The need for preparing materials which are comprehensible to disadvantaged children led to this study in which verbs were simplified in an effort to determine whether such simplification might increase the likelihood of passages being understood by disadvantaged black students. The hypothesis was based on a 1927 study which found that 18 verbs, either alone or in combination, could be used to represent the meanings of all verbs used by average adults and by the considerable evidence available that differences in verb use exist between standard and nonstandard dialects. Two groups of inner-city blacks and one of suburban whites, all ninth graders, were given two sets of cloze materials, one using simplified verbs and one using regular verbs. The group from Black School 1 (N=57) showed a significant difference (p<.0005) in ability to supply simplified regular forms, the group from Black School 2 (N=51) showed similar significance, and the group from the white school (N=64) showed a significant difference but at a lower level (p<.02). It was concluded that verb simplification would be of greater help to disadvantaged blacks than to whites. References and tables are included. (MS)