Martha, Grammar is indeed wonderful! Thanks for discovering that my instincts were not so far off. Bill >Bill, I looked into my trusty Quirk et al. for an answer to your research >question: Is there a class of verbs that can take on the aura of a linking >verb? The answer is yes. Intransitive verbs can do that: Here are some >other examples from Quirk: He lay flat; we stood motionless. Both of >these are in the category of current or existing attributes, as opposed to >resulting attributes, such as the door slammed shut; the lake froze solid; >the sun was sinking low; he fell flat; the kids ran wild. In these >examples, the attribute results from the event described by the verb. >(These issues are discussed in sections 10.21, 16.20, and App.I.54, among >other places, in Quirk et al., A Comprehensive Grammar of the English >Language.) > >Here are some others: plead innocent, stand firm, play rough, fall silent, >wax eloquent. > >Your act professional does not sound quite as idiomatic, perhaps, but I >think it falls in the "current" category--like "stand motionless." > >Isn't grammar wonderful! > >Martha > > > William J. McCleary 3247 Bronson Hill Road Livonia, NY 14487 716-346-6859 To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html and select "Join or leave the list" Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/