The Simple Present Of The Verb To Be

 

Understanding The Verb To Be

The verb “to be” is crucial in English, though it can be tricky because it doesn’t follow regular patterns. In the simple present tense, it changes as follows:

The verb “to be” is crucial in English, though it can be tricky because it doesn’t follow regular patterns. In the simple present tense, it changes as follows:

Affirmative Forms Of The Verb To Be

Subject Pronouns	Full Form	Contracted Form
I	am	‘m
you	are	‘re
he/she/it	is	‘s
we	are	‘re
you	are	‘re
they	are	‘re

The Simple Present Of The Verb To Be (Affirmative)

Asking Questions With The Verb To Be:

Am	I?
Are	you?
Is	he/she/it?
Are	we?
Are	you?
Are	they?

The Simple Present Of The Verb To Be (Interrogative)

Negative Forms Of The Verb To Be:

Subject Pronouns	Full Form	Contracted Form
I	am not	‘m not
you	are not	aren’t
he/she/it	is not	isn’t
we	are not	aren’t
you	are not	aren’t
they	are not	aren’t

The Simple Present Of The Verb To Be (Negative)

Examples:

1. Is Brad Pitt French?
   • No, he isn’t. He‘s American.
2. What about Angelina Joli? Is she American, too?
   • Yes, she is. She is American.
3. Are Brad Pitt and Angelina Joli French?
   • No, They aren’t. They are American.

Use Of The Simple Present Of The Verb To Be

The principal use of the simple present is to refer to:

• An action or event that takes place habitually.
  • She always wakes up at 5 am.
• A present or general state, whether temporary or permanent.
• I am happy
• • She is helpful.
• Something true at the present moment.
  • She is 20 years old.
  • He is a student.

Contractions Of The Verb To Be

To make your speech flow better, you can contract the verb “to be” like this:

• I am in charge of the company. = I’m in charge of the company.
• You are a great man! = You’re such a great man!
• She is fantastic! = She’s fantastic!
• He is my father-in-law. = He’s a father-in-law.
• It is a beautiful city! = It’s a beautiful city!
• We are tired. = We’re tired.
• They are in the classroom. = They’re in the classroom.

Negatives Of The Verb To Be

When saying something isn’t true, use ‘not’ after the verb.

For example:

• ‘I am‘ =>’I am not‘
• ‘He is‘ =>’he’s not” or ‘he isn’t‘ ).

Here’s how you can contract or expand the verb “to be” when forming negative statements:

I am not tired.	I’m not tired.	X
He is not a member of the club.	He’s not a member of the club.	She isn’t a member of the club.
She is not a teacher.	She is not a teacher.	She isn’t a teacher.
It is not a priority	It’s not a priority.	She isn’t a teacher.
We are not exhausted.	We’re not exhausted.	We aren’t exhausted.
They are not here.	They’re not here.	They aren’t here.

Questions With The Verb To Be

Turning statements into questions involves changing the order of ‘am,’ ‘is,’ or ‘are’ and the person.

Examples:

• He is a policeman => Is he a policeman?
• She is jealous => Is she Jealous?

Here are more examples of question construction:

• Are you hungry?
• Is he happy?
• Is it your car?
• Are we on time?