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In syntax, why cannot we say things like

"he took walked at the park"?

but can say things like

"he took a walk at the park"?

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A walk at the park is essentially acting as a noun phrase where the word walk is not the verb to walk but the noun walk which is a thing that people do.

Therefore, in this whole sentence, there is only one verb: Took. This verb takes the past tense of take to be took.

So, applying that knowledge to this sentence in particular:

He took a walk at the park.
Subject(He) Verb Object(noun phrase)
agrees with English syntax

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  • Of course, you could have said "he walked at the park" or perhaps better "he walked in the park"
    – Ron Jensen
    Commented Jul 30, 2019 at 22:24

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