intransitive verb

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noun

a verb that indicates a complete action without being accompanied by a direct object, as sit or lie, and, in English, that does not form a passive.

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QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of intransitive verb

First recorded in 1605–15

Words nearby intransitive verb

intranet, intrans., intransigence, intransigent, intransitive, intransitive verb, in transitu, intrant, intranuclear, intraocular, intraocular lens

How to use intransitive verb in a sentence

What looks at first, therefore, like a copula turns out to be merely an impersonal intransitive verb.
The Soul of the Far East|Percival Lowell
Men have tried to turn "revolutionise" from a transitive to an intransitive verb.
Orthodoxy|G. K. Chesterton
The same is the case with the future passive participle of the intransitive verb.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 6|Various
Run is an intransitive verb, for the action mentioned is confined to the agent; he runs.
Dissertation on the English Language|Noah Webster, Jr.

An intransitive verb is one which is complete in itself, or which is completed by other words without requiring an object.
An English Grammar|W. M. Baskervill and J. W. Sewell

Cultural definitions for intransitive verb

intransitive verb

A verb that does not need a direct object to complete its meaning. Run, sleep, travel, wonder, and die are all intransitive verbs. (Compare transitive verb.)

notes for intransitive verb

Some verbs can be intransitive in one sentence and transitive in another. Boiled is intransitive in “My blood boiled” but transitive in “I boiled some water.”