kicked	The ball
My dog	Chews	The furniture
The professor	Answered	The question

The second transitive-verb pattern includes a second complement, the indirect object. We traditionally define the indirect object as the recipient of the direct object.

(subject)+(transitive verb)+(direct object [NP])+(indirect object [NP])

Subject	Transitive	Indirect object [NP]	Direct object [NP]
The students	Bought	Their teacher	A present
My dog	Brought	Me	The tennis ball
The professor	Called	Himself	A genius

Transitive verbs take object complements. Similar to subject complements in be verbs and linking verbs, object complements describe or redefine their object. Object complements take the form of noun phrases [NP] and adjectives.

(subject)+(transitive verb)+(direct object [NP])+(object complement [NP])

Subject	Transitive	Direct object [NP]	Object complement [NP]
The child	Named	Her cat	Charlie
I	Make	My living	The hard way

(subject)+(transitive verb)+(direct object [NP])+(object complement [adj.])

Subject	Transitive	Direct object [NP]	Object complement [NP]
The children	Painted	The fence	White
The teacher	Made	The test	Easy

Review Questions

Identify the subject, transitive verb, and direct object of the sentence. If applicable, identify the indirect object or object complement as well.

Mrs. Nakamura considers her hometown beautiful.
Before setting out on the road trip, I put air in my tires.
Joyce gave her father a gift card for Christmas.
He hadn’t broken his promise.
The voters elected Mr. Thompson mayor.