The Verb "Be"

Forms of “Be”:
The verb “be” is irregular, meaning it doesn’t follow the standard “-ed” pattern for the different tenses.

The following table gives “be” verbs in different tenses: past, present, future, present perfect, and past perfect. Scroll down the page for more examples and explanations.

 

• “Be” is an irregular verb with many forms.
• It’s used as a linking verb, an auxiliary verb in continuous tenses and the passive voice, and in imperatives.
• Understanding “be” verbs is crucial for forming grammatically correct sentences in English.

• Verbs & Tenses

  Verbs Action Verbs, Linking Verbs and Auxiliary Verbs
  The Verb “Be” Present Tense, Past Tense, Present Perfect Tense
  
  Simple Present Tense
  Simple Past Tense Regular Verbs
  
  Simple Past Tense Irregular Verbs
  Simple Future Tense
  
  Past Participle
  Present Perfect Tense
  
  Past Perfect Tense
  Future Perfect Tense
  
  Present Participle
  Present Continuous Tense
  
  Past Continuous Tense
  Future Continuous Tense
  
  Present Perfect Continuous Tense
  Past Perfect Continuous Tense
  
  Future Perfect Continuous Tense
  Summary of Verb Tenses
  
  Modal Verbs
  Modal Verbs Examples can, could, must, may, might, should, will, would, and ought to.

Verb “Be” (present tense) – is, are, am

The words am, is and are form the present tense of the verb be.

We use am with the pronoun I, is with the pronouns he, she, it and are with the pronouns you, we and they.

Singular	Plural
I am	We are
You are	You are
He is	They are
She is
It is

Examples:
I am busy.
He is a good swimmer.
She is a teacher.
It is very fierce.
You are early.
You are all welcome.
We are home.
They are good friends.

The following tables give the affirmative forms and negative forms of am, is and are and their corresponding contractions or short forms. Contractions are usually used in spoken English and are not recommended for formal written English.

Affirmative Forms

	Contraction (Short Form)
I am	I’m
You are	You’re
She is	She’s
He is	He’s
It is	It’s
We are	We’re
They are	They’re

Negative Forms

	Contraction (Short Form)
I am not	I’m not
You are not	You’re not / You aren’t
She is not	She’s not / She isn’t
He is not	He’s not / He isn’t
It is not	It’s not / It isn’t
We are not	We’re not / We aren’t
They are not	They’re not / They aren’t

Verb “Be” (past tense) – was, were

The words was and were form the past tense of the verb be.

Affirmative Forms

Singular	Plural
I was	We were
You were	You were
She was	They were
He was
It was

Negative Forms

	Contraction (Short Form)
I was not	I wasn’t
You were not	You weren’t
She was not	She wasn’t
He was not	He wasn’t
It was not	It wasn’t
We were not	We weren’t
They were not	They weren’t

Verb “Be” (present perfect tense) – has been, have been

The words has been and have been form the present perfect tense of the verb be.

Singular	Plural
I have been	We have been
You have been	You have been
She has been	They have been
He has been
It has been

Verb Be in the present tense. Affirmative and negative forms.

• Show Video Lesson

This video shows the verb Be in the past tense. Affirmative and negative forms.

• Show Video Lesson

This video shows how to make yes-no questions and answers in the past tense using the verb be.

• Show Video Lesson

This video explains how to use the verb be in the present perfect tense.

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