What are the forms of the verb to be?

In the present simple there are three: am with I, is with he, she, it, and singular nouns, and are with you, we, they, and plural nouns: I am late, the bus is late, we are late. In the past simple there are two: was (I, he, she, it) and were (you, we, they). The other forms are be (the infinitive, used after modals and to), being, and been.

Why do we say I am twenty years old and not I have twenty years?

Because English treats age as a state you are in rather than a thing you have, so it uses be: I am twenty, she is six years old. The same choice applies to hunger, thirst, cold, heat, fear, and being right or wrong: I am hungry, we are cold, you are right. Speakers of languages that use have for these ideas need to switch the verb every time.

How do you make a question with the verb to be?

Move the verb in front of the subject, so She is ready becomes Is she ready? and They are here becomes Are they here? With a question word, put it first and then follow the same order (Where is she? How old are they?). Be never uses do or does, so Do you are is always wrong.

What is the contraction of am not?

There is no one-word contraction of am not in standard English, so the negative is I'm not: I'm not sure. Amn't exists only in some Scottish and Irish dialects, and ain't is non-standard. In question tags English borrows aren't: I'm on the list, aren't I?

What is the difference between there is and it is?

There is introduces something new and says that it exists or is present: There is a café on the corner. It is refers to something already known and describes it: It is a good café. The two often appear together, there is first and it is second: There's a message for you. It's from your sister.

English grammar · Beginner

The Verb To Be: Am, Is, Are, Contractions, Negatives, and Questions

Written by Eleanor Whitfield, Lead English Curriculum Editor · Reviewed September 2026

The verb to be is the most common verb in English, and the most irregular. In the present simple it has three forms, am, is, and are, chosen by the subject: I am, he is, they are. It describes who or what someone is, how they are, and where they are, and it makes its own negatives and questions without do. It also appears in there is and there are, and as the helping verb in continuous tenses and the passive.

She is a teacher, and her students are very young.

is for she, are for a plural subject

What it is

Most English verbs describe an action: run, eat, work. Be does something different: it links a subject to a description, a name, a job, a feeling, a place, or a time. I am tired, she is a doctor, they are in Paris, it is Tuesday. Because it does so much, English gives it more forms than any other verb: am, is, and are in the present, was and were in the past. It also behaves differently from other verbs, making its negatives with not and its questions by swapping places with the subject, with no do or does anywhere. Learn be first, because every other structure leans on it.

I am from Canada. She is my sister. We are late. (am with I, is with he, she, and it, are with you, we, and they)

How to spot it

Look for am, is, or are (or their short forms 'm, 's, 're) with nothing after them except a description, a noun, or a place: is happy, are students, am at home. If a verb ending in -ing follows (is running), be is helping another verb; the form rules are exactly the same.

I'm hungry. (I am, contracted; a feeling)
My parents are doctors. (are with a plural subject; jobs)
Is the shop open? (is moves in front of the subject to make the question)
There are two cats in the garden. (are agrees with two cats, not with there)

He's can be he is or he has. If a past participle follows (he's gone), it is has; if an adjective, noun, place, or -ing form follows (he's tired, he's a nurse, he's here, he's working), it is is.

The Verb To Be Quick Reference

What be does in a sentence

Use	Example	Note
Name and identity	I am Ana. This is my brother.	be + noun or name
Job and role	She is a nurse. They are students.	a or an before a singular job
Description	The soup is cold. You are very kind.	be + adjective
Feelings and states	I am tired. We are hungry.	English uses be here, not have
Age	He is seven. I am thirty years old.	be + number, not have
Place	The keys are on the table. She is at work.	be + place phrase
Time, date, and weather	It is five o'clock. It is Monday. It is cold.	it is the subject
Origin and nationality	We are from Brazil. He is Italian.	be + from, or be + nationality adjective

Common The Verb To Be Examples in English

Be at work in the four kinds of sentence beginners need first, with the form that each subject takes:

Who and What: Identity and Jobs

I am a student at the university.: am with I; a before the job
This is Marta, and these are her children.: is for one, are for more than one
My father is an engineer.: an before a vowel sound
You are my best friend.: are with you, singular or plural

A singular job or role always takes a or an: She is a pilot, never She is pilot.

How Things Are: Descriptions and Feelings

The film is really long.: is + adjective
We're so happy for you.: we are, contracted
I'm cold. Can you close the window?: a physical state with be
The children are asleep.: are + adjective describing a state

Hungry, thirsty, cold, hot, tired, afraid, and right all take be in English: I am right, not I have reason.

Where and When: Place, Time, and Weather

My phone is in my bag.: is + place
Where are you?: question word, then are, then the subject
It's half past nine.: it is for the time
It was sunny yesterday, but today it's raining.: was for the past, is for now

Time, dates, and weather all use it as the subject: It's Friday. It's warm. It's the 3rd of May.

Negatives, Questions, and Short Answers

I'm not ready yet.: not after am; I'm not is the only contraction
He isn't at home.: is not contracted to isn't
Are they married? Yes, they are.: are moves to the front; the short answer repeats it
Is it far? No, it isn't.: negative short answer with isn't

Short answers never use the contraction after yes: Yes, I am, not Yes, I'm.

How the Verb To Be Works

Five rules cover the present tense of be, and four of them carry straight over to the past.

Three Present Forms, Chosen by the Subject

Am goes only with I. Is goes with he, she, it, and any singular noun (the dog, my sister, the weather). Are goes with you, we, they, and any plural noun. There is no choice to make about tense or meaning here; the subject decides everything.

I am ready. The bus is late. My friends are here.

am, is, are: one form per kind of subject

I am, he/she/it is, you/we/they are.

Negatives and Questions Without Do

Every other present simple verb needs do or does to make a negative or a question (I don't work, Does she work?). Be does it alone: put not after the verb for a negative (She is not here) and swap the verb and the subject for a question (Is she here?). Adding do to be is the single most common beginner error with this verb.

They are not at school. Are they at school?

not after are; are before they

Be never takes do.

Contractions Are the Normal Spoken Form

In speech and informal writing be almost always contracts with its subject: I'm, you're, he's, she's, it's, we're, they're. Negatives contract in two ways, isn't / aren't or he's not / they're not, and both are correct. Am not has no single contraction: I'm not is the only option, and the question tag is aren't I?

I'm Lucía, she's my colleague, and we're both new here.

three contractions in one natural sentence

Contract in speech; write in full when it's formal.

Be Links, It Doesn't Act

Be does not describe an action, so what follows it is not an object but a complement: a noun that renames the subject (She is a doctor), an adjective that describes it (She is tall), or a phrase that locates it (She is in Rome). That is why be cannot be made passive and why no -ing form follows it in these uses: I am happy, not I am being happy.

The soup is delicious.

delicious describes the soup; nothing is acted on

Be + what, how, or where the subject is.

Short Answers Repeat Be

To answer a yes/no question with be, repeat the verb in the right form for the answer's subject instead of repeating the whole sentence: Are you tired? Yes, I am. Is she Italian? No, she isn't. The affirmative short answer is never contracted; the negative one usually is.

Is it your first time here? Yes, it is.

it is repeats the verb; yes, it's is not possible

Yes, I am. No, I'm not.

Common Mistakes with The Verb To Be

Incorrect: I am agree with you.

Correct: I agree with you.

Agree is an ordinary verb, and an ordinary verb does not take be in front of it in the present simple. Learners add am because agree feels like a state, like I am happy; but happy is an adjective and agree is a verb.

Incorrect: She has thirty years.

Correct: She is thirty years old.

English expresses age with be, not have. The same applies to hunger, thirst, cold, heat, and fear: I am hungry, I am cold, I am afraid.

Incorrect: Do you are tired?

Correct: Are you tired?

Be makes its own questions by moving in front of the subject; it never combines with do. Do you is for other verbs: Do you work here? but Are you here?

Incorrect: They is my neighbours.

Correct: They are my neighbours.

Is belongs to he, she, it, and singular nouns. They is plural, so it takes are. The plural noun neighbours is a second reminder that the subject is plural.

Forms of Be: Present and Past

The present simple with its three forms, then the past simple with two. Each table gives the full form; the contractions are in the note below it.

Present simple: am, is, are

The subject chooses the form. Nothing else in the sentence affects it.

Pronoun	Affirmative	Negative	Question
I	am late	am not late	Am I late?
you	are late	are not late	Are you late?
he / she / it	is late	is not late	Is she late?
we	are late	are not late	Are we late?
they	are late	are not late	Are they late?

Contractions: I'm, you're, he's, she's, it's, we're, they're; isn't, aren't. Am not has no one-word contraction: I'm not. In the question tag English uses aren't I? (I'm late, aren't I?).

Past simple: was, were

The past has two forms. Was goes with I, he, she, and it; were goes with you, we, and they. Negatives and questions work exactly as in the present.

Pronoun	Affirmative	Negative	Question
I	was late	was not late	Was I late?
you	were late	were not late	Were you late?
he / she / it	was late	was not late	Was he late?
we	were late	were not late	Were we late?
they	were late	were not late	Were they late?

Contractions: wasn't, weren't. There is no contraction of I was or they were in the affirmative. The full set of eight forms (am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been) is covered on the be verbs page.

Two Special Jobs of Be

Beyond linking a subject to a description, be introduces the existence of things with there, and it covers meanings that many other languages give to have.

There is and there are

To say that something exists or is present somewhere, English starts with there and follows it with be. The form of be agrees with the noun that comes after it, not with there.

There is a bank on the corner.: is for a singular noun
There are three bedrooms upstairs.: are for a plural noun
Is there any milk? No, there isn't.: question and short answer with there

There's is the contraction of there is; there are is not normally contracted in writing. The past is there was and there were.

Age, feelings, and states

English uses be for age, hunger, thirst, temperature, fear, and being right or wrong, where French, Italian, Portuguese, and many other languages use have.

My son is six years old.: be + age: not has six years
Are you thirsty?: be + thirsty: not have thirst
You're right, I was wrong.: be + right or wrong

Years old can be dropped: My son is six. It cannot be replaced with has six years.

Quick Check: The Verb To Be

Complete each sentence with am, is, are, was, or were, or turn the sentence into the form given in brackets.

1. I ___ from Argentina, and my wife ___ from Chile.

Answer: am, is

am with I; is with a singular subject

2. The children ___ in the garden.

Answer: are

a plural subject takes are

3. ___ you a student? (question)

Answer: Are

are moves in front of you

4. He is at work today. (negative)

Answer: He is not (isn't) at work today.

not after is; no do

5. There ___ a lot of people at the party last night.

Answer: were

past, and people is plural

6. It ___ cold yesterday, but today it ___ warm.

Answer: was, is

past then present; it for weather

The Verb To Be FAQs

What are the forms of the verb to be?: In the present simple there are three: am with I, is with he, she, it, and singular nouns, and are with you, we, they, and plural nouns: I am late, the bus is late, we are late. In the past simple there are two: was (I, he, she, it) and were (you, we, they). The other forms are be (the infinitive, used after modals and to), being, and been.
Why do we say I am twenty years old and not I have twenty years?: Because English treats age as a state you are in rather than a thing you have, so it uses be: I am twenty, she is six years old. The same choice applies to hunger, thirst, cold, heat, fear, and being right or wrong: I am hungry, we are cold, you are right. Speakers of languages that use have for these ideas need to switch the verb every time.
How do you make a question with the verb to be?: Move the verb in front of the subject, so She is ready becomes Is she ready? and They are here becomes Are they here? With a question word, put it first and then follow the same order (Where is she? How old are they?). Be never uses do or does, so Do you are is always wrong.
What is the contraction of am not?: There is no one-word contraction of am not in standard English, so the negative is I'm not: I'm not sure. Amn't exists only in some Scottish and Irish dialects, and ain't is non-standard. In question tags English borrows aren't: I'm on the list, aren't I?
What is the difference between there is and it is?: There is introduces something new and says that it exists or is present: There is a café on the corner. It is refers to something already known and describes it: It is a good café. The two often appear together, there is first and it is second: There's a message for you. It's from your sister.