Reciprocal verbs describe actions or processes in which two or more people, groups, or things do the same thing to each other, have a relationship, or are linked because they are participating jointly in an action or event. Verbs of this kind have the label V-RECIP in the Collins Cobuild English Dictionary.

Reciprocal verbs have two basic patterns:

1 They can be used with a plural Subject - that is, a Subject consisting of a plural noun group. When they are used with this plural Subject, the meaning is that the people, groups, or things involved are interacting with each other. For example, two people can quarrel, can have a chat, or can meet.

2 They can also be used with a Subject which refers to one of the participants and a prepositional Object, Adjunct, or Object which indicates the other participant, as in She quarrelled with her sister, I had a chat with him, and I met him at university. This structure is used to focus on the involvement of the first participant mentioned, or to imply that they have a more active role or greater responsibility for what happens. Usually the action or process is reciprocal even when this structure is used, so She quarrelled with her sister implies that her sister also quarrelled with her. However, with some verbs and some noun groups, the action or process may not in fact be reciprocal, as when, for example, someone kisses a baby or a car collides with a tree: in these instances the baby does not kiss the person and the tree does not collide with the car.

A number of reciprocal verbs can be used with a singular Subject in patterns where the other participant is not mentioned, as in I agree and I was still negotiating for the best rate. These verbs are listed in the relevant sections in Chapters 1 and 2, for example V or V for n, and are labelled `also non-recip' in the lists below.

Some verbs are ergative as well as reciprocal. These verbs are explained and listed separately in Chapter 8.

A reciprocal verb has one of these three pattern combinations:

• Pattern combination 1: pl-n V; V with n
  We quarrelled. He quarrelled with his father.
• Pattern combination 2: pl-n V n; V n with n
  We have reached a compromise. France has reached a compromise with Britain.
• Pattern combination 3: pl-n V; V n
  We embraced. He embraced her.

These verbs have two patterns:

Verbs with this combination of patterns belong to the following meaning groups:

These verbs are concerned with speaking and communicating. This includes:

• having a conversation
• arguing
• agreeing and disagreeing

• I've been talking to Jim Hoffman. He suggested that I call you.

• Yesterday the couple were no longer speaking to his mum. And she was certainly not speaking to them.

These verbs are concerned with fighting, either physically or metaphorically, or competing. We include here draw and tie, which indicate that neither person or team wins in a contest.

• Increasingly, local government is competing against the private sector.

• The capital has become a wreck, as rival forces contend for power.
• Behind him came Robin Seymour and Chris Young, while Fred Salmon and Paul Lasenby tussled for seventh place ahead of Barrie Clarke.
• To keep customers loyal, the two firms are vying to provide the best sales and service back-up.

• The two sides drew 1-1 in Germany a fortnight ago.

The verbs battle, fight, and wrestle also have the pattern V n: see meaning group 3.3.

These verbs are concerned with associating with someone or engaging in sexual activity with them.

• In these institutions, guards mingle with prisoners in open day rooms, rather than patrol long lines of cells.

• `When I met Kev, I thought, mmm, nice,' laughs Paula, as she cuddles up to her man.

These verbs are concerned with starting or ending a relationship of some kind. We include here make up, which indicates that people resume a relationship.

• I have parted from my wife by mutual agreement.

These verbs indicate that two or more people have a good relationship.

These verbs indicate that people work together or take part in an activity or venture together.

• A grand jury has been investigating whether officials at Southern Co. conspired to cover up their accounting for spare parts to evade federal income taxes.
• Robin Wright, 25, and Sean Penn, 31, met when they co-starred in the movie `State Of Grace'.

Verbs which indicate specific kinds of dancing, such as jive, tango, and waltz also sometimes have these patterns.

These verbs indicate that two or more things are similar or compatible, or are not similar or compatible.

• That number corresponds to a telephone number on this list he gave me.

• All natural colors go together.

These verbs are concerned with being or becoming different. All the verbs in this group have the pattern V from n or V P from n, not V with n or V P with n.

These verbs indicate that two or more things occur together, are in contact, or come into contact.

• The closer to the edges and the woodland, the more natural is the planting, so that the garden seamlessly merges into the woodland.

The verbs intersect 1 and overlap also have the pattern V n: see meaning group 3.4 below.

These verbs indicate that two or more things have an effect on each other.

There are two other verbs with this combination of patterns. Compromise has the pattern V with n. Diverge has the pattern V from n.

a) In the pattern V with n, the prepositional phrase is the prepositional Object.

b) There is a passive pattern, be V-ed with, but it does not often occur, and is not possible with some verbs.

c) Phrasal verb patterns are the same, except that there is a particle, P, which comes after the verb.

These verbs have two patterns:

The passive patterns are be V-ed, be V-ed with n, and be V-ed by/between n.

Verbs with this combination of patterns belong to the following meaning groups:

These verbs are concerned with discussing something. The noun group following the verb indicates what people are discussing.

These verbs indicate that two people or groups agree on future arrangements, or are trying to agree on them.

These verbs are used with noun groups such as talks and a conversation to indicate that two or more people talk to each other.

These verbs are concerned with having, beginning, ending, or renewing contact or a relationship.

• Then did she come here to make it up with him - to make peace with him, anyway?

These verbs indicate that people give, say, or do things of the same kind to each other. They often have the patterns pl-n V pl-n and V pl-n with n.

• He was tired of bandying words with the man.

These verbs are concerned with fighting and competing.

• The allies have turned on each other and fought a running battle for the past four days. At the weekend police fought a gun battle with a gang which used military hand grenades against them.

There are two other verbs with this combination of patterns.

There are a number of phrases which are like reciprocal verbs of this type and their Objects. See `Reciprocal phrases' at the end of this chapter.

Many verbs are reciprocal and are used with these patterns when they have the prefix co-, for example co-author, co-found, co-host, co-sponsor, and co-write.

a) In both the pl-n V n pattern and the V n with n pattern, the noun group following the verb is the Object. In the V n with n pattern, the prepositional phrase is an Adjunct.

b) There are three passive patterns. In the pattern be V-ed, neither participant is mentioned. In the pattern be V-ed with n, one of the participants is mentioned in the prepositional phrase after the verb. In the pattern, be V-ed between/by pl-n, both participants are mentioned in the prepositional phrase.

c) Phrasal verb patterns are the same except that there is also a particle, P. The Object comes either between the verb and the particle, or after the particle. If the Object comes after the particle, it cannot be a personal pronoun. You say
He talked them through with a colleague
or He talked through his ideas with a colleague
but you do not say He talked through them with a colleague.

These verbs have two patterns:

Verbs with this combination of patterns belong to the following meaning groups:

These verbs are concerned with affectionate or sexual contact. When these verbs are used with a Subject referring to one participant, the meaning is usually that the other participant does not do the same thing back - the action is not reciprocal. Some informal verbs referring to sexual intercourse also have this pattern.

The verb kiss also has the patterns pl-n V n and V n n. The noun group which follows the verb, or follows the first noun group, is something such as goodbye or goodnight.

The verb snog also has the pattern V with n: see meaning group 1.3 above.

These verbs are concerned with marriage, divorce, or romantic relationships.

These verbs are concerned with fighting or competing.

The verbs battle, fight, and wrestle also have the pattern V with n: see meaning group 1.2.

These verbs indicate that two or more things are in contact. We include here overlap, where the meaning is metaphorical.

• The roads here are quite a maze, criss-crossing one another in a fashion that at times defies logic.

The verbs intersect 1 and overlap also have the pattern V with n: see meaning group 1.9.

There are a few other verbs with this combination of patterns.

a) In the V n pattern, the noun group following the verb is the Object.

b) There is a passive pattern be V-ed. However, it does not often occur.

In the following patterns, the verb is used with a plural Subject. Many of these patterns are dealt with in other chapters.

The verb is followed by a to-infinitive clause.

• He alleged that the major oil companies conspired to fix gasoline prices from the 1950s till the early 1970s.

The verb is followed by a that-clause.

• Experts agree that one cause of poverty among the young is the dramatic rise in the number of single-parent families.

The verb is followed by a finite wh-clause.

• The Germans are now debating whether that constitutional provision should be changed.

The verb is followed by a to-infinitive clause introduced by a wh-word.

• They are waiting while federal authorities debate what to do about them.

The verb is followed by a prepositional phrase which consists of about and a noun group.

• People still argue about the costs and benefits of that development.

The verb is followed by a prepositional phrase which consists of against and a noun group.

• But British newspapers alleged that the government and royal family were conspiring against her, fearing she would embarrass them.

The verb is followed by a prepositional phrase which consists of for and a noun group.

• More than 2300 candidates from 93 political parties are competing for 486 seats.

The verb is followed by a prepositional phrase which consists of into and a noun group.

• The fights coalesced into a battle that raged the long length of the street.

The verb is followed by a prepositional phrase which consists of on and a noun group.

• Even when people disagree on issues, trust builds bridges and everyone benefits.

The verb is followed by a prepositional phrase which consists of over and a noun group.

• The two sides are squabbling over issues of citizenship, gold reserves and international treaties.

In the following patterns, the verb is followed by a prepositional phrase beginning with with.

The prepositional phrase is followed by a to-infinitive clause which indicates what two or more people or groups are trying to do.

• It said she conspired with others to perform illegal campaign services.

The prepositional phrase is followed by a that-clause which indicates the topic or issue involved.

• Many would agree with him that intelligence is something with which one is born (or not, as the case may be).

The prepositional phrase beginning with with is followed by another prepositional phrase beginning with about which indicates the topic or issue involved. The prepositional phrases may come the other way round.

• I actually agree with you about the gun situation.
• Talk about it with your partner.

The prepositional phrase beginning with with is followed by another prepositional phrase beginning with for which indicates what two or more people or groups are trying to get. The prepositional phrases may be the other way round.

• Defence had to compete for money with other government services.
• Turlington has jostled with Linda Evangelista, Claudia Schiffer and Naomi Campbell for the earnings crown in the past three years.

The prepositional phrase beginning with with is followed by another prepositional phrase beginning with on which indicates the topic or project involved. The prepositional phrases may be the other way round.

• Yes, I do agree with you on that.

The prepositional phrase beginning with with is followed by another prepositional phrase beginning with over which indicates the topic or issue involved.

• He also fought with Reagan over cutbacks in social programs.

There are three ways of emphasizing the reciprocity of an action or process when using a reciprocal verb with a plural Subject.

a) With most reciprocal verbs, a reciprocal pronoun (each other or one another) can be used after the appropriate preposition or after the verb. These patterns are pl-n V with pron-recip and pl-n V pron-recip.

• All across the world today people are fighting with each other and killing each other because of their racial and religious differences.
• The fans would exchange information with one another.
• They hugged each other.

b) With a number of reciprocal verbs, a prepositional phrase consisting of among or amongst and a plural reflexive pronoun can be used, when there are more than two participants involved. A prepositional phrase consisting of between and a plural personal pronoun or reflexive pronoun is also sometimes used, and in this case there may be just two participants.

• The more they argue among themselves, the better.
• Small groups around the room discussed theories amongst themselves, looking from one suspect to another.
• She tried to persuade him to eat what was left of their food but he couldn't manage it, and so the driver and Amy shared it between them.

These patterns most frequently occur with the following verbs:

c) With a few reciprocal verbs, the adverb together can be used for emphasis. This pattern is pl-n V together.

• Members of the group meet together once a week to check their weight, discuss healthy eating and do some exercises.
• They often play tennis together, and share a love of Sixties music.

a) Many verbs not mentioned in this chapter can have a reciprocal meaning. This happens when they are used with a plural Subject and followed by a reciprocal pronoun (each other or one another), as in They hated each other, or by a prepositional phrase containing a reciprocal pronoun, as in They looked at each other. These are not, however, true reciprocal verbs because they cannot be used on their own with a plural Subject, or do not have a reciprocal meaning when they are used like this. For example, you do not say They hated, and if you say They looked, you do not mean that they looked at each other.

b) Verbs which have the patterns V pl-n and V with n, V to n, or V from n have a reciprocal meaning when they are used in the passive. For example, two things can be distinguished, or one thing can be distinguished from another.

c) Some verbs with the pattern V together are similar in meaning to reciprocal verbs, but they are not regarded as true reciprocal verbs because they must be followed by the adverb together when used with a plural Subject. See pages xxx-xxx. Ch2 Sec3.

There are a number of phrases which behave like reciprocal verbs and have a reciprocal meaning.

Most of them consist of a verb and a noun group, and are like the combinations of verbs and noun groups found in Pattern combination 2. A few consist of a verb and a prepositional phrase or an adverbial phrase.

They all have the patterns pl-n PHR and PHR with n.