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.

Your play was enjoyable.

Sense Linking Verbs

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

Those muffins smell delicious.

State Linking Verbs

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

The crowd grew restless.

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

Watch the test work. My dog is a bundle of joy, and he looks happy. Replace is and looks with the equals sign: my dog = a bundle of joy, and he = happy. It makes sense! Is and looks are linking verbs.

I am an astronaut.

She was outgoing.

Bill appears exhausted.

That smells gross.

Library

Now you try

Try seems, looks, smells, sounds, or stays. Run the equals-sign test to check your pick.

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

The same word can do two jobs. Watch smelled do both.

Your cooking smelled delicious! (Try the equals sign: your cooking = delicious. It works, so this smelled is mine.)

I smelled brownies in the oven the moment I walked inside. (Try it: I = brownies? That doesn't work, so this smelled belongs to Vinny.)

Library

Now you try

Try tasted, smelled, looked, or felt. The sentence decides which job a verb does.

Linking Verb or Helping Verb?

A form of be can do two jobs. When it connects the subject to what it is (I am happy), it is a linking verb. When it carries one of Vinny's action verbs (I am walking), it is a helping verb.

In a sentence

The same small words can work two jobs. Watch am and was switch sides. Vinny can show you everything his helpers can build; my job is the call itself.

I am happy. (I = happy. The sentence holds, so this am is linking.)

I am walking to the library. (I = walking? No. This am is a helping verb, carrying Vinny's action.)

Gramma is the best cook in town. (Gramma = the best cook in town. This is renames the subject, so it's linking.)

Gramma was flipping pancakes at dawn. (Flipping is the action. This was is helping, so the sentence belongs to Vinny.)

Now you try

Try was, is, or will be. Check it: the kitchen = a glorious mess. If the equals sign holds, the be is linking.

Subject Complements: Predicate Nominatives and Predicate Adjectives

After a linking verb, there is a subject complement - a word or phrase that describes or renames the subject. The subject complement comes after the linking verb and completes the meaning.

In a sentence

They're called predicate nominatives and predicate adjectives because they live in the predicate. Watch the same two people collect both kinds. When you're unsure a verb is mine, the three named tests settle it: the substitution test, the smell test, and the appear test.

Garvin is my best friend. (Friend is a noun that renames Garvin: a predicate nominative.)

Garvin is so hilarious. (Hilarious is an adjective describing Garvin across the link: a predicate adjective.)

Kendra will be an astronaut. (Astronaut renames Kendra: a predicate nominative.)

Kendra feels exhausted. (Exhausted describes Kendra across the link: a predicate adjective.)

Now you try

Try musician, speaker, or pilot. The noun renames Kendra across the link.