#weak verbs

GRAMMAR

AND

COMPOSITION

BY

W IS FOR WEAK-VERBS VERSUS STRONG-VERBS

IS FOR WEAK-VERBS.

There are weak verbs and there are strong verbs. Not all verbs are the same. Some carry a different emotion of picture when the brain decipher the coded message in your words. So what are the weak verbs and strong verbs? How do you know which category your verbs fall in?

You hear it all the time when you are writing. Get rid of the weak verbs. Find stronger ones to convey…

What are weak verbs?

Weak verbs are action words that are used so frequently that they have little weight or meaning. While these words are natural parts of dialogue, they work less effectively in narrative to describe action.

"She ran through the trees."

versus:

"She careened through the trees."

The word "run" is a weak verb and doesn't paint as vivid of a picture as "careen". The suggestions above are suggestions only and will change the action and emotional value of your sentence depending on which one you choose.

I read this article by Allan Metcalf a few days ago and thought it was pretty great especially since my resume is currently titled resumaaaaaagh.doc.  I was also interested in the distinction between strong and weak verbs, both in the writing-a-resume sense and in the grammatical sense.  I've studied the latter in German, though it's never really crossed my mind to look for it in English, but of course it makes sense.

Anyway, here is the article Use Strong Verbs: a Fairy Tale by Allan Metcalf, found at Lingua Franca.

Want to get a great job? Here’s what the experts say: Garnish your résumé with strong verbs.

LinkedIn, for example, declares: “Use strong verbs to make your résumé more vibrant.”

All right, let’s vibrate:

Stop! Look! Listen!

Create!

Decide! Succeed!

Paste verbs like those in your résumé, we’re told, and you’ll knock the socks off of a potential employer, with zingers like

* Disrupted schedules

* Insulted supervisors

* Laughed at urgent requests

* Created chaos in office

* Crushed hopes

* Exemplified idleness

Strong, eh?

We grammarians know better. Those verbs aren’t strong. They are weaklings, every one.

See the telltale sign? It’s the wimpy –ed ending for the past tense (Yesterday I laughed) and past participle (I have laughed).

Alas, most verbs in English, including favorites like accomplish, succeed, devise, prepare, are weak. What weaklings!

Read the rest of the article...!