Verb To Be

School: Jose Vasconcelos

1.- The verb “To Be”
The Greek sea god, Proteus, was (like the sea) capable of changing form in an instant. In order to get any decent information out of him, you had tograb him and hold on tight while he went through his various forms — lion, wild boar, snake, tree, running stream — it wasn't easy. The verb “To be” is said to be the most protean of the Englishlanguage, constantly changing form, sometimes without much of a discernible pattern. Considering that we use it so often, it is really too bad that the verb “To be” has to be the most irregular, slipperyverb in the language.
Present Tense
I am We are
You are You are
He/She/It is They are
Past Tense
I was We were
You were You were
He/She/It was They were
Perfect Form (past participle)
I havebeen, etc.

Progressive Form (present participle)
I am being, etc.
We must choose carefully among these various forms when selecting the proper verb to go with our subject. Singular subjectsrequire singular verbs; plural subjects require plural verbs. That's usually an easy matter. We wouldn't write “The troops was moving to the border.” But some sentences require closer attention. Do wewrite “The majority of students is (or are) voting against the referendum"? Review carefully the material in our section on Subject-Verb Agreement, and notice how often the choices we make require afamiliarity with these forms of the “To be” verb.

2.- Present Progressive
- Use

1) actions happening at the moment of speaking
Peter is reading a book now.

2) fixed plan in the near futureShe is going to Basel on Saturday.

3) temporary actions
His father is working in Rome this month.

4) actions happening around the moment of speaking (longer actions)
My friend is preparing forhis exams.

5) trends
More and more people are using their computers to listen to music.

6) repeated actions which are irritating to the speaker (with always, constantly, forever)
Andrew is...