Tenses · CEFR B1 · Independent
Verbs that never take -ing — English tenses
Some verbs describe a state rather than an action, and states are not in progress — so they stay in the simple form.
The shape
know · like · want · believe · own · mean · need
Stop saying "I am knowing".
In Hindi
कुछ क्रियाएँ काम नहीं, हालत बताती हैं। हालत चल नहीं रही होती, इसलिए उनमें -ing नहीं लगता।
CoCap explains every structure in both languages, because a rule you understand in Hindi is a rule you can use in English.
The mistake to fix first
The sentence Indian-English speakers actually produce, and the reason it is wrong.
| Commonly said | Correct English |
|---|---|
I am not understanding this. | I do not understand this. Understand is a state, so it takes the simple form even about right now. |
Verbs that never take -ing examples
Easiest first. Every sentence is authored, with the Hindi it comes from.
I understand.
मैं समझ{ता|ती} हूँ।
I know.
मुझे पता है।
I remember.
मुझे याद है।
I do not understand.
मैं नहीं समझ{ता|ती}।
also correct: I don't understand.
Now I understand.
अब मैं समझ{ता|ती} हूँ।
I know the answer.
मुझे जवाब पता है।
I do not remember.
मुझे याद नहीं है।
also correct: I don't remember.
I do not know the answer.
मुझे जवाब नहीं पता।
I know this word.
मैं यह शब्द जान{ता|ती} हूँ।
I do not know this word.
मैं यह शब्द नहीं जान{ता|ती}।
Easy to confuse with
Close enough to be mixed up with this one. Knowing the difference is most of knowing either.
Questions people ask
- What is the verbs that never take -ing used for?
- Some verbs describe a state rather than an action, and states are not in progress — so they stay in the simple form. In practice: stop saying "i am knowing".
- How do you form the verbs that never take -ing?
- know · like · want · believe · own · mean · need.
- What is the most common mistake with the verbs that never take -ing?
- Saying “I am not understanding this.” instead of “I do not understand this.”. Understand is a state, so it takes the simple form even about right now.
Where verbs that never take -ing fits
Where this structure sits in the ladder, and what surrounds it.
Verbs that never take -ing is a CEFR B1 structure — the independent band — and it belongs to tenses. CoCap’s syllabus files every structure this way so you can learn in order instead of jumping between whatever a search happened to return.
Reading it is not the same as saying it.
CoCap turns this page into practice: Hindi sentence in, English sentence out, corrected one thing at a time. Free, no card.
Practise the verbs that never take -ing →