STATIVE AND ACTIVE VERBS

Put the verbs in brackets into the Present Simple

or the Present Continuous.

State or stative verbs are verbs which do not 1 . A : D o you know (you / know) t h a t man over
usually have continuous tenses because they there?
describe a state rather than an action. These B: Actually, I do. He’s Muriel’s husband.
include: 2 . A : A r e you doing anything tomorrow evening?
▪ Verbs which express likes and dislikes: B: Yes. I (see) Jack at 9.
like, love, hate, dislike, enjoy, prefer, fancy, 3. A: I (see) you’re feeling better.
can’t stand, not mind, etc. B: Yes, I am. Thank you.
e.g. Cathy likes romantic films. 4 . A : What’s t h a t noise?
B: Well, I’m afraid t h a t the people next door
▪ Verbs o f perception:
(have) a party.
believe, know, notice, remember, forget,
5 . A : Sam (have) a new iPad.
wish, understand, realise, wonder, think,
B: I know. I’ve already seen it.
(dis)agree, doubt, guess, hope, suppose, etc.
6 . A : This dress (not fi t) me
e.g. I don’t believe a word he’s saying.
anymore.
▪ Verbs o f the senses: B: What don’t you buy a new one?
see, hear, taste, look, smell, sound, touch, 7 . A : Your perfume (smell) nice.
feel, seem. We often use can or could with What is it?
these verbs when we refer t o what we see, B: It’s a new perfume called Sunshine.
hear, etc at the moment o f speaking. 8 . A : What is Jane doing?
e.g. The soup tastes delicious. B: She (smell) the roses in
Dad is in the attic. I can hear him. the garden.
▪ Some other verbs: be, have ( = possess), 9 . A : What (you / look) at?
want, need, include, belong (to), weigh, B: Some pics I took during my holidays. They
cost, owe, f i t , mean, own, measure, matter, aren’t very good, though.
need, contain, lack, appear, deserve, etc. 10. A : Hey, you (look) really
pretty today.
e.g. This book is mine. I t belongs t o me.
B: Thank you. I’ve just had my hair c ut.
11. A: I (think) we are being
Some state verbs have continuous tenses, b u t followed.
there is A DIFFERENCE I N M E A N I N G . B: Don’t be silly! It’s just your imagination.
These are some examples: 1 2 . A : Is anything wrong?
▪ I think she’s Italian. ( = believe) B: No. I (just / think) about
I’m thinking about my holiday. ( = consider) the party tonight.
▪ The soup tastes awful. ( = have an awful 1 3 . A : This fabric (feel) like silk.
flavour) B: Indeed i t is silk, and i t is very expensive.

She’s tasting the soup. ( = test the flavour of )
▪ I can see a plane in the sky. ( = perceive)
I’m seeing Jill tonight. ( = meet someone)
▪ Susan looks tired. ( = appear)
Susan is looking at the photos. ( = study)
▪ The room smells o f perfume. ( = have the
smell)
The cat is smelling its food. ( = sniff)
▪ The towel feels soft. (= have a s oft texture)
Jill is feeling her son’s forehead. ( = touch)
▪ He is selfish. (character – permanent state)
He is being selfish. (behaviour - temporary
situation)
▪ He has a sports car. (= possess)
He’s having lunch. (= eat – idiom)
1 4 . A : What are you doing?
B: I (feel) the radiator t o
see i f it’s getting warm.
1 5 . A : She (be) generous, isn’t she?
B: Yes, she has never been a mean person.
1 6 . A : I’m sorry, b u t I
(not understand) what you mean.
B: Shall I explain i t again?
1 7 . A : The children are making lots o f noise today.
B: I know, b u t they (have) fun.
1 8 . A : Tom (be) very quiet, isn’t he?
B: Yes, I think he has some problems.
1 9 . A : Would you fancy some cherries?
B: Yes, please. I (love) cherries.
They’re my favourite f r u i t .
2 0 . A : This cake (taste) awful.
B: I think I forgot t o put sugar in it!
Present Simple Present Continuous
Stative verbs Action verbs

Betty is a nice little girl. She ……………. (live) in the

country with her mother, father, and brother Jim.
Look at Betty! She ………………. (be) in the garden
now. She ………………… (pick up) flowers and she
…………………… (smell) them. Betty ………………….
(look) happy. She ……………………. (like) the flowers.
They ……………………. (smell) sweet.

Here is Betty’s brother. His name is Jim. He

…………………. (be) in the garden, too. He
…………………… (see) a bug. He …………………..
(look) at the bug. Jim ……………………. (like)
bugs; he often ………………….. (watch) them.

The children’s father comes to the garden. He

…………………… (see) the children. Jim and Betty
………………………… (smile), they …………………
…........….. (show) the flowers and the bug to their
father.

Here comes the kids’ mother. Betty

………………… (give) a flower to her mum. But
look! There is a bee on the flower; and it
……………………… (fly) and it …………………….
(want) to sting Betty’s mum. Jim ……………….
(shout) and …………………. (point) at the bee.
He ………………. (want) to warn his mum. The
mother …………………. (look) scared.
I. Sort the following verbs into 2 columns – stative verbs and active verbs:

drink hate like know eat learn speak walk understand have write think
prefer skate feel look needbelieve go love laugh want hear count

Stative verbs Active verbs

II. Choose the correct word to complete:

• I know\am knowing where Lily is. She reads\is reading a fashion magazine in our library.
• Why is this child cries\crying? Oh, he needs\is needing help because he fell off his bike.
• My dad fixes\is fixing his car in the garage now.
• Sam and Din believe\are believing in monsters living under their beds.
• Do you believe\believing in witches? Hah, no, I don`t. But I believe\am believing in the Tooth
Fairy!
• I like\am liking this comedy because I know\am knowing all the actors here.
• They don`t understand\aren`t understanding French students in the class.
• Oh no! I hate\am hating vegetables in the soup.
• Right now the dog catches\is catching the ball in the river.
• We usually go\are going to the local park to ski on weekends.

III. Complete the sentences with present simple or present continuous forms:
• My aunt (cook) turkey for dinner at the moment.
• We (not understand) why she left the party.
• Look at Tony. He (rollerblade) really fast! Be careful, Tony!
• Let`s go to Rome next vacation. I (love) its old buildings and friendly people.
• My parents are at the grocery shop now because they (need) some beans and canned
meat for our hiking trip to mountains.
• Do you (know) where the nearest metro station is?
• She (want) to buy this cookery book.
• My granny (water) the plants twice a week.