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Stative Verbs in English: When to Use (and When to Avoid) Them for the TOEIC®

(Updated: January 22, 2026)

Flow Exam team

Stative Verbs in English: When to Use Them (and When to Avoid Them) on the TOEIC®

Stative verbs describe a state, opinion, possession, or perception, unlike action verbs which describe an activity.

These often cause problems on the TOEIC® because they are generally not used with continuous tenses (be + -ing).

Many test-takers make the mistake in Part 5: they see "is understanding" or "are knowing" among the options and assume it's correct because the context seems to call for a present continuous tense.

The Main Categories of Stative Verbs

Stative verbs fall into five main families, each with its own characteristics.

  • Possession: have, own, belong, possess
  • Opinions and Preferences: believe, think, suppose, imagine, prefer, want, need
  • Perceptions: see, hear, smell, taste, feel (when describing involuntary perception)
  • Mental States: know, understand, remember, forget, realize, recognize
  • Other States: be, seem, appear, cost, weigh, contain, consist

Using these verbs in the continuous tense when they describe a permanent or temporary state and not an ongoing action is an error. "I am knowing the answer" is incorrect. You say, "I know the answer."

Summary Table

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Important Rule #1: No Continuous Form (Except Exceptions)

Stative verbs are generally not put into the present continuous (present continuous) or past continuous (past continuous). Why? Because they describe something static, not a progressive action.

Example 1:

  • Incorrect: "I am knowing the manager."
  • Correct: "I know the manager."
    I know the manager.

Example 2:

  • Incorrect: "The document is containing important data."
  • Correct: "The document contains important data."
    The document contains important data.

Example 3:

  • Incorrect: "She was understanding the problem yesterday."
  • Correct: "She understood the problem yesterday."
    She understood the problem yesterday.

In TOEIC® Part 5, test designers often quiz candidates on this rule. They give you a sentence with a context that seems to require a continuous tense (presence of "now", "at the moment", etc.), and among the choices, you find a stative verb in the continuous form. This is a trap.

Important Rule #2: Verbs with Dual Meanings (State OR Action)

Some verbs can function as both stative verbs and action verbs depending on the context.

Think

Stative verb (opinion):

  • "I think this plan is excellent."
    I think this plan is excellent.

Action verb (in the process of reflecting):

  • "I am thinking about your proposal."
    I am thinking about your proposal.

Have

Stative verb (possession):

  • "The office has two meeting rooms."
    The office has two meeting rooms.

Action verb (experience):

  • "We are having a meeting right now."
    We are having a meeting right now.

See

Stative verb (involuntary perception):

  • "I see the problem."
    I see the problem.

Action verb (planned meeting):

  • "I am seeing the client tomorrow."
    I am seeing the client tomorrow.

Taste / Smell

Stative verb (characteristic):

  • "This coffee tastes bitter."
    This coffee tastes bitter.

Action verb (voluntary action):

  • "The chef is tasting the sauce."
    The chef is tasting the sauce.

Based on data observed from many candidates practicing on our TOEIC platform, confusion between these two usages alone explains about a third of the errors related to stative verbs on the exam.

Table: Frequent Dual-Meaning Verbs

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Examples of Common Traps:

On the TOEIC®, questions about stative verbs are rarely isolated. They are combined with other grammatical traps to increase difficulty.

Trap 1: Presence of a "Continuous" Time Marker

This trap encourages choosing a continuous tense, even though the verb simply describes a state.

  • "The manager ______ the new policy right now."
    (A) is understanding (B) understands (C) understood (D) has understood

Answer: (B) understands. Even though "right now" suggests a present continuous, "understand" is a stative verb that does not take the continuous form. The simple present is perfectly suitable for a current state.

Trap 2: Stative Verb + Action Context

The context implies an ongoing action, but the verb remains static.

  • "All employees ______ the benefits package."
    (A) are knowing (B) know (C) have known (D) knew

Answer: (B) know. "Know" is always a stative verb, even in a context where one might imagine a progressive action.

Trap 3: Dual-Meaning Verb Identified Incorrectly

Here, everything depends on the precise meaning the verb takes in the sentence.

  • "The team ______ a conference call at 3 p.m."
    (A) has (B) is having (C) have (D) had

Answer: (B) is having. Here, "have" means "to hold/organize" (action verb), so the present continuous is correct. This is the reverse of the usual trap.

Trap 4: Confusion with the Present Perfect

This trap appears as soon as a duration is mentioned and pushes test-takers to choose an incorrect verb form.

  • "I ______ this colleague for five years."
    (A) am knowing (B) know (C) have known (D) knew

Answer: (C) have known. With a duration ("for five years"), we use the present perfect, even with a stative verb. But never the continuous form "have been knowing".

A helpful technique: If you hesitate between a simple form and a continuous form, ask yourself whether the verb describes a voluntary action the person is currently performing, or a static state. If it's a state, automatically eliminate the -ing forms.

Stative Verbs and Present Perfect: Watch Out for the Trap

Stative verbs can be used in the present perfect (have/has + past participle), but never in the present perfect continuous (have/has been + -ing).

Example 1:

  • Incorrect: "I have been knowing her since 2015."
  • Correct: "I have known her since 2015." I have known her since 2015.

Example 2:

  • Incorrect: "The office has been belonging to the company for ten years."
  • Correct: "The office has belonged to the company for ten years." The office has belonged to the company for ten years.

In Part 5, this trap often appears with duration markers (for, since, over the past, in recent years). The context suggests a present perfect, but among the choices, one option offers the continuous form. This is a trap.

Quick List: The Most Frequent Stative Verbs on the TOEIC®

Here are the 20 stative verbs you will encounter most often in TOEIC® business contexts. Memorize them.

Always Stative Verbs (never in continuous form):

  • know, understand, realize, recognize
  • believe, suppose
  • own, belong, possess
  • need, want, require
  • consist, contain, include
  • mean, matter
  • cost, weigh, measure

Dual-Meaning Verbs (check the context):

  • have (possession vs. action)
  • think (opinion vs. reflection)
  • see (perception vs. meeting)
  • taste, smell, feel (characteristic vs. voluntary action)

The difference between a score of 800 and a score of 950 on the TOEIC®? Often, it's the ability to identify these nuances in under 10 seconds per question.

Practical Method: 3 Questions to Ask Yourself in Part 5

When you see a verb in a Part 5 question, apply this method.

  • Question 1: Does this verb describe a state or an action? State: opinion, possession, involuntary perception, mental state. Action: voluntary activity, ongoing process.
  • Question 2: Is there a continuous time marker in the sentence? (now, at the moment, currently, these days) If yes, AND it is a pure stative verb, eliminate all -ing forms.
  • Question 3: Is this a dual-meaning verb? If yes, reread the sentence to identify the exact meaning. Example: "have a meeting" = action, "have a car" = possession.

Using this technique allows you to answer 95% of questions about stative verbs on the TOEIC®. Once the reflex is established, you gain 5 to 10 points just on this topic.

Ready to Practice?

Stative verbs come up regularly on the TOEIC®, especially in Part 5 where they are often combined with verb tense traps.

On Flow Exam, you can practice directly on the Present Tenses and Grammatical Form Choice topics in Part 5, with thousands of questions in the same format as the official TOEIC®.

The exercises precisely reproduce the traps we just covered: incorrect continuous forms, dual-meaning verbs, misleading time markers.

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