What is the Verb Be?

The verb be is very common in English. It helps you describe things and people. It also tells you where things are.

Think of be like “ser” and “estar” in Spanish. English uses only one verb for both ideas.

How Do We Use Be in Positive Sentences?

The verb be changes its form depending on the subject. There are three forms for the present simple:

• Мы используем am with I.
  • Example: I am happy.
• Мы используем is with he, she, it, and singular nouns (one person, one thing).
  • Example: He is a student.
  • Example: It is cold.
• Мы используем are with you, we, they, and plural nouns (more than one person, more than one thing).
  • Example: You are kind.
  • Example: They are friends.

How Do We Use Be in Negative Sentences?

To make a sentence negative, we add not after the verb be.

• With I: am not
  • Example: I am not sad.
• With he, she, it: is not
  • Example: She is not from Spain.
• With you, we, they: are not
  • Example: We are not tired.

What Are Contractions with Be?

In spoken English and informal writing, we often use contractions. Contractions are shorter forms of words.

• For positive sentences:
  • I am становится I’m (e.g., I’m a student.)
  • He is становится He’s (e.g., He’s tall.)
  • She is становится She’s (e.g., She’s my sister.)
  • It is становится It’s (e.g., It’s sunny.)
  • You are становится You’re (e.g., You’re welcome.)
  • We are становится We’re (e.g., We’re friends.)
  • They are становится They’re (e.g., They’re at home.)
• For negative sentences:
  • I am not становится I’m not (e.g., I’m not hungry.)
  • He is not становится He isn’t или He’s not (e.g., He isn’t here. или He’s not here.)
  • She is not становится She isn’t или She’s not
  • It is not становится It isn’t или It’s not
  • You are not становится You aren’t или You’re not (e.g., You aren’t right. или You’re not right.)
  • We are not становится We aren’t или We’re not
  • They are not становится They aren’t или They’re not

When Do We Use the Verb Be?

Мы используем be for many things. Here are some common uses:

• To talk about identity or names:
  • I am Maria.
  • He is a doctor.
• To talk about age:
  • She is ten years old.
  • They are 25.
• To talk about feelings or descriptions:
  • We are happy.
  • It is a big house.
• To talk about location:
  • You are at home.
  • The book is on the table.

Примеры

• I am a student.
• He is my brother.
• She is happy.
• It is a cat.
• You are tall.
• We are friends.
• They are in the park.
• I am not tired.
• He isn’t here.
• They aren’t sad.

Практика

Распространенные ошибки у носителей испанского языка

Spanish speakers sometimes make these mistakes with be:

• Использование have for age: In Spanish, you say “Tengo X años”. In English, we use be.
  • Wrong: I have 10 years.
  • Right: I am 10 years old.
• Forgetting the subject pronoun: In Spanish, you can often omit the subject (e.g., “Es feliz”). In English, you always need a subject.
  • Wrong: Is happy.
  • Right: He is happy. или She is happy.
• Confusing ser и estar: Remember, English uses only be for both.
  • Spanish: “Soy alto” (ser) and “Estoy cansado” (estar).
  • English: I am tall. и I am tired.

Часто задаваемые вопросы

What are the three present forms of be?

The three present forms are am, is, и are.

How do I make I am negative?

You add not: I am not или I’m not.

Can I use isn’t and is not?

Да, isn’t is a contraction for is not. Both are correct, but isn’t is more common in speaking.

When do I use is?

Вы используете is with singular subjects like he, she, it, or one person/thing (e.g., The dog is big.).

Связанные уроки

• Be: present simple forms
• Be: present simple forms