Is is used in English. Using the particle to before verbs in English

Those who study English constantly come across the verbs am, is, are in the text. What kind of constructions these are, their meaning, translation into Russian and the construction of sentences - you will learn all this in the article.

I am...

We are used to saying simply “My name is Ivan”, “I am a truck driver”, “I am 34 years old”. The English language does not have the plasticity of Russian. It cannot transfer parts of speech from one part of a sentence to another or skip words. To connect the subject and predicate are used auxiliary verbs. The verb to be, the meaning of which is “to be, to be, to appear,” has its own form for each tense of the English language. Verbs am, is, are - auxiliary for the present continuous tense Present Progressive. This tense denotes an action that is happening at the present moment. The form of the verb to be (am, is, are) is also used to introduce yourself, name your city, age and profession using a linking verb in Present Simple- simple present tense. Let's construct sentences with the verb am: I am from Russia. I'm from Russia. I am 26 years old. I am 26 years old.

Use in speech

How to choose the right form? The form of the verb to be (am, is, are) depends on the number and person of the subject.

pronoun		form to be


	He, she, it

Important: the pronoun it denotes inanimate objects, as well as animals and plants. This is my rose. It's wonderful. This is my rose. She is beautiful.

The table above refers to the case when the verbs am, is are used as a connective between the subject and the predicate. Scheme of an affirmative sentence in general view looks like this:

Subject.
Linking verb.
Predicate.
Addition or circumstance, if any.

At the same time, the verbs am, is, are are not translated into Russian. The particle to, which appears in the text, is also not translated. It simply refers to the verb.

Construction of an interrogative sentence

In Russian, the same word order can be in both declarative and negative and affirmative sentence. For example: "You love me." “Do you love me?”, “Do you love me!” All that distinguishes them is the intonation during pronunciation.

IN English The interrogative sentence is constructed differently. Let's take an example of a declarative sentence and transform it into an interrogative:

I am from Moscow. I'm from Moscow. To make the interrogative sentence sound more logical, let's change the pronoun I to you. Are you from Moscow? Now the sentence sounds like this: Are you from Moscow? The auxiliary verb comes first, followed by the subject and predicate, without changes. Let's build a few more interrogative sentences:

Am I wrong? - Am I wrong?
Are you busy? Are you busy?
Where is my cup? Where's my cup?
How old is she? How old is she?
Is it raining today? Is it raining today?

Construction of a negative sentence

A negative sentence is constructed in the same way as a narrative one, but after the verbs am, is, are, the negation not is placed.

Forms of denial

He is not in school. He's not at school.
You are not French. You're not French.
I am not a doctor. I'm not a doctor.

Present Progressive tense

Present progressive is used in English to denote an action taking place in at the moment time. In Russian, prefixes, suffixes, modified roots and word endings are used for the same purpose.

Present progressive is used in the following cases:

To express an action that is happening right now.
To denote a period of time in a broad sense: on last week, today, this month. The action has already begun, but events are still happening in this period of time. It"s raining all day. It rains all day.
The action will take place in the near future and is already known for sure. Certificates or tickets are available. I'm going to London next week. Next week I'm going to London.
In those cases when you have to express boring constancy. You are always losing money. You always lose money.

How is it formed given time? Here we use the already known form of the verb to be (am, is, are) with the addition of the ending ing to the verb. Required form The auxiliary verb is selected in the same way as a declarative sentence in the Present Simple.

Declarative sentences

I am cooking now. I'm cooking.
You are drawing beautiful picture. You paint a beautiful picture.
She is reading a magazine now. She is reading a magazine.
They are studying at school now. They are at school now.
We are going to his work. We go to his work.
I am cooking very special supper with my boyfriend. My boyfriend and I are cooking a very special dinner.

Interrogative sentences

Interrogative sentences in the Present Progressive are constructed as follows:

The auxiliary verb to be in the chosen form comes first. If the offer contains question word, it comes first, followed by to be. Then comes the subject, expressed by a pronoun or noun, after which the verb ending in ing is used.

What am I doing here? What am I doing here?
Are you working now? Are you working?
Is she going home? Is she going home?
Are they reading newspaper while children are playing with toys in the garden. Do they read the newspaper while the children play with toys in the garden?

Negative sentences

Negative sentences in the Present Progressive are constructed according to the following scheme:

The negative particle not is added to the existing form of the verb to be. For brevity and euphony, the form of the verb to be is shortened with an apostrophe:

I"m not at home now. I'm not at home now.
We aren't in the room. We are coming to Ann. We are not in the room. We are going to Anna.
He isn't listening to my favorite musical team. He doesn't listen to my favorite musical group.

Exercises with the verbs am, is, are will help reinforce the material.

Knowing English opens many doors. That is why it is being actively studied in almost all countries of the world. Currently, around the planet, about 2 million people use this language on a regular basis. This number includes those for whom English is their native language, as well as those who use it as a foreign language: for contacts with business partners, communication with foreign friends, entertainment of various kinds and, in fact, study. In general, the study of any of foreign languages increases mental activity, logical and abstract thinking, as well as the ability to navigate unexpected situations.

How to Master English Grammar

For many students of English, its grammatical structure poses a certain difficulty. In reality, there is nothing complicated there (especially if you compare, for example, with the Russian language!), it is enough to understand the important patterns once and remember the basic forms well. However, memorization comes through practice: doing exercises, reading, writing letters or essays, oral communication. The best way master English grammar - do it the natural way.

It often happens that a person knows a rule, but cannot apply it in his speech. Such difficulties are eliminated by practice - and the more and more varied it is (writing, reading, speaking, listening), the faster and better the result.

Remember also that each person has his own, purely individual, pace of mastering new knowledge and the ability to apply it in the practice of his own speech. For example, if you are studying in a group where some students master grammatical rules faster and more correctly than you, there is no need to lose heart. Without a doubt, you too will one day begin to speak English confidently and without errors. The main thing is to keep training.

Verb forms “is”/“are”: use in speech

If you have recently started learning English, then you are familiar with this situation: you want to say something, but the fear of making a mistake gets in the way and causes timidity. To avoid this, try to understand the rule and, most importantly, practice the exercises more.

One of the common grammatical difficulties arises when the verb connectives “is”/“are” are confused. The use of these forms of the verb to be depends solely on the person of the pronoun in each specific case. We are talking about a pronoun that functions as a subject. For example:

I am a student. - I am a student.

If the subject is a noun or proper name, then you need to mentally replace it with the appropriate pronoun. Then a conjugation scheme will definitely come to mind, including the connecting verbs “is”/“are”, the use of which often causes difficulties.

Kate (?) a student -> She is a student.

To be sure which form of the verb to use, you need to firmly remember the principle of conjugation.

Conjugation of the verb to be (present tense)

Statement

Negation

Question

Cases such as the use of “is” in English usually refer to descriptive situations. When we want to characterize something that is in singular(can be replaced by the pronoun it), or someone acting as “he” or “she” - then, without a doubt, you need to use the “is” form. Examples:

It is great. - (This is) excellent.

He is old. - He's old.

She is a doctor. - She's a doctor.

The main thing is that you need to firmly understand: “am”, “is”, “are”, the use of which sometimes causes difficulties, are not three different verbs, and by the same thing - the verb to be (to be).

Conjugation of the verb to be (past tense)

Now let's look at the next issue that causes difficulties for some English learners, namely the rules for using “was”/“were”. This is also the same verb, and not two different ones at all. Moreover, these two verb forms are directly related to “am”, “is”, “are”. Can you guess why? That's right, it's all the same verb to be.

And now more about these correspondences. The past tense form “was” is used only in the singular and corresponds to the pronouns: I, it, he, she. The form “were” is used with the pronouns you, we, they and is most often used in plural. For example:

I was at home. - I was at home.

It was hot. - It was hot.

They were happy. - They were happy.

There are only two situations where the predicate verb “were” in a sentence can refer to a singular subject. The first case: when the pronoun “you” implies the translation of “you” or “You” (that is, one person). Second case: the so-called subordinate clauses Conditional sentences in which the form “if I were” is possible.

Have you been to...

In communication between people, situations often arise when you need to ask a person about his past experience: where he was, what he did, whether he finished the job he started. In such cases, a special construction is used from the forms of two verbs: to have + semantic verb.

Often the semantic verb is the already well-known to us (to be). Depending on the subject used (and what pronoun can be replaced), there are two varieties: “have been” and “has been”. The first is used with the pronouns you, we, they, the second - with I, it, he, she. For example:

Have you been to Europe? -Have you been to Europe?

She has been on the excursion. - She was on an excursion.

As a rule, the use of has been is associated with such situations when we mean:

some lived experience;
completeness or result of some matter;
the importance of the fact that the action was performed (while the time of its occurrence is not particularly important);
the need to emphasize how long this action has been taking place.

Let's look at the last mentioned situation in a little more detail.

How long...?

In such cases, the Present Perfect Continuous tense is used. It is formed according to the scheme: have (has) + been + Ving, where V is a semantic verb. For example:

I have been studying English for 3 months. - I have been studying English for 3 months already (that is, I started studying in the past and have continued to do so for a certain period of time).

He hasn’t been riding a bike for a long time. - He hasn’t ridden a bike for a long time (that is, he stopped riding sometime in the past, hasn’t ridden for a long time and still hasn’t ridden a bike).

I'm going to do...

In English, in addition to the usual future tense, the construction “to be going to” is actively used. The use of this grammatical construction refers to situations when you plan or know exactly what you will do. Often this construction is used to predict what (in your opinion) should happen soon: it will rain, there will be a traffic jam on the road, whether someone will like or not like a gift given to them. “Intend”, “get together” - this is how the phrase “to be going to” is most often translated. Its use in a sentence is associated with the change to be to “am”, “is”, “are”.

For example:

I am going to learn English next month. - I intend to learn English starting next month.

We are going to visit granny at the weekend. - We are going to visit grandma this weekend.

It's going to rain. - It's going to rain.

I'm used to...

In conclusion, let’s look at the use of “be used to”. This stable design is quite often used in colloquial speech. Its meaning is “to get used to something.” For example:

It is used to Russian winter. - He is accustomed (used) to the Russian winter.

He is used to living in winter cold. - He is accustomed (used) to living in the winter cold.

However, you need to watch and listen carefully so as not to confuse “be used to” with the very similar construction “use to” (and its corresponding past tense form, “used to”).

What is the difference between these two expressions? Firstly, in the meaning: “be used to” - “get used to”, “use to” - “do something in the past, but now no longer” (analogous to the Past Simple). This is best understood through examples.

Be used to

I’m used to my work hours. - I'm used to my working day.

He is used to TV noise. - He got used to the noise of the TV.

I used to live here before. - I lived here before (but I don’t live here anymore).

I didn’t use to have a mobile phone 10 years ago. - I didn't have mobile phone 10 years ago (but now there is).

From the examples, the second difference between these two, at first glance very similar, structures is obvious. The one that is translated “get used to” is equipped with the verb to be (am, is, are). And the other one, accordingly, is not. Simple attentiveness, a little practice - and you will easily learn to distinguish between these two “insidious” formulations.

The same applies to any grammatical rules of the English language. Get to the bottom of things and practice often: in exercises, reading, writing or speaking. As the British say: “Practice makes perfect.” This can be translated into Russian as: “The master’s work is afraid.” So let the most difficult and tricky grammatical rules be afraid of your determination. Have a great time!

There are several verbs in the English language that are not very common, and their use is not always clear to people who have just begun to learn the language. One of these verbs is the verb to be, and is, in turn, is one of the forms of this verb. So what does is mean? Is is the 3rd person singular present tense form of the verb to be. Simply put, we can only use it after the words he (he), she (she), it (it) or words that can be replaced by this pronoun. For example: President, this word can be replaced by the pronoun he, accordingly, after it in English there will be is. But we cannot replace the word clouds with any of these pronouns; only “they” is suitable for it, which is not in this list. Therefore, we can no longer use is after it.

So, the verb to be, and therefore its form is, can be used as:

a semantic independent verb, i.e. a verb that carries the meaning of being or existing. For example: He is at home - He is at home. The meaning of the word is is that he IS at home, but in translation into Russian this word is superfluous, and we omit it. Or She is beautiful - She is beautiful (She IS beautiful). The fact is that in Russian a sentence can do without a verb, but in English there must be a verb;
auxiliary verb, i.e. a verb that helps form tense forms for other verbs. In such cases, it is not translated at all, but serves as an assistant. For example: She is writing a letter now. - She is writing a letter now. The tense is present continuous. Here it is important to remember how this or that tense is formed, and is itself will also be in the 3rd person, singular, present tense;
modal verb, i.e. a verb that does not itself denote any action, but expresses an attitude towards it. It expresses either a planned action or instructions and orders. And always after is in such sentences there is a particle to. In such cases is is translated as “should”, but in different meanings. Let's look at examples that will explain everything to us. Marry is to arrive on Friday – Mary must arrive on Friday (planned action). The boss says he is to call her, because it is his job - The director says that he should call her because it is his job.

This is what is means... Of course, it cannot be studied separately, because it is closely related to other forms of the verb to be, which can only be understood together. Only when the grammatical material is mastered in the system will it be easy to master it.

Verb be (be) in the present tense has three forms: am, is, are:
am used only with a pronounI (I).
is - with nounssingular.
are - with nounsplural . Pronoun you in English it is always plural, although it can be translated into Russian as “you” or “you”.

Verb Declension Table to be in the present simple tense:

I I	am	(not) (Not)	fine.
He he/She she/It it	is
We we /You you /They they	are

		I"m
	abbreviations:	He's
		You"re

I am a student. - He is a student. - You are a student. - They are students.
I (am) a student. He (is) a student. You are a student. They are students.

I"m not hungry, but I"m thirsty.
I'm not hungry, but I'm thirsty. (thirsty - adjective)

Kristy(she) is my niece.
Christy is my niece.

The weather is n"t very nice today.
The weather today is not very pleasant.

Kittens(they) are very funny.
Kittens are very funny.

My sister and I(we) are big fans of Lady Gaga.
My sister and I are big Lady Gaga fans.

"Game of Thrones"(it) is the most expensive TV show.
"Game of Thrones" is the most expensive TV series.

IN interrogative sentence am, is, are are brought before subject to. (IN declarative sentence the verbs am, is, are come after the subject).

Am	I	fine?	Yes, I am ./No, I"m not.
Is	he/she/it		Yes, he is ./No, he is n"t.
Are	we/you/they		Yes, we are ./No, we are n"t.

Are are you busy? - No, I"m not. I"m free now.
Are you busy? - No. I'm free now.

Am I right? - No, you are n"t. You are wrong.
Am I right? - No. You're wrong. (wrong - adjective)

Where is my rucksack? Your rucksack (it) is under the desk.
Where's my backpack? - Your backpack is under the table.

How old are your children (they)? - My son (he) is 8 and my daughter (she) is 6.
How old are your children? - My son is 8, and my daughter is 6.

The pie is so delicious. Is the recipe difficult?
This pie is so delicious. Is his recipe complicated?

Use of verbs am, is, are:
It is uncharacteristic of the Russian language to use the verb “to be” in the present tense, and is omitted in translation. And in English the verb to be is very important, since it is linking verb- connects different parts of speech (2 nouns, a noun and an adjective, a pronoun and a noun). Otherwise the sentence is incomplete in meaning: Our daughter is a biologist. - If translated literally, everything is fine - Our daughter is a biologist. But in English, without the verb is, this sentence is grammatically incorrect, since it is not clear how the daughter and the biologist are related. In order for a daughter to “become” a biologist, these two nouns must be connected with the verb is - Our daughter is a biologist. - Our daughter (is/is) a biologist.

Remember! Sentence in English cannot exist without a verb, therefore, if there is no semantic verb in a Russian sentence, then in this sentence in English it is necessary to use the linking verb “to be”, i.e. am, is or are:

Klaus comes from Germany.
Klaus is from Germany. (come is a semantic verb - the verb is is not needed)
Klaus is from Germany.
Klaus from Germany. (without is the sentence will remain without a verb)

You look beautiful!
You look great! (there is a verb look)
You are beautiful.
You are great! (no semantic verb)

This dog seems very clever.
This dog seems very smart. (there is a verb seem)
This dog is very clever.
This dog is very smart. (no semantic verb)

Pay attention! Some verbs of the Russian language into English are translated by adjectives with the verb to be: late (late), tired (tired), ill (sick), angry (angry), afraid (afraid), thirsty (thirsty).

I "m too tired to cook.
I'm too tired to cook.

Why are you always late?
Why are you always late?

I don't understand why she is angry with me.
I don't understand why she's angry with me.

My son and husband (they) are ill.
My son and husband got sick.

Little kids are often afraid of the dark.
Young children are often afraid of the dark.

Hello friends. Many people make the mistake of not using auxiliary verbs AM, IS, ARE in the present tense when they are needed. In our lesson we will dwell in detail on am, is, are, and analyze situations when these three words must be inserted into a sentence.

At the end of the lesson you can take a test and test yourself. As I already said, AM, IS, ARE are needed in the present tense.

These three words are verb forms TO BE, which translates as “to be.” AM, IS, ARE can be translated as “there is,” but almost always in Russian these verbs are completely omitted from speech. This is where difficulties arise.

A little theory

As you probably know, in English we are required to use both a subject and a predicate in a sentence. In other words, in any sentence there is always an author of the action (who?) - this is the subject.

And there is an action it produces (what does it do?) - this is the predicate. This is very important for understanding the system English grammar generally.

But now we will focus on the present tense. In Russian, when an action is not specified, we understand that the situation takes place in the present tense.

For example: Cold. Rain. I'm under an umbrella.

In each of these sentences there is no verb, no explicit action. But reading them, we understand that all this is happening in the present.

Now let's look at how an English-speaking person sees this situation:

[This state is] cold. [This state is] rainy. I [am] under an umbrella.

“This state” - “it” is the subject. By the way, it is also called “formal subject”. Because it is needed solely for grammatical construction, and does not make any sense.

Note! In the third sentence from our example, the subject is the word “I”, the author of the action. As you might have guessed, the action that is present in each of the examples is the verb “is” - a variant of the verb “to be”, “to be in a state”.

Let's remember the rule: Where in Russian there is no visible action, in English there is action.

Usually this applies to the present tense. In Russian we call action for past and future tense.

Example in past tense: Was Cold. Was rain. I was under the umbrella. Example in the future tense: Will Cold. Will rain. I will under the umbrella.

Here the action is expressed by the verb “was/was/was” in the past and “will/will be” in the future. You just need to add a formal subject to translate such a sentence into English.

Verb “to be” in the present tense has 3 forms in English tense: am / is / are. Please note that to be itself is not translated into any tense, but depending on whether we are talking about the present, past or future, to be begins to change.

As well as Russian word"to be" changes to "was", "is" or "will be" depending on the time.

The following pronouns act as subjects:

I - I
You, you - You
He, she, it - He, she, it
We - We
They - They

Let's celebrate! And words that can be replaced with these pronouns. For example, children - they - they

The form of the predicate depends on the subject:

You are
He, she, it is
We are
They are

So am can only be used with I, not in any other case. We put Are if the subject is you, we, they and words that can be replaced by these pronouns (people, eggs, “you and I”, etc.) Is appears only after he, she, it and the words replaced by them (Kate, a boy, an apple, a cow, etc.)

Carefully study the table and examples: