Mastering Verbs as Complements in English

Think of a verb as the engine of a sentence. But sometimes, that engine leaves you hanging with an incomplete thought, like "She seems…" or "They made…". A verb complement is the word or phrase that jumps in to finish the idea, making the sentence feel whole and actually make sense.

What Are Verb Complements Anyway?

Imagine telling a friend, "The movie was…" and just stopping. They'd be waiting for the punchline! You need something extra, like "fantastic" or "a total disaster," to complete the meaning. These extra parts aren't just optional add-ons; they're essential puzzle pieces that give a sentence its full power.

Without complements, our language would be full of confusing, half-finished statements. They are the grammatical glue that connects a verb to the rest of its meaning, making sure every sentence has a definite purpose.

A verb complement is a key part of a sentence that follows a verb and gives necessary information to complete its meaning. It can describe, rename, or add context to the subject or object.

To put it simply, if a verb leaves you asking "what?" or "who?" about the subject or object, the answer is almost always the complement. Getting a handle on how these work is a huge step toward building stronger sentences. For those looking to master these fine points, exploring ways to improve your English writing skills can give you a fantastic foundation.

A Quick Look at Complement Types

To get a better picture right from the start, let's break down the main types of verb complements. Each one plays a slightly different role, but they all share the same goal: finishing what the verb started.

The table below offers a simple snapshot of the main categories we’ll be looking into. Don't worry about memorizing it all right now; just use it as a handy reference to see how all the pieces fit together.

Quick Overview of Verb Complement Types

As you can see, each type adds a specific kind of detail. We'll explore all of these more deeply throughout this guide to make sure you know exactly how and when to use them.

Connecting Subjects and Objects with Complements

Once you understand that some verbs need a partner to finish their thought, the next step is seeing how these partners—the complements—flesh out the nouns in a sentence. Think of them as spotlights, shining extra information on either the sentence's subject or its object. This is how we get from basic statements to rich, descriptive sentences.

Let's kick things off by looking at how complements connect back to the main character of the sentence: the subject.

Shining a Light on the Subject

A subject complement is a word or phrase that follows a linking verb (like is, was, seems, becomes, or feels) and either describes or renames the subject. The easiest way to think about linking verbs is as an equals sign; whatever is on one side of the verb is being equated with what's on the other.

If you just say, "The coffee is," your listener is left hanging. That sentence desperately needs a complement to complete the idea.

• The coffee is hot. (Here, the adjective "hot" describes the subject, "coffee.")
• The movie became a classic. (The noun phrase "a classic" renames the subject, "movie.")

Without these complements, the linking verb can't actually do its job of linking the subject to its description or new identity.

Here's a quick test for a subject complement: try swapping the subject and the complement. If the sentence still makes sense, you've got one. "He is an artist" becomes "An artist is he." It might sound a bit formal or old-fashioned, but grammatically, it holds up.

This connection is direct and important. The complement tells us more about the "who" or "what" at the start of the sentence, adding essential detail that keeps the story moving.

Adding Detail to the Object

While subject complements focus on the sentence's main actor, object complements give us more information about the noun that receives the action. An object complement follows a direct object, and its job is to describe or rename it. You'll typically see this happen with action verbs like make, consider, find, name, or paint.

Consider this sentence: "The judges found the performance…" Again, it feels unfinished. We need an object complement to tell us what they thought about the performance.

• The judges found the performance flawless. (The adjective "flawless" is describing the direct object, "performance.")

Notice that "flawless" isn't describing the judges (the subject); it’s aimed squarely at the performance (the object). The structure breaks down like this:

Subject + Action Verb + Direct Object + Object Complement

Let's look at a few more examples to see this pattern in action:

• She named her cat Shadow. ("Shadow" renames the object, "cat.")
• We painted the room a calming blue. ("A calming blue" describes the object, "room.")
• I consider him a great friend. ("A great friend" renames the object, "him.")

In every case, the final part of the sentence adds crucial information about the direct object, not the subject. This is a great technique for packing more detail into a single, efficient sentence. Writing clearly can be tough, but a high-quality tool like Word Spinner can help you rephrase ideas, play with different complement structures, and polish your content until it sounds completely natural. This leading choice for rewriting is designed to humanize text and guarantee it's always plagiarism-free.

Learning to spot the difference between subject and object complements is key. The main question to ask yourself is: "Which noun is this word or phrase describing?" If it points back to the subject after a linking verb, it’s a subject complement. If it adds detail to the direct object after an action verb, it’s an object complement. Mastering this gives you so much more control over your writing.

Choosing Between Infinitives and Gerunds

Figuring out when to use different verb forms as complements can feel like you've hit a tricky grammatical intersection. The two you'll run into most often are infinitives (the to + verb form, like to run) and gerunds (the verb + -ing form, like running). The right choice almost always comes down to the main verb that precedes it, and this is exactly where a lot of people get tripped up.

Think of it like a dance partnership. Some verbs are picky and will only pair up with an infinitive, while others much prefer the company of a gerund. Your goal is to learn which verbs prefer which partner. Once you get the hang of it, your sentences will sound smoother and more natural—a huge step toward writing and speaking with more fluency.

Verbs That Partner with Infinitives

A whole slew of common verbs in English are followed by an infinitive complement. These verbs usually express things like intentions, plans, desires, or decisions about a future action. When you spot one of these, your grammar GPS should immediately point you toward the to + verb form.

Here are some of the most common verbs that take an infinitive:

• Want: She wants to visit the museum.
• Plan: We plan to travel next summer.
• Decide: He decided to accept the job offer.
• Hope: They hope to arrive on time.
• Need: I need to finish this report.
• Offer: She offered to help me move.

In every one of these examples, the infinitive completes the thought started by the main verb. It tells us the specific action that is wanted, planned, or decided. Dropping a gerund in here would just sound wrong (e.g., "She wants visiting").

The chart below gives a simple visual for figuring out different types of complements.

This kind of guide is great for sorting out whether a complement connects to a linking verb or an action verb, which is a really fundamental idea in grammar.

Verbs That Partner with Gerunds

Over on the other side of the dance floor, you’ll find verbs that exclusively team up with gerunds. These verbs often have to do with experiences, feelings, or starting and stopping an activity. A gerund acts like a noun, turning an action into a concept or a thing.

Here are some everyday verbs that need a gerund complement:

• Enjoy: I enjoy reading classic novels.
• Avoid: You should avoid making that mistake again.
• Finish: Have you finished writing your essay?
• Suggest: He suggested going for a walk.
• Mind: Do you mind waiting a few minutes?
• Admit: She admitted taking the last cookie.

Just like before, trying to swap in the wrong form feels clunky and unnatural (e.g., "I enjoy to read"). For a deeper dive into how word choice impacts sentence flow, check out these different types of diction in writing.

This pattern isn't just some modern quirk of English, either. The infinitive's dominance as a complement has deep historical roots. Over hundreds of years, English gradually shifted away from more complex structures and started favoring infinitives. By the late 18th century, corpus studies show that infinitive complements already made up about 65% of all verb complement constructions in written English—a trend that just kept growing.

The Tricky Verbs That Use Both

Okay, this is where it gets really interesting. A special group of verbs can actually take either an infinitive or a gerund, but the meaning of the sentence changes depending on which one you pick. These verbs are powerful because they let you create subtle shifts in meaning.

Key Insight: With verbs like remember, forget, stop, and try, the gerund often refers to a past action or general experience. The infinitive, on the other hand, usually points to a future action or a specific purpose.

Let's break down the most common ones:

• Remember

  • Gerund: I remember meeting her last year. (I have a memory of a past event.)
  • Infinitive: Please remember to lock the door. (Don't forget to perform a future action.)

• Stop

  • Gerund: He stopped smoking for his health. (He quit the habit completely.)
  • Infinitive: He stopped to smoke on his way home. (He paused what he was doing in order to do something else.)

• Try

  • Gerund: I tried calling her, but she didn't answer. (I made an attempt or experimented with a solution.)
  • Infinitive: I tried to open the jar, but it was stuck. (I made a real effort to do something difficult.)

Understanding these subtleties is a true sign of an advanced English speaker. It allows you to express your ideas with much greater precision. While memorizing lists can help, the best way to really master the choice between infinitives and gerunds is to pay close attention to the context of the conversation.

A Guide to Verb Complements for English Learners

If you’re learning English, getting a handle on the finer points of grammar is a huge leap toward sounding more natural. Verbs as complements are one of those key areas that really makes a difference. It’s often the little things, like knowing when to say to go versus going, that separate pretty good English from truly great English.

This guide is designed with the learner in mind. We'll walk through the common hurdles, especially that tricky task of remembering which verbs pair with a gerund and which need an infinitive. The secret isn't about memorizing endless rules; it's about developing a feel for how the language really works.

The Typical Learning Path

For most English learners, the journey with verb complements is pretty predictable. Research into language acquisition consistently shows that beginners lean heavily on simple infinitive forms. It's just the most direct way to link two actions together.

For example, a new speaker will quickly pick up phrases like "I want to eat" or "She needs to study." This is a perfectly natural and effective starting point. As you get more comfortable with the language, you’ll start weaving in other forms, like gerunds and clauses, bringing more subtlety and precision to your sentences.

A study that followed English learners for three years revealed that beginners used infinitive complements 82% of the time. By the advanced stage, that figure dropped to 65%. Meanwhile, gerund use jumped from just 8% to 22%, showing a definite shift toward more varied, native-sounding speech.

This progression is totally normal. It means that as you expose yourself to more English, your internal sense of its patterns grows right along with it. For a deeper dive, you can read the full research on verb complementation patterns.

Practical Tips for Memorization

Don't try to memorize a giant, random list of verbs. That's a recipe for frustration. A much smarter approach is to group them by the type of complement they take. This breaks a massive task down into smaller, more manageable chunks.

• Group 1: Verbs for Infinitives: Start by gathering verbs that point to the future—plans, goals, or desires. Think of words like want, hope, plan, decide, and promise. All of them point to an action that hasn't happened yet, which is a great mental cue that they need an infinitive (to do something).

• Group 2: Verbs for Gerunds: Next, create a list of verbs that express feelings or experiences. This group includes words like enjoy, dislike, avoid, and finish. These verbs usually talk about an activity as a whole concept, which is exactly what a gerund (doing something) is for.

• Group 3: The "Both" Verbs: Make a special, much shorter list for tricky verbs like remember, stop, and try. For these, the key is to write out example sentences that clearly show the change in meaning. For instance: "I stopped to talk to her" (I paused my journey for a purpose) versus "I stopped talking to her" (I ended the habit of conversation).

Simple Sentence Building Activities

The best way to make this knowledge stick is to put it into practice. Start with simple sentence prompts and build from there. Pick a verb like "suggest" and challenge yourself to create three different sentences using it with a gerund:

• "He suggested ordering pizza."
• "She suggested waiting until tomorrow."
• "They suggested taking a different route."

This kind of repetition builds muscle memory, helping the patterns feel second nature over time. And if you're looking for a more complete approach to boost your overall speaking and writing, you might find these practical tips for English fluency really useful. Remember, every small step forward builds confidence and gets you closer to your goal.

Common Verb Complement Mistakes to Avoid

Working with verbs as complements can feel like learning a new dance. One wrong step, and the rhythm is thrown off completely. Everyone stumbles a bit with grammar, but the trick is learning to spot those missteps so you can correct them on the fly.

This section will highlight the most common trip-ups people run into with verb complements. Once you know what to look for, you can start catching and fixing these errors in your own writing, building more confidence with every sentence.

Mixing Up Infinitives and Gerunds

This is, by far, the biggest hurdle. As we’ve covered, some verbs are just plain picky about who they partner with. Using a gerund where an infinitive belongs (or the other way around) is a dead giveaway that something isn't right. It’s the grammatical equivalent of wearing mismatched shoes—it just looks off.

Let’s see this classic mistake in action:

• Incorrect: I want going to the concert.

• Correct: I want to go to the concert.

  • Why it's wrong: The verb "want" points to a future desire or plan. That’s a definite signal it needs an infinitive to complete the thought.

• Incorrect: She avoids to eat junk food.

• Correct: She avoids eating junk food.

  • Why it's wrong: "Avoid" refers to an action as a general concept or habit. This is the perfect job for a gerund, which essentially treats an action like a thing.

A good mental shortcut is to categorize your verbs. If a verb is about a future plan, goal, or decision (plan, hope, decide, want), it almost always takes an infinitive. If it’s about an experience or a general feeling (enjoy, dislike, finish, suggest), it’s probably looking for a gerund.

Confusing Subject and Object Complements

Another tricky spot is figuring out which noun a complement is actually describing. Is it giving us more information about the subject at the start of the sentence, or is it telling us something about the object that comes after the verb? Getting this wrong can really muddy your meaning.

Remember, a subject complement comes after a linking verb (like is, seems, feels) and renames or describes the subject. An object complement follows a direct object and does the same for that object.

Here’s where it often goes sideways:

• Incorrect: The crowd made the singer nervously.

• Correct: The crowd made the singer nervous.

  • Why it's wrong: "Nervously" is an adverb, which tells us how an action is done. But we don't want to describe how the crowd made the singer; we want to describe the singer's state of being. The adjective "nervous" is the right tool for the job because it’s an object complement modifying the object ("singer").

• Incorrect: I consider my brother as a friend.

• Correct: I consider my brother a friend.

  • Why it's wrong: Certain verbs like "consider," "make," and "name" create a direct link and don't need a preposition like "as" to connect the object to its complement.

A quick way to double-check is to ask: "What is this word describing?" In "The crowd made the singer nervous," the word "nervous" is clearly describing the singer. That confirms it's an object complement doing its job.

Forgetting the Object Before an Infinitive

Some verbs just won't work with an infinitive complement unless there’s an object sitting between them. Verbs like ask, tell, allow, encourage, and want often follow this structure. If you leave that object out, the sentence feels clunky and incomplete.

• Incorrect: The manager told to finish the report by Friday.

• Correct: The manager told us to finish the report by Friday.

  • Why it's wrong: You can't just "tell" into the void! The verb "told" needs a recipient for the command. You have to include an object (like "us," "him," or "the team") before adding the infinitive phrase.

• Incorrect: She encouraged to apply for the scholarship.

• Correct: She encouraged me to apply for the scholarship.

  • Why it's wrong: Just like with "told," the verb "encouraged" has to act on someone. There needs to be a target for the encouragement.

Learning to recognize these common errors is the first step toward getting rid of them for good. By paying attention to the specific verb you're using and what it needs to make sense, you'll be writing sentences that are not only correct but also much clearer and more powerful.

Practical Exercises for Better Writing

Theory is one thing, but the best way to really get a handle on grammar is to roll up your sleeves and put it to work. This is where the ideas you’ve learned about verbs as complements start to click. Moving from just reading about it to actually doing it is what makes these rules stick.

I've put together a few exercises to help you test your skills. You'll get to practice everything from picking the right verb form to building your own sentences from scratch. Take your time, and don't be afraid to make a few mistakes—that’s how we all learn.

Exercise 1: Fill in the Blanks

For this one, just choose the correct verb form (the infinitive or the gerund) to make the sentence work. The goal here is to get better at spotting which verbs pair with which kind of complement.

1. She decided ______ (study/to study) abroad next year.
2. We really enjoy ______ (watch/watching) old movies on weekends.
3. Would you mind ______ (open/opening) the window?
4. He promised ______ (call/to call) as soon as he arrived.
5. They suggested ______ (go/going) for a hike.

Exercise 2: Sentence Correction

Each sentence below has an error. Your job is to find it and fix it. Pay close attention to how the main verb connects with its complement.

1. My doctor advised to get more rest.
2. The team celebrated to win the championship.
3. He made his daughter happyly.
4. I remember to meet him at the conference last year.
5. Do you plan applying for the new position?

Once you've tried these, you can take it a step further. Improving your work is a key part of writing well. A tool like Word Spinner can be great for this stage. Its advanced rewriting capabilities help you see different ways to phrase your sentences, which is perfect for polishing your text until it sounds completely natural. If you want to get better at improving text, learning how to make a summary of your main ideas is also a fantastic skill to develop.

Exercise 3: Sentence Creation

Now it's your turn to be the writer. Use these prompts to build your own original sentences. This is the best way to get comfortable using these grammatical structures in your day-to-day writing.

1. Write a sentence using the verb "avoid" followed by a gerund.
2. Create a sentence where "consider" is followed by an object and an object complement.
3. Write a sentence using "hope" followed by an infinitive.

Answer Key:
Exercise 1: 1. to study, 2. watching, 3. opening, 4. to call, 5. going
Exercise 2: 1. advised me to get, 2. celebrated winning, 3. made his daughter happy, 4. remember meeting, 5. plan to apply
Exercise 3: (Answers will vary) 1. He avoids eating spicy food. 2. She considers him a true friend. 3. We hope to see you soon.

Frequently Asked Questions

To wrap things up, let's tackle some of the most common questions that pop up when learning about verbs as complements. This quick Q&A should clear up any lingering confusion and help solidify your understanding.

Can a Single Sentence Have More Than One Verb Complement?

Yes, absolutely. This happens all the time, especially in more complex sentences. Think of it as a chain reaction where one action or idea sets off another.

For example, take this sentence: "She asked him to stop making that noise." The main verb, asked, is completed by the entire phrase that follows. But inside that phrase, the verb stop has its own complement: "making that noise."

What Is the Real Difference Between a Direct Object and an Object Complement?

This is a fantastic question and a classic point of confusion. A direct object is simply the thing or person that gets the verb's action directly. An object complement, however, follows the direct object and tells you more about it, either by renaming it or describing it.

Let's look at the difference:

• Direct Object: "I painted the car." (The car received the action of painting.)
• Object Complement: "I painted the car red." (The word "red" describes the car, not the action itself.)

Are Clauses Starting with "That" a Type of Verb Complement?

They certainly are. A "that"-clause is a specific type of complement that functions as a single noun phrase, completing the meaning of the main verb. You'll often see these clauses tagging along after verbs related to thinking, knowing, or feeling.

For instance, in the sentence, "I believe that you will succeed," the entire clause "that you will succeed" is the complement for the verb believe. It's the "what" that is believed.

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