What are Special Verbs? :





Look at the following sentences.

1. He isn’t reading.

2. Can you swim?

3. She has left. Hasn’t she?

4. Mr. Brown will go abroad and so wil his ister.

In sentence 1, the verb IS combines with NOT.

In sentence 2, the verb CAN makes a question form by coming before the subject.

In sentence 3, the verb HAS serves to make a question tag.

In sentence 4, the verb WILL stands for the verbal group WILL GO.

These verbs and a few others behave in this way. They are called Special Verbs. Because they behave in a peculiar or special way.

There are 24 such verbs.

Here is a list so special verbs.

Am

Is

Are

Was

Were

Have

Has

Had

Will

Would

Shall

Should

Can

Could

May

Might

Must

Ought to

Do

Does

Did

Need

Dare

Used to

As indicated above, these verbs have a very important part in the formation of negatives, questions and question tags. They are frequently used in short answers and additons to remarks.

In some grammars these verbs are termed Anomalus Finites. (Anomalous means different from what is usual.)

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