middle verb

noun

A verb which expresses an action when used transitively and a state when used intransitively.

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Meanings

nounmiddle verb (plural middle verbs)

plural middle verbs

  1. grammarA verb which expresses an action when used transitively and a state when used intransitively.
    1 more example

    Formation of the middle verbs mentioned above illustrates that derivational processes are used to create specific subclasses of verbs. Middle verbs in English are intransitive verbs, whereas their base verbs are transitive, that is, require a direct object to be present. Middle verb formation is therefore a case of change in syntactic valency.

    2005, Geert Booij, The Grammar of Words: An Introduction to Linguistic Morphology, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 60
Cite this entry
APA

middle verb. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/middle%20verb

MLA

“middle verb.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/middle%20verb. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “middle verb,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/middle%20verb.

Source: middle verb on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.