66 Examples of Verbs that Start with Y in English • 7ESL (2024)

Last updated on June 3, 2024 by 7ESL

A complete list of verbs that start with Y in English. You may not realize it, but you’re actually using verbs in every sentence that you ever speak or write because you cannot construct a full sentence without at least one verb. Verbs help us describe the things that we are doing, have done, or are planning to do. The more verbs you know, the better your sentences will be!

Table of Contents

Verbs that Start with Y

What Are Verbs Starting with Y?

Verbs that start with Y are words used to describe actions taken, beginning with the letter Y. In the English language, it’s quite common to see the letter Y as a suffix at the end of a word, typically an adjective or a noun. Adding “-y” to the end of a word changes its meaning to “having the quality of”, so the word becomes descriptive.

List of Verbs that Start with Y

Like the other letters towards the end of the alphabet, such as X and Z, Y isn’t a letter that we often expect to see at the start of a word. However, there are far more than we realize, especially since some of these Y verbs are more often used as nouns.

Check out this list of verbs that start with Y below:

Yip
Yell
Yap
Yawn
Yowl
Yarm
Yearn
Yack
Yank
Yandy
Yelm
Yeuk
Yoik
Yealm
Yuk
Youthify
Yar
Yak
Yot
Yen
Yakka
Yiddishize
Yeasay
York
Yammer
Yuck
Youtube
Yomp
Yelp
Yarn
Yarl
Yankee
Yield
Yoke
Yead
Yabber
Yote
Yacht
Yux
Yoink
Yesk
Yo-Yo
Yeast
Yellow
Yoohoo
Yard
Yawl
Yeehaw
Yaup
Yaw
Yodel
Yelloch
Yock
Yark
Yuppify
Yawp
Yerk
Yatter
Youl

For an extra challenge, here are some harder, less common Y verbs to learn:

Yump
Yoo-hoo
Yesk
Yoink
Yabber

Related: 200+ Common Action Verbs List in English with Pictures

Verbs that Start with Y with Examples

Verbs	Examples
Yip	The dog started to yip at the mailman.
Yell	I had to yell to get my friend’s attention.
Yap	The small dog would yap at everything.
Yawn	He couldn’t help but yawn during the lecture.
Yowl	The cat would yowl whenever she was hungry.
Yarm	The knitter would yarm every day.
Yearn	I yearn for the day when we can travel again.
Yack	He loved to yack about his travels.
Yank	She yanked the door open.
Yandy	She would yandy around the house all day.
Yelm	He would yelm at the top of his lungs.
Yeuk	The thought of eating bugs made him yeuk.
Yoik	The singer would yoik traditional songs.
Yealm	The sailor would yealm when the waves got rough.
Yuk	The smell of the garbage made him yuk.
Youthify	The company wanted to youthify its brand.
Yar	The boat would yar in rough waters.
Yak	He would yak about his problems all day.
Yot	He yot his way through the dense forest.
Yen	She yenned for her home country.
Yakka	He worked as a yakka in the mine.
Yiddishize	He would yiddishize his English by adding Yiddish words.
Yeasay	She would always yeasay to her boss.
Yammer	The baby would yammer all night.
Yuck	The taste of the medicine made him yuck.
Youtube	He would youtube his travels.
Yomp	The soldiers had to yomp for miles.
Yelp	The dog would yelp whenever someone rang the doorbell.
Yarn	She would yarn stories about her childhood.
Yarl	The viking would yarl before going into battle.
Yield	The crop would yield a lot of corn.
Yoke	The oxen were yoked together.
Yead	He would yead his way through the maze.
Yabber	She would yabber on the phone for hours.
Yote	He yote the ball to his teammate.
Yux	He loved to yux his friends.
Yoink	He yoinked the last cookie from the jar.
Yesk	He would yesk his way out of trouble.
Yo-Yo	He would yo-yo up and down the street.
Yeast	I need to yeast the dough before baking the bread.
Yellow	The leaves in the autumn yellow and fall off the trees.
Yoohoo	He would yoohoo to get his friend’s attention.
Yard	He likes to yard his garden every weekend.
Yawl	The boat would yawl in the storm.

Common Verbs that Start with Y and their Meanings

If you want to introduce more Y verbs into your vocabulary, start with these common ones listed below:

To yap– to give a shrill bark
To yell– to shout loudly
To yank– to tug something hard
To yelp– a short cry of alarm or pain
To yawn– to open your mouth widely and inhale, due to tiredness
To yearn– a feeling of intense longing
To yowl– a loud, wailing cry
To yield– to give way to pressure or demands
To yo-yo– to fluctuate
To yodel– a form of singing/calling delivered in a rapidly changing voice, known as “yodeling’
To yip– a short cry of delight or excitement

Verbs that Start with Y in Sentences

She yelled at her son to stop playing video games and do his homework.
Sarah yearned to travel the world and experience different cultures.
The farmer’s crops yielded a bountiful harvest this year.
The dog yelped in pain after stepping on a thorn.
After a long day at work, John couldn’t stop yawning during the meeting.
The school’s yearbook is a collection of memories from the past school year.
The yielding of the suspect was a result of the police’s effective tactics.
She yanked the door open in frustration when it wouldn’t budge.
The yellows in the painting gave it a warm, sunny feel.
The Swiss mountain climber yodeled as he reached the summit.

Conclusion

To conclude, it’s probably a lot easier to work verbs beginning with Y into the everyday conversation than you thought! The majority of them are short, have simple meanings, and can easily be used in place of other common verbs. For example, why not use ‘yell’ instead of shout? Or ‘yield’ instead of ‘give in’? Or ‘yowl’ instead of ‘scream’?

There are countless examples of when Y verbs can be used in sentences, so working them into your vocabulary is a great way to vary the words you commonly use and also learn something new!

Resources Related to Y Verbs

Words that Start with Y
Adjectives that Start with Y
Nouns that Start with Y
Things that Start with Y

Verbs List

Verbs that Start with A
Verbs that Start with B
Verbs that Start with C
Verbs that Start with D
Verbs that Start with E
Verbs that Start with F
Verbs that Start with G
Verbs that Start with H
Verbs that Start with I
Verbs that Start with J
Verbs that Start with K
Verbs that Start with L
Verbs that Start with M
Verbs that Start with N
Verbs that Start with O
Verbs that Start with P
Verbs that Start with Q
Verbs that Start with R
Verbs that Start with S
Verbs that Start with T
Verbs that Start with U
Verbs that Start with V
Verbs that Start with W
Verbs that Start with X
Verbs that Start with Y
Verbs that Start with Z

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