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definitions

intransitive verb

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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Nearby words

  1. intranet,
  2. intrans.,
  3. intransigence,
  4. intransigent,
  5. intransitive,
  6. intrant,
  7. intranuclear,
  8. intraocular,
  9. intraocular lens,
  10. intraocular pressure

Origin of intransitive verb

First recorded in 1605–15
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Culture 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.)

Note

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.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.