An action verb tells you what the subject does. It can be a physical action (jump, carry, type, cook) or a mental one (decide, calculate, learn, consider). Action verbs contrast with linking verbs, which connect a subject to a description (She seems tired), and with auxiliary verbs, which help another verb (She is running — is helps, running is the action).
Action verbs also matter beyond grammar class: precise ones like led, negotiated, and reduced make writing and resumes clearer than vague phrases like was responsible for. This guide covers the grammar first, then strong action verbs for writing, and the 30 exercises test both.
Action Verbs Quiz: 30 Questions
Warm-up · spot the action verb
Core · stative vs dynamic verbs
Challenge · strong action verbs for writing and resumes
Answer key and explanationsOpen after you finish the quiz.
- 1. chasedChased is what the dog does, so it is the action verb. Dog and ball are nouns, and across is a preposition showing direction.
- 2. She teaches math.Teaches describes something she does. In the other sentences is, seems, and was are linking verbs that connect she to a noun or adjective describing her.
- 3. decideDecide describes an act of the mind, so it is a mental action verb. Seem and become are linking verbs, and appear is either linking (appear calm) or a physical event (appear on stage), not a mental act.
- 4. An action verbHe is touching the wall, and the wall is the object of that action, so felt is an action verb. Replacing it with was (“He was the rough wall”) produces nonsense.
- 5. A linking verbHere felt links he to the adjective sick and shows no action: He was sick after lunch keeps the meaning. Many sense verbs switch between linking and action uses like this.
- 6. buildBuild is the action. Will is a modal auxiliary that helps it express the future, but it does not describe an action itself.
- 7. seemSeem is a linking verb: it connects a subject to a description (You seem calm) and shows no action. Run and write are physical actions, and calculate is a mental one.
- 8. She laughed.An intransitive verb has no direct object, and She laughed is complete without one. Kicked and wrote are transitive here: they act on the ball and the letter.
- 9. The chef sliced the onions.Sliced takes a direct object (the onions), so it is transitive. Slept and arrived are intransitive: you cannot sleep something or arrive something.
- 10. the fenceThe fence receives the action of painted, so it is the direct object. Maria is the subject who performs the action, and painted is the action verb.
- 11. I know the answer.Know is a stative verb — it describes a state of mind, not an action in progress — so it normally stays in the simple form: I know. The continuous I am knowing is a common learner error.
- 12. This book belongs to Sam.Belong describes possession, a state rather than an action, so it is not used in the continuous: belongs. Belong without -s breaks agreement with the singular subject this book.
- 13. wantWant describes a desire, which is a state, so we say I want a coffee, not I am wanting a coffee. Run, eat, and jump are dynamic and work naturally in the continuous.
- 14. She is having a shower right now.Have is stative when it means possess (She has two cars) but dynamic in expressions like have a shower, have lunch, or have a meeting, which can be continuous. Is have mixes up the forms.
- 15. I’m thinking about changing jobs.Thinking about = actively considering, which is a mental action and can be continuous. Think meaning have an opinion (I think you’re right) is stative and stays simple.
- 16. am listeningListen is a dynamic action verb, and the action is happening right now, so use the present continuous: am listening. Am listen and listening alone are incomplete forms.
- 17. understandUnderstand is stative: it describes a mental state, not an action you are carrying out. Standard English uses the simple form: I understand what you mean.
- 18. is tastingTaste is an action verb here (the chef is testing the sauce), so the continuous is fine: is tasting. Tastes of is the linking-type use (The sauce tastes of garlic), and taste breaks agreement.
- 19. approvedApproved is the action. Has is an auxiliary that forms the present perfect with it; on its own here, has does not describe an action.
- 20. playingPlaying is the action. Are is the auxiliary that forms the present continuous with it, and outside is an adverb telling where the action happens.
- 21. Led a 12-person sales team to exceed its quarterly target.Led is a specific action verb, and the bullet adds scale (12-person) and a result (exceeded the target). Was responsible for names a duty, not an achievement, and helped with sales stuff is vague.
- 22. DirectedDirected the website redesign keeps the meaning of being in charge and states it as an action. Did is vague, and was part of or was involved with weakens your role.
- 23. NegotiatedNegotiated specifically means reaching an agreement through discussion, which explains how costs fell. Handled, reviewed, and managed are true of many tasks and do not say that you bargained.
- 24. LaunchedLaunched means started or introduced something new, which matches first newsletter. Reduced, resolved, and audited describe cutting, fixing, and checking existing things.
- 25. ReducedGoing from three weeks to one is a decrease, so reduced is the precise verb. Increased contradicts the numbers, and launched and negotiated do not describe a change in time.
- 26. We decided to expand.Made a decision hides the action in the noun decision; decided puts it back in the verb and is shorter. The passive version hides who decided as well.
- 27. The team reviewed the report.The team reviewed the report is active (the team is the subject) and uses one precise verb. The first keeps the phrasal verb looked at, and the third is still passive.
- 28. It describes a duty instead of an action and gives no scaleResponsible for managing is grammatical, but it lists a duty rather than saying what you did, and gives no number. Starting with the action verb managed plus a figure is clearer.
- 29. Simple past (led, built)Bullets for past roles conventionally start with a simple-past action verb: Led, Built, Reduced. For a current role, many writers use the simple present (Lead, Build) instead.
- 30. The budget was approved by the board.Was approved is the passive of the action verb approve: the budget receives the action. The first sentence is the active version, and seems is a linking verb, which has no passive.
What Is an Action Verb?
An action verb, also called a dynamic verb, expresses an action the subject performs. Physical action verbs describe movement or activity you could observe; mental action verbs describe activity of the mind. Both can usually appear in continuous tenses (She is writing; He is considering the offer).
- Physical: run, jump, write, carry, cook, build, type, throw, paint, drive.
- Mental: think (about), decide, plan, learn, calculate, consider, solve, imagine, analyze.
- Communication: say, ask, explain, argue, announce, persuade.
- Test: ask “What did the subject do?” If the verb answers it, it is an action verb.
Action verbs can describe actions that are hard to see. “She considered the offer” is still an action: considering is something she did.
Action vs Linking vs Auxiliary Verbs
Every verb in a sentence does one of three jobs. An action verb shows what the subject does. A linking verb connects the subject to a description (be, seem, become, and sense verbs like look or taste). An auxiliary verb helps another verb form a tense, question, negative, or passive.
- Action: The chef tasted the soup.
- Linking: The soup tasted salty. (The soup was salty.)
- Auxiliary + action: The chef has tasted the soup. (has helps, tasted is the action)
- Linking test: if you can swap the verb for is or seems, it is linking; if the result is nonsense, it is an action verb.
The same word can switch jobs: feel, look, smell, taste, grow, and turn are action verbs in one sentence and linking verbs in another.
Transitive and Intransitive Action Verbs
Action verbs are transitive when they take a direct object (She opened the door) and intransitive when they don’t (She smiled). Many verbs can be both: He runs every morning (intransitive) / He runs a small business (transitive).
- Transitive: open, send, build, buy, fix, review — they need something to act on.
- Intransitive: arrive, sleep, laugh, fall, go — they are complete without an object.
- Both: run, write, eat, read, play, grow.
- Only transitive verbs can be passive: The door was opened, but not The guests were arrived.
Stative vs Dynamic: Why “I Am Knowing” Is Wrong
Dynamic verbs describe actions and events that can be in progress, so they work in continuous tenses. Stative verbs describe states — knowledge, opinions, feelings, possession, the senses — that are not actions in progress, so in standard English they normally stay in simple tenses.
Some verbs are stative in one meaning and dynamic in another. Have means possess (stative) but have lunch is an activity (dynamic). Think meaning believe is stative; think about meaning consider is dynamic.
- Mind: know, believe, understand, remember, mean, realize — I understand (not I am understanding).
- Feelings: like, love, hate, want, prefer, need — She wants a refund.
- Possession: have (= own), own, belong, possess — This belongs to me.
- Senses and appearance: seem, appear, look (= seem), sound, taste (as linking verbs).
- Dual-use: I have a car / I’m having lunch; I think so / I’m thinking about it; It tastes good / I’m tasting it.
Advertising slogans and casual speech sometimes stretch these rules (I’m loving it), but in formal writing keep stative verbs in the simple form.
Strong Action Verbs for Writing and Resumes
In professional writing, a precise action verb at the start of a sentence or bullet tells the reader exactly what you did. Phrases like was responsible for, worked on, or helped with describe duties; verbs like led, built, and reduced describe actions with outcomes. Pair the verb with what you acted on and, where you can, a real result or scale.
- Leadership: led, directed, supervised, coordinated, mentored, oversaw.
- Creating and starting: launched, built, designed, developed, founded, introduced.
- Improving: reduced, increased, streamlined, upgraded, accelerated, simplified.
- Persuading and dealing: negotiated, secured, persuaded, partnered, resolved.
- Analyzing: analyzed, audited, evaluated, forecast, identified, measured.
- Before: Was responsible for customer complaints. → After: Resolved customer complaints and rewrote the reply templates the team used.
- Before: Worked on the new onboarding process. → After: Redesigned onboarding, cutting new-hire setup from three weeks to one.
Use your own real numbers. A specific verb with an honest result is more convincing than an impressive verb with nothing behind it.
Keep practicing
Frequently Asked Questions
What are action verbs?
Action verbs are verbs that express something the subject does, either physically (run, build, write) or mentally (decide, plan, solve). They are also called dynamic verbs and contrast with linking verbs like be and seem, which describe a state rather than an action.
What is the difference between an action verb and a linking verb?
An action verb shows what the subject does (She tasted the soup). A linking verb connects the subject to a description (The soup tasted salty). To check, replace the verb with is or seems: if the sentence still makes sense, it is linking.
What are good action verbs for a resume?
Choose verbs that name exactly what you did: led, directed, launched, built, reduced, streamlined, negotiated, resolved, analyzed. Start each bullet with one, add what you acted on, and include a real result where you have one.
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