Part IV, Number Six
IV.F.7 VERBALS
IV.249 Making other WORD-CLASSES function as VERBS is mostly a spontaneous process. By far the most common are NOMINAL VERBS; some retain the NOUN’s meaning, as when animals or drinks become ACTIONS [1145-48]; but indicate emotions [1149-50]; and still others seize upon a form of address or reject the right to have it so used [1151-52].
[1145] Dale Earnhardt Jr tigered his way into third position after coming on strongly in the final 40 laps. (NASCAR Features)WWW
[1146] Susan Sontag swanned through the crowd of intellectual superstars (Henry Allen in The Washington Post)
[1147] On their way to a match against Great Lever, four members of the Accrington team became so “liquored up” when they stopped to take refreshment at Blackburn that they missed their train. (Hooligan)WWW
[1148] I might get beered up and go and poke fun at some peace protesters; if I bother, I’ll post some photos -- otherwise I’ll just get beered up and watch rugby on cable (Australian Blogger Alliance)WWW
[1149] I don't know of nothln’ sadder than that story. Not that I weeps tharat, for I'm a thoughtless an’ a callous yooth, but, all the same, it glooms me up a heap. (Wolfville Days)
[1150] The Chief Weasel began, “Toad he went a-pleasuring gaily down the street--” “I’ll pleasure “em!” [Toad] yelled and went straight for the Chief Weasel. (Wind in the Willows)
[1151] “Brother Walters”, says the preacher, gentlelike and soothing, like a undertaker. “Brother!” Hank yells out, “don’t ye brother me!” [address me as churchgoer]. (Danny’s Own Story)
[1152] Bolingbroke: My gracious uncle! York: Tut, tut! Grace me no grace, nor uncle me no uncle. I am no traitor’s uncle; and that word “grace” in an ungracious mouth is but profane. (Richard II)
Quite uncommon are ADJECTIVAL VERBS, and may well be light-hearted or facetious:
[1153] Mayor Giuliani is admitting the city gooded when it came to alternate side of the street parking rules in Chelsea and Greenwich Village (Newsradio 88)WWW
[1154]
dreams are badded
sumtimes, I hope I have a good
one tonight
(Student Max)WWW
[1155] If you ask me they should stop uglying Sarah up for her role as Liberty (Live Journal)WWW
[1156] I met a few new people last night at party. Erica got me all “beautifulled” up. (Greatest Journal)WWW
[1157] Feeling her surrender, his mouth gentled on hers. (Winter Challenge)
[1158] They’ve “nastied” the characters too much. Star Trek has always been about the fight between “Good” vs. “Evil”. (wanderingdragon)WWW
ADVERBIAL VERBS are uncommon too:
[1159] “Then I’ll wait in the open air, for I feel half choked”, says he. “I’ll be back before long.” And with that he ups and he outs. (Sherlock Holmes)
[1160] Albert Cheng...aren’tcha just sick o’ him? With his toing and froing, his inning and outing, and all those rancorous foaming public debates (Not the South China Morning Post)WWW
Apparent ADVERBS in PARTICIPLE form are probably just unintentional “attractions” from actual PARTICIPLES in the context:
[1161] I’m onlying saying this because grey has threatened to disown me if I don’t (tJY Community Forums)WWW
[1162] In a few seconds it started moving really slowlying downwards, stopped dead still, then started again. (UFO sighting boards)WWW
IV.250 The really dominant trend has been not VERBALISING other WORD-CLASSES into VERBS, but NOMINALISING VERBS into NOUNS. Why simply “possess” or “receive” [1163-64] when you can garner POWER being the “possessor of” or the “recipient” of” [1165-66]; or, better yet, “in possession of” or “in receipt of” [1167-68]?
[1163] The 1927 Moneylenders Act provided that all moneylenders must possess a license costing £15 (Women in England 1870-1950).
[1164] The princess could receive income from the Duchy of Cornwall which makes about £3 million a year (official leaflet)
[1165] Lagerfeld’s father was Swedish and the possessor of a considerable fortune, made from a dairy company (Harpers & Queen)
[1166] Since April 1989, people in board-and-lodging accommodation have been treated in the same way as most other recipients of income support. (Hansard)
[1167] After 12 years, the law will protect not the real owner but the person in possession of the land (Barsby)WWW
[1168] The flats are available to rent and the outgoings are affordable to those who are in receipt of housing benefit. (Gundreda Housing)WWW
The more plentiful and abstract the NOUNS, the more secure and settled the whole business seems, provided the business itself is a serious one. It is, alas, common enough to “receive a punch in the nose” [1169]; but no one in my data, nor on the Net, has even been either “the recipient of”, or “in receipt of a punch in the nose”.
[1169] Upon arrival, Sgt. Saubier found that, following a brief altercation at the door to the bar, a patron had received a punch in the nose. (Tri-City Record)
“In receipt of” occurs in the BNC almost exclusively for whoever is getting, from an authority, such amenities as “income support”, “research grants”, “mobility allowance”, and a range of bureaucratic “benefits” designated for such purposes as “housing”, “retirement”, “unemployment”, or “sickness”.
IV.251 The border between VERBS and MODIFIERS is rather fluid. Some items with the forms of PRESENT PARTICIPLE or PAST PARTICIPLE can be used as either for an event for something done or done to, as in [1170], [1172], [1174] or [1176]; or else an attribute to distinguish a familiar, stable type of something, as in [1171], [1173], [1175], or [1177].
[1170] Ruth stood still -- wondering, with only a kind of weariness, at what point she'd determined to return into that burning castle (Adam's Paradise)
[1171] Obviously, a jumping castle is a huge treat for a little one and is not mandatory. (Children's Parties)WWW
[1172] The City remains worried about the impact of the falling pound on inflation (Scotsman)
[1173] “Poor wee Berta. She's had a fit”, said Tina “It's the falling sickness”, said Mrs Keith quietly. (Worlds Apart)
[1174] Drawbacks include some scrambled passages here and there, a false violin entry in the first movement, a recording with distracting low hum, and a bronchial audience. (Gramophone)
[1175] This was a lamentable start to the day. The ham was desiccated, the scrambled eggs congealed, and the fruit juice fermented. (Harpers)
[1176] Emilia's ill-temper spent itself on the domestic staff, and she interpreted his own efforts to placate the ruffled servants as treachery. (Chymical Wedding)
[1177] I would have had the beautiful gown, the ruffled frill and the bejewelled fingers of a lady. (Hypnosis Regression Therapy)
Specialised discourse can be observed creating contrasts between events (or actions) versus non-events, which in turn become MODIFIERS for technical types, viz.:
[1178] The Company also holds interests in three operated PSCs [production sharing concessions] (Malacca Strait, Cumi Cumi and Runtu), and two other non-operated PSCs (Kakap and Madura). (LASMO)WWW
[1179] From discriminant analysis, equations were derived to distinguish raining and non-raining clouds. (Earth Scan Laboratory, LSU)
Apparently, opening the window or stepping out the door to see if it’s raining is insufficiently scientific. Still, a commercial technology for converting clouds to the “non-raining” type could be a huge hit, especially at football matches.
IV.252 EMPOWERING VERBS tend to imply more WEIGHT than EMPOWERING NOUNS. In fact, some at the WEIGHTIEST side, such as “ordain” and “decree”, whether in ACTIVE or PASSIVE, seem reserved for supreme powers, such as the Lord, great potentates, or abstract powers like “fortune”, “fate”, “providence”, and so on.
[1180] Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel. (I Corinthians 9:14)
[1181] Then spake God to the moon: “I know well, thou wouldst have me make Thee greater than the sun. As a punishment I decree that thou mayest keep but one-sixtieth of thy light.” (Legends of the Jews)
[1182] Fate decreed that the dark prophecy of a demon knight could bring a tragic end to this peace (Dark Secret)WWW
Humans straightfacedly using these verbs in the FIRST PERSON SINGULAR nowadays are hard to imagine. Not even the Ironess Thatcher, steeped in her eagle-winged and sky-aspiring pride and rival-hating envy, could screech:
[1183] *I ordain that the Greater London Council shall be cast into the Thames, till the depths have covered them, and they sink into the bottom as a stone.
[1184] *I decree that burning coals shall fall upon the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament: let them be cast into the fire, that they rise not up again.
The VERB “command”, in olden times hardly less venerable [1185], figures sparely in the BNC of today, except facetiously [1186]; and of course, among the military, where the commanded duties may be surprisingly enjoyable [1187].
[1185] And I commanded the Levites that they should cleanse themselves, and they should come and keep the gates, to sanctify the sabbath day. (Nehemiah 13:22)
[1186] “I not only require total dependence”, he teased, drawing her into his arms against the rumpled linen sheets. “I command you to stay with me forever!” (Calypso’s Island)
[1187] The unit was commanded by Captain Sammy Wenham; like all good Home Guarders, a great deal of effort was made to arrive at our unofficial H.Q., the Five Bells. [a renowned old pub in Hailing, Kent] (Across the Low Meadow)
Less weighty and more flexible VERBS like “require” and “request” carry the weight suited to the context.
[1188] “I have Maria Candida as my servant. Where is she?” “In the laundry, Senhora.” “Then go tell her I require her here in my room.” (Armada)
[1189] In the lawsuit, the tobacco industry requested that Stivoro, the Dutch Foundation on Smoking and Health, be stopped from propagating its position on passive smoking. (Action on Smoking & Health)
[1190] At present I require assistance to help me to choose the most suitable occupation if you can offer any information or guidance (Having It All)
[1191] Mr and Mrs Ramsdale have requested that their generous donation to the hospice be used to buy equipment which will help other families support their own relatives at home. (Northern Echo)
The shirty “Senhora” in [1188] “requires” her “servant” to get up there, or else; the legal poisoners in the tobacco industry in [1189] “requested” the power of the state to suppress the truth by legal force -- pamphlets confiscated, lectures hall locked, invited experts “detained” for “questioning”, that sort of thing. In contrast, the correspondent in [1190] modestly confessed to “requiring assistance” during a painfully weak passage in her life; the couple in [1191] “requested” to help a deeply humanitarian cause.
IV.253 Exercising POWER routinely implies somebody else getting DISEMPOWERED on the other end. However, the social POWER anchored in the GRAMMAR of English has a whole wardrobe of gloves from iron to velvet, mostly deployed by means of AUXILIARIES presented.
[1192] There is a thin line between collaboration and plagiarizing the work of others. Therefore, I require that you must compose your own solution to each assignment. (Scott Anderson)WWW
[1193] I request that you might recommend me and my yoga school to others who may have an interest to go to India (Viswanath)WWW
IV.254 Among DISEMPOWERING VERBS, a whole set is provided for manners of speaking:
[1194] ‘I am no fan of my muscles”, she bleated to a German magazine. “I hate my size.” (Steffi Graf in the Scotsman)
[1195] “Out of my way, you useless lump!” she snarled. (Quest for a Babe)
[1196] “Isn't that lovely! I knew you'd like it!” “What's lovely about it?” snorted the other. “Load of rubbish, that's what this is.” (Twist of Fate)
[1197] She wriggled fruitlessly in his ruthless grasp. “Let me go”, she grated, “or I’ll --” “You’ll what?” rasped Lucenzo (Mask of Deception)
Such VERBS flourish in vintage Mills & Boon like [1197], yet their GRAMMAR mercifully precludes them “framing” indirect discourse (cf. V.76, 80):
[1197a] *Alyssia grated that he should let her go. *Lucenzo rasped what she would do if he didn’t.
VERBS for laughing are similarly loaded, but with a double edge, in so far as the ACTION can also DISEMPOWER its target:
[1198] The razorhead leapt up, but the troopers levelled their guns, so the youth sank back swearing vengeance. A few of the Dorcas gang chortled appreciatively. (Space Marine)
[1199] Some pimpled boy whose name she didn't know put one finger coyly beneath his chin and snickered, “Oh, look, she's blushing.” Jezrael felt her heart swell with her smothered rage. (Brooch of Azure)
[1200] “P'raps not a gambler at the tables, but in other areas, eh Captain?” “Never, ma'am!” She neighed out a laugh. “Come now, Captain.” “You like to joke, ma’am”, said the Captain reddening. (First of Midnight)
[1201] “Where would ye go to, tell me that?” “Back where I came from. Galway.” He guffawed contemptuously. “What, back to that slum in the Claddagh?” (Killing Frost)
IV.255 The social side stands out clearly in ATTITUDES toward VERBS for doing essentially nothing. The EMPOWERING VERBS are AMELIORATIVE when they apply to the powerful away among themselves, notably on upscale “vacations”, even if they don’t otherwise do any real work to “vacate themselves from”, so to speak.
[1202] You and your guests can frolic by picture perfect pools, or relax in the jacuzzi after a long day at the parks. (Emerald Island Escape)
[1203] In your master suite, lie back and relax in the king-size bed, unwind in the warm, bubbling Jacuzzi, or enjoy the warmth of a flickering fire... (Falcon Crest)
[1204] Escapists will revel in the tranquillity of the surroundings which are like a castaway paradise (Citalia Italy)
IV.256 Doing nothing has PEJORATIVE VERBS for people who someone thinks ought to doing real work:
[1205] Your forefathers worked hard, fought hard, and died hard to make this Empire. Don’t let them look down from heaven, and see you loafing about (Hooligan)
[1206] Phone the police if you see anyone whom you regard as suspicious loitering close by or if you suspect a potential intruder is lurking (One’s Company)
[1207] “Do you think they’re all in at school?” “No no, they’re skiving, they’re all wagging off” (BBC Radio Nottingham)BNC
Such nothings can even be cast as betraying the British homeland [1205]. Or, they can get you arrested and chucked into jail where you may be forced to do far viler nothings that wardens reassure us never happened [1206]. Or again, they can get you punished when you do go back to school, though the famed British custom of flogging and caning on the wotsit have (I hope) passed away [1207].
IV.257 Now and then, the same VERB can be either EMPOWERING or DISEMPOWERING, depending on who’s doing essentially nothing, how, and where, such as “loll” and “repose”:
[1208] How I wish thou couldst see our river-terrace when De Malfort is lolling on the marble balustrade, singing to the guitar which he touches so exquisitely (London Pride)
[1209] I now see my husband lolling in an arm-chair, in a dirty powdering gown, soiled linen, ungartered stockings, and tangled hair. (Wrongs of Woman)
[1210] Everything, I flatter myself, correct and appropriate, and quite picturesque: the company, dispersed in happy groups, or reposing on seraglio ottomans, drinking lemonade and sherbet (Absentee)
[1211] the laborious part of the work fell to the share of the females. […] Their husbands […] were reposing in easy indolence under the shade of the trees, or before the tent fires, giving themselves little concern about anything that was going on. (Canadian Crusoes)
IV.258 As for doing work, some EMPOWERING VERBS I find AMELIORATIVE require guidance from context (and I looked hard to find them), e.g. [1212] and [1214], whereas the DISEMPOWERING VERBS seem mostly PEJORATIVE, e.g. [1213] and [1215], and even without guidance, e.g. [1216-17].
[1212] In 1840 Thomas Wilkins, who was running a successful baking business, took over the mill in the centre of Bourton (Mills of Gloucestershire)
[1213] A husband and wife were convicted yesterday of running a brothel next door to a police social club in Cardiff. (Mirror)
[1214] Nigerian-born John Salako has shown himself capable of performing splendidly at left-back in the latter stages of the 1989-90 season. (Palace Centurions)
[1215] The chauvinistic American Jewish magazine Commentary did succeed in performing the outlandish act of disparaging Primo Levi and his books. (Authors)
[1216] until her marriage to Hywell Gates at the age of twenty-five, she had slaved in other peoples houses for a pittance. (Yanto’s Summer)
[1217] My poor mother had got corns on across her knuckles, from scrubbing and skivvying, up there. (Nottingham Oral History)BNC
I surmise that all these usages stem from ambivalent ATTITUDES toward “work” among the diverging classes of and genders in “modern” societies, where working conditions and wages steadily deteriorate and masses of workers are thrown out their jobs (cf. II.131).
IV.F.7.1 PRO-VERBS
IV.259 Over the centuries, grammarians who expatiated on “pro-nouns” seemed unable to recognise the WORD-CLASS of PRO-VERBS (best written with a hyphen), which substitute for VERBS. They are inconspicuous -- “do”, “have”, and “be” -- because they have two other functions. Either they can appear as or PROCESS VERBS which themselves name the ACTION, EVENT or STATE:
[1218] Great shows he does. Maxwell’s is just about sold out (Evan Dando in NYC)WWW
[1219] Martin's got his fertile pin-up. She's a whizz in the kitchen. Three children they have. (Jay Loves Lucy)
[1220] Carrie's got a nurse ter look after the baby while she works be'ind the counter. Very nice young woman. Irish she is. (Cotton Lane)
Or, they can appear as AUXILIARIES which “help” the PROCESS VERBS indicate their ASPECTS
[1221] “I’m having too much fun for this to be work”, she laughs. But work she does, as is evidenced by the lavish flower arrangements. (Tombigbee Healthcare Authority)WWW
[1222] Nurturing the Republican “base” is an obsession of the Bush presidency. We've mostly ignored how well he's succeeded. But succeeded he has. (Marie Cocco in the Washington Post)
[1223] the Steelers were the team to beat, and defeated they were (USA Today)
IV.260 Or again, they function as PRO-VERBS that stand in for actual VERBS in context, much as PRO-NOUNS stand in for NOUNS:
[1224] Not until 2060 will Earth's neighbors present themselves quite as nicely as they do now. (San Francisco Chronicle)
[1225] To listen to someone is the greatest compliment you can pay. Why? Because it so rarely happens that we all treasure it when it does. (Accountancy)
[1226] I glance around the studio and I realise some of the lads, cameramen and sound technicians have been there as long as I have. (Bruce Hockin)
[1227] A brief analysis of Primal Scream's pop career has also taken place, rounded off by a sure-footed declaration from Craig that “the only respect I have for Bobby Gillespie is that he has been closer to Kylie Minogue’s fanny than I have.” (NME)
[1228] “What is your definition of hospitality?” “Making people feel they are at home when you really wish they were.” (London Talkback Radio)BNC
[1229] Lord Archer gets £6,000 a year out of the pockets of taxpayers who are very much poorer than he is. (Bookseller)
Though certainly no offence against “grammar”, repeating the VERB may be considered out of BALANCE except for emphasis:
[1230] She stumbled away towards the lounge, neither forbidding nor encouraging Charlotte to follow. But follow she did. (Hand in Glove)
[1231] The petit bourgeois were contemptible, and therefore it was easy for governments to squeeze them. And squeezed they were. (Friends in High Places)
Admittedly, repetitions are to be expected from inept, rambling speakers:
[1232] I believe we can figure it out. I believe we have figured it out (Bush State of the Union Address)
[1233] I believe Russia is a European country, and European countries embrace those very same values that America embraces. (Bush in Russia)
PRO-VERBS are typically in the same SENTENCE as the VERB [1224-29], but are common enough in a follow-up SENTENCE [1234-36], and in another speaking turn [1237-39].
[1234] Football hooligans were supposed to terrorize London Transport after dark. Maybe they did. Certainly, it was almost impossible to get a taxi in the City after about 8 p.m. (Angel Touch)
[1235] He bet he hadn't survived the raids. There wouldn't be photos of him if he had. (Jubilee Wood)
[1236] I strongly disagree with the letter that MPs voting for the recent Bill to outlaw fox hunting were not voting against cruelty. Of course they were. (Northern Echo)
[1237] “We just stayed put where we were.” “No, you didn't.” “We did”, insisted Gedanken. “But you didn't. You were in orbit.” (Black Holes)
[1238] “Do you think you'll ever be able to forgive me?” “I already have.” (Battle for Love)
[1239] “You were pining upstairs.” “I wasn't pining!” “Yes you were!” “Oh fiddle.” (conversation)BNC
IV.261 Although technically the VERB is singled out for substitution, the PRO-VERB carries the whole PROCESS, such as “terrorize London Transport after dark” [1234], just as a PRO-NOUN can carry a whole AGENT, such as “they” for “MPs voting for the recent Bill to outlaw fox hunting” [1236].
IV.F.8 VERB PHRASES
IV.262 It’s hard to imagine a “grammar” of English failing to inform the world that “the sentence consists of the noun phrase and the verb phrase”. (Actually, the clause is meant rather than the sentence, but the latter has had tradition strongly in its favour.)[Note 17] The consequence of this “consisting” has normally been to separate and treat the two “phrases” if not independently, at least as two decidedly different sorts of units.
IV.263 The tendency of “grammars” has been to feature the NOUN PHRASE in substantially greater length and detail, simply because its organisation seems more distinct and amenable to traditional categories like ARTICLE and DEMONSTRATIVE; and because these are to some extent mutually fixed in their order. Not so the unruly, protean VERB PHRASE, casting up such perennial puzzles as those floating PREPOSITIONS or ADVERBS that cling to certain VERBS, sometimes strongly, sometimes weakly (cf. V.42-52).
IV.264 My strategy would rather be to assess both main PHRASES as well as their mutual proportions in regard to the factors of BALANCE and WEIGHT I have at times invoked (cf. IV.82, 134, 137, 143ff, 182; xxx). Though intuitively recognised by sensitive, practised native speakers or writers in terms of which options and formations “sound better” (or “look better”), these factors may be described from interactions among several sub-factors.
IV.265 LENGTH is the most amenable to describe, applying as appropriate to either ITEMS or PATTERNS. For example, example, the LENGTHY ADVERB “incontestably” appears rarely between the SUBJECT and the VERB “be”, with “was” at only 54 hits on the Net like [1240], but with after “was” at 1380 hits like [1241].
[1240] Second only to Joe Hill as the IWW’s most popular songwriter, T-Bone Slim incontestably was the Wobblie’s greatest “man of letters.” (Franklin Rosemont)
[1241] Amp Fiddler and his live show was incontestably this year's highlight at the legendary Movement Festival in Detroit. (Anglo Plugging)WWW
Apparently, the link between the SUBJECT and its VERB does not readily allow for LENGTHY distance or postponement.
IV.266 The factor of SALIENCE concerns how much impression or attention some item involves, and applies to ‘incontestably” wherever it is placed. By contrast, the ADVERB “sure” hardly merits notice (especially when insincere anyway) and routinely goes before the VERB [1242]. “Surely” is more SALIENT due to more probable sincerity, and in BNC data goes after the VERB “was”, as in [1243], ten times more frequently than before, as in [1244] with SALIENCE aided by the infrequent position.
[1242] He stared with some scorn
at his would-be interviewers.
“Say, that sure was some
book you wrote”, remarked the
reporter, to fill the silence.
“Haven't read it myself yet, bu
[1243] Gemma was surely the most agreeable girl a man could wish for. A good sort and no mistake. Sometimes he could hardly believe his luck. (Song Twice Over)
[1244] Alida did not need her, Alida surely was not afraid to be left alone? (Gentleman and Ladies)
IV.267 The factor of ELABORATION concerns how many components make up a PATTERN. BALANCE hardly permits the ADVERBIAL “without the shadow of a doubt” anywhere but near the FRONT or the END of a CLAUSE [1245-46].
[1245] We have determined that, without the shadow of a doubt, soap was produced using substances obtained from human bodies (National Remembrance Institute, Poland)
[1246] Eddie Colman was a creator, an artist, and would have been one of the game's greats without the shadow of a doubt. (Wilf McGuinness)
In [1245], Paulina Szumera of Poland’s National Remembrance Institute reserved the END for the most SALIENT point about Nazi perfidy. In [1246], Man United Manager McGuinness put the same ADVERBIAL at the END to emphasise the strength of his faith in Coleman, one of the eight team players killed in the 1958 air crash.
IV.268 The FRONT of a CLAUSE is a strategic position for ADVERBS or ADVERBIALS that merit SALIENCE [1247-48] . Ones that do not are mostly VIEWPOINT ADVERBIALS that are not grammatically parts of either NOUN PHRASE or VERB PHRASE, but express the speaker’s outlook or emotion regarding what is being said [1249-50]. These are not hard to distinguish from ordinary ADVERBIALS in the same position [1251-52].
[1247] Desperately, frantically, she waved both arms wildly. But the car had raced past. Wretchedly, Jenny stood on the roadside. (Brownie Stories)
[1248] They are put in prison and labour camps and even killed, because they name Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. Joyfully they endure these hardships (Nathan Wells)WWW
[1249] As a cheeky teenager, Charlie Nicholas earned the nickname the Cannonball Kid. Sadly, Charlie’s arsenal has been dampened and diminished (Independent)
[1250] At Christmas, some fans send two cards to the band. One is for the group and the other is for them to sign and send back. Happily, not all Wedding Present fans are hopelessly in need of affection. (Wedding Present)
[1251] He looked at me with some care. Sadly I followed his eyes, and I too saw what he saw. My snowy cheeks and ruddy lids, the coin-slot of my mouth and its tannic teeth. (Money)
[1252] “I thought you might enjoy some cake”, he said handing over the box and slipping his shoes off.[…]. Happily she allowed him to put the cake on a plate (Dreaming of Sakura)WWW
IV.269 Finally, the factor of COMPATIBILITY concerns expressions being more or less suitable for going together. The ADVERB “stubbornly” is quite COMPATIBLE with VERBS of continuing determined ACTION like “insist”, “persist”, “resist”, and “adhere”, but not so with brief or involuntary ones like “behold”, “sneeze”, or “yawn”.
[1253] Hakim said that he was “rallying against those who are stubbornly persisting in imposing a disastrous situation on our people”. (Keesings)
[1254] ???When his wife stubbornly yawned, the husband just as stubbornly sneezed -- a most indecorous and unsanitary conjugal tete-a-tete. (not authentic)
Multiple ADVERBS or ADVERBIALS in the same VERB PHRASE should also be COMPATIBLE, e.g. [1255] rather than [1247a].
[1255] Gradually, almost imperceptibly, the light strengthened and soon he could make out the shape of boats, [not: ???Gradually, almost instantly…]
[1247a] ?????Desperately, frantically, she waved both arms calmly
IV.270 The organisation of VERB PHRASES being less defined that NOUN PHRASES, the diversity in formation is naturally higher. The SUBJECT is often just a simple PRO-NOUN, e.g., for an AGENT whose identity is already well-known, [1256] or even just as a “dummy” placeholder of form without content [1257]. But a simple PROCESS VERB as the entire VERB PHRASE is not very common except for self-contained, significant ACTIONS like “nodding” [1258] or “smiling” [1258].
[1256] She did not remain at Tintagel; to do so would be useless, hopeless. She saw it now. She had hoped against hope (Wife in Name Only)
[1257] It was not in her to wound people's feelings. […] “It was you who were all so kind to me. It was always just like home there to me." (Australia Felix)
[1258] “Seen the Paris news?” asked Lestrade. Holmes nodded. (Adventure of the Second Stain)
[1259] “I have heard of you before. You are Holmes, the meddler." My friend smiled. "Holmes, the busybody!" His smile broadened. (Adventure of The Speckled Band)
Yet many PROCESS VERBS are quite unlikely to stand so alone, e.g., in SENTENCES like “??I cleared.”, “??She perceived.”, or “??They took.” One feels we ought to hear more about it, e.g.:
[1260] I cleared out the building entirely to the walls and built my station of structural ironwork. (Thomas Edison)
[1261] She perceived in the shock of it only a monstrous fatality, a ludicrously wicked chance. (Pool in the Desert)
[1262] They took seats at a table in a rather retired corner, and gazed with interest at the variegated crowd. (Free Rangers)
IV.271 So the factor of BALANCE plainly does not imply that SUBJECT and PREDICATE should have equal WEIGHT. They are designed to perform different modes of “grammatical work”, with the PREDICATE normally carrying a substantially WEIGHTIER load:
[1263] Danny Kyle was funny, irreverent, deeply sensitive, sometimes very hard to get along with, a real human being, and a pleasure to be around. (D.C. Bonaccorsi)WWW
[1264] Meanwhile, during the winter of 1946-7, Kerouac met Neal Cassady, the prototype of his most famous creation, the joyrider Dean Moriarty, the virile Huck Finn of his masterpiece On the Road. (Telegraph)
Yet the BALANCE can be rather sensitive in detail. Why, for instance, is it more satisfying in [1265] than in [1265a]?
[1265] With a little practice you should be able to brew 40 pints of good cheap beer in less than three hours’ work. (CAMRA)BNC
[1265a] In less than three hours’ work you should be able to brew 40 pints of good cheap beer with a little practice.
I would say that the COMPATIBILITY between the large amount and the short time invested is more persuasive than requirement of “little practice”. Theoretically, a fanatic beer-maker who drank his ready beer while he brewed the next batch would always be well ahead; I doubt anyone could drink 40 pints in three hours, though a fellow student of mine in Heidelberg, so I heard, got through 36 pints in a single night; and I see from the Net that on 22 June 1977, Steven Petrosino of Carlise, Pennsylvania, is claimed to have drunk a litre of beer in an incredible 1.3 seconds -- the Guinness World Record.
Ironically, Guinness removed all records for beer drinking from their record book in 1991, leaving the capacious Steven the all time champ.
IV.272 English grammar books have felt most comfortable when the PREDICATE contains a FINITE AGREEING VERB, either a PROCESS VERB [1267] or its AUXILIARY [1268].
[1266] Ludo strikes a match, turns on the gas, and holds the flame to it. (Payback)
[1267] BBC Books has struck a lucrative lode with tie-ins to its estimable television series Gardeners World (Bookseller)
They also all approve the sturdy DIRECT OBJECT which they like to name the “object of the action”, as clearly fits data like [1268-69], and to disregard the data which neither of the terms in this name readily fit, e.g. [1270-71].
[1268] Vampires Stole My Lunch Money (Mick Farren)
[1269] The wicked Dr Mamuk has stolen the secret plans for a virtual reality chamber (Mirror)