intransitive
adjective · noun
Simple meaning
Designating a verb that does not require or cannot take a direct object.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
ihntransuhtivSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ɪntˈɹænsətɪv
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adjective
grammarof a verb
Designating a verb that does not require or cannot take a direct object
probability
Of a set of dice: containing three dice A, B, and C, with the property that A rolls higher than B more than half the time, and B rolls higher than C more than half the time, but lacking the property that A rolls higher than C more than half the time. See intransitive dice and intransitive game.
grammarof a verb
Not transitive: not having, or not taking, a direct object.
noun
grammar
A verb (or verb construction) that does not take an object
grammar
An intransitive verb.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Designating a verb that does not require or cannot take a direct object
Used this way, intransitive is a specialist word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. This is a grammar or language-study use: it describes how language works, so it appears in teaching and reference writing.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Specialist/technical
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Specialized
- Connotation
- Clinical and technical
- Usage feel
- Technical and specialized
Where it naturally appears
- Academic writing
- Education/classroom
- Technical/specialist writing
Usage note
In general conversation this sense usually needs explaining — outside its field, people reach for a plainer word.
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
Share your sentence
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Antonyms
Sense: designating a verb that does not require
Use This Word
See how this word sounds in a real sentence.
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Knowing “intransitive” starts when you use it. Pick a next step, all free.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.