一定義：
英語中按動詞后可否直接跟賓語，可把動詞分成不及物動詞與和及物動詞。
不及物動詞：字典里詞后標有vi. 的就是不及物動詞。不及物動詞后不能直接跟有動作的對象(即賓語)。若要跟賓語，必須先在其后添加上某個介詞，如to,of ,at后方可跟上賓語。具體每個動詞后究竟加什么介詞就得聯系動詞短語了，如listen to,look at….
如：look 看 (vi.) x賓語(即不能直接加賓語). Look! She is singing.
Look carefully! (注意：carefully 是副詞，不是名詞，故不作賓語)
look at 看…….+賓語 Look at me carefully! (me是代詞，作賓語)
at是小范圍 in是大范圍
如：The students work very hard.學生們學習很努力。
She apologized to me again. 她再次向我道歉。
The accident happened yesterday evening.事故是昨天晚上發生的。
分清及物不及物動詞:
分清動詞的及物不及物是在英語學習中必須解決的首要問題。動詞及物與不及物通常有以下幾種情況：
a.主要用作及物動詞。及物動詞后面必須跟賓語。可以用于："主+謂+賓";"主+謂+雙賓";"主+謂+賓+賓補"結構。如：
He reached Paris the day before yesterday.
Please hand me the book over there.
They asked me to go fishing with them.
類似的還有：buy, catch, invent, found, like, observe, offer, prevent, promise, raise, find, forget, receive, regard, see, say, seat, supply, select, suppose, show, make, take, tell....
b.主要用作不及物的動詞。不及物動詞后面不跟賓語。只能用與："主+謂"結構。
This is the room where I once lived.
類似的還有：agree, go, work, listen, look, come, die, belong, fall, exist, rise, arrive, sit, sail, hurry, fail, succeed....
c.既可以用作及物又可以用作不及物的動詞，其意義不變。如begin 都是作"開始"講。everybody , our game begins. let us begin our game. 類似的還有：start, answer, sing, close, consider, insist, read, learn, prepare, pay, hurt, improve....
d.既可以用作及物又可以用作不及物的動詞，其意義完全不同。
這類動詞作不及物動詞是一個意義;而作及物動詞時卻是另一個意義。如lift作不及物動詞時是指煙霧的"消散"。we saw the mountain when the clouds lifted. 作及物動詞時是"升高;舉起"。
He lifted his glass and drank.
類似的還有：beatvi.跳動 vt. 敲、打;grow vi.生長 vt.種植
play vi.玩耍 vt. 打(牌、球),演奏 smell vi.發出(氣味) vt. 嗅
ringvi.(電話、鈴)響vt.打電話speak vi.講話vt. 說(語言)
hangvi. 懸掛 vt.絞死operate vi.動手術vt. 操作
需要注意的一點是：少數不及物動詞唯一可跟的賓語是同源賓語，如：I dreamed a dream last night.
及物動詞： 字典里詞后標有vt.的就是及物動詞。及物動詞后必須跟有動作的對象(即賓語)，并且可直接跟賓語。
如see 看見 (vt.) +賓語 I can see a boy.
其實所謂“及物”，就是后面可直接加賓語的動詞，有被動形式，而不及物動詞是沒有被動式的，也不可直接加賓語，需加上介詞。
及物動詞后面可直接接賓語，不及物動詞后面不可直接接賓語，一般要加介詞后再接賓語。實際上很多動詞既是及物動詞，又是不及物動詞。我舉一個例子，就說write。如I am writing.和I am writing a letter.在前一個句子write是不及物動詞，在后一個句子write是及物動詞。又如，see是及物動詞，但在特殊情況下如seeing is believing。
不及物動詞就是一個動作不能施加到另一個物體上，也就是后面不能加賓語。
例如：He is running. run這個動詞就是不及物動詞，后面不能加sth。(不能說跑什么東西)
分清及物不及物動詞:
分清動詞的及物不及物是在英語學習中必須解決的首要問題。動詞及物與不及物通常有以下幾種情況：
a.主要用作及物動詞。及物動詞后面必須跟賓語。可以用于："主+謂+賓";"主+謂+雙賓";"主+謂+賓+賓補"結構。如：
He reached Paris the day before yesterday.
Please hand me the book over there.
They asked me to go fishing with them.
類似的還有：buy, catch, invent, found, like, observe, offer, prevent, promise, raise, find, forget, receive, regard, see, say, seat, supply, select, suppose, show, make, take, tell....
b.主要用作不及物的動詞。不及物動詞后面不跟賓語。只能用于："主+謂"結構。
This is the room where I once lived.
類似的還有：agree, go, work, listen, look, come, die, belong, fall, exist, rise, arrive, sit, sail, hurry, fail, succeed....
c.既可以用作及物又可以用作不及物的動詞，其意義不變。如begin 都是作"開始"講。everybody , our game begins. let us begin our game. 類似的還有：start, answer, sing, close, consider, insist, read, learn, prepare, pay, hurt, improve....
d.既可以用作及物又可以用作不及物的動詞，其意義完全不同。
這類動詞作不及物動詞是一個意義;而作及物動詞時卻是另一個意義。如lift作不及物動詞時是指煙霧的"消散"。we saw the mountain when the clouds lifted. 作及物動詞時是"升高;舉起"。
He lifted his glass and drank.
類似的還有：beatvi.跳動 vt. 敲、打;grow vi.生長 vt.種植
play vi.玩耍 vt. 打(牌、球),演奏 smell vi.發出(氣味) vt. 嗅
ringvi.(電話、鈴)響vt.打電話speak vi.講話vt. 說(語言)
hangvi. 懸掛 vt.絞死operate vi.動手術vt. 操作
在英語錯誤中，“及物動詞+介詞+賓語”(transitive verb+preposition+object)，是常見的一種。所謂及物動詞，就是謂語動詞(predicative verb)，不必通過介詞引薦賓語。相反的，不及物動詞(intransitive verb)是不帶賓語的。有許多動詞，雖然性質是及物的，但不一定要有賓語，如下列的①a和②a便是這種情形：
①a. We study every day.
b. Do you study English every day.
②a. Please write clearly next time.
b. Can you write your composition now?
如果本質上就是不及物動詞，就不會有賓語;若要賓語，就要借介詞之助，一起連用才行(不及物動詞+賓語+介詞)，如③b和④b;③a和④a是錯的;
*③a. The children are listening the music.
b. The children are listening to the music.
*④a. She is laughing the crippled man.
b. She is laughing at the crippled man.
反之，及物動詞不必靠介詞，就可以帶賓語，如上述的①b和②b ，又如⑤和⑥：
⑤ John is giving a book to me.
⑥ Who will answer this question?
如果無意中把介詞加上，就錯了，如：
*⑦ Who will answer to this question?
下列這句從房地產廣告中看到的句子，也犯了同樣的錯：
“We have many buyers awaiting for available units here.”
“Awaiting”是個及物動詞，后面的介詞“for”是多余的，要去掉;不然把“awaiting”改為“waiting for”也行。
許多人習慣上喜歡把介詞加到及物動詞后面，然后才帶出賓語。最常見的是“emphasize/stress on/upon”和“discuss about”，如：
⑧ Singaporeans seem to have emphasized on material gains.
⑨ In our education system, we stress upon examination results.
⑩ World leaders spent a lot of time discussing about worsening economic problems.
顯然的，這三句里的介詞“on/upon”和“about”是多余的，不必要的。
下面是些類似的錯誤：
● The young must obey to their elders.
● Do not approach to that odd-looking man.
● The audience attacked on the rude speaker.
● Nothing can escape from his parents’ eyes.
● Do you hope to serve for your nation?
● When did Susan marry with Paul?
介詞“to, on, from, for, with”都要去掉才對。
為什么會有這些錯誤呢?主因是分不清楚及物動詞和不及物動詞的性質。其次，就是對同一個動詞及其名詞的句型有些混淆。解決之道有二。第一，要把“及物動詞+賓語”和“不及物動詞+介詞+賓語”劃分清楚，如：
I did not answer him./ I did not reply to him.
He reached Londan yesterday./ He arrived in London yesterday.
第二，把及物動詞轉化為名詞，然后加上適當的介詞和賓語，如：
Don’t approach such a person.
Is oral practice a good approach to language teaching?
A 有些動詞只是及物動詞; 它們不可以單獨用，后面必須跟賓語。
{ False: They always want after lunch.
Right: They always want a cup of tea after lunch.
{ False: He is sending now.
Right: He is sending a letter now.
B 有些動詞只是不及物動詞;它們可以單獨用，如果后面想接賓語，動詞后面必須加上介詞。
{ Right: He is looking around.
False: He is looking me.
Right: He is looking at me.
{ Right: He is listening carefully.
False: He is listening the teacher carefully.
Right: He is listening to the teacher carefully.
C 有些動詞既是及物動詞，又是不及物動詞; 但是有時候詞義會改變。
{ The customer is asking loudly.
The customer is asking for you now.
The customer is asking a question now.
{ If you work hard, you will succeed.
If you work hard, you will succeed in passing the exam (same meaning).
If you work hard, you will succeed John as the manager of this company (different meaning).
