Transcript Word Choice: Vivid Verbs

WORD CHOICE:
VIVID VERBS
Watch how it’s done…
 Tears ran from her eyes. Her face turned red.
She breathed loudly, and she inhaled as if she
couldn’t get enough air. She put her head in
her hands and sat on a chair.
 Tears gushed from her eyes. Her face flushed
red. She gasped loudly, and she snorted as if
she couldn’t draw enough air. She buried her
head in her hands and collapsed on a chair.
Help with this paragraph…
 George ran down the street and called to his
friend. “I’ve got it!” he said. He held the five
dollars in his hand. He showed the money to his
friend. George smiled. He jumped up and down
for joy.
 George ___down the street and _____to his
friend. “I’ve got it!” he ____. He _____ the five
dollars in his hand. He _________ the money to
his friend. George ________. He _______ up and
down for joy.
Apply this skill in your
crafting notebook….
 Change the underlined verbs in each of the
following sentences.
 Sam closed the door angrily.
 Sarah told him that he’d better move.
 I knocked on the door, and went into the
room.
 The teacher hurriedly wrote , me a note, and I
left the room.
Master this skill in your
own writing…
 Today, go to your composing notebook and
find a paragraph in which you can rewrite
improving the word choice of your verbs.
Circle those verbs. Then rewrite the
paragraph choosing more vivid verbs.
Active vs. passive writing
 Use active verbs rather than passive. Active
verbs rivet readers’ attention; passive verbs
weaken your writing.
 Kim broke the jar ( active verb)
 The jar was broken by Kim ( passive verb)
Watch how it’s done…
 Kim broke the jar ( active verb)
 The jar was broken by Kim ( passive verb)
 The person DOING the action should be in
FRONT of the verb.
 When the person/object is at the end of the
sentence the pace of the writing is slowed
down/weakened
Help with the example
 The dog was pulled by his owner down the
street. The neighbors were awoken by the
barking dog. The window was opened by one
grumpy man and his yells were loud and rude.
A bottle was even thrown out the window at
the dog and his owner.
 The __________ pulled his ______ down the
street. The ______________ woke up the
______________. One __________ yelled
loudly and rudely and _______________ a
bottle at the pair.
Active verbs use fewer words with
more meaning.
 The dog was pulled by
his owner down the
street. The neighbors
were awoken by the
barking dog. The
window was opened by
one grumpy man and
his yells were loud and
rude. A bottle was even
thrown out the window
at the dog and his
owner.
 The __________ pulled
his ______ down the
street. The
______________ woke
up the
______________. One
__________ yelled
loudly and rudely and
_______________ a
bottle at the pair.
Apply this skill in your
crafting notebook….
 A letter is being written by Michael.
 A message was sent by Sam’s parents.
 A milk carton had been thrown by Marie.
 The car was totaled by Tait.
 The DVD recorder could have been repaired
by the mechanic.
 Handball was played by the boys in the back.
 The window was not opened by the teacher.
Now think back to our vivid
verb lesson and revise those
verbs.
 From :
 To:
 Wrote
 __________________
 Sent
 __________________
 threw
 __________________
 Totaled
 __________________
 Repaired
 __________________
 Played
 __________________
 opened
 ___________________
Master these skills in your
own writing…
 Reread your draft finding TWO verbs to
change to vivid verbs. Circle those words
used.
 Reread your draft and revise for
active/passive sentence structure. Underline
those sentences revised.
Watch how it’s done…
 The clock is striking twelve.
 The clock strikes twelve.
 Verbs ending in –ing (striking, prowling,
shouting) are weaker than their shorter forms
(strike, prowl, shout).
Help with this paragraph…
 Joey is walking slowly to class because he
forgot his homework. Mrs. Cochran was
joking with him yesterday and he promised to
bring it in but then he didn’t. Joey was
thinking she may give him another day to turn
it in but he didn’t want to ask.
 Joey _________________
 Mrs. Cochran _____________________
 Joey _________________________
Apply this skill in your
crafting notebook….
Watch how it’s done…
 He did not remember to feed the dog.
 She did not pass the music exam.
 He forgot to feed the dog.
 She failed the music exam.
 Prefer the single verb to the roundabout
phrase. Write what DID happen, not what did
NOT happen.
Help with this paragraph…
Apply this skill in your
crafting notebook….