Parts of Speech · Today with Lucy

Express a State of Being

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I'm Lucy, and I express a state of being. Every sentence I'm in tells you what something is. I don't act, and I don't hurry. Watch.

Meet the Linking Verbs!

A linking verb expresses a state of being. It does not act; it connects the subject to a subject complement that renames it or describes it. Most are forms of be (is, was, were); the rest come from the senses (look, smell) and from states (seem, become).

Forms of Be

The most common linking verbs: am, is, are, was, were. They state, plainly, that the subject simply is.

I am a big fan of yours.

Sense Linking Verbs

Look, sound, smell, taste, and feel. When nobody is doing the sensing, the subject just is that way.

Something in here smells fishy.

State Linking Verbs

Seem, appear, become, grow, remain, and stay. A state that holds steady or quietly changes.

The day turned dark.

Linking Verbs Express a State of Being

Run the equals-sign test: swap the verb for an equals sign. If it still makes sense, the verb links. Forms of be do it, and so do sense verbs like smell and state verbs like seem; in each, nothing happens, and the subject simply is something.

In a sentence

Half of these are forms of be, and half aren't. Run the equals sign on each one and feel it hold. Turn works too: the day turned dark means the day = dark, linking nice and quiet.

You were invited.

Bobbie is a firefighter.

Carl looked upset.

That smells amazing.

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Now you try

Try turned, grew, or looked. Check it with the test: the sky = orange.

Action Verb or Linking Verb?

Some verbs work both jobs: taste, smell, look, sound, feel. Run the equals sign. If a renaming or describing word waits on the far side, the verb is linking; if someone is doing the smelling or looking, it is an action verb, and that one is Vinny's.

In a sentence

One word can do two jobs, and only the sentence knows which. Watch sounded and remained make both calls.

Billy sounded strange last night. (Billy = strange. The link holds, so this sounded is mine.)

I sounded the alarm in the middle of the night! (I = the alarm? No. Somebody did something, so this sounded is Vinny's.)

Juliet always remains calm in the face of danger. (Juliet = calm. A describing word waits on the far side, and the link holds.)

Franklin remained in the car for at least thirty minutes. (Franklin = in the car? That only tells where he stayed, so there's no renaming word and no describing word to link. This remained is Vinny's.)

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Now you try

Try remained, stayed, or seemed. The describing words after the blank tell you the link is safe.