The Verb TO BE in English: Full Guide with Examples and Exercises

Learn the verb to be in English: am, is and are, was and were, negatives, questions, common mistakes and interactive exercises.

Updated on 09/09/26

If you are starting out in English, the verb to be is the very first thing you will meet. And that is no accident: it is the most frequent verb in the language, it turns up in almost any sentence you might want to say, and on top of that it is the gateway to the continuous tenses and the passive voice. Master to be and you have won half the battle.

The tricky part for Spanish speakers is very specific: Spanish has two verbs (ser and estar) where English has only one. And English also uses it for things Spanish expresses with «tener» (I am 25 years old) or with «hay» (there are two options). Don’t worry, though, because it is far simpler than it looks, and that is exactly what I am here for.

In this guide you will find the full conjugation in the present, past and future, the affirmative, negative and interrogative forms, short answers, the eight main uses of the verb, the mistakes I correct again and again in class, and a set of interactive exercises to practise. Let’s get started!

What does the verb to be mean?

The verb to be means both «ser» and «estar» in Spanish. In other words, a single English verb covers what Spanish splits between two. Have a look:

• She is a teacher. (Ella es profesora.) → identity, profession
• She is at home. (Ella está en casa.) → location
• She is tired. (Ella está cansada.) → state
• She is Spanish. (Ella es española.) → nationality

The good news is that you never have to choose: wherever a Spanish speaker would hesitate between «es» and «está», English simply uses to be. The less good news, if you can call it that, is that English also uses it in places where Spanish reaches for a different verb altogether. More on that below.

The verb to be in the present: am, is, are

To be is the most irregular verb in English, and in the present it has three different forms: am, is and are. This is the table to learn by heart, no excuses:

🇬🇧 Subject	Full form	Contraction	🇪🇸 Spanish
I	I am	I‘m	yo soy / estoy
You	You are	You‘re	tú eres / estás
He	He is	He‘s	él es / está
She	She is	She‘s	ella es / está
It	It is	It‘s	ello es / está
We	We are	We‘re	nosotros somos / estamos
They	They are	They‘re	ellos son / están

Here is the trick I usually give in class so you don’t get lost: only I takes am, only the third person singular takes is, and everything else takes are. If the subject is plural (my parents, Emma and John, the keys), it is are and that is that.

Affirmative form and contractions

The structure could not be simpler: subject + am/is/are + the rest.

• I am a student. / I‘m a student.
• My brother is at university. / My brother‘s at university.
• We are ready. / We‘re ready.

Contractions are not sloppy English: they are the normal choice in speech and in any text that is not particularly formal. Use them freely when you speak. In a formal exam writing, on the other hand, stick to the full forms.

Negative form

To make a negative you simply add not straight after the verb. You do not need an auxiliary such as don’t or doesn’t, and this is one of the mistakes I see most often.

Full form	Contraction 1	Contraction 2
I am not	I’m not	(does not exist)
You are not	You aren’t	You’re not
He / She / It is not	He isn’t	He’s not
We are not	We aren’t	We’re not
They are not	They aren’t	They’re not

Watch out for the first person: amn’t does not exist in standard English. The only possible contraction is I’m not. It is an oddity of the language, but there it is.

Interrogative form

To ask a question you simply swap the order: the verb goes in front of the subject. Again, no auxiliaries.

• Am I late?
• Are you from Spain?
• Is she your sister?
• Are they at the office?

And if you want to ask with a question word, it goes right at the front: Where are you from?, Why is he angry?, How old are you?. If you want to go deeper into this, I cover it in detail in the post on Yes/No and Wh- questions.

Short answers

Almost everyone forgets this part, and it is precisely what you will be asked for in the speaking paper of an exam. When someone asks you a question with to be, you do not answer with a bare yes or no: you repeat the verb.

🇬🇧 Question	Affirmative answer	Negative answer
Are you Spanish?	Yes, I am.	No, I’m not.
Is he a doctor?	Yes, he is.	No, he isn’t.
Are they ready?	Yes, they are.	No, they aren’t.
Was it expensive?	Yes, it was.	No, it wasn’t.

Golden rule: you never contract in the affirmative answer. It is Yes, I am, not Yes, I’m. In the negative, contracting is fine.

The verb to be in the past: was and were

The past is considerably simpler, because there are only two forms: was and were.

🇬🇧 Subject	Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
I	I was	I wasn’t	Was I?
You	You were	You weren’t	Were you?
He / She / It	He was	He wasn’t	Was he?
We	We were	We weren’t	Were we?
They	They were	They weren’t	Were they?

Careful here, because the pattern is not the same as in the present: was goes with I, he, she, it and were goes with you, we, they. Some examples:

• I was at the cinema last night.
• The weather wasn’t very good last weekend.
• Were you at home yesterday?
• My grandparents were born in a small village.

Pay attention to that last example, because it matters: to be born is always built with to be, never with have. If you say I have born in Madrid, you are making one of the most common mistakes there is. The correct version is I was born in Madrid.

And while we are on the past, it is worth revising the Past Simple in full, along with the list of irregular verbs, where be takes first place entirely on merit.

The verb to be in the future: will be and going to be

The future holds no difficulty at all, because the form is the same for every subject:

• I will be ready in five minutes. / I‘ll be ready in five minutes.
• She won’t be at the meeting tomorrow. (negative)
• Will you be at home this evening? (interrogative)
• It‘s going to be a long day. (with going to)

As you can see, the verb stays in its base form be and it is will or going to that does the work of the future.

What the verb to be is used for: the 8 uses you need to know

This is the section that really makes the difference, because to be covers situations that Spanish resolves with other verbs entirely. These are the eight main uses:

1. Identity, profession and relationships

I am a teacher. / She is my sister. / They are students.

2. Describing people and things

The film is very long. / My flat is small but comfortable. If you want to widen your descriptive vocabulary, have a look at the post on adjectives in English.

3. Nationality and origin

I am from Granada. / He is Italian. Note that we say I am from, not I come from (it exists, but it is less usual when introducing yourself).

4. Age

I am 25 years old. This is the number one mistake for Spanish speakers. In Spanish you «have» years; in English you «are» years. Never say I have 25 years.

5. The time and the date

It is half past three. / It is the 5th of March. Both are explained in detail in the posts on telling the time in English and the date in English.

6. The weather

It is cold today. / It was sunny yesterday. Here the subject it is compulsory, even though Spanish leaves it out.

7. Location

The keys are on the table. / We are at the station.

8. Physical states and moods

I am hungry. / I am thirsty. / I am cold. / She is afraid of spiders. Another classic: in Spanish you «have» hunger, thirst or cold, but in English you «are» those things. I have hungry means nothing at all.

The verb to be as an auxiliary

As well as working as a main verb, to be holds up two other fundamental English structures. This is precisely why it is worth mastering properly from the start.

Continuous tenses

Every continuous tense is formed with to be + verb in -ing:

• I am working right now. (Present Continuous)
• She was watching TV when I arrived. (Past Continuous)
• They will be waiting for us. (Future Continuous)

If you are wondering when to use each one, I have a whole post on the difference between the Present Simple and the Present Continuous.

The passive voice

The passive is built with to be + past participle:

• The book was written in 1998.
• English is spoken all over the world.
• The results will be announced tomorrow.

There is and there are: the to be of existence

Where Spanish says «hay», English turns to to be once more, this time preceded by there:

• There is a bank near here. → singular
• There are two options. → plural
• There was a problem with the booking. → past singular
• There were a lot of people at the concert. → past plural

The detail most people miss: «hay» never changes in Spanish, but in English the form depends on what follows. If the noun is plural, it is there are, not there is.

Common mistakes Spanish speakers make with to be

These are the eight mistakes I correct constantly. Avoid them and your English will sound noticeably more natural straight away.

❌ Incorrect	✅ Correct	Why
I have 25 years.	I am 25 years old.	Age is expressed with to be, not have.
I have hungry.	I am hungry.	Hunger, thirst, cold, heat and fear all take to be.
I am agree.	I agree.	Agree is already a verb; it does not need to be.
Is raining today.	It is raining today.	English always requires a subject, even where Spanish drops it.
I amn’t ready.	I’m not ready.	Amn’t does not exist in standard English.
I don’t be tired.	I’m not tired.	To be makes its own negative, without do/does.
I have born in Madrid.	I was born in Madrid.	To be born always takes to be.
I am boring.	I am bored.	Boring describes the thing causing the feeling; bored describes the person feeling it.

That last pair deserves a warning of its own, because it completely changes what you are saying about yourself. I am boring means you are a dull person. What you almost certainly meant was I am bored. The same applies to interesting and interested, or tiring and tired.

The verb to be in the Cambridge exams

You might think such a basic verb causes no trouble in an exam, but you would be surprised. In A2 Key and B1 Preliminary, to be shows up in every paper, and these are the points where candidates tend to lose marks:

• Speaking Part 1. The introductory questions (Where are you from?, How old are you?) are answered with to be. An answer like I have 20 years is an A1 error in an A2 or B1 exam, and it stands out.
• Short answers. Replying Yes, I am rather than a bare yes is exactly the sort of detail an examiner reads as grammatical control.
• Reading and Writing. Subject and verb agreement (the children are, not the children is) is penalised under the Language criteria.
• Use of English. At higher levels, the passive and the continuous tenses, both built with to be, are constant material in the transformations.

Verb to be summary table

Tense	Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
Present	I am / he is / we are	I’m not / he isn’t / we aren’t	Am I? / Is he? / Are we?
Past	I was / he was / we were	I wasn’t / he wasn’t / we weren’t	Was I? / Was he? / Were we?
Future	I will be / he will be	I won’t be / he won’t be	Will I be? / Will he be?
Existence	There is / There are	There isn’t / There aren’t	Is there? / Are there?

Verb TO BE exercises

You have the theory, so now let’s do the part that actually makes it stick: practising. Below you will find four interactive exercises, moving from recognising the forms to spotting the most common mistakes. They mark themselves, so you will know straight away how you did. Good luck!

And if you prefer a version in text that you can copy and paste, you have it down here 👇

Exercise 1: am, is or are?

Choose the correct form of the verb to be: am, is or are.

Exercise 2: negatives and questions

Complete the sentences with the negative or interrogative form of the verb to be in the present.

Exercise 3: was or were?

Complete the sentences with the past form of the verb to be: was, were, wasn’t or weren’t.

Exercise 4: spot the mistake

Decide whether each sentence is Correct or Incorrect. If it is Incorrect, write the full correct sentence.

Frequently asked questions about the verb to be

When do you use am, is and are?

Am is used only with I. Is is used with the third person singular (he, she, it or a singular noun). Are is used with you, we, they and any plural subject.

Does to be mean «ser» or «estar»?

Both. English does not distinguish between ser and estar the way Spanish does, so one verb covers both meanings and the context does the rest.

Why doesn’t amn’t exist?

It is simply a gap in standard English: the contraction never settled. The correct form is I’m not. Some dialects, such as Irish and Scottish English, do use amn’t, but do not use it in an exam.

Can you contract in short answers?

Only in negative ones. Yes, I am is never contracted to Yes, I’m, whereas No, I’m not is perfectly correct.

What is the difference between there is and it is?

There is introduces the existence of something, while it is describes something already known. Compare: There is a restaurant on the corner with It is a Japanese restaurant.

Conclusion

The verb to be is by far the best-value verb you can learn in English: it lets you introduce yourself, describe things, tell the time and talk about the weather, and on top of that it is the basis of the continuous tenses and the passive voice. If you take three things away from this post, make them these: only I takes am, to be makes its own negatives and questions with no auxiliaries, and age, hunger and cold go with to be, not with have.

Now it is your turn. Do the exercises above, and if you get one wrong, go back to the summary table and work out exactly where it slipped. That is the fastest way to make it stick.

Did you find this post useful? Share it with other students and teachers of English, they will thank you for it. And if you want to keep learning with us, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and YouTube.

See you in the next post. Until then, don’t forget to keep smiling! 🙂