List of English copulae

This is a non-exhaustive list of copulae 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."
 * eat "Tom eats healthy."
 * 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."
 * 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."