There are some English verbs that can be used both intransitively and transitively. Verbs such as "break," "close," and "melt" can appear in intransitive active, transitive active, and passive constructions. Although native English speakers know in what kind of context a target verb is used in a certain construction, previous studies have shown that EFL learners, including Japanese learners of English (JLEs), face difficulties in choosing the appropriate construction of these verb types. The purpose of this paper is two-fold. First, I examined JLEs' sensitivity to the transitivity of such English verbs by using an animation-based acceptability judgment test. This examination was in comparison with some native English speakers (NESs). Second, I investigated which construction of such verbs JLEs tend to use in an animation-based composition test. The results of this study suggest the following: (1) In the animation-based acceptability judgment test, JLEs accepted the passive more than the NESs did in some contexts with the exception of "fall," and (2) in the animation-based composition test, JLEs preferred to use the intransitive of "fall" and the transitive of "drop."