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meaning - What is a finite verb?


What's a finite verb? It's not just the opposite of an infinitive, is it? Can I get some examples?



Answer



Thinking of a finite verb as the opposite of an infinitive isn't a bad way to start, actually.


The core definition of a finite verb is one that is inflected for person and tense. Typically only finite verbs can act as the main verb of a sentence. In the following examples, the italicized verbs are finite:



I wanted to go to the store.


The girls were talking to each other loudly.


A child has gone missing.



However, the bolded segments above, while part of the verb phrase, are non-finite verbs. The first is an infinitive, the second is a present participle, and the third is a past participle, these being the primary forms of non-finite verbs in English. If you remove the finite verb from all of the sentences above you no longer have a complete sentence.


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