Learn Basic Action Verbs in English (Pre-A1)

Raúl Maguiña

Fondateur de Langcom | Examinateur pour les examens de Cambridge et du SIELE

juillet 17, 2026

PRE-A1📚 Vocabulary⏱️ 4 min read
Action verbs tell us what someone or something does. These words show movement or activity. Learning action verbs helps you talk about daily activities and describe the world around you. For example, run, jump, et swim are all action verbs. They are very important for building simple English sentences. You use them every day to say what you or others do. Knowing these verbs is a great first step to speaking English clearly. They help you express actions like I sing or Birds fly. With action verbs, you can describe many things: what you do for fun, what animals do, or what people do at work. They are the heart of many sentences.

What Are Action Verbs?

Action verbs are words that show an action. They tell us what a person, animal, or thing does.

  • They show movement.
  • They show activity.
  • They are very important for simple sentences.

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Common Action Verbs for Beginners

Here are some basic action verbs you can learn today:

  • Run: To move fast with your legs. The boy can run.
  • Jump: To push off the ground with your feet. The frog can jump.
  • Swim: To move in water. I like to swim.
  • Dance: To move your body to music. She loves to dance.
  • Sing: To make music with your voice. He can sing a song.
  • Climb: To go up something, like a tree or a mountain. The monkey can climb.
  • Fly: To move through the air. Birds fly in the sky.
  • Paint: To make a picture with paint. I want to paint a picture.
  • Water ski: To ski on water while pulled by a boat. They water ski in summer.
  • Play music: To make sounds with a musical instrument. She can play music on the piano.

How to Use Action Verbs in Sentences

Using action verbs is simple. You put the verb after the person or thing doing the action.

  • Subject + Action Verb
  • Exemple : I run.
  • Exemple : He sings.
  • Exemple : They swim.

You can also add more words to describe the action.

  • Exemple : I run fast.
  • Exemple : He sings a song.
  • Exemple : They swim in the pool.
Common Action Verbs
English Verb What it Means
dance Move your body to music.
swim Move in water.
run Move fast with your legs.
climb Go up something.
sing Make music with your voice.
water ski Ski on water.
fly Move through the air.
play music Make sounds with an instrument.
paint Make a picture with colors.
jump Push off the ground with your feet.

Exemples

  • I can run very fast.
  • She likes to jump.
  • We swim every day.
  • They dance at the party.
  • He sings a beautiful song.
  • Monkeys climb trees.
  • Birds fly high.
  • I paint with many colors.
  • My friends water ski.
  • Can you play music?

Entraînement

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Erreurs courantes chez les hispanophones

When you speak English, always remember to use a subject (like I, you, he, she, it, we, they) before the action verb.

  • Wrong: Run fast. (If you mean “I run fast”)
  • Correct: I run fast.

Also, be careful with play. We use play music for instruments, but play for sports.

  • Correct: I play music. (with a guitar)
  • Correct: I play soccer. (a sport)

Questions fréquemment posées

What is an action verb?

An action verb is a word that describes what a person, animal, or thing does. It shows an action or movement, like run or sing.

Why are action verbs important?

Action verbs are important because they help you talk about activities and describe what is happening. They are key for making simple sentences in English.

Can animals do action verbs?

Yes! Animals do many actions. For example, dogs run, fish swim, et birds fly.

How can I practice action verbs?

You can practice by saying sentences about what you do every day, like I eat or I walk. You can also describe pictures or people doing things.

À propos de l'auteur : Raúl Maguiña

Raúl Maguiña est le directeur de l'Asociación Educativa Langcom, un centre agréé de préparation à l'examen Cambridge English situé à ÉTATS-UNIS. Fort de plus d'une décennie d'expérience dans l'enseignement des langues et les certifications internationales, il a aidé des milliers d'étudiants, d'enseignants et d'établissements d'enseignement dans 25 pays à obtenir les certifications d'anglais Cambridge, IELTS, TOEFL et Michigan.

En savoir plus sur le Langcom →

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