A verb is a vital part of English grammar that expresses an action, occurrence, or state of being. It is the word that tells us what the subject of a sentence is doing or what is happening to it. Verbs help form sentences that clearly communicate time, mood, and meaning, making them essential for effective language use.
In this blog, we have provided all the details about verbs, covering their definitions, types, and significance in competitive exams like SSC, IBPS, SBI PO, and RRB along with practical tricks, and recent solved examples.
What Is a Verb in English?
A verb is a word that expresses an action, occurrence, or state of being. It tells us what the subject is doing or what is happening to the subject.
Why do verbs appear in exams?
Verbs form the backbone of sentence structure, making them crucial for understanding grammar, tense, subject-verb agreement, and sentence correction. Competitive exams test verb usage to assess a candidate’s command over English grammar and their ability to interpret and construct meaningful sentences.
Skills required to solve verb questions:
- Logical understanding of sentence structure
- Knowledge of verb forms and tenses
- Ability to visualize the correct action or state in context
- Decoding meaning from sentence cues
Why Is Verb Important in Competitive Exams?
Verbs are a core part of English grammar and are tested regularly in various exams. Their importance lies in how they affect sentence meaning and grammar correctness.
| Exam | No. of Questions | Difficulty |
| SSC CGL / CHSL | 1–2 | Easy |
| IBPS PO / SBI PO | 1–2 | Moderate |
| RRB NTPC / Group D | 1 | Easy |
| State PSC / Police | 1–2 | Moderate |
Types of Verbs
The details about the types of verbs are as follows:
| Type | Details |
| Action Verb | Shows physical or mental action (run, think) |
| Linking Verb | Connects subject to a state/condition (is, seem) |
| Auxiliary Verb | Helps the main verb (am, have, will) |
| Transitive Verb | Requires an object (eat an apple) |
| Intransitive Verb | No object needed (sleep, arrive) |
| Regular Verb | Forms past by adding -ed (walk → walked) |
| Irregular Verb | Past forms vary (go → went) |
| Finite Verb | Shows tense, agrees with subject |
| Non-finite Verb | Infinitives, participles, gerunds (to run, running) |
Concepts to Solve Questions Based on Verbs
Concepts that are useful to solve questions are as follows:
| Concept | Explanation |
| Verb | Word showing action, state, or occurrence |
| Tense | Time of action (past, present, future) |
| Subject-Verb Agreement | Verb matches subject in number and person |
| Auxiliary Verbs | Helping verbs to form tenses and voices |
| Active and Passive Voice | Who performs the action and who receives it |
| Modal Verbs | Express possibility, permission, obligation (can, must) |
What Are the Types of Verb Questions in English?
Verb questions in exams usually test:
- Identify the correct verb form
- Choose the appropriate tense
- Subject-verb agreement
- Fill in the blanks with correct verb
- Sentence correction involving verbs
- Voice change (active/passive)
- Use of modals and auxiliaries
Verb Question Patterns in English
To solve verb questions quickly, use these templates:
- Subject-Verb Agreement Rule: Singular subject → singular verb; plural subject → plural verb
- Tense Check: Identify time marker words to decide tense (yesterday → past, now → present)
- Auxiliary Help: Use auxiliary verbs for questions/negations (Is he going? He does not run.)
- Active-Passive Conversion: Identify the subject performing the action for voice change
- Modal Usage: Know modals express mood, not tense (can, could, may)
Verb Tricks for SSC CGL and Other Exams
Here are quick tips to crack verb questions:
- Read the whole sentence carefully to understand time and subject.
- Look for time indicators like yesterday, now, soon to fix tense.
- Identify the subject clearly before selecting the verb form.
- Eliminate options that don’t match the subject in number/person.
- Check auxiliary verbs for forming correct tense/voice.
- Watch out for irregular verbs and memorize common ones.
- Practice active-passive transformations regularly.
Solved Verb Questions from 2024–25 Exams
Example 1: SSC CGL 2024 Tier 1
Question:
Choose the correct verb: She _______ to the market yesterday.
a) go
b) went
c) going
d) goes
Answer: b) went
Explanation: The time word “yesterday” indicates past tense; the correct past tense of “go” is “went.”
Example 2: IBPS PO Prelims 2024
Question:
Fill in the blank with the correct form: They _______ playing cricket now.
a) is
b) are
c) was
d) be
Answer: b) are
Explanation: The subject “They” is plural, so use plural verb “are” in present continuous tense.
Example 3: RRB NTPC 2025
Question:
Identify the sentence with correct subject-verb agreement:
a) The team are winning the match.
b) The teams is playing well.
c) The team is winning the match.
d) The teams was late.
Answer: c) The team is winning the match.
Explanation: “Team” is singular; verb should be singular “is.”
Common Mistakes to Avoid while Solving Verb Questions
Common mistakes to avoid while solving questions based on the topic verb are as follows:
- Ignoring the subject’s number and person
- Overlooking time markers that indicate tense
- Confusing irregular verb forms
- Forgetting auxiliary verbs in compound tenses
- Misapplying singular/plural agreement in collective nouns
FAQs
Action verbs show doing; linking verbs connect the subject to a state.
The verb must agree in number and person with its subject.
A verb that forms past tense and past participle in an unpredictable way.
Identify the subject first and match the verb form accordingly.
Auxiliary verbs are placed before the subject in questions (e.g., Are you coming?).
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