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Factivity of verbs and adjectives

List of verbs and adjectives and their factivity (according to Hooper 1975: 92)

  •  factive
    • assertive (semi-factive)
      • find out
      • discover
      • know
      • learn
      • note
      • notice
      • observe
      • perceive
      • realize
      • recall
      • remember
      • reveal
      • see
    • non-assertive (true factive)
      • regret
      • resent
      • forget
      • amuse
      • suffice
      • bother
      • make sense
      • care
      • be odd
      • be strange
      • be interesting
      • be relevant
      • be sorry
      • be exciting
  • non-factive
    • assertive
      • weak assertive
        • think
        • believe
        • suppose
        • expect
        • imagine
        • guess
        • seem
        • appear
        • figure
      • strong assertive
        • (a)
          • acknowledge
          • admit
          • affirm
          • allege
          • answer
          • argue
          • assure
          • certify
          • charge
          • claim
          • contend
          • declare
          • divulge
          • emphasize
          • explain
          • grant
          • guarantee
          • hint
          • hypothesize
          • write
          • imply
          • indicate
          • insist
          • intimate
          • maintain
          • mention
          • point out
          • predict
          • prophesy
          • postulate
          • remark
          • reply
          • report
          • say
          • state
          • suggest
          • swear
          • testify
          • theorize
          • verify
          • vow
          • write
        • (b)
          • agree
          • be afraid
          • be certain
          • be sure
          • be clear
          • be obvious
          • be evident
          • calculate
          • decide
          • deduce
          • estimate
          • hope
          • presume
          • surmise
          • suspect
    • non-assertive
      • non-negative
        • be likely
        • be possible
        • be probable
        • be conceivable
      • negative
        • be unlikely
        • assert
        • be impossible
        • be improbable
        • be inconceivable
        • doubt
        • deny

Hooper [Bybee], Joan. 1975. On assertive predicates. In John P. Kimball (ed.), Syntax and semantics, vol 4, 91–124. New York: Academy Press. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004368828_005