する verbs transitive or intransitive?

[healer]

I understand Japanese verbs are either transitive or intransitive with only a few exceptions. I haven't really come across any exceptions yet.
The dictionary I often use tells whether a verb is transitive or intransitive but not for する verbs though.
How to determine though? Do we goes on our gut feeling?

運転する transitive?
心配する intransitive?
勉強する transitive and intransitive?
修理する transitive?
質問する transitive and intransitive?
感触する transitive and intransitive?

Some verbs in my dictionary such as the one below do not come with the indication whether it is transitive or intransitive.
I suppose verbs of feeling are always intransitive without doubt.
喜ぶ

 

[Toritoribe]

I understand Japanese verbs are either transitive or intransitive with only a few exceptions. I haven't really come across any exceptions yet.

e.g.
開く（ひらく）
店が開く 店を開く
(Note that 開く（あく） is intransitive.)

閉じる
目が閉じる 目を閉じる

増す
重みが増す 重みを増す

結ぶ
実が結ぶ 実を結ぶ

催す
眠気が催す 眠気を催す

The dictionary I often use tells whether a verb is transitive or intransitive but not for する verbs though.
How to determine though? Do we goes on our gut feeling?

Some J-J dictionaries have the definition.
excerpt from 新明解国語辞典

―する means this word is also the stem of a -suru verb.
他 and 自 refer to transitive and intransitive, respectively.
サ means that the conjugation type is -suru irregular verb (サ変/サ行変格活用 in Japanese).

Or, you can check the example sentences in dictionaries.

goo

NTTドコモが運営するポータルサイト「goo」。今話題のニュースやドコモのキャンペーン、サービス紹介などお役立ちコンテンツを展開しています。

dictionary.goo.ne.jp

将来を心配する shows that this is a transitive verb.
(Note that "there is no example sentence that contains the object" doesn't always mean "it's intransitive". Also note that some intransitive verbs can take を, too, e.g., 道路を走行する, 空中を飛行する, 大学を卒業する or 全国を行脚する in 新明解国語辞典.)

運転する transitive?
心配する intransitive?
勉強する transitive and intransitive?
修理する transitive?
質問する transitive and intransitive?
感触する transitive and intransitive?

Those are all transitive verbs except the last one. 感触 is not used as the stem of a -suru verb nowadays. 感触する is almost obsolete.

I suppose verbs of feeling are always intransitive without doubt.
喜ぶ

Not really. 喜ぶ, 怒る, 悲しむ or 楽しむ are all transitive.

 

[healer]

Thanks a lot. It is a very thorough answer.

結ぶ 催す

The imwa dictionary tells me the above two are only transitive.

心配する shows that this is a transitive verb.

Can 心配する be an intransitive verb like the English word "worry"?

道路を走行する, 空中を飛行する, 大学を卒業する or 全国を行脚する

I did learn these. I suppose I just have to memorize all these syntaxes.

Those are all transitive verbs except the last one. 感触 is not used as the stem of a -suru verb nowadays. 感触する is almost obsolete.

I'm very surprised that all the する verbs are transitive, not even 心配する. 感触する if not obsolete, could it be intransitive when it was used?

Not really. 喜ぶ, 怒る, 悲しむ or 楽しむ are all transitive.

Again I'm very surprised that verbs of feeling are all transitive. I didn't expect they take objects. I looked up the examples in the imiwa dictionary and they all take the particle を. I suppose it is the feeling about something.

 

[Toritoribe]

The imwa dictionary tells me the above two are only transitive.

That's not the only one dictionary you can refer to, right?

むすぶ 【結ぶ】
二（自動詞）*
1. ある形のものができる。結実する。凝固する。 「実が－・ぶ」
*自動詞 means intransitive verb.

「結ぶ」の意味や使い方 わかりやすく解説 Weblio辞書

「結ぶ」の意味は<p style="padding-bottom: 10px;"><!--AVOID_CROSSLINK-->読み方：むすぶ<!--/AVOID_CROSSLINK--> ひもなど、細長いものを組んでつなぐのこと。Weblio国語辞典では「結ぶ」の意味や使い方、用例、類似表現などを解説しています。

www.weblio.jp

もよおす 【催す】
2. ある気分・状態を起こさせる。かきたてる。また、起こる。きざす。 「興が－・す」

催す(もよおす)の意味や読み方 わかりやすく解説 Weblio辞書

「催す」の意味は<p style="padding-bottom: 10px;"><!--AVOID_CROSSLINK-->読み方：もよおす<!--/AVOID_CROSSLINK--> 人を集めて行事などを行うのこと。Weblio国語辞典では「催す」の意味や使い方、用例、類似表現などを解説しています。

www.weblio.jp

The usages as a transitive verb are more common, but these verbs can be used as an intransitive verb, too.

Can 心配する be an intransitive verb like the English word "worry"?

You might be misunderstanding the concept of intransitive verbs(自動詞). When the transitive counterpart exists, the subject of an intransitive verb is the patient(被動作主), i.e., the object of the transitive verb.
e.g.
スマホを壊す(transitive)
スマホ: the object/patient

スマホが壊れる(intransitive)
スマホ: the subject/patient

車を止める(transitive)
車: the object/patient

車が止まる(intransitive)
車: the subject/patient

Think about the following sentence.

彼は自分の将来を心配している。
He is worrying about his future.
彼: the subject/agent(動作主)
自分の将来: the object/patient

If 心配する works also as an intransitive verb, 自分の将来 can be the subject without changing the basic concept of the action (emotion/feeling in this case), like the verbs I listed in my previous post (開く, 閉じる, 増す, etc.). However, the subject of 心配する is always the agent(the one who worries), and 自分の将来が心配している doesn't make sense. Thus, 心配する is not an intransitive verb. 彼は心配している is just an omission of the object of the transitive verb. The same goes to 勉強する(日本語を勉強する ×日本語が勉強する) or 質問する(わからないことを質問する ×わからないことが質問する).

感触する if not obsolete, could it be intransitive when it was used?

Seems like yes. に, not を, was used to indicate the target(the thing/event that impresses the subject) of 感触する in the classical example sentence.

かんしょく【感触】
2. 外界からの働きかけによって心に感じること。感覚。 「輓近（ちかごろ）何事に－したのか…」

「感触」の意味や使い方 わかりやすく解説 Weblio辞書

「感触」の意味は<p style="padding-bottom: 10px;"><!--AVOID_CROSSLINK-->読み方：かんしょく<!--/AVOID_CROSSLINK--> 外界の物事に触れて心に感じること。Weblio国語辞典では「感触」の意味や使い方、用例、類似表現などを解説しています。

www.weblio.jp

I suppose it is the feeling about something.

Right. The subject is pleased with something, got angry about something, etc. Incidentally, ～を怒る also means "to scold someone".

 

[healer]

That's not the only one dictionary you can refer to, right?

Thanks for your reminder. I'm not that good in Japanese language so I'm still avoiding Japanese to Japanese dictionary, otherwise I would be going round the circle looking up words for meaning in the dictionary all the time. Besides I don't think I have learnt all the grammar and syntaxes. The other dictionary I used on the web is Jisho.org: Japanese Dictionary which tells me 結ぶ and 催す are transitive verbs and doesn't mention anything if they are also intransitive or not. I guess the intransitiveness of these verbs probably something recently developed and the dictionaries in question haven't caught up.

新明解国語辞典 certainly is not an alternative for free. I shall certainly try to explore the other two, i.e. 辞典・百科事典の検索サービス - Weblio辞書 and 国語・英語・四字熟語のオンライン辞書 - goo辞書 with the help of Rikaichamp. On the 辞典・百科事典の検索サービス - Weblio辞書, I certainly see 結ぶ listed as 他動詞 and 自動詞. I'm not sure what 動バ五［四］means though. However there is no mention about the transitivity of the verb 催す and I don't under what 動サ五［四］is. As to 国語・英語・四字熟語のオンライン辞書 - goo辞書, I can't see any mentioning of transitivity.

By the way I didn't mean to be rude. I was surprised that such important information is not updated in a dictionary. I use public library for Internet access so sometimes I run out of daily allowable time or data to say what I want to say at the time.

You might be misunderstanding the concept of intransitive verbs(自動詞).

What you explained there is very logical and reasonable. I was thinking in terms of the English word "worry" which can be used as a transitive verb or an intransitive verb. See worry and worry about and worries [Transitive and intransitive uses].

Having said that I understand language is not really completely a logical thing. As long as enough people make the mistake, a mistake would become an acceptable usage. Certainly in some aspects Japanese language is better than English language, more logical and sensible.

 

[Toritoribe]

I guess the intransitiveness of these verbs probably something recently developed and the dictionaries in question haven't caught up.

It's more likely the intransitivity of those verbs becomes less and less common in these days. You can think that it's safer to use ～を結ぶ/催す in most cases.

I'm not sure what 動バ五［四］means
what 動サ五［四］is

動バ五［四］
動詞 バ行五段活用（四段活用）
verb, ba-column godan conjugation (yodan conjugation in classical Japanese)

動サ五［四］
動詞 サ行五段活用（四段活用）
verb, sa-column godan conjugation (yodan conjugation in classical Japanese)

I was thinking in terms of the English word "worry" which can be used as a transitive verb or an intransitive verb. See worry and worry about and worries [Transitive and intransitive uses].

I know there are so many verbs that can be both transitive and intransitive in English. I remember that one of our veteran members, a native English speaker, gave a beginner learner member advice that he needed to take care about which verb, transitive or intransitive, should be used when making a Japanese sentence since these verbs are strictly distinguished in Japanese, unlike in English,

 

[healer]

It's more likely the intransitivity of those verbs becomes less and less common in these days.

So they are updated too soon.
Thanks a lot!