In The garden looks peaceful, looks connects the garden with a description of it. In Megan became a doctor, became connects Megan with the role a doctor. In both sentences, the verb creates a relationship between the subject and information about that subject.
These are linking verbs. Unlike a transitive verb, a linking verb does not connect the subject to a direct object. It connects the subject to a complement that identifies, describes, or otherwise gives information about it.
What Is a Linking Verb?
A linking verb is a verb that connects the subject of a clause with a subject complement. The complement gives information about the subject rather than functioning as the verb’s direct object.
A common pattern is:
Subject + Linking Verb + Subject Complement
Elena is an engineer.
Is links the subject Elena with the noun phrase an engineer, which identifies her.
The fabric feels smooth.
Feels links the fabric with smooth, which describes it.
Linking verbs are also called copular verbs or copulas.
The familiar explanation that linking verbs “do not show action” can be a useful starting point, but it is not a complete definition. Verbs such as become, grow, and turn can express a change:
The sky grew darker.
What makes grew a linking verb here is not simply the absence of action. It connects the sky with darker, a description of the subject.
The element after a linking verb is commonly called a subject complement. Traditional school grammar focuses mainly on noun and adjective complements, although broader grammatical descriptions may recognize other complement structures as well.
How Linking Verbs Work
A linking verb creates a connection between two parts of the clause.
Sometimes the complement identifies or classifies the subject:
Mr. Lewis became the new principal.
The new principal tells us what Mr. Lewis became.
Sometimes the complement describes a quality or condition of the subject:
The towels remained damp.
Damp describes the towels.
The complement points back to the subject in both cases.
That is different from a sentence with a direct object:
Mr. Lewis hired the new principal.
Here, the new principal does not identify Mr. Lewis. It refers to another person and functions as the direct object of hired.
This relationship between the subject and the complement is the most dependable way to understand what a linking verb is doing.
Forms of Be as Linking Verbs
The verb be is the most common linking verb in English. Its forms include am, is, are, was, were, be, being, and been.
When a form of be connects the subject with information about that subject, it has a linking function.
Nina is my cousin.
Is links Nina with my cousin.
The streets were empty.
Were links the streets with the adjective empty.
Forms of be are not automatically linking verbs every time they appear, however. They can also work as auxiliary, or helping, verbs.
Nina is preparing dinner.
Here, is works with preparing to form the present continuous. It is an auxiliary verb rather than the main linking verb.
The invitations were delivered yesterday.
Were helps form the passive construction were delivered.
So it is better to look at what be is doing in the sentence than to label every form of be as a linking verb.
Other Verbs That Can Have a Linking Function
English has several verbs besides be that commonly occur in linking constructions.
Some express appearance or impression:
- seem
- appear
- look
- sound
Some relate to the senses or physical experience:
- feel
- smell
- taste
Others express a change or continuation of state:
- become
- get
- grow
- remain
- stay
- turn
For example:
The proposal seems reasonable.
Her voice sounds familiar.
The evenings are getting cooler.
The leaves turned yellow.
The important point is that many of these words are not linking verbs in every sentence. Their function depends on how they are being used.
That is why memorizing a fixed list is less useful than recognizing the sentence pattern.
The Same Verb Can Be Linking in One Sentence but Not Another
Verbs such as look, feel, smell, taste, grow, and turn can behave differently depending on their meaning and what follows them.
Compare feel:
The blanket feels soft.
Feels is linking. Soft describes the blanket.
Lucas felt the rough surface.
Here, felt is used transitively, and the rough surface is its direct object.
Now compare turn:
The water turned cloudy.
Turned links the water with its new condition, cloudy.
Paige turned the handle.
Here, the handle is the direct object. Turned is not functioning as a linking verb.
A verb can even have an intransitive non-linking use:
The plants grow quickly.
Grow describes what happens to the plants, while quickly is an adverb modifying the verb. There is no subject complement here.
Compare:
The plants grew tall.
Now tall describes the plants, and grew has a linking function.
This is why it is more accurate to think about linking uses of verbs rather than assuming that every verb belongs permanently to one category.
How to Identify a Linking Verb
The best way to identify a linking verb is to look at the relationship between the subject, verb, and the element that follows it.
Consider:
The audience became silent.
First identify the subject: the audience.
Then look at the verb: became.
Finally, check what follows it. Silent describes the audience. The verb is therefore linking the subject with a complement that tells us about that subject.
Another example:
Rebecca seems confident.
Confident describes Rebecca, so seems is functioning as a linking verb.
A useful check is to ask:
- Does the element after the verb identify or describe the subject?
- Is there a direct object, or does the following element point back to the subject?
- Is the verb being used in a common linking sense?
Looking at all three clues is safer than relying on a single test.
Is Replacing the Verb With Be a Reliable Test?
A common method for checking linking verbs is to replace the verb with a form of be.
For example:
The peaches taste sweet.
Replace taste with are:
The peaches are sweet.
The basic relationship remains clear, so this is good evidence that taste is linking in the original sentence.
The test can also expose a transitive use:
Clara tasted the sauce.
Replacing tasted with was gives:
Clara was the sauce.
That does not preserve the original relationship.
However, the be test is only a clue. It can sometimes produce a grammatical sentence even when the original verb is not linking.
Consider:
Aaron looked at the painting.
Replacing looked with was gives:
Aaron was at the painting.
The second sentence can make grammatical sense, but looked in the original sentence is not a linking verb. At the painting belongs with the verb looked at rather than describing or identifying Aaron.
So do not decide from the substitution test alone. Check whether the original verb actually connects the subject with a complement that tells you something about that subject.
Linking Verbs vs. Action Verbs
The usual contrast says that action verbs show what the subject does, while linking verbs tell us something about the subject.
That distinction works well with simple examples:
The horse jumped over the fence.
Jumped describes an action.
The horse seems nervous.
Seems links the horse with the description nervous.
But not every non-linking verb describes an obvious physical action. Mental verbs and other verbs can also take direct objects:
Priya remembers the address.
Remembers is not a linking verb. The address is a direct object.
The most reliable difference is therefore the sentence structure. A linking use connects the subject with information about that subject. Other verb patterns do something different.
Linking Verbs vs. Auxiliary Verbs
Linking verbs and auxiliary verbs can look alike because forms of be can perform both jobs.
Compare:
The children are quiet.
Are is the main verb and links the children with quiet.
The children are reading quietly.
Here, are helps the main verb reading form a continuous verb phrase.
A similar difference appears in:
The door was open.
In the straightforward descriptive reading, was links the door with open.
The door was opened at noon.
Here, was helps form the passive was opened.
The dedicated comparison of linking verbs and auxiliary verbs covers these patterns in more detail. For identifying a linking verb, the key question is whether the verb itself connects the subject with a complement or helps another verb form a larger verb phrase.
Linking Verbs Are Not the Same as Stative Verbs
The terms linking verb and stative verb describe different aspects of a verb.
Linking describes how a verb works within the clause. A linking verb connects the subject with a complement.
Stative describes the kind of meaning a verb expresses, such as a state, possession, belief, emotion, or perception.
For example:
I know the answer.
Know is normally stative here, but it is not linking. The answer is a direct object.
Compare:
The answer seems correct.
Seems has a linking function because correct describes the subject the answer.
The categories can overlap, but they are not interchangeable.
Should You Use an Adjective or an Adverb After a Linking Verb?
When the word after a linking verb describes the subject, an adjective is normally used.
The roses smell wonderful.
Wonderful describes the roses.
The fabric feels rough.
Rough describes the fabric.
Using an adverb would normally suggest that you are describing how an action is performed rather than describing the subject.
Compare:
Daniel looked carefully at the diagram.
Carefully modifies the way Daniel looked.
Daniel looked confused.
Confused describes Daniel, so it functions as the complement in the linking construction.
Adverbs can still appear in sentences containing linking verbs when they modify something other than the subject complement:
The situation gradually became clearer.
Gradually modifies became, while clearer describes the situation.
So the useful rule is not simply “never use an adverb with a linking verb.” Instead, use an adjective when the complement is describing the subject.
Linking Verb Examples in Sentences
These examples show several common linking patterns.
The cabin was surprisingly spacious.
Was links the cabin with the description surprisingly spacious.
Marcus became a skilled carpenter.
Became connects Marcus with the role a skilled carpenter.
The final decision remains uncertain.
Remains links the decision with its continuing state.
Your suggestion sounds practical.
Sounds connects the suggestion with the description practical.
The air felt cool against her skin.
Felt links the air with the adjective phrase describing it.
The road grew narrower near the village.
Grew connects the road with a change in its condition.
The milk has gone sour.
Gone has a linking use here and connects the milk with its changed state.
Their explanation appeared convincing at first.
Appeared links the explanation with the impression convincing.
The old theater stayed empty for years.
Stayed connects the theater with a continuing condition.
A linking verb is best recognized by the relationship it creates. Instead of asking only whether the verb “shows action,” look at what comes after it and how that element relates to the subject. When the verb connects the subject with information that identifies, describes, or characterizes it, the verb is functioning as a linking verb.
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