Unit 5 Finite Verbs or Verb Phrases

What is a verb phrase? A verb phrase is a phrase whose nucleus is a verb which can be a finite V/VP or a non-finite V. A verb phrase is a phrase whose nucleus is a verb which can be a finite V/VP or a non-finite V. Examples: Examples: A.He studies hard. (‘studies hard’ is a verb phrase whose nucleus is the finite verb ‘studies’.) B.He has been studying hard. (‘has been studying hard’ is a verb phrase whose nucleus is the finite verb phrase ‘has been studying’.) C.They found him studying hard. (‘studying hard’ is a verb phrase whose nucleus is the non- finite verb ‘studying’.) Notice that the nucleus can be a finite V/VP (as in A.,B.) or a non-finite V (as in C.). Notice that the nucleus can be a finite V/VP (as in A.,B.) or a non-finite V (as in C.).

Finite & Non-finite Finite: Finite: The form of a finite V/VP must agree with the number/person of the subject. He studies hard. They study hard. He is studying hard. They are studying hard. Non-finite: The form of a non-finite V never changes to agree with the person/number of the subject. They found him studying hard. They found them studying hard.

Verbs / Verb phrases Non-finiteFinite present participle past participle infinitive with ‘to’ infinitive without ‘to’

Four forms of a non-finite V present participle Feeling a little foolish, Jane hung up. past participle Frightened by a strange noise, the boy ran away. infinitive with ‘to’ To be honest, I really don’t know. infinitive without ‘to’ She let him borrow her car.

What are the obligatory elements in a finite V/VP? They are tense, which can be either present or past, and voice, which can be either active or passive. They are tense, which can be either present or past, and voice, which can be either active or passive.

What are the optional elements in a finite V/VP? They are modal (such as ‘may’, ‘might’, ‘can’, ‘could’) and aspect, which can be perfective or progressive. They are modal (such as ‘may’, ‘might’, ‘can’, ‘could’) and aspect, which can be perfective or progressive.

Why are the verbs ‘open’ in ‘Open the window, please’ and ‘let’ in ‘Let’s go to the movie’ not considered non-finite verbs? They have the imperative morpheme, which is a zero morpheme, added to them. This kind of morpheme indicates the present tense. The subject of ‘open’ is ‘you’, whereas the subject of ‘let’ is ‘we’. They have the imperative morpheme, which is a zero morpheme, added to them. This kind of morpheme indicates the present tense. The subject of ‘open’ is ‘you’, whereas the subject of ‘let’ is ‘we’.

Structural level & Morphological level “has been studying” “has been studying” On the structural level, this phrase is considered a finite VP because it contains three words. On the structural level, this phrase is considered a finite VP because it contains three words. On the morphological level, it has six morphemes (have + present tense morpheme, be + past participle morpheme, study + present participle morpheme). On the morphological level, it has six morphemes (have + present tense morpheme, be + past participle morpheme, study + present participle morpheme).