What are action verbs?

When you are given a writing task, the instructions will mostly include verbs to let you know what kind of text you are supposed to write. These verbs are called action verbs. Some action verbs in English are to reflect, to compare, to describe, to explain, to apply, to explore, and to discuss. Understanding the use of these verbs is important, but what do they really mean?

En tegnet mann med en tankeboble
En tegnet mann med en tankeboble

Reflect

When you are asked to reflect on a given topic, it means to think carefully about the topic, and study it from different sides. You need to test your own thoughts and beliefs to get greater insight and understanding on the topic. The nice thing is that these are also one of the few academic writing tasks where you can “speak” in the first person (use “I/me/my”) in your text.

You may be asked to write a text where you reflect on different kinds of topics such as specific actions, beliefs, and ideas, along with case studies, common practices, and your own learning.

For example, you may be given a task in English class asking you to reflect on racism in the United States. You need to find information on what people think and feel about racism, what the situation is like in the United States, and why it is so. There are no right or wrong answers in this type of task. The goal is to help you develop a better understanding of your own thoughts and beliefs.

Basic reflection skills are gained at a very young age. For example, if you touch a hot stove, it will hurt. Touching the stove would have immediately made you reflect on why it hurt so much. The answer would be that you had touched a hot stove, and after that you know not to do that again.

Another example is in friendships. If your friend gets angry at you one day, you try to find out (reflect on) what happened.  Your reflection will then help you see how the situation developed.

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Hånden til et barn prøver å ta på en varm kokeplate.
Hånden til et barn prøver å ta på en varm kokeplate.

Compare

Some tasks ask you to compare two or more items, such as different texts, pictures, or a text and a movie. In these assignments you will first need to compare: find similarities, and then contrast: find differences between the items. These kinds of assignments will often ask you to compare two texts, two images, or a text and a video. The goal is to describe what is the same and what is different about each thing. Remember that you will need to add examples in your text to show exactly what you mean by similar and different, and also give an opinion on how those similarities and differences can influence your topic.

You could for instance be asked to compare an excerpt from William Shakespeare’s play “Romeo and Juliet” to a scene from the movie “Romeo + Juliet” from 1996. The story has been changed to modern times in the movie, but you can still find similarities to the original. For instance, in the play they fight with swords but in the movie they use guns that they call swords.

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Troll gjemmer seg bak en granbusk.
Troll gjemmer seg bak en granbusk.

Describe

To describe is often used in tasks where you are asked to present something or someone. In a descriptive paragraph, you should try to “paint a picture” with your words. If asked to describe a house, you should clearly explain what the house is like, using adjectives and prepositions to help the reader see the house in their mind.

In English, it is important to list your adjectives in a certain order. Most native speakers do not think about it, but they will automatically correct you if you say things out of order. Saying “the red big house” instead of “the big red house” will definitely cause a native speaker to raise their eyebrows.

The correct order to follow for adjectives is:

Opinion – Size –  Age – Shape – Color – Origin – Material – Purpose

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Rødt funkishus
Rødt funkishus

How can you describe?

When describing something, make sure you specify and have a clear structure. You can use senses to describe how something smells, feels or sounds. This will make your text come alive for the reader.

The easiest way to prepare to write your paragraph is to think about organizing your text using a specific order. To take a room in your house as an example, the first step would be to choose a specific place to start your description. From there, you would move around the room following a logical pattern.

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Modern kitchen interior in the luxury residential house, with wide windows and natural light. Big bouquet of dried pink roses in the vase on the kitchen table. The view through the open door.
Modern kitchen interior in the luxury residential house, with wide windows and natural light. Big bouquet of dried pink roses in the vase on the kitchen table. The view through the open door.

You may for example choose to start describing from the left side of the room and go towards the right, or you could start your description from the time you enter the room and go around in a clockwise direction until you have described the entire room.

If you change where you start describing a room, you give the reader another perspective, and they will experience the room in a different way.

Explain

Explaining a topic means giving a strong explanation of a case, problem, or something that you are going to research.

This type of assignment is often a little more difficult. You have to have a good knowledge of the subject that you are going to discuss. Politicians and leaders are often asked to support certain decisions and situations such as the national economy, electricity prices, and funding cuts to youth clubs.

If you are asked to write a persuasive essay on why Norway should stop looking for oil, you will need to research the subject in detail and have strong arguments to support your ideas. In this task you will need to both explain the question and the answer in your own words with facts for support. Personal opinions and ideas are not enough. All of your arguments need to be backed up with solid facts from reliable outside sources.

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Oljeplattform foran en himmel med fiolett farge.
Oljeplattform foran en himmel med fiolett farge.

Apply

When you are asked to write a text using an application method, you will be expected to apply or use the thought given to explain an idea or specific situation. “Apply” in this sense means not only including the specific thought in what you write, but also explaining in your own words how it illustrates what you are trying to say. Students are often asked to use this technique for literature assignments.

Sample assignment prompt:

Use the following excerpt from “A Doll’s House” by Henrik Ibsen to reflect on gender roles in the 1800s.

Many students will start with the reflection part of the assignment, but they forget to use the excerpt in their answer. In this case, the excerpt is just as important as your reflections on the topic, and it must be used. Remember to always read the excerpt given in these types of assignments first, and then include it back into your answer.

This is one example of how you can use an excerpt. 

In the 1800s there were many who believed that women were not worth as much as men. They were not as intelligent or valuable to society; they simply held the role of mother and housewife. We can see examples of this in “A Doll’s House” when Helmer tells Nora that she is first and foremost a mother, and that she both thinks and speaks like a child.

 

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Ektepar fra tidlig 1900-tallet der mannen i mørke klær står foran kvinnen i hvite klær.
Ektepar fra tidlig 1900-tallet der mannen i mørke klær står foran kvinnen i hvite klær.

Explore

Exploring a topic means researching, discovering, observing, experiencing, and experimenting with an idea. You can be curious and ask questions which you answer.  In some cases, this means exploring different sides of a case with an open mind and critical thinking. 

Exploration tasks allow you to be both a little bit of a detective and an inventor. You have to be curious and creative and look for new solutions.

Sample assignment: 

Write an exploratory text on what would happen on Earth if the sun suddenly burnt out.

Here you would need to look for information and try to find out what might happen. You will most likely not find a standard answer, and it will be important to use good and reliable sources.

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Source Evaluation Checklist

Discuss

Tasks that ask the writer to discuss a topic (e.g. Discuss the following…) are quite similar to reflection taks when you first start. 

You will need to go through the same thinking process about the topic and analyze it from different perspectives. However, discussions demand more research to finish.

The main difference between reflection and discussion texts is that reflections let youexpress your personal opinion directly while discussions are meant to have you show your objective critical thinking skills, doing the best you can not to show personal bias.

To write a discussion text well, you must find and use information from reliable sources foreach point you discuss. The challenge here is to remember that you can’t just put in outside information and expect the reader to understand how it explains and supports the idea you have, but you have to tell the readers.

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How do you discuss?

Take a closer look at this example:

Assignment Prompt
Discuss the following: should local and federal authorities be allowed to use drones and CCTV to monitor and record everything that happens in public spaces 24/7 to prevent crime?

En drone som flyr inn mot en by
En drone som flyr inn mot en by
Compare the two following texts:

1. Preventing crime is a constant challenge for local and federal authorities. Keeping the public safe is an important part of their job description, but it isn’t fair to record everything that happens in public areas using drones and CC TV. The cameras that are currently installed everywhere already make people feel uncomfortable. It would be even worse if they added drones. Also, you never know how the information is going to be used. Therefore, local and federal authorities should not be allowed to used drones and CC TV to film public areas 24/7.

2. Preventing crime is a constant challenge for local and federal authorities. While keeping the public safe is a key part of their job description, using drones and CCTV to monitor and film public areas 24/7 would be a significant infringement on a person’s right to privacy. The right to privacy is an important value that most people have had instilled in them since they were children. In the United States, this right is even guaranteed by the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. Its sole purpose “is to protect people’s right to privacy and freedom from unreasonable intrusions by the government” (LII, n.d.).

In other words, according to this amendment, people should expect not to be filmed at any time without any reason by the authorities, and not to have the authorities suddenly decide to search their house or car without just cause. If local and federal authorities were allowed to use drones and CCTV cameras to film public areas 24/7, this amendment would no longer provide any protection and prevent the unreasonable invasion of a person’s privacy. Therefore, local and public authorities should not be allowed to use drones and CC TV to monitor and film public areas 24/7.

Which text is more convincing, and why? 

The second one, right? This is the same thing that you will need to do in your own paper.

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Gammelt gulnet papir.
Gammelt gulnet papir.

Sources:

  • Blanchard, K., & Root, C.:
    Ready to write 3: From paragraph to essay (3rd ed.). Pearson (2010).
    Education Inc.
  • Blanchard, K., & Root, C.:
    Ready to write 2: Perfecting paragraphs (4th ed.). Pearson (2010).
    Education     Inc.
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