Stative verbs (verbs not used in the continuous)
የሁኔታ ግሦች (stative verbs)፦ በቀጣይ ጊዜ የማይገቡ ግሦች
Verbs like know, like, want, own and seem describe states, not actions, so they are not normally used in continuous (-ing) tenses: I know (not I'm knowing).
States and actions
An action has a beginning and an end and can be 'in progress': cook, run, write. A state just is, with no movement: know, believe, belong. Continuous tenses show something in progress, so they don't fit states. Even when you mean 'right now', use the simple form: I need help right now (not I'm needing). Amharic says አውቀዋለሁ or እፈልጋለሁ without any progressive, so this rule is natural; the mistake comes when learners add -ing to every 'now' sentence.
In Amharic
ድርጊት መጀመሪያና መጨረሻ አለው፤ "በሂደት ላይ" ሊሆን ይችላል፦ cook, run, write። ሁኔታ ግን እንቅስቃሴ የሌለው ዝም ብሎ ያለ ነገር ነው፦ know, believe, belong። ቀጣይ ጊዜያት በሂደት ላይ ያለን ነገር ያሳያሉ፤ ስለዚህ ለሁኔታዎች አይስማሙም። "አሁን" ማለት ቢፈልጉም ቀላሉን ቅርጽ ይጠቀሙ፦ I need help right now (I'm needing አይደለም)። አማርኛ "አውቀዋለሁ"፣ "እፈልጋለሁ" ያለ ቀጣይ ቅርጽ ይላል፤ ስለዚህ ይህ ሕግ ተፈጥሯዊ ነው፤ ስሕተቱ የሚመጣው ተማሪዎች "አሁን" ባለበት ዓረፍተ ነገር ሁሉ -ing ሲጨምሩ ነው።
| Group | Common stative verbs |
|---|---|
| Mind / thinking | know, believe, understand, remember, forget, mean, realise, suppose, doubt, think (= believe) |
| Feelings | like, love, hate, prefer, want, need, wish, mind, care |
| Owning | have (= own), own, belong, possess |
| Senses | see, hear, smell, taste, feel (= have an opinion / a texture) |
| Being / appearance | be, seem, appear, look (= seem), resemble, cost, weigh, contain, include, depend, matter, fit |
- Use stative verbs in simple tenses: present simple, past simple, present perfect (I've known her for years).
- With senses, use can for 'right now': I can hear the baby (not I'm hearing).
- I don't understand this letter from the insurance company.
- This apartment costs $1,400 a month.
- Do you remember her name?
- The car belongs to my brother.
- I can smell coffee. Is someone making buna?
Verbs with two meanings
Some verbs are stative with one meaning and action verbs with another. Then the continuous is fine for the action meaning. think: I think it's a good idea (opinion, state) / I'm thinking about changing jobs (the mind is working, action). have: I have a car (own) / I'm having lunch (eating, action). See if the meaning is a state or an activity.
In Amharic
አንዳንድ ግሦች በአንድ ትርጉም የሁኔታ፣ በሌላ ትርጉም የድርጊት ግሦች ናቸው። ያኔ ለድርጊቱ ትርጉም ቀጣዩ ይሠራል። think፦ I think it's a good idea (አስተያየት፣ ሁኔታ) / I'm thinking about changing jobs (አእምሮው እየሠራ ነው፣ ድርጊት)። have፦ I have a car (ባለቤትነት) / I'm having lunch (መብላት፣ ድርጊት)። ትርጉሙ ሁኔታ ነው ወይስ እንቅስቃሴ የሚለውን ይመልከቱ።
| Verb | State (simple only) | Action (continuous OK) |
|---|---|---|
| think | I think he's right. (= believe) | I'm thinking about it. (= considering) |
| have | She has two kids. (= own) | She's having a baby / a party / a shower. |
| see | I see what you mean. (= understand) | I'm seeing the doctor tomorrow. (= meeting) |
| taste | The soup tastes salty. | He's tasting the soup. (= testing) |
| look | You look tired. (= seem) | What are you looking at? |
| be | He is rude. (his character) | He's being rude. (his behaviour now) |
- I'm loving it / I'm liking it is informal, from advertising and speech; in writing and tests, use I love it / I like it.
- What do you think of the new manager? — I think she's fair.
- I'm thinking of moving to Henderson.
- We're having injera tonight. Do you want to come?
- Why are you smelling the milk? — I think it smells bad.
Common mistakes
| Mistake | Correct | Why |
|---|---|---|
| I know the address. | know is a state verb: simple form. | |
| I need a ride to work. | need is a state verb. | |
| This phone costs $900. | cost is a state verb. | |
| I have two brothers. | have = own/possess: no continuous. | |
| Do you understand me? | understand is a state verb. | |
| I can hear music from next door. | Senses right now: can + verb. |
Practice
Each answer is checked as you go, with the reason. Nothing here is saved.
I ___ your sister. We went to school together.
Which verb is NOT normally used in the continuous?
This bag ___ (belong) to me. (one word)
We ___ dinner. Can I call you back?
I ___ about going back to school.
I ___ it's a good idea.
Correct it: “I'm wanting a coffee.” → I ___ a coffee. (one word)
How much ___ these shoes cost? (one word)
Listen! I ___ a siren.
He ___ very rude today. That's not like him.
I've ___ (know) him for ten years. (one word)