When the verb to be is an auxiliary verb. This rebellious verb to be...How to make friends with a child? Interesting and useful exercises for children. To be is used when talking about age

I am ready. - I'm ready.
Forbidden fruit is sweet. - The Forbidden fruit is sweet.
We will be I Spain next week. - We
We'll be in Spain next week.

To use it in speech, you need to know its conjugation, and we can conjugate it in three tenses: in the present / PRESENT, in the past / PAST and in the future / FUTURE.

Because it's a verb
changes its forms when conjugated, you need to REMEMBER them! And don’t put it off for too long!

Conjugation to be in

Conjugation to be V

Conjugation to be V

But the verb “to be” can also be used in NEGATIVE AND INTERROGATIVE sentences.

Verb conjugation in NEGATIVES.

WHAT IS “NOT”? To construct a negation with the verb “to be”, the negative particle NOT is required (in Russian it is NOT).

For ease of use in speech and spelling of negatives with “to be”, you need to know the abbreviated forms of negatives.

Abbreviated forms with the particle “not”:

ARE NOT = AREN'T
IS NOT = ISN'T
WAS NOT = WASN'T
WILL NOT BE = WON'T BE

Interrogative sentences

The most basic rule of construction questions in English it is based on changing the order of words in a sentence. The verb to be is a little easier to construct questions than the others because it doesn't require the help of the auxiliary verbs do or does. To form an interrogative sentence with the verb to be, you just need to put it to the beginning of the sentence, i.e. swap places with a noun. For example:

(+) He is a brave soldier. - He is a brave soldier.

(?) Is he a brave soldier? - Is he a brave soldier?

(+) They are at their friend’s house. — They are at their friends' house.
(?) Are they at their friend’s house? —Are they at their friends' house?

(+) It is hot outside. - It is hot outside.
(?) Is it hot outside? - It is hot outside?

(+) It’s eight o’clock now. — It’s eight o’clock now.

(?) Is it eight o’clock now? — Is it eight o’clock now?

(+) Lindsay is the tallest girl in the class. — Lindsay is the tallest girl in the class.
(?) Is Lindsay the tallest girl in the class? — Lindsay is the tallest girl in the class?

In addition to general questions, there is another category in English - special question. These are those questions that begin with special question words what (what?), who (who?), when (when?), where (where? Where?), why (why?), whom (whom?), which ( which), whose (whose?), how many/ how much (how much), and require a more specific answer.

Word order in a special question the same as in general, except for the question word at the beginning of the sentence:

Who will go the cinema today?
Who's going to the cinema today?

Here are a few more examples:

(?) What is your job? -I'm a nurse. — What kind of work do you have?/What do you do? -I am a nurse.
(?) Who is on duty today? -Alex is. -Who's on duty today? -Alex.
(?) Where is Pascal from? -She is from Canada. —Where is Pascal from? -She's from Canada.
(?) Which is your favorite color? -It's light blue. -What is your favorite color? -Light blue.
(?) Why is she here? -Because, she is the part of the family. - Why is she here? -Because she's part of the family.
(?) When is Jane’s birthday? -It's in May. — When is Jane's birthday? -In May.
(?) How much are these jeans? -They’re 99 pounds. -How much do these jeans cost? -They're 99 pounds.

Summary table of the conjugation of the verb “to be”. Past, present, future tense. Interrogative, declarative, negative sentences.

Note

The presented table can be downloaded in word format. There are also other English grammar tables presented there. Verb conjugation in simple tense, English pronouns, English question words, prepositions, numerals, etc.

“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 of application 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 appear, to be.” Quite often, a predicate is added to it - the nominal part of a compound predicate - in the form of an adjective, noun or some kind of phrase with a preposition, for example:

As you can see from the example sentences given 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 students of English - “linking verb” - that is, a verb necessary rather 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 significance. .

Forms of the verb to be

Whatever role the verb to be plays in a sentence, it is extremely important to know its formation, because its forms (as, indeed, the forms of its Russian analogue “to be”) are often completely different from the original form (infinitive) - to be. For example, the basis for learning English is knowledge of the forms of the verb to be (the Present Simple Tense):

Possible here reductions, in which the verb is combined with a pronoun, and an apostrophe appears in place of the “runaway” letter:

It is also important to firmly grasp past simple forms(the Past Simple Tense) of this verb:

Mandatory memorization is also required three main forms verb to be, since it belongs to the group of irregular verbs:

All tense forms of the verb to be can be presented in the following table:

*The verb to be is used quite rarely in group tenses Continuous , since its lexical meaning - “to be” - usually implies some constant characteristic, for example to be lazy - to be lazy, which means it is more typical to be used in group tenses Simple . However, in cases where the unusualness of a situation or human behavior 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 responsible mainly for the expressiveness and expressiveness of the sentence (in other cases, regularly repeated actions that do not cause irritation are the scope of use of the Simple):

Let's look at examples of sentences with the verb to be in various tense forms:

Areas of application of the verb to be

This verb finds its use in English in the following cases:

• as semantic verb with the meaning "to be":

• as auxiliary verb for the following grammatical constructions:
• times of the group Continuous and Perfect Continuous:

• as component There is/ are(is/is):

• as component common design to begoing to(to/intend):

• as modal verb with the particle to and with the meaning of having to due to some plan or agreement:

• as a base element phrasal verbs:

One of the most popular language “confusions” is the use of verbs to be And to do. This refers to the substitution of one verb for another, which occurs as a result of a misunderstanding of the functions and meanings of these words.

We have already talked in detail about the verb to be, so now we will concentrate on comparing the use of verbs in situations in which confusion most often arises.

Strong and weak verb

There are two broad categories of verbs in English - strong and weak.
Strong verbs include modal verbs and their equivalents, have got, auxiliary verbs (do/ does/ did) and to be. Strong verbs independently form negative constructions and questions:

Must does he go to the dentist? - I must go to the dentist./ I mustn't eat apples.

In the case of weak verbs, we are not able to construct a question or negation without auxiliaries, avoiding an error:

I live to Paris.

Live are you in Paris? - error/
It would be correct to say: Do you live in Paris?

He lives not in Paris.- error/
It would be correct to say: He doesn't live in Paris.

So we use the auxiliary do or two other forms of it ( does/did) in order to correctly form questions and negatives.

The mistake is born when students (by this word we mean all students of a foreign language, young and old) begin to use auxiliary verbs for forms to be:

He is Liza's brother.

Does he is Liza's brother? - error
He doesn't is Liza's brother.- error

Undoubtedly verb forms to be are not similar to their original form. We believe this is what can be confusing.
Things to remember: am, is, are, was, were are strong verbs and are never used auxiliary do:

Is he Liza's brother?- Right
He isn't Liza's brither.- Right

And here do against. On my own as semantic this verb is weak and has meaning do. Accordingly, he needs the help of an auxiliary who matches him in spelling and pronunciation do, which is not translated into Russian and performs a purely grammatical function:

I do exercises every day.
Do I do exercises every day?- Right
I don't do exercises every day.- Right

Do I exercise every day?- error
I don't exercises every day.- error / This sentence makes no sense and will be translated “ I don't exercise every day" I would like to immediately ask “no What? exercises"

Auxiliary

The second serious problem sometimes becomes auxiliary verb choice.
Most courses are structured in such a way that familiarity with English grammar and the language in general begins with the verb to be - to be, to appear, to be somewhere. Students become so accustomed to designs with to be, that for them it becomes completely logical to use them as an auxiliary verb. It actually loses its meaning and sentences of this kind become grammatically equal:

She is in Paris.
She lives in Paris.

Let us assume that, according to the context, it is possible to translate both of them as “ She lives in Paris" The following happens:

Is she in Paris?- Right
Is she live in Paris?- ERROR

To be never will not be used as an auxiliary verb to weak, unless these are Continuous or Passive constructions, which include to be:

Is she living in Paris?- correct / Present Continuous
The work wasn't done. - correct / Passive

It's very easy to check. Ask a question to the semantic verb, for example, live (what to do?). Exactly do (do/ does/ did) will become auxiliary.

We are not dealing with BE, and with DO:

Does she live in Paris?- Right
She doesn't live in Paris.- Right

We wish you to make the right choice and achieve great success in your studies!

Victoria Tetkina

What does the particle to mean before verbs? Do you know the answer to this question?

Most people learning English don't even think about it. That's why they make mistakes by using this particle before each verb. When should it be used?

In this article I will answer this question and explain to you when you need to put to before verbs and when not.

What does the particle to mean and when is it used?

In English we use the particle to before the initial (indefinite) form of the verb. The initial form of a verb is a form that does not tell us who will perform the actions and when.

Infinitive verbs answer the question “what to do?” and “what to do?” For example:

(what to do?) to write - write;
(what to do?) to see - to see.

In English we call the infinitive form of a verb infinitive.

How do we understand that this is an infinitive?

In Russian, we understand that we have a verb in the indefinite form at the end TH: skaz t, rice t, call t. In English, the endings of words do not change.

And here it comes to our aid particle to, which serves precisely as an indicator, which in Russian is the ending TH. That is, if we see a particle to before a verb, we can safely say that this verb is in the indefinite form: to say, to paint to call.

If you look at the particle to and pronounce it, you will see that it is VERY similar to Russian TH, but only at the beginning of a sentence.

I want to call my sister.
I want (what to do?) call t to my sister.

I forgot to give him his book.
I forgot (what to do?) yes t him his book.

I will go to swim tomorrow.
I'll go (what to do?) swim t Tomorrow.

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When do we not put the particle to before infinitive verbs?

There are exceptions to every rule. Let's look at them:

1. When a verb is preceded in an indefinite form by a verb that expresses not an action, but a possibility, necessity, ability.

In English we call such verbs modal: can (can), may (I can), must (must), need(necessary), should(should). After them we do not use the particle to.

I can run fast.
I can run fast.

You must tell me the truth.
You must tell me the truth.

He should be more careful.
He should be more careful.

True, there are several modal verbs that must be used with the particle to: have to (need), oughtto(should).

They have to work hard.
They have to work hard.

She ought to help me.
She must help me.

2. After the verb let (give, let).

Let's me know how you are.
Let me know how you are.

Let's him say.
Let him speak.

3. After the verb make if we use it meaning "to force".

You make me think about it.
He made me think about it.

He makes me smile.
He makes me smile.

4. If in one sentence there are two verbs in the indefinite form and between them there is and or or (or), then we do not put the particle to before the second verb.

I want to sing and dance.
I want to sing and dance.

I don't know to cry or laugh.
I don't know whether to cry or laugh.

The difference between the particle to and the preposition to in English

It is very important not to confuse particle to With preposition to. Even though they sound and spell the same, they are actually two different words.

Particle to we use it with a verb in its initial form.

Preposition to we use with nouns. To this preposition we can ask the question “Where?” Let's look at a few examples.

Particle to

I like (what to do?) to read interesting books.
I like (what to do?) cheat t interesting books.

I want to meet my friends.
I want (what to do?) meet t with my friends.

Preposition to

I go (where?) to the cinema today.
I'll go (where?) V cinema today.

Every day I go to my work.
Every day I go (where?) on work.

Together now

I want (what to do?) to drink the water so I go (where?) to the kitchen.

I want (what to do?) bittern t water, so I went (where?) on kitchen.

When asking a question, we can easily determine whether it is a particle or a preposition.

Summarize

1. We put the particle to before verbs in the initial form (infinitive).

2. There are exceptions when we do not use a particle: after modal verbs (see above), after the verbs let and make, when in a sentence 2 verbs are connected by the preposition and/or (see above).

3. The particle to is used with verbs, and the preposition to is used with nouns. These are different words.

4. How to check whether the to particle should be used or not? To do this, we ask the question “what to do?”, “what to do?”. If these questions sound logical, then we put to before the verb.

Think about it.
(Do what?) Think about it.

I want to think about it.
I want to (do what?) think about it.

I hope now you won’t be confused about where you need to put the to particle and where you shouldn’t. If you have any questions, ask them in the comments below the article.

Reinforcement task

Now let's check how well you understand where the to particle should be placed and where not. Put the verb in brackets into the correct form. Don't forget about exceptions.

For example: “She will go (play) tennis. - She will go to play tennis."

1. My sister can (run) fast.
2. (Look) at this picture.
3. I want (cook) dinner.
4. Let him (help) you.
5. My friend forgot (call) me.
6. She decided (sell) her car.
7. He made me (buy) it.
8. You may (sit down) here.
9. I can (bring) your book.
10. We like (eat) sweets.
11. They should (write) it.
12. She wanted (drink) and (eat).

As always, write your answers in the comments. I'll definitely check them out.

It is with this verb that you need to start learning English grammar. Verbs in English do not change for persons, but the verb to be is an exception. Using this verb, we will learn to compose simple sentences that do not contain a verb in Russian, for example, “I am a student,” “he is at home,” “this is interesting,” etc. In English it is unacceptable to form without a verb that performs the action, and to be serves as a linking verb. For example, to say “I am a student,” we must insert the desired form of the linking verb to be and, as a result, the sentence will take on the meaning “I am a student” - “I (am) a student.”

Forms of the verb to be in the present tense

In the present tense, the verb to be has three forms: AM, IS, ARE:

• Remember: to be and AM, IS, ARE are not 4 different ones, but forms the same verb:

(We hope our dragon will help you remember this)

Let's look at how the verb to be changes in the present tense

Affirmative form

• We are friends - we are friends
• They are busy - they are busy
• The book is thick - the book is thick
• It is a cat
• She is clever - she is smart

Negative form

To form a negative conjugation form of a given verb, you need to put a negative particle “not” after one of the required forms of the verb (am, is or are). Here are some examples of negative sentences:

• I am not hungry – I am not hungry
• He is not busy
• The room is not big – the room is not big

Interrogative form

To form an interrogative form, you need to put the appropriate form of the verb (am, is or are) at the beginning of the sentence:

• Are you Peter? -Are you Pete?
• This room? – Is this a room?
• Are you hungry? -Are you hungry?
• He is busy? – Is he busy?

• To understand how verbs live in the English language, let’s first remember at least one Russian verb in its initial form, for example, the verb “to live”. As you know, Russian verbs in their initial form end in “-т”, and later, when conjugated, the ending changes. As for the English language, the verb in its initial form is used together with the particle to, for example, we say to be – would t, find t Xia, i.e. if the particle to precedes the verb, this means that the verb is in the initial form, and when further using the verb with persons, this particle is omitted. Let's give an example: “To be or not to be” - there are two verbs in the sentence - and both are in the initial form, and they must be used together with the particle to, and, accordingly, we will translate into English as “to be or not to be”. If we have before us the sentence “I (am) a student,” i.e. we have changed the verb to suit the person of the subject, then the particle to is omitted and the proper form of the verb is used, in this case am.
• Unlike the verb to be, other verbs in English are not conjugated, for example, the verbs “live, sit, love” in the initial form are translated into English “to live, to sit, to love”, i.e. with a particle to, and when conjugated - without to, for example, “I live, sit, love” will be translated into English as “I live, sit, love,” i.e. initial form of a verb in English without a particletonot used, but when conjugatedtofalls. The initial form in English is called the Infinitive - Infinitive.

More about the particle to watch our video tutorial:

Verb conjugations tobe in present time

Now let's learn how the verb to be changes (conjugates) in the present tense. As mentioned above, in Russian, sentences like “I am a student, she is a doctor, we are workers” are formed without a predicate verb. But to translate these sentences into English, you need to put the appropriate form to be after the subject - “I am a pupil, she is a doctor, we are workers.”

Please note the translation of the following sentences in affirmative, negative and interrogative forms into English:

Verb conjugations tobe in past and future tense

In the past tense, the verb to be has two forms - was and were (was, was, were)

In the future tense, the verb to be is conjugated as follows

Note: In modern English the form shall is rarely used to form the future tense of verbs (although its use is not a grammatical error), the form is used for all persons will. Therefore, sometimes there are discrepancies in different textbooks.

To summarize, consider the following table:

Here are some commonly used verb expressions: to be which you should learn and conjugate yourself using the conjugation table:

• To be happy/unhappy – to be happy/unhappy
• To be glad - to be joyful
• To be hungry/to be full up– to be hungry/full
• To be fond of - to love, be carried away by something
• To be busy - to be busy
• To be late (for) - to be late (for)
• To be in time for – to be on time
• To be present at – to be present at (for example, in a lesson)
• To be absent (from) – to be absent
• To be married – to be married
• To be single - to be single / not married
• To be lucky - to be lucky
• To be ready (for) - to be ready (for, for example, a lesson)
• To be afraid (of) – to be afraid
• To be interested (in) - to be interested in something
• To be ill / well - to be sick / to feel good
• To be angry (with) - to be angry, angry (at someone)

Let's conjugate together the expression to be married in affirmative, interrogative and negative sentences. What did you get?