Re: (In)transitive verbs

--- "Mark J. Reed" <markjreed@...> wrote:

> The distinction itself is straightforward: if
> the verb takes an
> object, it's transitive; if not, it's
> intransitive.  English just
> doesn't *make* that distinction sharply; most
> verbs can be either.
Specifically, English doesn't _mark_ the
distinction. We make it, as you described above,
just don't make a big deal out of it.

> English is also full of phrasal verbs (verb +
> preposition[s]), which
> are transitive when treated as a unit but
> officially analyze into an
> intransitive verb modified by a prepositional
> phrase: "look at",
> "climb up", "watch out for", etc.
Who came up with _that_ "official" definition!?
Phrasal verbs don't mean anything without their
phrasal component! ;)

Padraic.


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