AUXILIARY VERBS

An Auxiliary verb helps the main verb and is also called a “helping verb”. That action happened in
the past or is happening in the present or will happen in the future.
BE (am, are, is, was, were, being) = a fi

CAN = a putea
Uses Examples
Ability / possibility I can’t swim
Informal / Polite request Can I borrow this ruler?
Permission You can go to the party.

COULD = ar putea
Uses Examples
Polite request Could you tell me the time?
Certainty (50%) She could be there by now
Suggestion You could ring them

DO (did, do, does, doing) = a face

HAVE (has, have, has, having) = a avea
MAY = ar fi posibil
Uses Examples
Polite request May we come in?
Formal permission You may not speak during the test
Certainty (less than 50%) She may not be in

MIGHT = s-ar putea

Uses Examples
Certainty (less than 50%) Where are they? They might be at the park.

MUST = a trebui
Uses Examples
Obligation I must do my tax returns.
Prohibition (negative) You mustn’t drive on the right in the UK.
Strong certainty He’s not here today, he must be sick.

SHALL = ar trebui
SHOULD / OUGHT TO = ar trebui
Uses Examples
Advice You shouldn’t smoke. You ought to go to the
doctor.
Deduction They should arrive by 10

WILL = o sa fie
WOULD = ar putea sa fie
Uses Examples
Polite request / inquiry Would you like a drink?
Preference I would rather stay in tonight

Let’s take a look at how to use the auxiliary verbs be, have, and do.
 PRESENT SIMPLE
We use present simple:
- For habitual actions or repeated actions
Ex: I usually get up at 6 a.m. / I drive my car every day.
- For permanent situations
Ex: She lives in a house. He is a policeman
- for things that are always true
Ex: The sun rises in the East / Water boils at 100 degrees.
- When we tell stories or we summarize the plot of a movie or a book.
Ex: the hero goes in the forest and fights the dragon to save the princess
- When we use always with the present simple it means every time
Ex: I always visit my friends when I go to Spain
Time expressions:
- usually - every day - at the weekend
- often - sometimes - on Mondays
- always - rarely

(+) SUBJECT + VERB (base form) + ….

I always drink water
DO / DOES NOT VERB
(-) SUBJECT + +
(DON’T / DOESN’T) (base form)
I don’t like apples. She doesn’t like football.
(?) DO / DOES + SUBJECT + VERB (base form)
Do you want a book? Does she like her new car?
When we for questions with when, what, why, where, how etc. we also use the auxiliary do/does.
WHEN
WHAT
VERB
(?) WHY DO / DOES + SUBJECT +
(base form)
WHERE
HOW
What do you eat for breakfast? Where does she go? How do you write like that?
Remember:
- Present simple is formed with the infinitive form of the verb
Ex: Like, read, speak, dance
- For the 3rd person singular (he, she, it) we add -s to the infinitive form of the verb.
Verbs ending in -o, -s, -ch, -sh, -x , add -es
There are some irregular verbs:
To have To be To do
I have I am I do
You have You are You do
She has She is She does
He has He is He does
It has It is It does
We have We are We do
You have You are You do
They have They are They do
 PRESENT CONTINUOUS
We use present continuous
- for actions happening at the present moment
Ex: I am reading now
- For temporary situations happening at the present time
Ex: She is reading with her parents at the moment
- For actions, or repeated actions or habits, which are happening at the moment of speaking
Ex: I am using my dad’s car today because mine is broken
- For situations which are changing during the present time
Ex: the climate is getting hotter and hotter every day
- To describe annoying habits
Ex: you are talking with your mouth full
Key words:
- now - right now - today
- at the moment - at the present

am
(+) SUBJECT + is + Vb + ing
are
My sister is watching TV now
am
(-) SUBJECT + is + Not + Vb + ing
are
Tom isn’t reading the book. / I am not sleeping now.
am
(?) is + SUBJECT + Vb + ing ?
are
Is he leaving to school? / Am I playing football? / Are you swimming?
Remember:
- Verbs ending in -e drop de -e when they receive -ing.
Ex: decide – deciding; write – writing
- One syllable verbs, ending in one vowel and one consonant, double the consonant when they
receive -ing
Ex: sit – sitting, swim – swimming
- Verbs ending in -ie change -ie in -y when they receive -ing
Ex: lie – lying, tie – tying
- In speech or informal writing, we use the contracted form of the auxiliary to be
Ex: I am – I’m ; He is – He’s; You are – You’re
- When we ask questions with the present continuous, the auxiliary verb to be is inverted
Ex: Is he speaking French? - Am I writing?
- We form the negative form with the auxiliary to be + not
Ex: I am not reading a book. She is not swimming.
- There are certain verbs which don’t take -ing. They are also called non-continuous verbs:
Appearance: appear, seem, resemble Communication: agree, deny, disagree
Feeling: love, like, hate, want, wish, prefer Existence: be, exist
Senses: feel, appear, hear, see, smell, Opinion: doubt, suppose
taste, sound, notice Possession: belong to, have, own, owe,
Thinking: believe, imagine, think, know, posses
remember, realize, understand, mean
 PAST SIMPLE
We use past simple for:
- for past (finished) actions, often with time words like a year ago, last Sunday, in 2010,
yesterday, etc.
The first modern Olympics took place in Athens more than a hundred years ago.
They arrived in Spain yesterday.
- For past habits or states:
He always caught the same train.
Long ago, they built most houses out of wood.
- For past states, events or actions that lasted for a period of time in the past.
We were neighbours for twenty – five years.

Key words:
- when - in 2009
- yesterday - last night
- last week - a month/ year ago

d/ed/ied for regular verbs

(+) SUBJECT + Vb +
2nd form for the irregular verbs
I played cards with them
We went for a walk last week
Vb
(-) SUBJECT + did not +
(base form)
I didn’t go to school yesterday
He didn’t do his homework
Vb?
(?) Did + SUBJECT +
(base form)
Did she work?

Remember
- in the affirmative we use:
o the -ed form for regular verbs
o the form from the 2nd column for irregular verbs
- in the negative and interrogative – we only need the infinitive form of the verbs (base form)
 PAST CONTINUOUS
We use past continuous:
- in actions in progress at a particular time in the past
- in actions happened in the middle of another actions
- someone was doing something, at a certain time in the past + you do not know whether it
was finished or not
- simultaneous past actions
Key words:
- while
- as
- at 9 o’clock (or another time)

Was (I, He, She, It)

(+) SUBJECT + + Vb + ing
Were (your, we, they)
They were watching TV while I was reading
He was doing his homework when I arrived

Was (I, He, She, It)

(-) SUBJECT + + Not + Vb + ing
Were (your, we, they)
She wasn’t playing attention
They weren’t doing their homework.

Was (I, He, She, It)

(?) + SUBJECT + Vb + ing
Were (your, we, they)
Was he reading?
Were they listening to the radio?
 PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE
We use present perfect simple for:
- for actions that happened at an unspecified time in the past:
They have arrived in Spain
- for past actions that have a result which is obvious or important in the present:
They have polluted the river (= And now the fish are dead.)
You’ve split the coffee all over my trousers! (= And now they’re ruined)
- for recently completed actions, often with just:
The film’s just started.
- To refer to a period of time that has not finished yet.
We’ve built twenty schools this year. (= It is still this year)
- For general experiences, often with before, ever and never.
Have you ever seen an elephant?
We’ve never been to Australia
She’s never flown before.
- for actions, events or situations that began in the past and continue in the present, often used with for
and since.
They have lived here for six years. (= They still live here.)
Mr. Edwards has worked here since 2009 (= He still works here.)
- with the following words: already, yet, recently, often, still
The rain has already destroyed the crops.
We still haven’t discovered life on other planets.
They haven’t finished the project yet.

Key words:
- already - for - lately
- just - how long - recently
- yet - ever
- since - never

Have Vb past participle

(I, you, we, they) d/ed/ied for regular verbs
(+) SUBJECT + +
Has 3rd form for the irregular
(He, She, It) verbs
Past participle
- for regular verbs: +ed
- for a few irregular verbs make – made is the same as the past simple
- for most of the irregular verbs is different from the past simple (ex: break – broke – broken)
They have moved to another town
She has done her homework

Have Vb past participle

(I, you, we, they) d/ed/ied for regular verbs
(+) SUBJECT + + not + rd
Has 3 form for the irregular
(He, She, It) verbs
We haven’t been to China
He hasn’t arrived.

Have Vb past participle

(I, you, we, they) d/ed/ied for regular verbs
(+) + SUBJECT + rd
Has 3 form for the irregular
(He, She, It) verbs
Have you ever eaten sushi? Has it arrived?
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS
We use the present perfect continuous to talk about actions that started in the past and continue up to the
moment of speaking.
We use it especially when we are interested in the duration of the action:
I’ve been waiting for a whole hour!
- Notice the difference between the present perfect simple and the present perfect continuous:
I’ve read this book. ( = I have finished it. The focus here is on the focus here is on the fact that the
action is complete)
I’ve been reading this book about life on other planets. (= I haven’t finished it yet. The focus here is on
the fact that the action is complete)