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Intermediate

Light Verbs

How common verbs combine with nouns to create verbal meaning in Spanish, English and Chinese.

Compare languages

Light verbs are semantically bleached verbs that combine with nouns to create complex predicates. English uses take/give/have/make/do. Spanish uses dar/hacer/tener/pasar. Chinese uses 做zuò/进jìn行háng/加jiā以yǐ/给gěi.

Overview

Light verbs are high-frequency, semantically general verbs that combine with nouns to create more specific meanings. The noun carries most of the semantic content.

Spanish: Uses dar (give), hacer (make/do), tomar (take), tener (have), pasar (spend), and echar (throw/look) as light verbs. Many are reflexive.
English: Uses take, give, have, make, do, get as the core light verbs. Extremely productive in phrasal combinations.
Chinese: Often uses the noun itself as a verb (散sàn歩bù = to walk). When a light verb is needed, 做zuò, 进jìn行háng, 加jiā以yǐ, or 给gěi are used. Reduplication and 一yī下xià soften the action.

Spanish

Dar (give)

Expression	Literal	Meaning
dar un paseo	give a walk	take a walk
dar un abrazo	give a hug	give a hug
dar un beso	give a kiss	give a kiss
dar un salto	give a jump	jump
dar un grito	give a shout	shout
dar una vuelta	give a turn	take a spin
dar una palmada	give a clap	clap
dar asco	give disgust	disgust
dar miedo	give fear	scare
dar igual	give equal	not matter
dar por hecho	give for done	take for granted

Hacer (make/do)

Expression	Meaning
hacer los deberes	do homework
hacer una pregunta	ask a question
hacer una foto	take a photo
hacer caso	pay attention
hacer daño	harm
hacer falta	be necessary
hacer bien	do good (to)
hacerse daño	hurt oneself
hacerse el tonto	play dumb

Tomar (take)

Expression	Meaning
tomar una decisión	make a decision
tomar una foto	take a photo (Latin America)
tomar el pelo	pull someone’s leg
tomar el sol	sunbathe
tomar el tren	take the train
tomar en cuenta	take into account

Tener (have)

Expression	Meaning
tener hambre	be hungry
tener sueño	be sleepy
tener frío	be cold
tener razón	be right
tener cuidado	be careful
tener éxito	be successful
tener lugar	take place
tener que + inf	have to

Pasar (spend/pass)

Expression	Meaning
pasar miedo	be frightened
pasar frío	be cold
pasar hambre	go hungry
pasar de…	not care about
pasarlo bien	have a good time

Echar (throw/cast)

Expression	Meaning
echar de menos	miss (someone)
echar un vistazo	take a look
echar una mano	lend a hand
echar la culpa	blame
echar a perder	ruin, spoil
echarse a reír	burst out laughing
echarse a llorar	burst out crying

Poner (put)

Expression	Meaning
poner atención	pay attention
poner en práctica	put into practice
ponerse a + inf	begin to
ponerse en contacto	get in touch
ponerse de acuerdo	reach an agreement
ponerse rojo	blush

English

Take

Expression	Meaning
take a walk	walk
take a shower	shower
take a look	look
take a photo	photograph
take a break	rest
take a seat	sit
take care	be careful
take place	happen
take into account	consider
take advantage of	exploit
take part in	participate
take place	happen

Give

Expression	Meaning
give a speech	speak
give a presentation	present
give a call	call
give a hand	help
give a ride	drive someone
give a kiss	kiss
give a hug	hug
give permission	permit
give advice	advise
give up	surrender
give in	yield
give back	return

Have

Expression	Meaning
have a look	look
have a drink	drink
have a try	try
have a rest	rest
have a talk	talk
have a shower	shower (British)
have breakfast	eat breakfast
have fun	enjoy
have trouble	struggle
have time	possess time
have a good time	enjoy

Make

Expression	Meaning
make a decision	decide
make a mistake	err
make an effort	try hard
make a promise	promise
make a suggestion	suggest
make sense	be logical
make progress	advance
make friends	befriend
make money	earn
make sure	ensure
make up	reconcile / invent
make out	discern

Do

Expression	Meaning
do homework	complete homework
do business	conduct business
do someone a favor	help
do the dishes	wash dishes
do laundry	wash clothes
do one’s best	try hard
do harm	harm
do good	benefit
do research	research
do well	succeed

Get

Expression	Meaning
get a job	obtain employment
get a ride	obtain transportation
get permission	obtain permission
get in touch	contact
get rid of	eliminate
get used to	become accustomed
get angry	become angry
get lost	become lost
get ready	prepare
get started	begin

Chinese

Verb-noun as single unit (no light verb)

Chinese often combines noun and verb into a single word:

Word	Noun	Verb
散sàn步bù	walk (noun)	walk (verb)
游yóu泳yǒng	swimming (noun)	swim (verb)
睡shuì觉jiào	sleep (noun)	sleep (verb)
洗xǐ澡zǎo	bath (noun)	bathe (verb)
唱chàng歌gē	song (noun)	sing (verb)
跳tiào舞wǔ	dance (noun)	dance (verb)
吃chī饭fàn	meal (noun)	eat (verb)
睡shuì觉jiào	sleep (noun)	sleep (verb)

No light verb needed: 散sàn步bù already means “take a walk.”

做zuò as light verb

做zuò (do/make) + noun:

Expression	Meaning
做zuò作zuò业yè	do homework
做zuò决jué定dìng	make a decision
做zuò饭fàn	cook
做zuò生shēng意yì	do business
做zuò梦mèng	dream
做zuò好hǎo准zhǔn备bèi	prepare

进jìn行háng as formal light verb

进jìn行xíng (carry out) + abstract noun:

Expression	Meaning
进jìn行xíng研yán究jiū	conduct research
进jìn行xíng改gǎi革gé	carry out reform
进jìn行xíng调diào查chá	conduct investigation
进jìn行xíng讨tǎo论lùn	have a discussion

加jiā以yǐ as formal light verb

加jiā以yǐ + verb (formal, improvement-oriented):

Expression	Meaning
加jiā以yǐ改gǎi善shàn	make improvements
加jiā以yǐ利lì用yòng	make use of
加jiā以yǐ考kǎo虑lǜ	give consideration

给gěi as benefactive light verb

给gěi + person + verb:

给gěi我wǒ看kàn看kan (show me)
给gěi你nǐ讲jiǎng一yí下xià (explain to you)

打dǎ个gè as informal light verb

打dǎ个gè + noun:

打dǎ个ge招zhāo呼hu (greet)
打dǎ个ge电diàn话huà (make a call)
打dǎ个ge喷pēn嚏tì (sneeze)

一yī下xià for softening

Adding 一yí下xià to a verb softens it:

看kàn一yí下xià (take a look)
试shì一yí下xià (give it a try)
想xiǎng一yí下xià (think about it)

Comparison at a glance

Concept	Spanish	English	Chinese
Take a walk	dar un paseo	take a walk	散sàn步bù
Take a shower	ducharse	take a shower	洗xǐ澡zǎo
Make a decision	tomar una decisión	make a decision	做zuò决jué定dìng
Do homework	hacer los deberes	do homework	做zuò作zuò业yè
Have a look	echar un vistazo	have a look	看kàn一yī下xià
Give a speech	dar un discurso	give a speech	讲jiǎng话huà
Make an effort	hacer un esfuerzo	make an effort	努nǔ力lì
Take a photo	hacer una foto	take a photo	拍pāi照zhào
Pay attention	poner atención	pay attention	注zhù意yì
Sunbathe	tomar el sol	sunbathe	晒shài太tài阳yáng

Examples

In Context

Spanish	English	Chinese
Voy a dar un paseo.	I’m going to take a walk.	我wǒ去qù散sàn步bù。
Tienes que tomar una decisión.	You have to make a decision.	你nǐ要yào做zuò决jué定dìng。
Echa un vistazo.	Have a look.	看kàn一yī下xià。

Common mistakes

English speakers learning Spanish: Tomar una foto is Latin American; Spain prefers hacer una foto
Spanish speakers learning English: Do a decision → make a decision
English speakers learning Chinese: 做zuò散sàn步bù → 散sàn步bù (no light verb needed)
Chinese speakers learning English: I will walk-walk → I’ll take a walk / I’ll go for a walk

Serial Verbs: How verbs combine in Chinese
Causatives: How causative verbs work
Prepositions: How prepositions pair with verbs
Word Order: How light verb + noun structures fit into sentences

Examples

Take a walk

dar un paseo

Take a shower

ducharse

Make a decision

tomar una decisión

Do homework

hacer los deberes

Have a look

echar un vistazo

Give a speech

dar un discurso

Make an effort

hacer un esfuerzo

Take a photo

hacer una foto

Examples

Take a walk

take a walk

Take a shower

take a shower

Make a decision

make a decision

Do homework

do homework

Have a look

have a look

Give a speech

give a speech

Make an effort

make an effort

Take a photo

take a photo

Examples

Take a walk

散sàn步bù (verb) / 散sàn一yī下xià步bù

Take a shower

洗xǐ澡zǎo / 冲chōng个gè澡zǎo

Make a decision

做zuò决jué定dìng

Do homework

做zuò作zuò业yè

Have a look

看kàn一yī下xià

Give a speech

讲jiǎng话huà / 发fā表biǎo演yǎn讲jiǎng

Make an effort

努nǔ力lì / 尽jìn力lì

Take a photo

拍pāi照zhào / 拍pāi一yī张zhāng照zhào片piàn

Comparison at a glance

Grammar concepts	Spanish	English	Chinese
Take a walk	dar un paseo	take a walk	散sàn步bù (verb) / 散sàn一yī下xià步bù
Take a shower	ducharse	take a shower	洗xǐ澡zǎo / 冲chōng个gè澡zǎo
Make a decision	tomar una decisión	make a decision	做zuò决jué定dìng
Do homework	hacer los deberes	do homework	做zuò作zuò业yè
Have a look	echar un vistazo	have a look	看kàn一yī下xià
Give a speech	dar un discurso	give a speech	讲jiǎng话huà / 发fā表biǎo演yǎn讲jiǎng
Make an effort	hacer un esfuerzo	make an effort	努nǔ力lì / 尽jìn力lì
Take a photo	hacer una foto	take a photo	拍pāi照zhào / 拍pāi一yī张zhāng照zhào片piàn

Side-by-side comparison

Grammar concepts	Spanish	English	Chinese
Take a walk	dar un paseo	take a walk	散sàn步bù (verb) / 散sàn一yī下xià步bù
Take a shower	ducharse	take a shower	洗xǐ澡zǎo / 冲chōng个gè澡zǎo
Make a decision	tomar una decisión	make a decision	做zuò决jué定dìng
Do homework	hacer los deberes	do homework	做zuò作zuò业yè
Have a look	echar un vistazo	have a look	看kàn一yī下xià
Give a speech	dar un discurso	give a speech	讲jiǎng话huà / 发fā表biǎo演yǎn讲jiǎng
Make an effort	hacer un esfuerzo	make an effort	努nǔ力lì / 尽jìn力lì
Take a photo	hacer una foto	take a photo	拍pāi照zhào / 拍pāi一yī张zhāng照zhào片piàn

Examples in context

Take a walk

Spanish

dar un paseo

English

take a walk

Chinese

散sàn步bù (verb) / 散sàn一yī下xià步bù

Take a shower

Spanish

ducharse

English

take a shower

Chinese

洗xǐ澡zǎo / 冲chōng个gè澡zǎo

Make a decision

Spanish

tomar una decisión

English

make a decision

Chinese

做zuò决jué定dìng

Do homework

Spanish

hacer los deberes

English

do homework

Chinese

做zuò作zuò业yè

Have a look

Spanish

echar un vistazo

English

have a look

Chinese

看kàn一yī下xià

Give a speech

Spanish

dar un discurso

English

give a speech

Chinese

讲jiǎng话huà / 发fā表biǎo演yǎn讲jiǎng

Make an effort

Spanish

hacer un esfuerzo

English

make an effort

Chinese

努nǔ力lì / 尽jìn力lì

Take a photo

Spanish

hacer una foto

English

take a photo

Chinese

拍pāi照zhào / 拍pāi一yī张zhāng照zhào片piàn

Key Takeaways

Spanish: Uses dar (give), hacer (make/do), tomar (take), tener (have), pasar (spend), and echar (throw/look) as light verbs. Many are reflexive.

English: Uses take, give, have, make, do, get as the core light verbs. Extremely productive in phrasal combinations.

Chinese: Often uses the noun itself as a verb (散sàn歩bù = to walk). When a light verb is needed, 做zuò, 进jìn行háng, 加jiā以yǐ, or 给gěi are used. Reduplica. Chinese uses 做zuò/进jìn行háng/

Key concepts compared: Take a walk, Take a shower, Make a decision.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does English 'take a walk' correspond to Spanish 'dar un paseo' (give a walk) rather than 'tomar un paseo'?

Light verb + noun combinations are idiomatic and vary unpredictably across languages. English 'take a walk' uses 'take' as the light verb, while Spanish *dar un paseo* uses *dar* (give). Spanish *tomar un paseo* exists in some dialects but is less common. Chinese typically uses the noun as a verb: <ruby>散<rt>sàn</rt></ruby><ruby>步<rt>bù</rt></ruby> (walk — noun used as verb). A learner cannot predict the correct light verb from translation: 'take a photo' = *hacer una foto* (make a photo), not *tomar una foto*. These pairings must be memorized individually.

How does Chinese avoid light verbs by using noun-verb compounding?

Chinese often uses the noun itself as a verb without any light verb: <ruby>洗<rt>xǐ</rt></ruby><ruby>澡<rt>zǎo</rt></ruby> (wash-bath = to bathe), <ruby>拍<rt>pāi</rt></ruby><ruby>照<rt>zhào</rt></ruby> (strike-photo = to photograph), <ruby>做<rt>zuò</rt></ruby><ruby>作<rt>zuò</rt></ruby><ruby>业<rt>yè</rt></ruby> (do-homework = to do homework). When Chinese does use light verbs, they are <ruby>做<rt>zuò</rt></ruby> (do/make), <ruby>进<rt>jìn</rt></ruby><ruby>行<rt>háng</rt></ruby> (carry out), or <ruby>给<rt>gěi</rt></ruby> (give). English speakers learning Chinese will overuse light verbs ('I take a bath' calqued as <ruby>我<rt>wǒ</rt></ruby><ruby>拿<rt>ná</rt></ruby><ruby>一<rt>yī</rt></ruby><ruby>个<rt>gè</rt></ruby><ruby>澡<rt>zǎo</rt></ruby>), and Chinese speakers learning English will omit light verbs ('I bath' instead of 'I take a bath').

Why are Spanish reflexive light verbs so confusing for English and Chinese speakers?

Spanish uses reflexive pronouns with many light verbs: *ducharse* (shower-oneself = to take a shower), *despertarse* (wake-oneself = to wake up), *acostarse* (lay-oneself = to go to bed). English uses non-reflexive light verbs: 'take a shower,' 'wake up,' 'go to bed.' Chinese uses verb compounding without reflexives: <ruby>洗<rt>xǐ</rt></ruby><ruby>澡<rt>zǎo</rt></ruby> (wash-bath). An English speaker learning Spanish will omit the reflexive (*duchar* without *se* means 'to shower someone else'), and a Chinese speaker will not expect the reflexive at all because Chinese has no reflexive morphology in these contexts.

References

Nueva gramática de la lengua española — Real Academia Española / Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española, 2010
The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language — Huddleston & Pullum, Cambridge University Press, 2002
A Comprehensive Grammar of the Modern Chinese Language — Li & Thompson, 1981

Read this first

verb-tenses transitivity

Last updated: June 4, 2026

Overview

Spanish

Dar (give)

Hacer (make/do)

Tomar (take)

Tener (have)

Pasar (spend/pass)

Echar (throw/cast)

Poner (put)

English

Take

Give

Have

Make

Do

Get

Chinese

Verb-noun as single unit (no light verb)

做zuò as light verb

进jìn行háng as formal light verb

加jiā以yǐ as formal light verb

给gěi as benefactive light verb

打dǎ个gè as informal light verb

一yī下xià for softening

Comparison at a glance

Examples

In Context

Common mistakes

Related topics

Examples

Examples

Examples

Comparison at a glance

Side-by-side comparison

Examples in context

Key Takeaways

Frequently Asked Questions

References