Verbs + WH -CLAUSE (With Example)
Verbs + WH-CLAUSE
1) Some verbs can be followed by a clause beginning with a
wh-word (how, what, when, where, which, who, or why). Other verbs like this
include arrange, calculate, check, choose, debate, determine, discover,
discuss, establish, find out, forget, guess, imagine, know, learn, notice,
plan, realize, remember, say, see, talk about, think (about), understand,
wonder…
Example:
- That might explain why he’s looking unhappy.
- Let’s consider how we can solve the problem.
- I couldn’t decide which train I ought to catch.
NOTE:
ç These verbs can
also be followed by a wh-word (except ‘why’) + to-infinitive.
Example:
- I don’t understand what to do.
- She calculated how much to pay on the back of an envelope.
ç But notice that
if we change the subject in the wh-clause we can’t use a to-infinitive.
Example: I
can’t imagine what you like about jazz. (but not I can’t imagine what to…)
2) Some verbs must have an object before the wh-clause. Other
verbs like this include advise, inform, instruct, teach, warn, remind, tell…
Example:
- She reminded me where I had to leave the papers
- We told Derek and Linda how to get to our new house.
NOTE:
ç The verbs ask and show often have an object before a wh-clause,
but not always.
Example: I asked (him) how I could get to the station, and he told me.
ç These verbs can
also be followed by an object + wh-word + to-infinitive.
Example:
- She taught me how to play chess.
- I showed him what to look for when he was buying a second-hand
car.
ç We can often use the way instead of how.
Example: Have you noticed the way he spins the ball. (or …how he spins
the ball.)
3) Whether
ç We can use whether as the wh-word in
a wh-clause when we want to indicate that something is possible, but that other
things are also possible. Whether has a similar meaning to ‘if’.
Example:
- He couldn’t remember whether he had turned the computer off.
- Can you find out whether she’s coming to the party or not.
ç Whether can be
followed by a to-infinitive, but ‘if’ is never used before a to-infinitive.
Verbs that are often followed by whether + to-infinitive include choose,
consider, debate, decide, determine, discuss, know, wonder…
Example: The
have 14 days to decide whether to keep it or send it back.
NOTE: The
difference between the pairs of sentences below. The first has a wh-clause with
whether and the second has a that-clause.
Example:
- I didn’t know whether the university was shut. (= if the
university was shut or not)
- I didn’t know that the university was shut. (suggests that the
university was shut)
- We couldn’t see whether he was injured. (= if he was injured
or not)
- We couldn’t se that he was injured. (suggests that he was
injured)
What Is aVerb? (With Example)
Types ofverb (With example)
Transitive verbs
Finite verb
Non-finite verb
Linking verbs
REGULAR VERBS
IRREGULAR VERBS
Causative verbs
Stative verbs and dynamic verbs
OVERALLSPECIAL VERBS
Phrasal verbs
VERB +TO-INFINITIVE OR BARE INFINITIVE
VERB +TO-INFINITIVE OR GERUND
VERB +OBJECT + TO-INFINITIVE OR GERUND
Verbs + WH-CLAUSE (With Example)
HAVE/GET ANDWANT SOMETHING DONE
VERBS + TWOOBJECTS ( With Example)
MOOD (With Example)
Phrasal verbswith a verb + preposition
PHRASALVERBS WITH A VERB + AN ADVERB
DISTINGUISHING PHRASAL VERB
PHRASALVERBS WITH A VERB + AN ADVERB OR A PREPOSITION
PHRASALVERBS WITH A VERB +AN ADVERB + A PREPOSITION
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