This is a non-exhaustive list of copulaee in the English language, i.e. words used to link the subject of a sentence with a predicate (a subject complement).

Because many of these copulative verbs may be used non-copulatively, examples are provided. Also, there can be other copulative verbs depending on the context and the meaning of the specific verb used. Therefore, this list is not an exhaustive one.

• act "Tom acted suspicious."

• appear "Tom appears satisfied, but really is not."

• be "Tom is a coward."

• become (inchoative) "Tom became wealthy."

• call in "Tom called in sick."

• come "The prediction came true;" "the belt came loose;" "the characters in the story come alive"

• come out "It came out burnt."

• constitute "Verbs constitute one of the main word classes in the English language"

• die "He died poor."

• emerge "Tom emerged unharmed after the incident."

• end up "I ended up broke;" "the room ended up a mess."

• equal "Two plus two equals four."

• get (inchoative) "Tom got angry."

• go "The man went crazy;" "Tom went bald;" "the food went bad;" "the mistake went unnoticed"

• grow (inchoative) "Tom grew insistent."

• fall "Tom fell ill with the flu."

• feel "Tom felt nauseated."

• freeze "The lake froze solid."

• keep "Tom kept quiet."

• lean "This area leans conservative."

• lie "Therein lies the paradox."

• look "Tom looks upset."

• play "The possum played dead."

• prove "Tom's behavior proves difficult to understand."

• remain "Tom remained unsatisfied."

• run "Protectionist impulses run far too strong on Capitol Hill" (New York Times)

• seem "Tom seems happy."

• shine "Her smile shines bright."

• smell "Tom smelled sweet"

• sound "Tom sounded obnoxious."

• stay "Tom stayed happy."

• take "Tom took ill."

• taste "The food tastes fresh."

• turn (inchoative) "Tom turned angry."

• turn up "Tom turned up missing."

• wax (inchoative) "Tom waxed lyrical."

References