VERB TO BE

(SER O ESTAR)
POSITIVE FORM (+)
NEGATIVE FORM (-)
QUESTIONS (?)
VERB BE (+) FULL FORM

 I (subject pronoun) AM (verb)

 YOU ARE
 HE IS
 SHE IS
 IT IS
 WE ARE
 YOU ARE
 THEY ARE
VERB BE (+)
CONTRACTED/SHORT FORM
 I´M
 YOU’RE
 HE’S
 SHE’S
 IT’S
 WE’RE
 YOU’RE
 THEY’RE
VERB BE (+)
 You ALWAYS have to use a SUBJECT
PRONOUN with a verb: HE is Peter NOT is
Peter
 I is always written in capital letters: I am
your English teacher NOT i am your
English teacher.
 Use HE for a man, SHE for a woman, IT for
a thing or animal in the singular: He is my
father. She is my friend Mary. It is a big
dog.
 YOU is used for the singular (tú, usted) and
for the plural (vosotros, ustedes)
 Use THEY for people, animals and things
in the plural: They are my friends Mary and
Peter. They are books.
VERB BE (-) FULL FORM
 Put NOT after the verb BE to make
negative sentences:
 I AM NOT
 YOU ARE NOT
 HE IS NOT
 SHE IS NOT
 IT IS NOT
 WE ARE NOT
 YOU ARE NOT
 THEY ARE NOT
VERB BE (-)
CONTRACTED/SHORT FORM
 You can contract are not (aren’t), is not (isn’t).
 I’m not is different, you can only contract the subject
pronoun (I) with the positive form of BE .
 I’M NOT
 YOU AREN’T
 HE ISN’T
 SHE ISN’T
 IT ISN’T
 WE AREN’T
 YOU AREN’T
 THEY AREN’T
VERB BE - QUESTION
FORM (?)
 AM I?
 ARE YOU?
 IS HE?
 IS SHE?
 IS IT?
 ARE WE?
 ARE YOU?
 ARE THEY?
POSITIVE(+) SHORT
ANSWER
 YES, I AM
 YES, YOU ARE
 YES, HE IS
 YES, SHE IS
 YES, IT IS
 YES, WE ARE
 YES, YOU ARE
 YES, THEY ARE
NEGATIVE (-) SHORT
ANSWER
 NO, I’M NOT
 NO, YOU AREN’T
 NO, HE ISN’T
 NO, SHE ISN’T
 NO, IT ISN’T
 NO, WE AREN’T
 NO, YOU AREN’T
 NO, THEY AREN’T
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
 In questions put the verb TO BE
(AM, ARE, IS) before THE
PRONOUS (I, YOU, etc.):
Are you English? NOT You are
English?
 Do not use contractions in positive
short answers: Are you Spanish?
Yes, I am NOT Yes, I’m.
 In negative answers, you can use
both full or contracted forms: Are you
Irish? No, I am not or No, I’m not.
 AFFIRMATIVE STATEMENT ( S+V+C)
Ex. She is a nurse
It is serum.
They are new patients in the hospital.
 NEGATIVE STATEMENT (S+V+Not+C)

Ex. She is not a nurse.

It is not serum.
They are not new patients in the hospital
 YES/NO QUESTIONS (V+S+C+?)

Ex. Is she a nurse? R// Yes, she is/ No, she isn’t.
Is it serum? R// Yes, it is/ No, it isn’t?
Are they new patients in the hospital?
R// Yes, they are/ No, they aren’t.
 WH-QUESTIONS (WH+AV+S+MV+?)
Ex. What does she do? R// She is a nurse.
What’s this? R// It is serum.
Where are the patients? R// They are in the
hospital
EXERCISE: In groups of five or in twos, take
out the English material and practice
elaborating the following:
 Ten Affirmative statements with TO BE.
5 long statements
5 short statements
 Ten Negative statement with TO BE.
5 long statements
5 short statements
 Ten YES/NO Questions with TO BE.
Short answers Affirmative and Negative
 Ten WH-Questions with TO BE.
Affirmative answers
Negative answers