Verbe tenses

Verbs

In English, verbs have a very important place in communication, they are the ones responsible for expressing actions. Words like jump, run, speak… all are common and clear examples of verbs that describe an action that a subject does. However, there is one verb that’s the most used in the English language: the verb to be.

To be...

• One of the most important verbs in English is the to be verb.

• It is used to describe something or someone.

• The most tricky thing about this verb, however, is that It’s also one of the most irregular verbs in the English language.

An irregular what?

An irregular verb means that unlike regular verbs, which barely change when used with different subjects -or even in different tenses-, and when they do, they follow a pattern, the “to be” verb changes almost completely in most of its forms.

Multiple Choice

Lets see if you follow...

What verb is the most important in English?

• To have

• To speak

• To be

• To run

Multiple Choice

Verbs express an action.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

What is an irregular verb?

• A simple form of verb

• A verb that doesn't change in most of its form

• A verb that changes completely in most of its form.

Let's continue!

Base form: Be

This is the most basic form of the verb, and it’s how we can find it in the dictionary. It’s mostly used when using imperatives, and also as the infinitive.

Some examples are:

Be nice to your sister! (imperative)

I like to be at my house. (infinitive)

Present

This form of the verb is mainly used in the simple present, and its meaning can change depending on the use in the context.

Also, when writing, the present form of the to be verb can be shortened.

➕ Affirmative:

I am – I’m

you are – you’re

he/she/it is – he’s/she’s/it’s

we/you/they are – we’re/you’re/they’re

➖ Negative:

I am not – I’m not

you are not – You aren’t

he/she/it isn’t

we/you/they aren’t

Here are some examples

For names:

She is Sheila

For ages:

He is 6 years old.

For feelings:

Lauren and Sandra are happy.

For nationalities:

We are from Thailand.

For professions:

You aren’t a painter, you are a singer.

Past: Was / Were

When talking about the past, the to be verb changes its form again. 

 This is how it looks with the different subject pronouns.

I was – I wasn’t

you were – You weren’t

he/she/it was – he wasn’t/she wasn’t/it

wasn’t

we/they/you were –

we weren’t/they weren’t/you weren’t

👉 Some examples of the past form of the to be are:

I was at the school yesterday

You were 10 years old last year.

Billy and Elliot were students, now they are doctors.

It was raining a while ago.

Multiple Choice

elles sont

• they are (f)
• you are
• i am
• she is

Multiple Choice

ils sont

• he is
• she is
• you are
• they are (m)

Multiple Choice

nous sommes

• you are
• he is
• she is
• we are

Multiple Choice

vous etes

• you are (formal)
• you are (informal) 
• he is
• she is

Multiple Choice

elle est

• i am
• she is
• we are 
• you are

Multiple Choice

il est

• she is
• he is
• you are
• we are

Multiple Choice

tu es

• he is
• she is
• you are (informal)
• you are (formal)

Multiple Choice

je suis

• you are
• i am
• they are
• we are

Multiple Choice

il

• she
• we
• you (formal)
• he

Multiple Choice

tu

• we
• you (informal)
• you (formal)
• he

Multiple Choice

Je

• you (informal)
• he
• i
• she

Multiple Choice

Etre

• to be

• To have

• To want

• To like