3.116 Most phrasal verbs that contain a transitive verb can be used in the passive. So can a few phrasal verbs that contain an intransitive verb and a preposition. See paragraphs 9.17 and 9.23.
Compound verbs: ice-skate, baby-sit
3.117 Some verbs, such as cross-examine and test-drive, consist of two words. They are sometimes called compound verbs.
He would have been cross-examined on any evidence he gave.
He asked to test-drive a top-of-the-range vehicle.
It is not wise to hitch-hike on your own.
3.118 It is important to realize that you cannot always guess the meaning of a compound verb if you are not already familiar with it. For example, to soft-soap does not mean to use soap that is soft; it means to flatter someone in order to persuade them to do something for you.
written forms of compound verbs
3.119 Compound verbs are usually written with a hyphen.
No one had cross-referenced the forms before.
Children ice-skated on the sidewalks.
However, some compound verbs may be written with a space between the words and some may be written as single words. For example, both roller-skate and roller skate are used, as are baby-sit and babysit.
forms of compound verbs
3.120 Many compound verbs consist of a noun plus a verb.
It may soon become economically attractive to mass-produce hepatitis vaccines.
Others consist of an adjective plus a verb.
Somebody had short-changed him.
3.121
Sally had pooh-poohed the idea of three good meals a day.
Come on, don’t shilly-shally. I want an answer.
Other compound verbs look strange because they have been borrowed from foreign languages, for example ad-lib and kow-tow.
They ad-libbed so much that the writers despaired of them.
He resents having to kow-tow to anyone or anything.
intransitive compound verbs
3.122 Some compound verbs do not have an object.
Many people window-shopped in the glass of the great store.
If you keep to the rules, you may roller-skate.
He has learned to lip-read.
I’m learning to water-ski.
Here is a list of compound verbs that do not have an object:
baby-sit
back-pedal
hitch-hike
ice-skate
jack-knife
kow-tow
lip-read
name-drop
play-act
roller-skate
shilly-shally
touch-type
water-ski
window-shop
wolf-whistle
transitive compound verbs
3.123 Other compound verbs typically have an object:
You can spin-dry it and it will still retain its shape.
I didn’t have time to blow-dry my hair.
At first we cold-shouldered him.
They ill-treated our ancestors.
Here is a list of compound verbs that typically have an object:
back-comb
blow-dry
cold-shoulder
court-martial
cross-check
cross-examine
cross-question
cross-reference
double-cross
double-glaze
dry-clean
field-test
force-feed
frog-march
ghost-write
ill-treat
pooh-pooh
proof-read
rubber-stamp
short-change
short-weight
soft-soap
spin-dry
spoon-feed
stage-manage
tape-record
toilet-train
wrong-foot
transitive or intransitive compound verbs
3.124 A third group of compound verbs may be used with or without an object.
Kate had to double-park outside the flat.
Murray double-parked his car and jumped out.
I tried to ad-lib a joke.
The commentator decided to ad-lib.
Here is a list of compound verbs that can be transitive or intransitive:
ad-lib
bottle-feed
breast-feed
bulk-buy
chain-smoke
criss-cross
deep-fry
double-check
double-park
mass-produce
short-circuit
sight-read
spring-clean
stir-fry
tie-dye
inflecting compound verbs
3.125 Only the second part of a compound verb inflects. If the second part is used on its own as a verb, the compound verb usually inflects in the same way as the verb on its own.
See the Reference Section for an explanation of how to inflect verbs.
Linking verbs
3.126 If you want to describe someone or something, for example to say who or what they are or what qualities they have, you use one of a special set of verbs. These verbs are called linking verbs.
Cigarette smoking is dangerous to your health.
The station seemed a very small one.
He looked English.
I became enormously fond of her.
The most common linking verbs are be, become, look, remain, and seem.
adjectives and nouns after linking verbs
3.127 A linking verb links a subject and an adjective or a noun phrase (called a complement). The subject, as usual, comes first and the adjective or noun phrase comes after the verb. The adjective or noun phrase describes or identifies the subject.
Her general knowledge is amazing.
The children seemed frightened.
That’s a very difficult question.
She’s the head of a large primary school.
Suleiman Salle became the first President of Eritrea.
Linking verbs are explained in paragraphs 3.132 to 3.154.
Some other intransitive verbs are sometimes used in a similar way to linking verbs. See paragraphs 3.155 to 3.160.
verbs with object complements: The film made me sad
3.128 Some verbs, such as make and find, are used with an object complement, that is, both an object and an adjective or a noun phrase. The adjective or noun phrase describes the object.