Verb 'be' - grammar
Verb 'be' - positive
Present tense
Subject
I
Verb 'be'
am
He
She
is
It
They
You
are
We
Past tense
Subject
Verb 'be'
I
was
He
She
was
It
They
You
were
We
How to contract the subject and the verb 'be'
To make these more natural we often put the subject and the verb together and shorten them. This is informal and should be used with friends.
Long
Short / contracted
I
am
He / She / It
is
They / You / We
are
I
was
He / She / It
was
They / You / We
were
I'm
He's / She's / It's
They're / You're / We're
You cannot contract the 'subject' and the past tense of the 'verb be' because it would be the same as the present tense. This is confusing.
Verb 'be' exercises
Present tense
Past tense
They
Long
are
We
Long
are
I
Long
am
It
Long
is
They
Short
're
They
Long
were
We
Short
're
We
Long
were
I
Short
'm
I
Long
was
It
Short
's
It
Long
was
They
We
Short
're
I
Short
'm
It
Short
's
Short
're
Verb 'be' - negative
The most important but often missed part of English. It indicates the state of 'being' and is used in many different pieces of grammar. The verb 'be' changes depending on the subject.
​
To change it into the negative, simply add 'not' after the verb 'be'.
Present tense
I
am
not
He
She
is
not
It
They
You
are
not
We
Past tense
I
was
not
He
She
was
not
It
They
You
were
not
We
To make these sentences more natural we often put the verb and the negative together and shorten them. This is informal and should be used with friends.
How to contract the verb 'be' and the negative
am
not
is
not
are
not
was
not
isn't
aren't
wasn't
We cannot have three words contracted together. We learnt that the subject and verb 'be' can be contracted together, and that the verb 'be' and the negative can be contracted together, but all three cannot.
He
is
not
He isn't
He's not
He'sn't
Verb 'be' exercises
Present tense - negative
Long
You
Long
are not
She
Long
is not
I
Long
am not
It
Long
is not
Subject + verb 'be'
You
Short
're not
She
Short
's not
I
Short
'm not
It
Short
's not
Verb 'be' + negative
You
Short
aren't
She
Short
isn't
I
Short
xxx
It
Short
isn't
Past tense - negative
Long
He
Long
was not
They
Long
were not
I
Long
was not
It
Long
was not
Subject + verb 'be'
He
Short
's
They
Short
're
I
Short
???
It
Short
's
Verb 'be' + negative
He
Short
wasn't
They
Short
weren't
I
Short
wasn't
It
Short
wasn't
Verb 'be' - questions (?)
The most important but often missed part of English. It indicates the state of 'being' and is used in many different pieces of grammar. The verb 'be' changes depending on the subject.
​
Here we look at how to ask simple questions using the verb 'be'.
Present tense
Am
I
he
Is
she
it
they
Are
you
Past tense
we
Was
I
he
Was
she
it
they
Were
you
we
Making questions
She
is
They
are
It
was
Is
she
Are
they
Was
it
Who are you asking?
I
Are you 10-years-old?
You
I
Is she 10-years-old?
Are they 10-years-old?
I
She
They
Verb 'be' exercises​
​
Turn these present tense sentences into questions. Remember to think about who your are talking to.
I am bored.
Answer
Are you bored?
He is 15-years-old.
Answer
Is he 15-years-old?
She is angry.
We are teachers.
It is a dog.
Answer
Is she angry?
Answer
Are you teachers?
Answer
Is it a dog?
Explanation
The subject 'you' can be used because you are talking to one group of people, treating them as one.
Verb 'be' with other subjects
The coat is white.
It is white.
The watch is expensive.
It is expensive.
The bike is fast.
It is fast.
If there is one object we use the 'is' form of the verb 'be'. If there's more than one we use the 'are' form.
The coats are white.
They are white.
The watches are expensive.
They are expensive.
The bikes are fast.
They are fast.
The apple _________ green.
Answer
is
The apples _________ green.
Answer
are
Contractions
The car's big.
The cars are big.
Plural subjects (except 'we' and 'they') cannot be contracted.