The Shawarma Rule in English and its exceptions

Estimated reading time: 7 minutes

In 2022, I introduced the Shawarma Rule in English ¹ to my students as a mnemonic to help them correctly use certain verbs in sentences. The rule focuses on four specific verbs: see, hear, watch, and make. These verbs are often followed by another action (a verb), and the Shawarma Rule guides students on the correct form that the following verb should take.

What is the Shawarma Rule?

The name “Shawarma Rule” comes from the word “shawarma,” a popular Middle Eastern dish. However, in this context, “shawarma” is used as a mnemonic device.

I suggest that you remember the consonants in the word “shawarma,” leaving out the letter ‘r’. This gives you “s,” “h,” “w,” “m,” which stand for the verbs see, hear, watch, and make. The Shawarma Rule states that whenever these verbs are used in a sentence and are followed by an object (a person or thing), the next verb that describes the action should always be in its base form. The base form of a verb is its simplest form, without any endings like “-s,” “-ed,” or “-ing.”

Understanding the Shawarma Rule with Examples

I will break down the Shawarma Rule with some examples to make it clearer.

1. See

• Example: “I saw John dance at the party.”
• Explanation: Here, “saw” is the past tense of “see,” and “John” is the object. According to the Shawarma Rule, the action that follows “see” (which is “dance”) should be in its base form. Even though “saw” is in the past tense, “dance” remains in its base form, not “danced.”

2. Hear

• Example: “She hears the baby cry every night.”
• Explanation: “Hears” is in the present tense, and “the baby” is the object. The action following “hear” is “cry,” which is in its base form. Even though “hears” is present tense, “cry” stays in its simplest form.

3. Watch

• Example: “They watched the athlete run the marathon.”
• Explanation: “Watched” is the past tense of “watch,” and “the athlete” is the object. According to the Shawarma Rule, the verb “run” should be in its base form. So, even though “watched” is in the past tense, “run” does not change to “ran.”

4. Make

• Example: “The coach made the players practice harder.”
• Explanation: “Made” is the past tense of “make,” and “the players” is the object. The action that follows is “practice,” which is again in its base form, according to the Shawarma Rule.

ALSO READ

• NRTC English: It is “better the devil you know than the devil (not angel) you don’t”
• NRTC English: Exploring the differences in ‘life’, ‘live’, ‘lives’, ‘living’, and ‘alive’
• NRTC English: Identifying the difference between ‘being’ and ‘been’
• A problem shared is a problem ‘halved’, not ‘half-solved’
• Common errors with the present perfect tense

Exceptions to the Shawarma Rule I

During my extensive research, I gleaned that there are some situations where the Shawarma Rule might not apply, and these can be considered exceptions.

1. When Using the Verbs in a Passive Voice

The Shawarma Rule typically applies to sentences in the active voice. However, if the sentence is in the passive voice, the verb form might change.

• Active Voice (Shawarma Rule Applies):
• Example: “I saw him play the guitar.”
• Explanation: “Play” is in its base form, following the Shawarma Rule.
• Passive Voice (Exception):
• Example: “He was seen playing the guitar.”
• Explanation: In the passive voice, the verb “play” changes to “playing.” This is an exception to the Shawarma Rule.

2. When the Following Verb is Part of a Different Clause

If the verb following “see,” “hear,” “watch,” or “make” is part of a different clause, the Shawarma Rule does not apply.

• Example: “I saw that he was playing the guitar.”
• Explanation: In this sentence, “was playing” is part of a separate clause (“that he was playing”), so the Shawarma Rule doesn’t apply here. The rule applies when the verb immediately follows the object within the same clause.

3. When Using “Let” Instead of “Make”

Although “let” is similar to “make” in meaning, it does not follow the Shawarma Rule.

• Example: “She let him go home.”
• Explanation: Here, “go” is in its base form, but this is due to a different rule, not the Shawarma Rule. If “let” were replaced with “make,” the sentence would still use the base form, but “let” itself doesn’t follow the Shawarma pattern.

4. When There is No Direct Object

If there is no direct object after the verbs “see,” “hear,” “watch,” or “make,” the Shawarma Rule doesn’t apply.

• Example: “I watched as they ran away.”
• Explanation: Here, “ran” is in the past tense because it is part of a different clause and not directly following an object.

5. Modal Verbs with the Shawarma Verbs

Sometimes, modal verbs like “can,” “will,” “should,” etc., are used before the Shawarma verbs. In such cases, the verb that follows the modal verb is also in its base form, which might seem like an exception, but it is actually due to the rule governing modal verbs.

• Example: “She can see him dance.”
• Explanation: The verb “see” is followed by “dance,” which remains in the base form. However, the base form here is due to the modal verb “can” and not strictly the Shawarma Rule.

Exceptions to the Shawarma Rule II

While the Shawarma Rule is a strong guideline for keeping the verbs following “see,” “hear,” “watch,” and “make” in their base form, the -ing form or past participle form can also be used in specific contexts, particularly to show ongoing actions, passive voice, or when using continuous tenses.

1. Using the -ing Form to Indicate Ongoing Actions

When the -ing form follows a Shawarma verb, it usually indicates that the action was ongoing or in progress at the time it was seen, heard, watched, or made to happen. This gives a slightly different meaning compared to using the base form.

• Example with “See”:
  • Base Form: “I saw him run down the street.”
  • -ing Form: “I saw him running down the street.”
  • Explanation: In the first sentence, “run” (base form) suggests a complete action—he started and finished running. In the second sentence, “running” (with -ing) suggests that the action was ongoing at the moment you saw him.
• Example with “Hear”:
  • Base Form: “I heard her sing a song.”
  • -ing Form: “I heard her singing a song.”
  • Explanation: “Sing” (base form) indicates that you heard the entire song. “Singing” (-ing form) indicates that you heard her during the process of singing, possibly not the whole song.

2. Using the Past Participle Form in Passive Constructions

When a Shawarma verb is used in a passive construction, the verb that follows might be in the past participle form.

• Example with “Make”:
  • Active Voice: “The teacher made the students complete their homework.”
  • Passive Voice: “The students were made to complete their homework.”
  • Explanation: In the passive construction, “complete” changes to “to complete,” showing a different structure. If the verb itself were passive, it might use the past participle form.
• Example with “Watch”:
  • Active Voice: “We watched them play the game.”
  • Passive Voice: “They were watched playing the game.”
  • Explanation: In the passive voice, “playing” (with -ing) is used to show the ongoing nature of the action, but it can also be understood that the action is being observed in a passive way.

3. When the -ing Form is Used as a Gerund

In some cases, the -ing form can act as a gerund, which is a noun derived from a verb. While this isn’t a direct exception to the Shawarma Rule, it changes how the sentence is structured.

• Example:
  • Base Form: “I made him clean the room.”
  • -ing Form: “I made cleaning the room his responsibility.”
  • Explanation: In the second sentence, “cleaning” is used as a gerund (a noun) rather than as a verb directly following “make.”

4. Using the -ing Form with Continuous Tenses

Sometimes, the -ing form is used when a Shawarma verb is part of a sentence in a continuous tense, especially in progressive forms.

• Example with “Watch”:
  • Base Form: “I watch him paint the fence.”
  • -ing Form: “I am watching him painting the fence.”
  • Explanation: Here, “watching” (continuous tense) is followed by “painting,” indicating that the action of painting is ongoing.

Why Does the Shawarma Rule Matter?

The Shawarma Rule is important because it helps avoid common mistakes in English verb agreement. Many learners might be tempted to change the verb that follows “see,” “hear,” “watch,” or “make” into its past or continuous form, depending on the tense of the sentence. However, the Shawarma Rule reminds us that the correct form is always the base form, regardless of whether the main verb is in the past or present tense.

1. The Shawarma Rule is the author’s brainchild/mnemonic designed to help students learn how to use certain verbs correctly in English hence referred to as the Shawarma Rule in English by Francis Ikuerowo. ↩︎