transitivity

transitivity (transitivitet): a term referring to whether or not a verb occurs with a direct object. A transitive verb occurs with a direct object; an intransitive verb occurs without one. Example of transitive verbs: He stole priceless painting. They found a skeleton in the closet. As subcategories of transitive verbs, a ditransitive verb requires an indirect object in addition to the direct object (She offered   him a drink), and a complex transitive verb requires an object predicative in addition to the direct object (They named him Peter). See also valency.