Be Verb

Basic Tenses: Be
Below, we have included all the basic tenses with the verb be. We have included the affirmative or positive form (+), the negative form (-) and the interrogative or question form (?). The basic structure is: positive (+): subject + auxiliary verb + main verb negative (-): subject + auxiliary verb + not + main verb question (?): auxiliary verb + subject + main verb However, the simple past and the simple present have a different structure. For these, there is no auxiliary verb. See below for details: positive (+): subject + main verb negative (-): subject + main verb + not question (?): main verb + subject These are the forms of the main verb be that we use to construct the tenses:
base | past simple | past participle | present participle | present simple |
be | was, were | been | being | am, are, is |
past | present | future | ||
SIMPLE present simple or past simple (except future: will + be) | + | I was | I am | I will be |
– | I was not | I am not | I will not be | |
? | Was I? | Am I? | Will I be? | |
SIMPLE PERFECT have + been | + | I had been | I have been | I will have been |
– | I had not been | I have not been | I will have not been | |
? | Had I been? | Have I been? | Will I have been? | |
CONTINUOUS be + being | + | I was being | I am being | I will be being |
– | I was not being | I am not being | I will not be being | |
? | Was I being? | Am I being? | Will I be being? | |
CONTINUOUS PERFECT have been + being | + | I had been being | I have been being | I will have been being |
– | I had not been being | I have not been being | I will not have been being | |
? | Had I been being? | Have I been being? | Will I have been being? |
Below, we have conjugated be in 12 basic tenses.
SIMPLE | past | present | future | |
singular | I | was | am | will be |
You | were | are | will be | |
he/she/it | was | is | will be | |
plural | we | were | are | will be |
You | were | are | will be | |
They | were | are | will be | |
PERFECT | past | present | future | |
singular | I | had been | have been | will have been |
You | had been | have been | will have been | |
he/she/it | had been | has been | will have been | |
plural | we | had been | have been | will have been |
you | had been | have been | will have been | |
they | had been | have been | will have been | |
CONTINUOUS | past | present | future | |
singular | I | was being | am being | will be being |
You | were being | are being | will be being | |
he/she/it | was being | is being | will be being | |
plural | we | were being | are being | will be being |
you | were being | are being | will be being | |
They | were being | are being | will be being | |
CONTINUOUS PERFECT | past | present | future | |
singular | I | had been being | have been being | will have been being |
You | had been being | have been being | will have been being | |
he/she/it | had been being | has been being | will have been being | |
plural | we | had been being | have been being | will have been being |
you | had been being | have been being | will have been being | |
they | had been being | have been being | will have been being |
Examples Of Be Verb
Be
- Tim might be with her again.
- She should be here.
- He needs to be on time.
- Be happy about the new job.
- Please be nice to your brother.
Is / Am / Are
- She is not here with us.
- Jack is a teacher.
- Is it ready to eat?
- Bill is in the back of the building.
- Why is he not at work?
- My dog is outside playing.
- Timmy is playing with his sister.
- Francis is speaking to the crowd.
- Her cat is drinking the milk.
- I am really tired of working with her.
- I am in the car.
- We are going to see our mom.
- They are helping the children.
- They are coming over at 10PM.
- You are not going with them.
- Tim and Bill are driving on the highway.
- We are not speaking to him.
- The girls are swimming in the pool.
- They are not happy with her.
- We are not going to the party.
Was / Were
- She was late again!
- Your dog was a lot of fun to play with.
- They were living in Tim’s house.
- We were not around yesterday.
- They were not in the car when I called.
- I was not with them yesterday.
Been
- He has been to France many times.
- They have never been over to my house.
- They have been giving them money for a long time.
Being
- Being in good shape is important.
- I know that being late to work is not good.
- She was being really mean to me.