Do you know how to use

stative verbs
like think, love, smell and have?
Look at these examples to see how stative
verbs are used.
• I think that's a good idea.
• I love this song!
• That coffee smells good.
• Do you have a pen?
LET’S HAVE A GRAMMAR CHECK
 doubt
I don't know, but I __________ he'll win the
election.
A. doubt
B. ‘m doubting
Where's Grandad? Oh, he‘s___________
smelling the
flowers in the garden.
A.smells
B. ‘s smelling
The film's on at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. Which
__________?
do you prefer

A.do you prefer

B. are you preferring
Fifty-three? Are you sure that's the answer,
or
are ____________?
you guessing

A.do you guess

B. are you guessing
She's not answering.Does
___________her
she have phone
with her?

A.does she have

B. is she having
I've changed the design slightly. What
___________?
do you think

A.do you think

B. are you thinking
My holiday's next week. I‘m___________
imagining
myself on the beach right now!

A.imagine
B. ‘m imagining
That can't be right. don’t
I __________
believe you!

A.don’t believe
B. ‘m not believing
Stative verbs
• describe a state rather than an action. They aren't usually used in the
present continuous form.

CORRECT INCORRECT
I don't know the answer I'm not knowing the
answer.
She really likes you. She's really liking you.
He seems happy at the He's seeming happy at the
moment. moment.
Stative verbs often relate to:
• thoughts and opinions: agree, believe, doubt, guess, imagine, know,
mean, recognize, remember, suspect, think, understand
• feelings and emotions: dislike, hate, like, love, prefer, want, wish
• senses and perceptions: appear, be, feel, hear, look, see, seem,
smell, taste
• possession and measurement: belong, have, measure, own, possess,
weigh.
Verbs that are sometimes stative

• A number of verbs can refer to states or actions,

depending on the context.

• Example:

• I think it's a good idea. (mental state: present simple)

• Wait a moment! I'm thinking. (action in progress: present
continuous form of the verb)
Some other examples are:

• Have
• I have an old car. (state – possession)
I'm having a quick break. (action – having a break is an
activity)

• See
• I don’t see any problems with that. (state – opinion)
• We're seeing Tadanari tomorrow afternoon. (action – we're meeting
him)
Some other examples are:

• be
• He's so interesting! (state – his permanent quality)
• He's being very unhelpful. (action – he is temporarily
behaving this way)

• taste
• This coffee tastes delicious. (state – our perception of the coffee)
• Look! The chef is tasting the soup. (action – tasting the soup is an
activity)
• Other verbs like this include: agree, appear, doubt,
feel, guess, hear, imagine, look, measure, remember,
smell, weigh, wish.
LET’S HAVE A GRAMMAR
PRACTICE!
Do you know what I ________?

A. mean
B. ‘m meaning
She _________ the dentist at 4 p.m. today.

A. sees
B. ‘s seeing
I _________this avocado to see if it's ready to
eat.
A. feel
B. ‘m feeling
Sam thinks it's a good idea, and Ben
_________.
A. agrees
B. ‘s agreeing
I'm sorry, I ______________.

A. don’t understand
B. ‘m not understanding
We ___________ coffee with Xavier later today.

A. have
B. ‘re having
I _________ they'll be here quite soon.

A. imagine
B. ‘m imagining
Are you making bread? It ________ amazing.

A. smells
B. ‘’s smelling
LET’S CHECK!
Do you know what I mean
________?

A. mean
B. ‘m meaning
She _________
‘s seeing the dentist at 4 p.m. today.

A. sees
B. ‘s seeing
 ‘m feeling
I _________this avocado to see if it's ready to
eat.
A. feel
B. ‘m feeling
Sam thinks it's a good idea, and Ben
agrees
_________.
A. agrees
B. ‘s agreeing
I'm sorry, Idon’t
______________.
understand

A. don’t understand
B. ‘m not understanding
We ___________
‘re having coffee with Xavier later today.

A. have
B. ‘re having
I _________
imagine they'll be here quite soon.

A. imagine
B. ‘m imagining
Are you making bread? It ________
smells amazing.

A. smells
B. ‘’s smelling