Verb Phrase Definition & Meaning

American

British

Examples

verb phrase American

noun

Grammar.

1. a group of words including a verb and its complements, objects, or other modifiers that functions syntactically as a verb. In English a verb phrase combines with a noun or noun phrase acting as subject to form a simple sentence.

2. a phrase consisting of a main verb and any auxiliaries but not including modifiers, objects, or complements.

verb phrase British

noun

1. VP. grammar a constituent of a sentence that contains the verb and any direct and indirect objects but not the subject. It is a controversial question in grammatical theory whether or not this constituent is to be identified with the predicate of the sentence

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

They can also show up as an adjunct to a verb phrase or clause, as in She died young And They showed up drunk.

From Literature

The cat in the hat can be merged with a verb phrase to create a new object, a sentence: The cat in the hat came back.

From Economist

The more natural place for an adverb like “soon” is between the parts of the verb phrase.

From New York Times

Some people, she explains, produce complex noun phrases and simple verb phrases; others produce complex adverbial phrases, and so on.

From Washington Post

Another is the rule that “like” joins noun phrases, while “as” or “as if” is for verb phrases.

From The New Yorker

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.