Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web

verbs

 - 4 dictionary results

verb

[vurb] ,
–noun
any member of a class of words that are formally distinguished in many languages, as in English by taking the past ending in -ed, that function as the main elements of predicates, that typically express action, state, or a relation between two things, and that (when inflected) may be inflected for tense, aspect, voice, mood, and to show agreement with their subject or object.

Origin:
1350–1400; ME verbe < L verbum word


verbless, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To verbs
verb   (vûrb)   
n.  
  1. Abbr. V or vb.

    1. The part of speech that expresses existence, action, or occurrence in most languages.

    2. Any of the words belonging to this part of speech, as be, run, or conceive.

  2. A phrase or other construction used as a verb.


[Middle English verbe, from Old French, from Latin verbum, word, verb (translation of Greek rhēma, word, verb); see wer-5 in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Cultural Dictionary

verb

A word that represents an action or a state of being. Go, strike, travel, and exist are examples of verbs. A verb is the essential part of the predicate of a sentence. The grammatical forms of verbs include number, person, and tense. (See auxiliary verb, infinitive, intransitive verb, irregular verb, participle, regular verb, and transitive verb.)

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

verb 
1388, from O.Fr. verbe "part of speech that expresses action or being," from L. verbum "verb," originally "a word," from PIE base *were- (cf. Avestan urvata- "command;" Skt. vrata- "command, vow;" Gk. rhetor "public speaker," rhetra "agreement, covenant," eirein "to speak, say;" Hittite weriga- "call, summon;" Lith. vardas "name;" Goth. waurd, O.E. word "word").
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Search another word or see verbs on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us: