by Brian P. Cleary
illustrated by Brian Gable
THIS PAGE
INTENTIONALLY
LEFT BLANK
To Isabella
—B.P.C.
Verb: A word
that shows
ing
action or be
by Brian P. Cleary
illustrated by Brian Gable
J M ILLBROOK P RESS / M INNEAPOLIS
Verbs are words like
sneak an
d
sniff,
sneez
e and seize
h
i
w
f
f
d
.
n
a
e
z
e
he
w
d
an
4
Planting carrots,
getting traction,
Verbs give sentences
their action.
5
,
You might be exploring
the Alps or the Amazon,
maybe restoring
the ch
air
th a
ty
our
grandm ’s o n
a
6
knitting or h itting
or roping or bit ing—
m
n
a
c
ake sente
s
b
r
e
n
v
very exc ces
iting
.
They tell us of horses
that nu
zz
le a
n
d nip,
of bears as
they guzzle
and birds as they
8
sip.
They tell us of scooters
e
r
w
v
s
both
i ng
and stopping ,
throws that are curving
or sliding or dr oppin .
g
9
So
wrap a package, tie a knot,
.
t
o
l
a
clap your hands, or cry
,
e
l
b
m
e
r
t
,
h
p
m
u
i
r
T
10
tr ot, an
dt
ra
you’ll
m ple,
use a verb
for each example!
11
Fly to the flower shop,
dash to the dance,
g
b
n
y
i
the
w
s
sw
immin pool,
g
frolic in France.
12
i
r
c
u
s
c
e
h
t
o
t
r
Soa
the fair.
o
t
t
a
o
l
f
and
Without verbs,
your sentence
can’t go anywhere.
13
Each sentence h as a subject—
it’s kind of like the star.
It’s what the whole thing’s
all about:
Dave’s d ish ,
,
k
Mom’s loo
Todd’s r.
ca
15
need a verb—
w
s
i
m
s
e
h
s
i
f
s
e
k
a
tm
Subjects always
a
h
it ’s w
16
and lanterns li gh t
and writers write
and clippers cut and trim.
17
S
’t the action
n
e
r
a
s
kin
b
r
e
d
v
—
e
om
They “link” instead of “do,”
connecting sentence parts, as in,
“ You
r dog a
ppear s
18
”
.
e
u
l
b
e
t
i
u
q
These linking verbs
connect a subject
to a word or phrase
called a
subject complement.
th at’s
It’s done in lots of ways:
19
It
became ridic
ulou
s.
That strudel sure smells great.
20
The crime
This play
remains a mystery.
seems second rat
e
.
21
The forms of “be”
are linking verbs,
like, “Ar e your names
Mich
elle?
”
22
Were and was
work this way, too—
they’re forms of “be” as well.
23
I am Shannon.
He is Mor t.
Wer
ey
w
ou the one
ho
w
as in court?
24
is
There are times
a form of “be”
all that’s needed, verbally.
25
slide
p
i
l
s
ou
Whether you
or
y
or yo sl u r p,
u
if you should scream
u
o
y
or
26
scratch
or you bur p,
if you’re making a fraction
or writing a blurb,
because there is action,
you know it’s a verb.
27
ld
u
o
h
s
u
o
y
oS if
gloat
or you glisten
or
li
ste n,
say to the chef,
“Take th at out a
nd
pu
28
t this in,”
whether you
or
pounce
pronounce
or
perturb,
I’m here to announce
that you’re using a verb!
29
So, what
30
is a verb?
you know?
31
ABOUT THE AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR
BRIAN P. CLEARY is the author of the Words Are Categorical™
and Math Is Categorical™ series, as well as Rainbow Soup:
Adventures in Poetry and Rhyme and PUNishment: Adventures in
Wordplay. He lives in Cleveland, Ohio.
BRIAN GABLE is the illustrator of many Words Are Categorical™
books, the Math Is Categorical™ series, and the Make Me Laugh!
joke books. He lives in Toronto, Ontario, with his wife and two
children.
Text copyright © 2007 by Brian P. Cleary
Illustrations copyright © 2007 by Millbrook Press, Inc.
All rights reserved. International copyright secured. No part of this book may
be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by
any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—
without the prior written permission of Lerner Publishing Group, except for the
inclusion of brief quotations in an acknowledged review.
Millbrook Press, Inc.
A division of Lerner Publishing Group
241 First Avenue North
Minneapolis, MN 55401 U.S.A.
Website address: www.lernerbooks.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Cleary, Brian P., 1959–
Slide and slurp, scratch and burp : more about verbs / by Brian P. Cleary ;
illustrations by Brian Gable.
p. cm. – (Words are categorical)
ISBN-13: 978–0–8225–6207–8 (lib. bdg. : alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 0–8225–6207–3 (lib. bdg. : alk. paper)
1. English language—Verb—Juvenile literature. I. Gable, Brian, 1949– ill.
II. Title. III. Series: Cleary, Brian P., 1959– Words are categorical.
PE1271.C57 2007
428.2—dc22
2006012096
Manufactured in the United States of America
1 2 3 4 5 6 - JR - 12 11 10 09 08 07
eISBN-13: 978-0-8225-8805-4