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The Transitive Verb PatternsEd McCorduckEnglish 402--GrammarSUNY Cortland http://mccorduck.cortland.edu

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recall:

intransitive: does not take an object (traditional grammar definition) does not require a direct object or a complement (descriptive grammar definition)

ergo,

transitive: takes an object (traditional grammar definition) requires a direct object (descriptive grammar definition)

slide 2: transitive vs. intransitive verbsEnglish 402: Grammar

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Pattern VII

NP1V-trNP2(subj)(pred vb)(dir obj)

dir obj is direct objectdirect object: entity (usually) directly affected by the action of a transitive verb

slide 3: Pattern VIIEnglish 402: Grammar

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exx

The man | kissed | the woman. NP1 V-tr NP2

I | baked | a cake.NP1 V-tr NP2

The airline | flies | big jets. NP1 V-tr NP2

(Note that in this last example the airline really doesnt do anything to or affect the jets in any way, but this sentence is still classified as a Pattern VII sentence with a transitive verb.)

slide 4: examples of Pattern VII sentencesEnglish 402: Grammar

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slide 5: Reed-Kellogg diagram of a Pattern VII sentenceEnglish 402: GrammarIn Reed-Kellogg diagrams, the headword of a noun phrase that functions as the direct object is placed on the main line after the verb and separated from it by a vertical line which, unlike the vertical line separating a sentences subject from its predicate, does not bisect the main line but remains perpendicular to it. To illustrate, here is the diagram of the Pattern VII sentence I baked a cake in which the headword of the direct object cake is separated from the verb baked by a vertical line:

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Pattern VIII

NP1V-tr NP2 NP3(subj)(pred vb) (indir obj) (dir obj)

indir obj is indirect objectindirect object: (normally animate) entity that is indirectly affected by the action of the verb, i.e., the recipient or beneficiary of the action

slide 6: Pattern VIIIEnglish 402: Grammar

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exx

He | sent | the IRS | a nasty note.NP1 V-tr NP2 NP3

She | cooked | her husband | a hearty meal.NP1 V-tr NP2 NP3

slide 7: examples of Pattern VIII sentencesEnglish 402: Grammar

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Most transitive verbs that can be used in Pattern VIII sentences can also appear in Pattern VII sentences (but the reverse is generally not true):

He sent the IRS a nasty note. V-tr dir objHe sent a nasty note.

She cooked her husband a hearty meal. V-tr dir objShe cooked a hearty meal.

She cooked her husband. dir obj

slide 8: verbs occurring both Pattern VII and Pattern VIII sentencesEnglish 402: Grammar

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Instead of requiring a structure in which the indirect object precedes the direct object, many verbs occurring in Pattern VIII sentences can enter into alternate structures where the direct object comes before the indirect object which actually becomes the noun phrase in a prepositional phrase headed usually by to or for. For example, the sentence He sent the IRS a nasty note can be transformed into He sent a nasty note to the IRS, and the relationship between these two sentences is schematized below:

He sent the IRS a nasty note. indir obj dir objHe sent a nasty note to the IRS. dir obj indir obj

slide 9: alternate Pattern VIII sentences with PPsEnglish 402: Grammar

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Knowing about these alternate forms of Pattern VIII sentences can actually help us understand the reasons that Reed-Kellogg diagrams for sentences of this pattern are drawn the ways they are. Take our first example set; if we diagram the second variant He sent a nasty note to the IRS, the diagram will be as follows:

slide 10: Reed-Kellogg diagrams of alternate Pattern VIII sentences with PPsEnglish 402: Grammar

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The diagram of He sent the IRS a nasty note is exactly the same in that the indirect object the IRS is indicated as a prepositional phrase under the main verb sent with the only but important difference that since the preposition to is not used in this structure where the indirect object the IRS precedes the direct object a nasty note, it is omitted from the diagram:

slide 11: Reed-Kellogg diagrams of PP-less Pattern VIII sentencesEnglish 402: Grammar

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Similarly, if the diagram of She made a hearty meal for her husband is examined first,

slide 12: Reed-Kellogg diagram of an alternate Pattern VIII sentence with a PP headed by forEnglish 402: Grammar

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the diagram of She made her husband a hearty meal falls out from it:

slide 13: another Reed-Kellogg diagram of a PP-less Pattern VIII sentenceEnglish 402: Grammar

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