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intransitive verb

noun

  1. 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.


intransitive verb

  1. 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 .)


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Notes

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.”
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Word History and Origins

Origin of intransitive verb1

First recorded in 1605–15
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Compare Meanings

How does intransitive verb compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

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Example Sentences

What looks at first, therefore, like a copula turns out to be merely an impersonal intransitive verb.

Men have tried to turn "revolutionise" from a transitive to an intransitive verb.

The same is the case with the future passive participle of the intransitive verb.

Run is an intransitive verb, for the action mentioned is confined to the agent; he runs.

An intransitive verb is one which is complete in itself, or which is completed by other words without requiring an object.

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intransitivein transitu