STATIVE AND DYNAMIC USES

Verb	Stative use (simple verb form)	Dynamic use (progressive verb form)
Be	(permanent state, general truth) Lupita is married	(acting, behaving) Michael is being really weird.
Have	(possesion, characteristics) I have five minutes before class starts.	(causing, experiencing) I’m having problems with my car
See	(notice, observe, understand) Do you see what I mean?	(meet or date) They’ve been seeing each other for a while
Think	(have an opinión) I think it’s good idea.	(the process of thought) I was thinking about it all day

Function Some verbs are rarely used in progressive forms. They are called stative verb because they usually refer to states or conditions which continue over a period of time, for example know, prefer, or agree. However, some stative verbs commonly have both stative and dynamic uses, with different meanings.

Función

Algunos verbos rara vez se usan en formas progresivas. Se denominan stativos verbos porque generalmente se refieren a estados o condiciones que continúan durante un período de tiempo, por ejemplo, saber, preferir o aceptar. Sin embargo, algunos verbos estativos comúnmente tienen usos tanto estativos como dinámicos, con diferentes significados.

EXAMPLES

DYNAMIC

Joe IS chasing the bus

Carlos wants some ice-cream