Do you know what a finite verb is? This finite verb will provide you with all of the information you need on finite verbs, including its definition, usage, example sentences, and more!
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According to Your Dictionary, a finite verb has a subject and shows tense. Non-finite verbs include gerunds or a gerund phrase, infinitives, and participles. Gerunds end in ing and are are nouns formed from verbs. Infinitives start with to and are the base form of a verb. Participles can be either present participles that end in ing form or past participles that end in ed form, d, t, en, or n. Every sentence has at least one finite verb, and a finite verb is always one word. A modal auxiliary verb is a finite verb such as am, can, could, may, might, must, ought to, shall, should, will, would, is, are, was, were, has, have, had, does, do, or did. Finite verbs can be in the present tense form, past tense form, or future tense form. Non-finite verbs can be used in the past participle form or perfect forms along with a finite verb. You may find that regular verbs and irregular verbs are conjugated differently.
Finite verbs and non-finite verb forms also exist in the grammatical categories of the romance languages, which are largely European languages. You might see these in the Latin ecce, Portuguese eis, French voici and voilà , and Italian ecco. Sentence fragments may not have a finite verb. Even minor sentences have finite verb phrases. A standard verb in simple present is often finite. Such auxiliary verbs are also finite independent of the verb’s tense. Groups of words that make up verb phrases can also be finite. Verbals like gerunds are not finite.
Finite verbs can be used in many different contexts in the English language. Trying to use a word or grammatical technique in a sentence is one of the best ways to memorize what it is, but you can also try making flashcards or quizzes that test your knowledge. Try using this term of the day in a sentence today! Below are a couple of examples of finite verbs from Your Dictionary, Grammar Monster and Thought Co that can help get you started incorporating this tool into your everyday use. Take a look at these finite verb examples in the following sentences and see how many you can identify the finite verb in!
 She was varnishing the painted fence.
 “We want the finest wines available to humanity. And we want them here, and we want them now!” — Withnail in “Withnail and I,” 1986
 My family celebrates birthdays together.Â
 Bianca cooked dinner last Thursday.
 Pearl wrote a story in New York.Â
 The astronaut walks on the moon.
 I won a prize for my deer painting.Â
 The spirits were rising from their graves to feast upon the living souls.
 My professor might give us an extension on our project.
 Charlie has been wanting a puppy.Â
 “You know how to whistle, don’t you, Steve? You just put your lips together and…blow.” — Marie “Slim” Browning in “To Have and Have Not,” 1944
 You promised to save me a baked potato.
 Pearl had written a story.Â
 I was raking the leaves when I saw a caterpillar on the ground.
 John loves dancing.
 You should clean your room.
 My family has always celebrated birthdays together.Â
 John fixed the broken fence.
 We had a chemistry lesson yesterday.
 “Get busy living, or get busy dying.” — Andy Dufresne in “The Shawshank Redemption,” 1994
 My sister went to college to become a doctor.
 Our study group worked really late last night.
 You will pay for that.
 Alfie should have said no.
 My family likes to celebrate birthdays together.Â
 “I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti.” — Hannibal Lecter in “The Silence of the Lambs,” 1991
 Rachel is happy.
 Shawna is a teacher.
 Can you tell me the time?
 I will pack Javier’s lunch later this afternoon.
 Charlie wants a puppy.Â
 Charlie is wanting a puppy.
 The class was reprimanded for behaving badly at the assembly.
 I can think whatever I like.
 John hates to sing.
 We have been working on the school musical for months.
 John cooks carrots.
 John was fixing it.
 Everyone wanted to go to the amusement park, but we only had four tickets.
 “A boy’s best friend is his mother.” — Norman Bates in “Psycho,” 1960
 Johnny likes cleaning and was trying to tidy the fallen leaves.
 He painted the fence.
 Pearl was writing a story.Â
 I am thinking about visiting the amusement park.
 “We rob banks.” — Clyde Barrow in “Bonnie and Clyde,” 1967
 Orlando swims three times a week.
What are other grammatical terms?
There are many different literary and grammatical techniques and devices that you might see when you are reading prose or poetry. It is important to recognize these terms because they are always used for some purpose. Knowing these devices can help readers understand the author’s deeper meaning and why they are using such a device. Take a look at the below list of grammatical devices from OED and see how many you know! Then try researching ones that are unfamiliar to you.Â
verbal noun
 superlative
 indicative
 apposition
 adverbial | adverbially
 modify | modifier
 third-person
 plural
 second person
 apodosis and protasis
 simple
 modal verb | modal auxiliary verb | modal auxiliary
 element
 non-finite
! Then try researching ones that are unfamiliar to you.Â
 auxiliary verb | auxiliary
 noun phrase
 suffix
 direct speech
 present participle
 morpheme
 protasis
 combining form (comb. form)
 mood
 present tense
 tense
 subject
 reflexive
 intensifier
 participle | past participle | present participle
 ellipsis | elliptical
 cataphoric
 comparative
 to-infinitive
 antecedent
 main verb
 person
  helping verb
 main clause
 past tense
 construed (const., constr.)
 special use
 subordinate clause
 base form
 indirect object
 prepositional passive
 clause
 definite article
 compound | compounding
 gender
 attributive
 inflection | inflected | inflectional
 collocation | collocate
 genitive
 head
 prepositional object
 count noun
 active
 stem
 possessive pronoun
 copular verb | copula
 collective noun
 agree | agreement
 passive
 agent noun
 interrogative
 bare infinitive
 concrete
 gerund
 unmarked genitive
 that-clause
 possessive
 declarative
 proper noun | proper name
 subjunctive
 complement
 impersonal (impers.)
 instrumental
 nominative
 neuter
 parenthetical | parenthetically
 similative
 noun (n.)
 postmodify | postmodifier
 premodify | premodifier
 possessive adjective
 indirect question
 subjective
 dative
 object | direct object | indirect object
 masculine
 preposition (prep.)
 personal pronoun
 part of speech
 indirect passive
 pleonasm | pleonastic
 pro-form
 complementary
 pronoun (pron.)
 parasynthetic
 indefinite
 number
 conjunction (conj.)
 absolute (absol.)
 case
 sentence adverb |sentence adverbial
 infinitive
 relative
 locative
 anaphoric
 zero
 objective
 dual
 non-referential
 accusative
 article
 finite
 indirect speech
 interjection
 transitive
 combination
 feminine
 phrase (phr.)
 causative
 progressive
 filler
 determiner
 nominal relative | nominal relative clause
 imperative (imper.)
 cognate object
 adverb (adv.)
 periphrasis | periphrastic
 vocative
 first person
 conditional
 prefix
 optative
 singular
 direct question
 passive infinitive
 mass noun
 positive
 adjective
 common noun
 quasi-
 double object
 intransitive
 predicative
 prepositional phrase
 phrasal verb
 demonstrative
 abstract
 participial adjective
 direct object
 Perfect tenses
 verb (v.)
 anticipatory
 construction
 appositive
 past participle
Overall, a finite verb has a subject and shows tense.
Kevin Miller is a growth marketer with an extensive background in Search Engine Optimization, paid acquisition and email marketing. He is also an online editor and writer based out of Los Angeles, CA. He studied at Georgetown University, worked at Google and became infatuated with English Grammar and for years has been diving into the language, demystifying the do's and don'ts for all who share the same passion! He can be found online here.