Representing being and having
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Using linking verbs | page 6 of 7 |
Indicating change
There is a group of commonly used linking verbs that indicate a change from one
situation to another. Such verbs include become, go, turn, grow, get and fall.
These verbs can all be used in descriptive clauses
when the complement is an adjective
:
He told me how his hair had turned white because of the ferocity of the fighting. (Bank of English)
He felt he had hurt her and he grew angry. (Bank of English)
Become can be followed by a noun group, as can turn and grow provided
that they are followed by into:
Yu had not returned to being a dance hostess after she divorced her husband. Instead, she became a $5,000-a-month sales assistant at Maxim's cake shop. (SCMP 25/3/94)
On 6 June, a demonstration against a Chinese bank in the tough, working class district of Mongkok turned into a night of localised rioting.
(Microconcord Corpus A)
Generally, only become can be used in identifying
clauses:
Sterling, however, was relatively calmer as fears of crisis blew over, at least temporarily, and as the strengthening dollar became the centre of attention. (Microconcord Corpus A)
Introduction
Indicating change
