Chapter 9: Verbs · UPESSC TGT English

Part II — The Word Classes

Chapter 9

Verbs

📘 50 MCQs⏱ ~30 min read🎯 Exam-focused

THEORY

9.1 Definition of a Verb

A verb is a word that asserts something about the subject — an action, a process, or a state. It is the word that, with the subject, forms the predicate of a sentence and carries tense.

The children played in the garden. (action)
Water boils at 100°C. (process/general truth)
She seems happy today. (state)
An accident happened at the crossing. (event/occurrence)
I am a teacher. (state of being)

Test: A word is a verb if it can change form for tense (play / played / playing) and can follow a subject to make a statement.

9.2 Transitive and Intransitive Verbs

A transitive verb needs a direct object to complete its meaning — the action passes over (Latin transire, "to go across") from the doer to a receiver. An intransitive verb does not take an object; the action is complete in itself.

She wrote a letter. (transitive — object: a letter)
The baby sleeps peacefully. (intransitive — no object)
The dog chased the cat. (transitive — object: the cat)
The sun rose in the east. (intransitive)
They discussed the plan. (transitive — never "discussed about")

Verbs used both ways. Many verbs are transitive in one sentence and intransitive in another.

Verb	Transitive (with object)	Intransitive (no object)
run	She runs* a school.*	He runs* fast.*
grow	Farmers grow* wheat.*	The plants grew* quickly.*
open	He opened* the door.*	The door opened* slowly.*
break	She broke* the glass.*	The glass broke.
sing	They sang* a song.*	The birds sang.

Some verbs in English are only transitive (e.g. resemble, discuss, marry, enter, comprise) and take no preposition: discuss the matter (not discuss about), enter the hall (not enter into the hall in the literal sense).

9.3 Main (Principal) Verbs and Auxiliary Verbs

A main or principal verb carries the central meaning. An auxiliary ("helping") verb combines with a main verb to form tenses, voices, questions, negatives and moods. The three primary auxiliaries are be, have, do; the modal auxiliaries are can, could, will, would, shall, should, may, might, must and others.

She has finished her work. (has = auxiliary, finished = main)
They are playing cricket. (are = auxiliary)
Do you understand? (do = auxiliary)
He must leave now. (must = modal auxiliary)
I am a doctor. (here am is itself the main verb — a linking verb)

Auxiliaries are treated fully in Chapter 10 — Auxiliaries and modals in Chapter 13. Here, simply note that be, have, do can act either as main verbs or as helpers.

9.4 Finite and Non-Finite Verbs

A finite verb agrees with its subject and shows tense; it can stand as the verb of a clause (He writes; They wrote). A non-finite verb does not change for person, number or tense, and cannot by itself form the predicate. The three non-finites are the infinitive (to go), the gerund (going as a noun) and the participle (going / gone as an adjective or part of a verb phrase).

She wants to learn French. (infinitive)
Swimming is good exercise. (gerund — subject)
The broken vase lay on the floor. (past participle — adjective)
Walking down the lane, he met an old friend. (present participle)
He plays well. (finite — agrees with subject, shows tense)

Non-finite verbs (infinitives, gerunds, participles) are treated in detail in Chapter 16 — Non-Finites. Remember: every complete sentence must contain at least one finite verb.

9.5 Regular and Irregular Verbs

A regular (weak) verb forms its past tense and past participle by adding -ed (or -d) to the base: walk – walked – walked, love – loved – loved. An irregular (strong) verb forms them by other means — vowel change, a special ending, or no change at all: sing – sang – sung, cut – cut – cut.

They painted the wall yesterday. (regular)
He has walked ten kilometres. (regular)
She sang beautifully. (irregular)
The pipe has burst. (irregular, no change)
We chose the best design. (irregular)

9.6 The Principal Parts (Base / Past / Past Participle)

Every verb has three principal parts: the base form (the dictionary form, used for the present and the infinitive), the simple past, and the past participle (used with have for the perfect tenses and with be for the passive). Mastering the irregular forms is essential, because most error-spotting questions target them.

Base	Simple Past	Past Participle
begin	began	begun
drink	drank	drunk
swim	swam	swum
ring	rang	rung
sing	sang	sung
go	went	gone
do	did	done
see	saw	seen
eat	ate	eaten
write	wrote	written
break	broke	broken
choose	chose	chosen
speak	spoke	spoken
take	took	taken
give	gave	given
know	knew	known
throw	threw	thrown
fly	flew	flown
lie (recline)	lay	lain
lay (put down)	laid	laid
sit (be seated)	sat	sat
set (place)	set	set
rise (go up)	rose	risen
raise (lift)	raised	raised
fall (drop)	fell	fallen
fell (cut down)	felled	felled
hang (suspend)	hung	hung
hang (execute)	hanged	hanged
bear (carry/endure)	bore	borne
bear (give birth)	bore	born*
drive	drove	driven
bite	bit	bitten
hide	hid	hidden
forget	forgot	forgotten
shake	shook	shaken
tear	tore	torn
wear	wore	worn
cut	cut	cut
put	put	put
burst	burst	burst

*born is used in the passive of birth (She was born in 1990). Borne is used for "carried/endured" and in the active of birth (She has borne three children; the costs borne by us).

Solved examples on participle use:

The bell has just rung. (not rang)
He had drunk the milk before noon. (not drank)
The match has begun. (not began)
She has written three novels. (not wrote)
They had gone home by then. (not went)

9.7 Commonly Confused Verb Pairs

(a) lie vs lay. Lie (lie–lay–lain) is intransitive = "to recline / be situated"; it takes no object. Lay (lay–laid–laid) is transitive = "to put/place something down"; it must take an object. (A separate verb lie–lied–lied means "to tell an untruth".)

I want to lie down for a while. (recline — no object)
The book lies on the table. (is situated)
Please lay the book on the table. (put it down — object: the book)
Yesterday I lay on the grass. (past of lie)
The hen has laid an egg. (past participle of lay)

(b) sit vs set. Sit (sit–sat–sat) is intransitive = "to take a seat". Set (set–set–set) is usually transitive = "to place / fix".

Please sit here. (intransitive)
She sat beside her mother.
He set the vase on the shelf. (transitive — object: the vase)
The sun sets in the west. (an intransitive use of set = go down)
I have set the alarm for six.

(c) rise vs raise. Rise (rise–rose–risen) is intransitive = "to go up by itself". Raise (raise–raised–raised) is transitive = "to lift something up".

The sun rises in the east. (intransitive)
Prices have risen sharply.
He raised his hand to ask a question. (transitive — object: his hand)
The government raised taxes.
The flood waters rose overnight. (not raised)

(d) fall vs fell. Fall (fall–fell–fallen) is intransitive = "to drop". Fell (fell–felled–felled) is transitive = "to cut down (a tree)". Note that fell is also the simple past of fall.

The leaves fall in autumn. (intransitive)
He fell from the ladder. (past of fall)
The tree has fallen. (past participle of fall)
The workers felled the old oak. (cut it down — transitive)
Many trees were felled for the road.

9.8 Linking (Copular) Verbs

A linking or copular verb does not express action; it links the subject to a complement — a noun (subject complement) or, more often, an adjective describing the subject. The chief linking verb is be; others are seem, become, appear, look, feel, sound, taste, smell, grow, remain, turn, get. After a linking verb we use an adjective, not an adverb.

She is a teacher. (links to noun complement)
The soup tastes delicious. (adjective, not deliciously)
He seems tired.
The flowers smell sweet. (not sweetly)
She became a doctor.

Caution: Some of these verbs can also be ordinary action verbs, and then they take an adverb. Compare The dog smelled bad (linking — the dog had a bad odour) with The dog smelled the meat hungrily (action — used its nose). Test: if you can replace the verb with a form of be and the sentence still makes sense, it is a linking verb.

9.9 Stative Verbs (Not Used in the Continuous)

Verbs of state rather than action — describing thoughts, feelings, senses, possession and relations — are normally not used in the progressive (continuous) tenses. They include verbs of:

Category	Examples
Mental state	know, believe, understand, realise, remember, forget, suppose, think (=opine), doubt, mean
Emotion	like, dislike, love, hate, prefer, want, wish, desire, care
Possession	own, possess, have (=possess), belong, owe
Senses/perception	see, hear, smell, taste, feel (=perceive), notice, seem, appear
Relation/being	be, contain, consist, comprise, resemble, depend, deserve, matter, exist, fit, weigh, cost

I know the answer. (not am knowing)
She believes in hard work. (not is believing)
This box contains books. (not is containing)
They own two houses. (not are owning)
I prefer tea to coffee. (not am preferring)

Exception: When such a verb is used in an active (dynamic) sense, the continuous becomes correct: I am thinking of a plan (= considering), He is having dinner (= eating), I am seeing the manager tomorrow (= meeting), The chef is tasting the soup (= actively sampling). Even love/like appear in casual dynamic use: I'm loving it — acceptable colloquially but avoided in formal exam answers.

9.10 Subject–Verb Agreement (Basics)

A verb must agree with its subject in number and person. A singular subject takes a singular verb; a plural subject takes a plural verb. In the present simple, the singular third person adds -s/-es.

The boy plays daily. / The boys play daily.
She writes well. (singular)
Neither of the answers is correct. (singular — neither is singular)
The team has won. (collective noun, single body)
Mathematics is my favourite subject. (singular despite the -s)

This is only the foundation. The full set of concord rules — with collective nouns, either/neither, each, indefinite pronouns, a number of vs the number of, etc. — is covered in Chapter 12 — Subject–Verb Agreement.

9.11 Causative Verbs (have / get something done)

A causative construction shows that the subject causes someone else to do the action rather than doing it personally. The common pattern is have / get + object + past participle.

I had my car repaired. (someone repaired it for me)
She got her hair cut.
We had the house painted last week.
He got his watch mended.
They are having a new wall built.

Active causative with a person uses the bare infinitive after have/make and to-infinitive after get: I had the mechanic repair the car; I got the mechanic to repair the car.

COMMON EXAM ERRORS

#	Wrong	Correct	Explanation
1	I am going to lay down.	I am going to lie down.	Lie (recline) is intransitive; no object follows.
2	He laid on the bed all day.	He lay on the bed all day.	Past of intransitive lie is lay, not laid.
3	She has lain the book on the desk.	She has laid the book on the desk.	"Put down" is transitive lay–laid–laid.
4	The hen lied an egg.	The hen laid an egg.	Lied = told an untruth; here we need laid.
5	Please set down on this chair.	Please sit down on this chair.	Sit is intransitive (take a seat); set = place.
6	He sat the cup on the table.	He set the cup on the table.	Placing an object requires transitive set.
7	The prices have raised again.	The prices have risen again.	Rise is intransitive; raise needs an object.
8	He rose his hand.	He raised his hand.	"His hand" is the object, so transitive raise.
9	The sun raises in the east.	The sun rises in the east.	No object, so intransitive rise.
10	They have went home.	They have gone home.	Past participle of go is gone, not went.
11	She has drank the juice.	She has drunk the juice.	Participle of drink is drunk.
12	The film has began.	The film has begun.	Participle of begin is begun.
13	I have wrote the letter.	I have written the letter.	Participle of write is written.
14	He had spoke to the principal.	He had spoken to the principal.	Participle of speak is spoken.
15	The thief was hung at dawn.	The thief was hanged at dawn.	For execution, the form is hang–hanged–hanged.
16	The picture was hanged on the wall.	The picture was hung on the wall.	For suspending objects, use hang–hung–hung.
17	I am knowing the answer.	I know the answer.	Stative know is not used in the continuous.
18	She is believing in God.	She believes in God.	Stative believe takes the simple form.
19	This bottle is containing water.	This bottle contains water.	Contain is stative; no continuous.
20	They are owning a farm.	They own a farm.	Possession verb own is stative.
21	I am preferring tea.	I prefer tea.	Prefer (emotion) is stative.
22	Let us discuss about the issue.	Let us discuss the issue.	Discuss is transitive; no preposition about.
23	He cannot cope up with the work.	He cannot cope with the work.	Cope takes with, never cope up.
24	The soup tastes deliciously.	The soup tastes delicious.	Linking verb taste takes an adjective complement.
25	She bore the news bravely; she has born much.	She bore the news bravely; she has borne much.	"Endured" uses borne; born is only passive of birth.

EXAM TRICKS

Object test for lie/lay, rise/raise, sit/set: If there is a direct object, choose the transitive verb (lay, raise, set); if not, choose the intransitive (lie, rise, sit).
The deadly past: lay is BOTH the present of "put down" AND the past of "recline". Read tense and object together. Yesterday I lay down (past of lie, correct); I lay the book here every day (present of lay, correct).
"Have/has/had + ___" demands the participle, never the simple past. So have gone (not have went), has drunk (not has drank), had begun (not had began).
Hanged vs hung: people are hanged (executed); pictures, coats and curtains are hung.
Stative-verb trap: If a question offers am knowing / is believing / are owning / is containing, that option is almost always the wrong one. Pick the simple tense.
Linking-verb trap: After seem, look, taste, smell, feel, become, appear describing the subject, choose the ADJECTIVE (sweet), not the adverb (sweetly).
Bare-transitive trap: discuss, marry, resemble, enter, comprise, request, order, accompany, attack, mention take a direct object with NO preposition. Watch for discuss about, marry with, resemble to, request for.
Causative pattern: have/get + object + past participle means someone else did it: I had my car serviced, not I had serviced my car (which would mean I did it).
Distractor design: examiners love placing rose where raised is needed, was hung where was hanged is needed, and a continuous stative where a simple tense is needed. Spot these patterns first.

FREQUENTLY CONFUSED PAIRS

Pair	Type & Forms	Meaning	Example
lie / lay	lie intr. (lay, lain); lay tr. (laid, laid)	recline/be situated vs put something down	Lie on the sofa; lay the baby in the cot.
sit / set	sit intr. (sat, sat); set tr. (set, set)	take a seat vs place something	Sit down; set the tray here.
rise / raise	rise intr. (rose, risen); raise tr. (raised, raised)	go up vs lift something up	The sun rises; he raised his hand.
fall / fell	fall intr. (fell, fallen); fell tr. (felled, felled)	drop vs cut down (a tree)	Leaves fall; they felled the tree.
hang / hanged	hang (hung, hung) vs hang (hanged, hanged)	suspend an object vs execute a person	She hung the picture; the criminal was hanged.
lie / lied	lie recline (lay, lain) vs lie deceive (lied, lied)	recline vs tell an untruth	He lay down; he lied to me.
lay / laid	base lay vs past/participle laid	present vs past of "put down"	Hens lay eggs; the hen laid an egg.
bring / take	both tr.; direction differs	carry towards the speaker vs away from the speaker	Bring it here; take it there.
bear / bore	bear (bore, borne/born)	endure/give birth	He has borne the pain; she was born in 1990.

EXCEPTIONS — Important, Rare & Advanced

Cognate object. An intransitive verb can take a so-called cognate object related in meaning: She slept a sound sleep; He lived a happy life; They fought a good fight. The verb remains essentially intransitive.
Ergative (labile) verbs. Verbs like open, break, melt, increase, sink, change shift between transitive and intransitive with the same form and no change of meaning of the action: I opened the door / The door opened.
Defective verbs. Some verbs lack certain forms. The modals (can, must, ought) have no infinitive or participle; beware exists only as an imperative/infinitive.
Impersonal verbs. It rains, It seems, It appears — the subject it is a dummy with no referent.
"Born" vs "borne" again. Always borne after have in the active even for birth: She has borne two sons; reserve born for the passive without a following by-agent of motherhood (He was born in Lucknow).
"Hung" for executions — colloquial only. In standard formal English, the deliberate sense always uses hanged; treat was hung for a person as an error in exams.
Stative verbs that turn dynamic. see (=meet), have (=experience/eat), think (=ponder), taste/smell/feel (=actively use a sense), weigh (=measure) can legitimately take the continuous: The grocer is weighing the rice.
"Need / dare" as both. They function either as ordinary verbs (He needs help) or as marginal modals (He need not go; Dare he say it?).
"Used to" vs "be used to". used to + base = past habit; be used to + -ing = accustomed to. I used to swim vs I am used to swimming.

50 MCQs

Easy (1–15)

1. Choose the correct sentence.

(a) The cat is laying on the mat. (b) The cat is lying on the mat. (c) The cat is lain on the mat. (d) The cat is laid on the mat.
Answer: (b) The cat is lying on the mat.
Explanation: "Recline" needs intransitive lie; its -ing form is lying.

2. The sun ____ in the east.

(a) raises (b) rises (c) raise (d) risen
Answer: (b) rises
Explanation: No object, so intransitive rise in the third person singular.

3. He has ____ home already.

(a) went (b) gone (c) going (d) goes
Answer: (b) gone
Explanation: After has we need the past participle gone.

4. Please ____ down on this chair.

(a) set (b) sat (c) sit (d) seat
Answer: (c) sit
Explanation: "Take a seat" is intransitive sit.

5. The criminal was ____ at dawn.

(a) hung (b) hanged (c) hanging (d) hangs
Answer: (b) hanged
Explanation: Execution uses hang–hanged–hanged.

6. She ____ the picture on the wall.

(a) hanged (b) hung (c) hang (d) hangs
Answer: (b) hung
Explanation: Suspending an object uses hang–hung–hung.

7. I ____ the answer to this question.

(a) am knowing (b) know (c) is knowing (d) knows
Answer: (b) know
Explanation: Stative know takes the simple present, not the continuous.

8. The hen has ____ an egg.

(a) lain (b) lay (c) laid (d) lied
Answer: (c) laid
Explanation: "Produce/put down" is transitive lay–laid–laid.

9. Identify the transitive verb in: "She wrote a letter."

(a) She (b) wrote (c) a (d) letter
Answer: (b) wrote
Explanation: Wrote takes the object a letter, so it is transitive.

10. The soup tastes ____.

(a) deliciously (b) delicious (c) deliciousness (d) more deliciously
Answer: (b) delicious
Explanation: Linking verb taste takes an adjective complement.

11. They ____ a large farm in the village.

(a) are owning (b) own (c) is owning (d) owns
Answer: (b) own
Explanation: Possession verb own is stative; plural subject takes own.

12. He ____ his hand to ask a question.

(a) rose (b) raised (c) risen (d) rises
Answer: (b) raised
Explanation: "His hand" is the object, so transitive raise.

13. Which is the past participle of "begin"?

(a) began (b) begun (c) beginned (d) beginning
Answer: (b) begun
Explanation: begin–began–begun.

14. The verb in "The baby sleeps" is ____.

(a) transitive (b) intransitive (c) auxiliary (d) linking
Answer: (b) intransitive
Explanation: Sleeps takes no object.

15. We ____ the house painted last month.

(a) had (b) have (c) make (d) did
Answer: (a) had
Explanation: Causative had + object + past participle (painted).

Moderate (16–35)

16. Yesterday I ____ on the grass for an hour.

(a) laid (b) lay (c) lain (d) lied
Answer: (b) lay
Explanation: Lay is the simple past of intransitive lie (recline).

17. Prices have ____ steeply this year.

(a) raised (b) rose (c) risen (d) raise
Answer: (c) risen
Explanation: No object; participle of intransitive rise is risen.

18. The workers ____ the old tree last week.

(a) fell (b) felled (c) fallen (d) fall
Answer: (b) felled
Explanation: "Cut down" is transitive fell–felled–felled.

19. He ____ the cup carefully on the saucer.

(a) sat (b) set (c) sit (d) sitted
Answer: (b) set
Explanation: Placing an object needs transitive set.

20. She has ____ the milk already.

(a) drank (b) drunk (c) drink (d) drinked
Answer: (b) drunk
Explanation: Participle of drink is drunk.

21. Choose the correct sentence.

(a) Let us discuss about the matter. (b) Let us discuss on the matter. (c) Let us discuss the matter. (d) Let us discuss for the matter.
Answer: (c) Let us discuss the matter.
Explanation: Discuss is transitive; no preposition follows.

22. This jar ____ fresh honey.

(a) is containing (b) contains (c) contain (d) are containing
Answer: (b) contains
Explanation: Stative contain is not used in the continuous.

23. Identify the error: "He laid on the sofa and fell asleep."

(a) He (b) laid (c) on the sofa (d) fell asleep
Answer: (b) laid
Explanation: Recline needs lay (past of lie), not laid.

24. The flood waters ____ overnight.

(a) raised (b) rose (c) raise (d) risen
Answer: (b) rose
Explanation: No object; simple past of intransitive rise is rose.

25. She has ____ the heavy curtains over the window.

(a) hanged (b) hung (c) hang (d) hangs
Answer: (b) hung
Explanation: Objects are hung, not hanged.

26. He has ____ much hardship in his life.

(a) born (b) borne (c) bore (d) bear
Answer: (b) borne
Explanation: "Endured" uses borne after has.

27. She was ____ in Lucknow in 1992.

(a) borne (b) born (c) bore (d) bearing
Answer: (b) born
Explanation: Passive of birth uses born.

28. In "The door opened slowly," the verb is ____.

(a) transitive (b) intransitive (c) causative (d) auxiliary
Answer: (b) intransitive
Explanation: No object follows; open here is intransitive (ergative).

29. I ____ the manager tomorrow about the contract.

(a) am seeing (b) see (c) sees (d) am seen
Answer: (a) am seeing
Explanation: Here see = meet (a planned arrangement), a dynamic use that allows the continuous.

30. Choose the correct sentence.

(a) He resembles to his father. (b) He resembles with his father. (c) He resembles his father. (d) He resembles like his father.
Answer: (c) He resembles his father.
Explanation: Resemble is transitive; no preposition.

31. The participle that correctly fits "The vase had been ____" is:

(a) broke (b) broken (c) breaked (d) breaking
Answer: (b) broken
Explanation: Participle of break is broken.

32. I ____ tea to coffee.

(a) am preferring (b) prefer (c) prefers (d) is preferring
Answer: (b) prefer
Explanation: Stative prefer (emotion) takes the simple present.

33. She got her car ____ at the garage.

(a) repair (b) repairing (c) repaired (d) to repair
Answer: (c) repaired
Explanation: Causative get + object + past participle (repaired).

34. Identify the linking verb: "The roses smell sweet."

(a) The (b) roses (c) smell (d) sweet
Answer: (c) smell
Explanation: Smell here links the subject to the adjective sweet.

35. Which sentence is correct?

(a) She is owning a bungalow. (b) She owns a bungalow. (c) She owning a bungalow. (d) She own a bungalow.
Answer: (b) She owns a bungalow.
Explanation: Stative own, simple present, singular subject.

Difficult (36–50)

36. Choose the correct sentence.

(a) The papers were laying on the desk where I had lain them. (b) The papers were lying on the desk where I had laid them. (c) The papers were lying on the desk where I had lain them. (d) The papers were laying on the desk where I had laid them.
Answer: (b) The papers were lying on the desk where I had laid them.
Explanation: Objects rest (intr. lying); "I put them" is transitive laid.

37. Identify the incorrect verb form: "Having drank his coffee, he rose from the table."

(a) Having (b) drank (c) rose (d) from the table
Answer: (b) drank
Explanation: The perfect participle needs drunk: "Having drunk".

38. Choose the correct sentence.

(a) He was hung for treason. (b) He was hanged for treason. (c) He was hang for treason. (d) He was hangs for treason.
Answer: (b) He was hanged for treason.
Explanation: Execution of a person uses hanged.

39. Which sentence uses a stative verb correctly in the continuous?

(a) I am knowing the truth. (b) She is having a new house. (c) The chef is tasting the soup. (d) They are owning land.
Answer: (c) The chef is tasting the soup.
Explanation: Here taste = actively sample (dynamic), so the continuous is valid.

40. Identify the error: "The committee have raised by the recent reforms."

(a) The committee (b) have (c) raised (d) by the recent reforms
Answer: (c) raised
Explanation: With no object and the meaning "gone up," the intransitive risen is required.

41. Select the correct sentence.

(a) The sun had already raised when we set out. (b) The sun had already risen when we set out. (c) The sun had already rose when we set out. (d) The sun had already raise when we set out.
Answer: (b) The sun had already risen when we set out.
Explanation: Intransitive rise; participle after had is risen.

42. Choose the sentence with a correctly used cognate object.

(a) He slept a sound sleep. (b) He slept the bed. (c) He slept a pillow. (d) He slept the room.
Answer: (a) He slept a sound sleep.
Explanation: An intransitive verb may take a cognate object related in meaning.

43. Which sentence correctly uses the causative?

(a) I had repaired my watch by the jeweller. (b) I had my watch repaired by the jeweller. (c) I had repair my watch by the jeweller. (d) I had my watch repair by the jeweller.
Answer: (b) I had my watch repaired by the jeweller.
Explanation: Pattern: have + object + past participle ("repaired").

44. Identify the error: "She has born three children and borne every hardship.".

(a) She has born (b) three children (c) and borne (d) every hardship
Answer: (a) She has born
Explanation: Active birth after has requires borne: "has borne three children".

45. Which option correctly completes both blanks? "The lumberjacks ____ the trees that had ____ in the storm."

(a) felled / fallen (b) fell / fell (c) fallen / felled (d) felled / fell
Answer: (a) felled / fallen
Explanation: Transitive past felled (cut down) + participle fallen (dropped).

46. Choose the grammatically correct sentence.

(a) The baby was laying quietly while its mother lay it down. (b) The baby was lying quietly after its mother had laid it down. (c) The baby was lying quietly after its mother had lain it down. (d) The baby was laid quietly while its mother lay down it.
Answer: (b) The baby was lying quietly after its mother had laid it down.
Explanation: Baby rests (intr. lying); mother put it down (tr. laid).

47. Which sentence is correct?

(a) He requested for a glass of water. (b) He requested a glass of water. (c) He requested to a glass of water. (d) He requested of a glass of water.
Answer: (b) He requested a glass of water.
Explanation: Request is transitive; no preposition for after it here.

48. Identify the sentence where "set" is used intransitively.

(a) She set the books on the shelf. (b) The jelly has set firmly. (c) He set a good example. (d) They set the date for the wedding.
Answer: (b) The jelly has set firmly.
Explanation: Here set (= become solid) takes no object, so it is intransitive.

49. Choose the correct sentence.

(a) I am not understanding this rule. (b) I do not understand this rule. (c) I am not understand this rule. (d) I not understanding this rule.
Answer: (b) I do not understand this rule.
Explanation: Stative understand is not used in the continuous.

50. Select the wholly correct sentence.

(a) After the bell had rang, the students rose and the teacher raised the question. (b) After the bell had rung, the students rose and the teacher raised the question. (c) After the bell had rung, the students raised and the teacher rose the question. (d) After the bell had rang, the students raised and the teacher rose the question.
Answer: (b) After the bell had rung, the students rose and the teacher raised the question.
Explanation: rung (participle of ring), rose (intr., students went up), raised (tr., object "the question").