modal construction to be to with the infinitive of the semantic verb, it is used to express plans, agreements, orders, instructions, prohibitions, and what is destined to happen.
To be to has three forms of the present ( am, are, is) and two forms of the past tense ( was And were). Read the rules for conjugation of this verb in the article about the semantic verb to be.
At present, the construction to be to used only with verbs in the form of a simple infinitive. After to be to in the past time ( was to, were to) verbs are used in the form of a simple infinitive (the first form of a verb) or a perfect infinitive. For the future tense modal construction to be to is replaced by have to in the future tense will have to.
Past |
The present |
Future |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple/Perfect Infinitive | Simple Infinitive | Shall / Will have to | ||||||||||||||||||||
| We were to meet at 5 p.m. We were supposed to meet at 5. |
We are to meet at 5 p.m. We have to meet at 5 pm. |
We will have to meet next week. We need to meet next week. |
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| He was to have met us but he forgot to do it. He was supposed to meet us, but he forgot about it. |
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He |
+ | is to | + | ... |
|
He |
+ | will have to | + | ... |
Statement
Affirmative sentences with construction to be to are used very often and are used both in the present and in the past tense.
The design expresses official plans, agreements, orders, instructions, necessity arising from a predetermined plan.
- Today you are to work in this room. You are working in this room today.
- Nobody is to leave this room! No one will leave this room!
- The President of our country is to visit France this week. The President is going to visit France this week.
- All students are to write a yearly project by the end of this course. All students are required to write a term paper at the end of this course.
- I was to meet my friends at the station. I was supposed to meet friends at the station.
- He - He was going to (had to) speak at the meeting.
- Matt and Andrew came to an agreement that they were to fix our printer. Matt and Andrew agreed that they would fix our printer.
Also to be to conveys the possibility of something. Often used with a semantic verb in the form Passive Infinitive.
- I know where this book is to be found. I know where this book can be found.
- These flowers are to be seen in many parks of our city. These flowers can be seen in many city parks.
- Matt was to be seen playing the guitar in the city center. Matt could be seen playing the guitar in the city center.
Negation
In negative sentences with the construction to be to particle not placed after the verb to be. As a rule, negative sentences mean a categorical ban or the impossibility of something. In this case, after to be to the perfect infinitive is not used (have + verb in the 3rd form).
- Ban
- You are not to be here!- You shouldn't be here!
- He was not to approach his ex-wife's house. He was forbidden to approach the house of his ex-wife.
- my friends were not to go to yesterday's concert. My friends were forbidden to go to yesterday's concert.
- Impossibility of action
- This novel is not to be read in one day. It's too big. It is impossible to read this novel in one day. He's too big.
- We wanted to stay friends but it wasn't to happen. We wanted to remain friends, but that was not to be.
Question
In an interrogative sentence with the construction to be to verb be in the required form is placed at the beginning of a sentence or after a question word.
- Am I to stay here?- Should I stay here?
- Is Jack to make a speech during the meeting? Does Jack have to speak at the meeting?
- When are you going to the university? When are you going to go to university?
- why were they to stay here? Why did they have to stay here?
Features of use
To be to / To be going to
modal construction to be to in the meaning of intentions, plans, agreements can be freely replaced by the construction to be going to (going to do something), since in this case to be to- is short for to be going to.
- This year we are to go to Spain for a scientific conference.
- This year we are going to visit Spain for a scientific conference.– This year we are going to Spain for a scientific conference.
- The presidents are to meet in London.
- The presidents are going to meet in London. The presidents are going to meet in London.
- He was to make a speech at the meeting.
- He was going to make a speech at the meeting. He was going to speak at the meeting.
Action that was not taken
Past form of construction to be to with the perfect infinitive indicates a planned action that was not performed.
- I was to have met my friends at the station but I forgot about that. I was supposed to meet my friends at the station, but I forgot about it.
- He was to have made a speech but he didn't even come to the meeting. He was going to speak at the meeting, but he didn't even come to it.
- Matt and Andrew were to have fixed our printer. Matt and Andrew were supposed to fix our printer. (but they didn't)
We are to work on this project we should start right now. – If we want to work on this project, we need to start it now.
- If you are not to go abroad you don't need an international passport.– If you are not going abroad, you do not need a passport.
- Let me know if you are not to come to the party. Let me know if you're not going to the party.
If.. were to
To be to in past tense were to(for all persons) in conditional sentences with if indicates an undesirable, unacceptable action that is unlikely to happen. In sentences expressing the present or future tense, the construction were to used with the simple infinitive of the semantic verb. To indicate a condition in the past tense after were to the perfect infinitive of the verb is used (have + verb in the 3rd form).
- If I were to fail my examination tomorrow, I would be excluded from my university.– If tomorrow I suddenly flunk my exams, I will be expelled from the university. (I definitely won't fail my exams)
- If she were to be my girlfriend, we would argue every day.- If she were my girlfriend, we would argue with her every day. (she is not my girlfriend and probably never will be)
- If I were to have failed my examination last year, I would have been excluded from my university. If I suddenly flunked my exams last year, I would have been kicked out of the university. (I definitely wouldn't flunk my exams)
- If she were to have married Jack, she would have suffered a lot. If she (then) had married Jack, she would have suffered a lot. (she didn't marry Jack and probably never would)
To be to headlines
Design to be to often used in articles and newspapers. Sometimes newspaper headlines use its shortened version without the verb be to save space and grab the attention of the reader.
- The presidents are to meet in London. The presidents are going to meet in London.
- The presidents to meet in London. The presidents will meet in London.
- the king is to visit Spain. The king will visit Spain.
- the king to visit Spain. The king will visit Spain.
Verb to be means "to be". This is the initial form, the infinitive. This verb is inflected for persons and numbers, and each person/number has its own form:
Usually in reference books, pronouns are given as examples - this is done for ease of explanation. Verb is used with words denoting an animate / inanimate object in the singular.
Forbidden fruit is sweet. - The Forbidden fruit is sweet.
Verb are used with words denoting an animate / inanimate object in the plural.
Two heads are better than one. - Two heads are better than one.
The form am only used with pronoun I.
I'm ready. - I'm ready.
Notes
In dictionaries, verbs in the initial form (go be, a game be, would be) are given together with the particle to: to be, to go, to play. This shows that this verb is in the form of the infinitive, and not the form of some person or tense. But when using verbs in speech and writing, the particle to is not used.
Pronoun you translated as "You" and "You" (respectful treatment) and "You" (plural), depending on the context. In any case, with you used Are.
Short forms/abbreviations
Short forms arise
when merging a verb (its part) with a noun (pronoun), which denotes the subject (performing the action);
when merging verbs with a negative particle not
The short form does NOT change the meaning of the statement. Short forms are not distortions of the grammatical norms of the English language and obey the rules. They are most characteristic of fluent oral informal speech and are widely used in informal written speech.
Affirmative / affirmative form
| I am from London. = I "m from London. I'm from London. |
We are from London = We "re from London. We are from London. |
| You are from London = You "re from London You/you are from London. |
They are from London = They "re from London. They are from London. |
| He/She is from London. = He/She "s from London. He/She is from London |
|
| It is from London. = It "s from London. This is from London |
Negative / Negative form
| I am not from London. = I "m not from London. I am not from London. |
We are not from London = We aren't from London. We are not from London. |
| You are not from London = You aren't from London You/You are not from London. |
They are not from London = They aren't from London. They are not from London. |
| He/She is not from London. = He/She isn't from London. He/She is not from London |
|
| It is not from London. = It isn't from London. This is not from London |
Also, the short form of the verb to be can be formed by merging the question words What, Where, When, Who, How, Why with the verb Is.
With other forms of to be and interrogative words, short forms are usually not formed.
| When + Is = When"s | When's her birthday? |
| What + Is \u003d What "s | What's your phone number? |
| Where + Is = Where"s | Where's our teacher? |
| Who + Is \u003d Who "s | Who's there? |
| How + Is = How's | How's your mother? |
| Why + Is = Why "s | Why's she late? |
“To be or not to be” is a question that is relevant not only for Shakespeare's characters, but also for those who are working to improve their level of English proficiency. to be has a very wide scope in the English language, it is both a semantic verb, and part of numerous set expressions, and an auxiliary, and even a modal verb. But first things first!
Meaning of the verb to be
The original and basic meaning of this verb is "to be, to be, to be." Quite often, a predicate is added to it - the nominal part of the compound predicate - in the form of an adjective, noun or some kind of phrase with a preposition, for example:
As can be seen from the example of the sentences in the table, the verb to be in the present tense, it is often simply not translated into Russian. Hence its colloquial name, adopted among English language learners - "connective verb" - that is, a verb that is more necessary to connect the semantic parts of a sentence.
In addition, there are a large number of set expressions with the verb to be, giving it special importance. .
Forms of the verb to be
Whatever role the verb to be plays in a sentence, it is extremely important to know its form formation, because its forms (as well as the forms of its Russian counterpart “to be”) are often completely different from the original form (infinitive) - to be. So, for example, the basis of the basics for English learners is knowledge of the forms of the verb to be (the Present Simple Tense):
| I am - I am |
| he / she / it is - he / she / it is |
| you / we / they are - you (you, you) / we / they are |
Here are possible cuts, in which the verb is connected to the pronoun, and an apostrophe appears in place of the "runaway" letter:
| I am | I'm |
| you are | you're |
| he is | he's |
| she is | she's |
| it is | it's |
| we are | we're |
| they are | they're |
It is also important to firmly understand simple past forms(the Past Simple Tense) of this verb:
It is also obligatory to memorize three main forms verb to be, since it belongs to the group of irregular verbs:
| the Infinitive
(infinitive) |
the Past Simple Tense
(past simple tense) |
thePast Participle
(past participle) |
| to be | was/were | been |
All tense forms of the verb to be can be represented in the following table:
| Simple | Continuous* | Perfect | Perfect Continuous | |
| present | the Present Simple Tense
am/is/are |
the presentContinuousTense
am/is/are being |
the Present Perfect Tense
have/has been |
form is not used |
| Past | the Past Simple Tense
was/were |
the PastContinuousTense
was/werebeing |
the Past Perfect Tense
had been |
form is not used |
| Future | the Future Simple Tense
will be |
the futureContinuousTense
will bebeing |
the Future Perfect Tense
will have been |
form is not used |
* The verb to be is rarely used in group tenses Continuous , since its lexical meaning - "to be" - usually implies some kind of constant characteristic, for example, to be lazy - to be lazy, which means that it is more typical for it to be used in group times Simple . However, in cases where the unusual situation or behavior of a person is implied, such use is the norm, for example:
Use in Continuous it is also acceptable if we are talking about a repetitive and fairly boring process. In this case, this temporary form is mainly responsible for the expressiveness and expressiveness of the sentence (in other cases, regularly repeated actions that do not cause irritation are the scope of Simple use):
| Sue is always being late for work! It drives me mad! | Sue is always late for work! This drives me crazy! |
Consider examples of sentences with the verb to be in various tense forms:
| Simple | Continuous* | Perfect | |
| present | the Present Simple Tense
Sam is late for school. - Sam is late for school. |
the present
Continuous
Tense
Sam is being late for school again! It annoys everyone.Sam is late for school again! It annoys everyone. |
the Present Perfect Tense
Sam has been late for school. So he has missed some important information. - Sam was late for school. So he missed some important information. |
| Past | the P
as
t Simple Tense
Sam was late for school yesterday. - Sam was late for school yesterday. |
the Past
Continuous
Tense
Sam wasbeing late for school again yesterday! It announced everyone.Sam was late for school again yesterday! This irritated everyone. |
the Past Perfect Tense
Sam had been late for school for man y times before he had to visit the headmaster. - Sam was late for school many times before he had to go to the headmaster. |
| Future | the Future Simple Tense
Sam will be late for school tomorrow. – Sam will be late for school tomorrow. |
the future
Continuous
Tense
Sam will bebeing late for school again and again! I suppose it will annoy everyone.Sam will be late for school again and again! I suspect this will irritate everyone. |
the Future Perfect Tense
Sam will have been late for school twice by that time. Sam will be late for school twice by then. |
Scopes of the verb to be
This verb finds its use in English in the following cases:
- as semantic verb with the meaning "to be":
| James is an engineer. | James is an engineer. |
| This game can be very funny. | This game can be very funny. |
| Be careful! | Be careful! |
| Mary is very shy. | Mary is very shy. |
| My parents were at home when we arrived. | My parents were at home when we arrived. |
- as auxiliary verb for the following grammatical constructions:
- group times Continuous and Perfect Continuous:
| We are working at the project now. (Present Continuous) | We are currently working on a project. |
| I was drawing a picture when the teacher came. (Past Continuous) | I was painting a picture when the teacher came in. |
| The students will be working in the garden on Monday from 10 to 12 o'clock. (Future Continuous) | The students will work in the garden on Monday from 10 am to 12 pm. |
| I have been waiting for you since morning. (Present Perfect Continuous) | I've been waiting for you since morning. |
| They had been living in that house for 20 years by the time the landlord decided to sell it. (Past perfect continuous) | They had lived in the house for 20 years by the time the landlord decided to sell it. |
| By 2017 Sam will have been working at this factory for 20 years. (Future Perfect Continuous) | In 2017, it will be 20 years since Sam has been working at this factory. |
| This newspaper is usually sold very quickly. (Present Simple Passive) | This newspaper usually sells out very quickly. |
| The game was lost despite our hard training. (Past Simple Passive) | The game was lost despite our hard training. |
| your car will be fixed in two days. (Future Simple Passive) | Your car will be repaired in two days. |
| . Johnsis being examined by the doctor at the moment. (Present Continuous Passive) | Mr. Jones is currently being examined by a doctor. |
| my car has been repaired so I can drive home. (Present Perfect Passive) | My car is fixed so I can drive home. |
- as component part There is/ are(is / is):
| There is a new supermarket near the museum. | There is a new supermarket next to the museum. |
- as component part common design to begoing to(to intend/intend):
- as modal verb with the particle to and with the meaning of obligation due to some plan or agreement:
- as base element phrasal verbs:
| to be about— intend/intend | I am about leaving him with his crazy ideas. -I'm about to leave him with his crazy ideas. |
| to be ongo (about a TV show, movie or play) | — What is on?
— An old film. Would you like to watch it? — What's coming? — Some old movie. Do you want to see it? |
| tobe back - |
Verb- this is an independent part of speech that answers the questions what to do ?, what to do? (be, learn, dream, go…)
According to the method of formation of the forms of the past tense (V2) and the past participle (V3), all English verbs are divided into 2 groups: regular (Regular Verbs) and irregular verbs (Irregular verbs).
The English verb has three forms. The verb forms are denoted by Roman numerals I, II, III.
I form(or an infinitive without to), for example: to make (to do) - make - the first, or main form that answers the question what to do ?, what to do? With the help of the first form of the verb, the Present Simple Tense is formed. When forming Present Simple Tense, the ending is added to the I form of the verb in the 3rd person singular (he, she, it - he, she, it) -s or -es(he jumpes, she jumpes, it jumpes, he cries, she cries, it cries, he does, she does, it does) . With the rest of the pronouns (I, we, you, you, they - I, we, you, you, they), the I form of the verb is used unchanged.
II form serves to form the simple past tense (Past Simple Tense). When forming the simple past tense, both regular and irregular verbs are used. Regular verbs form II and III forms by adding the suffix form I to the stem –ed(jump - jumped - jump - jumped) . If the verb is not regular, then its past tense form corresponds to the second column in the table of irregular verbs (be - was / were, do - did, make - made).
III form- Participle II (Participle II) - a special form of the verb that denotes a sign of an object by action and answers the questions of an adjective (lost, baked, made). For regular verbs III, the form coincides with II: jump (I) - jumped (II) - jumped (III) (jump - jumped - jumped). II and III forms of irregular verbs can be formed in various ways, indicated below.
Regular verbs
Regular verbs form II and III forms by adding the suffix form I to the stem – ed (- d), which is pronounced like:
- [ d] after vowels and voiced consonants: to clean (clean) - cleaned (cleaned); to play (play) - played (played);
- [ t] after the deaf: to work (work) - worked (worked), to look (watch) - looked (looked);
- after [d] And [t]: to want (want) - wanted (wanted), to mend (repair) - mended (repaired).
When forming II and III forms of verbs, pay attention to the following spelling rules:
- If the I form is a short root syllable and ends with one consonant, then when adding the ending –ed the last vowel of the root is doubled: to stop (stop) - sto pped(has stopped).
- -y, preceded by a consonant, the letter y changes to i: to carry (carry) - carried (carried), to study (learn) - studied (studied). But if the stem of the verb ends in -y, which is preceded by a vowel, then the stem of the verb is simply added - ed: to play (play) - played (played), to stay (stay) - stayed (stayed).
- If the stem of the verb ends in -e, which is not pronounced, then the II and III forms of the verb are formed by adding the ending - d: to arrive (arrive) - arrived (arrived).
Irregular Verbs
Irregular Verbs- these are verbs that have special, fixed forms of the past tense and participles, their forms do not have a clear education algorithm and are learned by memorizing: to make (to do) - made (done) - made (done). Most English irregular verbs are native English, derived from verbs that existed in Old English. Most irregular verbs exist as remnants of historical systems of conjugation (changing the verb by person - I'm coming, you're coming, he's coming...).
Irregular verbs are used to form the past simple (Past Simple), the present perfect (Present Simple), the past perfect tense (Past Perfect), in the passive voice (Passive voice), when converting direct speech into indirect (Reported speech), in conditional sentences ( conditional sentences).
table of irregular verbs
| Infinitive | past tense | Past Participle | Translation | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| arise | [ə"raiz] | arose | [ə"rəuz] | arisen | [ə"riz(ə)n] | arise, appear |
| wake up | [ə"weik] | awoke | [ə"wəuk] | awoken | [ə"wəukən] | wake up, wake up |
| be | was, were | , | been | to be | ||
| bear | bore | born | give birth, bring | |||
| beat | beat | beaten | ["bi:tn] | beat | ||
| become | became | become | become | |||
| begin | began | begun | start off) | |||
| bend | bent | bent | bend, bend | |||
| bind | bound | bound | bind | |||
| bite | bit | bitten | ["bɪtn] | bite) | ||
| bleed | bled | bled | bleed | |||
| blow | blew | blown | blow | |||
| break | broke | broken | ["broukən] | break) | ||
| breed | bred | bred | bring up | |||
| bring | brought | brought | bring | |||
| build | built | built | build | |||
| burn | burnt | burnt | burn, burn | |||
| burst | burst | burst | explode, explode | |||
| buy | bought | bought | buy | |||
| cast | cast | cast | throw, pour (metal) | |||
| catch | caught | caught | catch, seize | |||
| choose | chose | chosen | ["tʃouzən] | choose, pick | ||
| come | came | come | come | |||
| cost | cost | cost | cost | |||
| cut | cut | cut | cut | |||
| dig | arc | arc | dig, dig | |||
| do | did | done | do | |||
| draw | drew | drawn | draw, draw | |||
| dream | dream | dream | dream, dream | |||
| drink | drank | drunk | drink | |||
| drive | drove | driven | ["drɪvən] | drive | ||
| eat | ate | eaten | ["i:tn] | eat | ||
| fall | fell | fallen | ["fɔ:lən] | fall | ||
| feed | fed | fed | feed | |||
| feel | felt | felt | feel | |||
| fight | fought | fought | fight | |||
| find | found | found | find | |||
| fit | fit | fit | fit in size | |||
| fly | flew | flown | fly | |||
| forget | forgot | forgotten | forget | |||
| forgive | forgave | forgiven | forgive | |||
| freeze | frozen | frozen | ["frouzən] | freeze | ||
| get | got | got | receive | |||
| give | gave | given | ["gɪvən] | give | ||
| go | went | gone | go, walk | |||
| grow | grew | grown | grow | |||
| hang | hung | hung | hang, hang | |||
| have | had | had | have | |||
| hear | heard | heard | hear | |||
| hide | hidden | hidden | ["hɪdn] | hide | ||
| hit | hit | hit | hit the target | |||
| hold | held | held | Keep | |||
| hurt | hurt | hurt | hurt, bruise | |||
| keep | kept | kept | keep, save | |||
| kneel | knelt | knelt | kneel | |||
| knit | knit | knit | knit (knitting needles) | |||
| know | knew | known | know | |||
| lay | laid | laid | put | |||
| lead | led | led | lead, lead | |||
| lean | lean | lean | tilt | |||
| learn | learned | learned | teach | |||
| leave | left | left | leave, leave | |||
| lend | lent | lent | borrow, borrow | |||
| let | let | let | let | |||
| lie | lay | lain | lie | |||
| light | lit | lit | illuminate, ignite | |||
| lose | lost | lost | lose | |||
| make | made | made | do | |||
| mean | meant | meant | to mean | |||
| meet | met | met | meet | |||
| mistake | mistook | mistaken | make mistakes | |||
| pay | paid | paid | to pay | |||
| put | put | put | put, put | |||
| read | read | read | to read | |||
| ride | rode | ridden | ["rɪdn] | ride | ||
| ring | rank | rung | call, call | |||
| rise | rose | rising | ["rɪzən] | get up | ||
| run | ran | run | run away | |||
| say | said | said | talk | |||
| see | saw | seen | see | |||
| seek | sought | sought | search | |||
| sell | sold | sold | sell | |||
| send | sent | sent | send | |||
| set | set | set | put, put | |||
| shake | [ʃeɪk] | shook | [ʃʊk] | shaken | ["ʃeɪkən] | shake |
| shine | [ʃaɪn] | shone | [ʃoun, ʃɒn] | shone | [ʃoun, ʃɒn] | to shine, shine, shine |
| shoot | [ʃu:t] | shot | [ʃɒt] | shot | [ʃɒt] | fire |
| show | [ʃou] | showed | [ʃoud] | shown | [ʃoun] | show |
| shrink | [ʃriŋk] | shrank | [ʃræŋk] | shrunk | [ʃrʌŋk] | sit down (about the material), decrease (sya), reduce (sya) |
| shut | [ʃʌt] | shut | [ʃʌt] | shut | [ʃʌt] | close |
| sing | sang | sung | sing | |||
| sink | sank | sunk | drown | |||
| sit | sat | sat | sit | |||
| sleep | slept | slept | sleep | |||
| smell | smelt | smelt | smell, smell | |||
| slide | slide | slide | slide | |||
| sow | sowed | sown | sow, sow | |||
| smell | smelled | smelled | smell, smell | |||
| speak | spoke | spoken | ["spoukən] | talk | ||
| spell | spelt | spelt | to spell | |||
| spend | spent | spent | to spend | |||
| spill | spilt | spilt | shed | |||
| sleep | spat | spat | spit | |||
| split | split | split | split | |||
| spoil | spoilt | spoilt | spoil | |||
| spread | spread | spread | spread | |||
| stand | stood | stood | to stand | |||
| steal | stole | stolen | ["stoulən] | steal | ||
| stick | stuck | stuck | to stick, to stick, to stick | |||
| sting | stung | stung | sting | |||
| strike | struck | struck | hit, strike | |||
| striving | strove | striving | ["strɪvn] | try, strive | ||
| wear | swore | sworn | take an oath | |||
| sweep | swept | swept | revenge, sweep | |||
| swim | swam | swum | to swim | |||
| take | took | taken | ["teɪkən] | take, take | ||
| teach | taught | taught | teach | |||
| tear | tore | torn | tear | |||
| tell | told | told | tell | |||
| think | [θɪŋk] | thought | [θɔ:t] | thought | [θɔ:t] | think |
| throw | [θrou] | threw | [θru:] | thrown | [θroun] | throw |
| understand | [ʌndər "stænd] | understood | [ʌndər"stʊd] | understood | [ʌndər"stʊd] | understand |
| upset | [ʌp"set] | upset | [ʌp"set] | upset | [ʌp"set] | upset, upset (plans), upset |
| wake | woke | woken | ["woukən] | wake up | ||
| wear | wore | worn | wear | |||
| weep | wept | wept | cry | |||
| wet | wet | wet | wet, moisturize | |||
| win | won | won | win, win | |||
| wind | wound | wound | writhing, winding, winding (clock) | |||
| write | wrote | written | ["rɪtn] | write |
How to remember forms of irregular verbs?
In English there is a very important verb "to be", which is translated into Russian as "to be, to exist". It is also a linking verb that connects the subject and what it is connected to in a sentence.
It is also important to take into account the word order in the English sentence: subject --> predicate --> object. The predicate is necessarily present in the sentence: either it is an action verb, or some kind of state expressed just by the verb to be.
For example: He is a student. / He (is) a student.
As we can see, "to be" is used in English, but in the present tense it is not translated into Russian in the sentence, but only implied.
"To be" has affirmative, negative, and interrogative forms. Today we will analyze the forms of this verb in the present, past and future tenses.
To be in present tense
Verb forms: am (when we talk about ourselves), is (singular), are (plural).
- I am a teacher. - I'am a teacher.
- John is my brother. - John is my brother.
- Mary is the smartest student in the class. Mary is the smartest student in the class.
- It is my dog "s toy. - This is my dog's toy.
- We are best friends. - We are best friends.
- You are right. - You (you) are right (s).
- His parents are very nice. - His parents are very nice.
put particle not
- I am not = I "m not
- He is not = He isn't
- She is not = She isn't
- It is not = It isn't
- We are not = We aren't
- You are not = You aren't
- They are not = They aren't
- Am I?
- Is he/she/it?
- Are we/you/they?
To be in past tense
Verb forms: was (when we talk about ourselves), was (singular), were (plural).
- I was a teacher. - I was a teacher.
- John was my classmate. John was my classmate.
- Mary was the smartest student in the class. Mary was the smartest student in the class.
- It was his book. - It was his book.
- We were best friends. - We were best friends.
- You were right. - You (you) were (and) right (s).
- His parents were in London. - His parents were in London.
When we need to build a negative sentence - put particle not after the correct form of the verb to be. Abbreviations are also used.
- I wasn't = I wasn't
- He wasn't = He wasn't
- She wasn't = She wasn't
- It wasn't = It wasn't
- We were not = We weren"t
- You were not = You weren't
- They were not = They weren't
To ask a question, simply put the correct form of the verb to be at the beginning of the sentence. Don't forget the question mark!
- Was I?
- Was he/she/it?
- Were we/you/they?
To be in the future tense
Verb forms: will be for all persons and numbers.
- I will be a teacher. - I'm going to be a teacher.
- John will be my colleague. John will be my colleague.
- Mary will be the best student in the class. Mary will be the best student in the class.
- It will be his birthday. - It will be his birthday.
- We will be best friends. - We'll be best friends.
- You will be late. - You (you) will be late (late).
- His parents will be in London. - His parents will be in London.
When we need to build a negative sentence - put particle not after will. Abbreviations are also used.
- I will not be = I won't be
- He will not be = He won't be
- She will not be = She won't be
- It will not be = It won't be
- We will not be = We won't be
- You will not be = You won't be
- They will not be = They won't be
To ask a question, simply put will at the beginning of the sentence. Don't forget the question mark!
- Will I be?
- Will he/she/it be?
- Will we/you/they be?
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