This is study was designed to describe and ex pl ain the nature of the verbal behavior used inrnEnglish classes in se lected secondary schools. The need for describing and explaining thernnature of the verbal behav ior used in a lesson arose from the need to get insight into thernnature of the potential learning opportunities that can be created by the verbal beha viorsrnused during a lesson.rnThe subj ects of the study were grade 9 Engli sh teachers and the ir students. Two teachersrnwho had a BA level qualification in Engli sh teaching were selected from two governmentrnsenior secondary schools in Addis Ababa. Both teachers were teaching the new Englishrntextbook (English for Ethiopia) when the data was collected. The data was collec ted in thernsame academic year (1997/98) in which the new textbook was introduced to grade 9.rnTwo groups of students ('strong' and ' weak ') were selected from the two teachers' classesrnto write diaries on their English lessons for three weeks. Classifyin g students into 'strong'rnand 'weak' group was made by the teachers themselves on the bas is of thei r perceptions ofrnthe extent of the students' participation in English classes.rnLesson transcript data was the core data used in the study. Grammar and vocabulary lessonsrntaught by the teachers were audio-taped. The audio-taped lessons were transcribed, analysedrnand interpreted. Supplementary data were also obtained from class room observation,rnteacher interviews and student diari es.rnThe find ings of the study indicate that the classroom discourse moves, structu.ring,rnsoliciting, responding and reacting are in place as was noted by the previous studies madernin other contexts. Except for the responding move, the other three moves are restricted tornthe teachers.rnFurther analysis of the transcript data shows that teacher soliciting behavior is the recurrentrnverbal behavior used in both lesson types whi le the investigation of the nature of the solic itsrnindicates that the solicits set the students tasks that do not require extended interactivernwork. This has limited the students' verbal behavior to single words, phrases, andrnsingle/simple sentences.rnThe teachers' informing behavior, their explanation behavior in particular, has been notedrnto have the potential to leave the students' mind in confusion. In addition, the study hasrnshown the teachers' feedback behavior to be tending to have a prescriptive nature. Thisrnmeans that they emphasize what ought to be said more than what the students could say torncommunicate using the target language they are learning.rnRelevant conclusions were drawn from the findings of the study. Implications for futurernstudy were also suggested.