{"id":176586389,"date":"2017-12-07T13:46:58","date_gmt":"2017-12-07T21:46:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lingq.com\/blog-new\/?p=176586389"},"modified":"2026-02-06T03:28:44","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T11:28:44","slug":"the-verb-to-be","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lingq.com\/blog\/the-verb-to-be\/","title":{"rendered":"The Curious Case of the Verb \u201cTo Be\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

Let\u2019s take a quick trip down memory lane. The very first thing most of us learned after the English alphabet was \u201cI am…\u201d, \u201cMy name is…\u201d, and \u201cHow are you?\u201d. The verb \u201cto be\u201d occurs in each of these examples, and in three different forms!<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Most other verbs take a suffix or two to change their form, e.g. \u201cmix\u201d into \u201cmixes\u201d and \u201cmixed\u201d. The verb to be, on the other hand, likes to be different.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>In this article, I will break down the walls surrounding the English verb \u201cto be\u201d to shed some light on this verb phenomenon and make all of its linguistic features as comprehensive as possible.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>\"The<\/b>
\nSaying that the English verb \u201cto be\u201d has many forms is an understatement. Let\u2019s count them up real quick before delving deeper into all the different case scenarios each of these forms are used in.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>to be, be, am, are, is, was, were, been<\/span><\/i>
\n<\/span><\/i>
\n<\/span>Now, don\u2019t get your hopes up just yet! Yes, there are only eight basic forms here, which isn\u2019t a lot, but the \u201cfun\u201d part lies in the variations; negative and interrogative forms, combinations with other verbs due to specific tense forms, contractions, etc.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>So, let\u2019s do the counting once again.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i>to be, not to be, be, not be, am, am not, are, are not, aren\u2019t, is, is not, isn\u2019t, was, was not, wasn\u2019t, were, were not, weren\u2019t, have been, have not been, haven\u2019t been, has been, has not been, hasn\u2019t been, had been, had not been, hadn\u2019t been, will be, will not be, won\u2019t be, would be, would not be, wouldn\u2019t be, will have been, will not have been, won\u2019t have been<\/span><\/i>
\n<\/span><\/i>
\n<\/span>A friendly piece of advice: don\u2019t even bother counting all of these forms because the list does not end there. In fact, many of the forms above can be followed with the verb form \u201cbeing\u201d in continuous tenses.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>It\u2019s a lot, I know. This brings us to the main question of the day:<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\nWhen and how are all forms of the verb \u201cto be\u201d used in English?
\n<\/b>\"The
\n<\/b>In a nutshell, knowing when and how to use \u201cto be\u201d can depend on three things:<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>– \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0the tense.<\/span>
\n<\/span>– \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0the sentence type.<\/span>
\n<\/span>– \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0complementary words and their location, whether it\u2019s a pronoun, noun, another verb, etc.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

The Tense<\/h2>\n

<\/b>The \u201cmany\u201d forms of \u201cto be\u201d listed above all depend on the English tenses they are used in. It\u2019s that simple. <\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Here\u2019s an efficient way to say that the verb \u201cto be\u201d changes its form depending on the tense:<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The verb \u201cto be\u201d in English has a different form in the present, past, and future tenses. The present tense forms are \u201cam\u201d, \u201care\u201d, and \u201cis\u201d, depending on the pronoun. The past forms are \u201cwas\u201d and \u201cwere\u201d, also depending on the pronoun, while the future tense uses the verb \u201cwill\u201d before \u201cbe\u201d. We can also mention the past participle form \u201cbeen\u201d that is used in all perfect tenses, as well as the passive.<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i>
\n<\/span>That\u2019s it! On the surface, that\u2019s all you need to know about the form of \u201cto be\u201d in different tenses. The rest is just pure old <\/span>grammar practice<\/span><\/a> to discover all other possible forms that are mostly in combination with other verbs.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n\"Learn<\/a><\/p>\n

The Sentence Type<\/h2>\n

<\/b>This factor is definitely the simplest to wrap your head around out of the three listed above. Depending on whether a sentence using \u201cto be\u201d is affirmative, negative or interrogative, the form and location of \u201cto be\u201d in that sentence are affected. <\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>This change can also affect the overall meaning or context of a sentence. This is especially true for questions in English.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Let me show you what I mean:<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>\u201c<\/span><\/i>Are<\/span><\/i> you sitting here?\u201d vs. \u201cYou\u2019<\/span><\/i>re<\/span><\/i> sitting here?\u201d<\/span><\/i>
\n<\/span><\/i>
\n\"The
\n
\n<\/span>The difference here might be easier to understand through listening, as intonation of these two sentences would vary.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>In the first sentence, someone might just be asking a question to check whether a seat is free for the taking. However, the second one might indicate disapproval or surprise. <\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>It\u2019s a big difference for just one small change, don\u2019t you think?<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Complimentary Words<\/h2>\n

This part is probably going to be the most fun for learners who like to constantly <\/span>learn new language vocabulary<\/span> and double down on their grammar. The cool thing about \u201cto be\u201d is that it can be used to say the same thing in a much fancier way than usual, depending on the word that follows it.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>For example, why say \u201cto exist\u201d when you can say \u201cto be in existence\u201d. Why use \u201cto support\u201d instead of \u201cto be supportive of\u201d? Yes, it\u2019s verbose, but it can be quite useful when writing or speaking.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Moreover, using \u201cto be\u201d when it\u2019s sandwiched between different words in a very specific context can be more than unnecessary. To fully understand this, let\u2019s consider the following sentences:<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>\u201cShe wanted a book <\/span><\/i>that was<\/span><\/i> written by J.K. Rowling.\u201d<\/span><\/i>
\n<\/span><\/i>\u201cA lesson <\/span><\/i>that is<\/span><\/i> learned is a lesson <\/span><\/i>that is<\/span><\/i> worth.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

So, where does that leave us with the verb \u201cto be\u201d?<\/h2>\n

If I had to pick one English word to summarize everything that the verb \u201cto be\u201d has to offer within the English language, it would have to be \u201clabyrinth\u201d.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>There are so many different, almost crazy routes within this labyrinth that inadvertently lead to the same thing, which in our case is the verb we\u2019ve just spent so much time and effort on.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Truth be told, <\/span>English is really not that hard to learn<\/span> for basic communication purposes. However, if you want to speak it right, just know that it\u2019s the tiny bits and pieces such as the verb \u201cto be\u201d that can become a huge headache.<\/span><\/p>\n

Learn English using LingQ<\/h2>\n

I talk about rules a lot in this post but truth be told, it’s almost better for you to just dive into the language you wish to learn (in this case, it’s most likely English). Now, if diving into grammar books and rule books isn’t interesting to you, then why not use content you love to study English? Content like movies, TV shows, music, podcasts, and anything else that will help you learn cool words<\/a> in a way that makes studying fun \ud83d\ude09
\nLingQ lets you use content you love to help you learn English online<\/a>. Not only does the library come equipped with 100s of lessons but you can also import content from the web into LingQ for study purposes.<\/p>\n

\"Learn<\/p>\n

LingQ is available for Android<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0iOS<\/a> too. Gain access to thousands of hours of audio and transcripts and begin your journey to fluency today.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Jasmin Ali\u0107 is an award-winning EFL\/ESL teacher and writing aficionado from Bosnia and Herzegovina with years of experience in multicultural learning environments.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Let\u2019s take a quick trip down memory lane. The very first thing most of us learned after the English alphabet was \u201cI am…\u201d, \u201cMy name is…\u201d, and \u201cHow are you?\u201d. …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":176587322,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[105],"class_list":["post-176586389","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-english"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Curious Case of the Verb \u201cTo Be\u201d in English<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Saying that the verb "to be" in English has many forms is an understatement. 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\"Learn<\/a><\/span><\/i>
\n<\/span>Looking at the underlined forms of \u201cto be\u201d in the sentences above, it\u2019s clear that they don\u2019t really do much other than just sit there. What is more, eliminating them completely will not affect the meaning of the sentences, at all.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Further down the line, \u201cto be\u201d is literally the Holy Grail of forming passive sentences. The combination of \u201cto be\u201d and the \u201cpast participle\u201d of any given verb that follows it is ultimately what creates the passive voice, e.g. \u201cThis article will be shared by all LingQ followers.\u201d<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>To avoid swarming you with even more details, I\u2019ll stop today\u2019s list here, even though there\u2019s a lot more where that came from. <\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>However, if you are eager to check how well you can get around all of these forms and use cases, <\/span>LingQ\u2019s 90-Day Language Challenge<\/span> is the perfect way to start. <\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Not only are you going to be able to naturally use \u201cto be\u201d in any given scenario without much hesitation but it is a guaranteed way to boost your motivation and make a breakthrough on your language learning journey.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>You should definitely try it out!<\/span>
\n
\n<\/span>\"The
\n<\/b><\/p>\n