English grammar - Roger Berry 2012
A6.2 Verb phrase structure
A6 Auxiliaries and the verb phrase
Section A. Introduction
Verb phrases are composed of a verb and up to four auxiliaries. The auxiliaries are all optional; only the main verb element - equivalent to the head of noun phrases - is obligatory (except in the case of ellipsis - see B11).
They sang.
They are singing.
They have sung.
It is sung.
The primary auxiliaries be and have, in conjunction with the participles, are used to form the three aspects (perfect, progressive and perfect progressive) as well as the passive forms of verbs.
Verb phrases in English may seem very chaotic, but in fact they are constructed according to a very systematic set of principles. In order to construct correct verb phrases, you need to know three things:
1. The forms needed for each verb phrase; thus have + -ed participle for the perfect aspect be + -ing participle for the progressive aspect be + -ed participle for the passive
2. The order of the auxiliary elements:
MODAL then PERFECT then PROGRESSIVE then PASSIVE
3. The principle of ’jumping endings’, by which the participle ending is placed not with its own auxiliary but with the following auxiliary or main verb; it ’jumps over’. For example, the (present) perfect of look is formed by the use of have plus the -ed participle. But we do not say ’I had look’ (with the -ed participle of had); rather we say I have looked, where the -ed participle has jumped to the end of look.
Here is a table showing these three principles at work to form the most complex verb phrase, consisting of four auxiliaries plus verb: for example, will have been being sung (This, by the way, is very rare; most verb phrases are simpler.) Note how the participle endings have all jumped over the following auxiliary or verb.
Table A6.2.1 Verb phrase structure
We should note the confusing nature of English here: the fact that be potentially appears twice in verb phrase structure, as does the -ed participle. In speech there is also the fact that been done sounds like being done. In addition, the primary auxiliaries are often contracted, which can lead to further confusion (see A7).
We can use these three principles to understand why certain verb phrases are incorrectly constructed. Let’s take an example: ’They are been found.’ You can tell that this is wrong, but why? Let’s analyse the text:
Figure A6.2.1 Analysis of incorrect verb phrase structure 1
The problem, then, with this verb phrase is that it consists of a double passive.
Activity A6.1
Look at the three sentences below. Two are incorrect and one is correct. Say which one is correct and explain why the other two are incorrect using the above principles of verb phrase structure.
a) They have being found.
b) They have been being found.
c) They are having found.