Simple Present – Be

The verb be is one of the most important verbs in English. We use it to talk about who we are, where we are from, how old we are, and how we feel.

When Do We Use Be?

Use be when the sentence does not have another action verb. It connects the subject to information about the subject.

Use	Example
Identity	I am a student.
Age	She is 12 years old.
Origin	They are from Mexico.
Location	We are at home.
Feelings or condition	He is tired.
Description	The room is clean.

Important: Do not add be before another simple-present verb.

• ✓ I like music.
• ✗ I am like music.

Forms of Be

The verb be has three forms in the simple present:

Subject	Be
I	am
You / We / They	are
He / She / It	is

Positive Sentences

Use am, is, or are after the subject.

• I am a student.
• She is 12 years old.
• They are from Mexico.

Contractions

In spoken and informal English, we often use contractions (short forms).

Full Form	Contraction
I am	I'm
You are	You're
He is	He's
She is	She's
It is	It's
We are	We're
They are	They're

Negative Sentences

Add not after be to make a negative sentence.

• I am not tired.
• He is not Canadian.
• They are not in the classroom.

You can also use contractions for negatives:

Full Form	Contraction
is not	isn't
are not	aren't

Note: am not does not have a contraction.

We usually say I'm not: I'm not tired.

Questions

To make a question, move be to the front of the sentence.

• Are you ready?
• Is she your sister?
• Are they at school?

Short Answers

We often answer questions with short answers.

Question	Short Answer (Yes)	Short Answer (No)
Are you...?	Yes, I am.	No, I'm not.
Is he...?	Yes, he is.	No, he isn't. / No, he's not.
Is she...?	Yes, she is.	No, she isn't. / No, she's not.
Is it...?	Yes, it is.	No, it isn't. / No, it's not.
Are we...?	Yes, we are.	No, we aren't. / No, we're not.
Are they...?	Yes, they are.	No, they aren't. / No, they're not.

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Common Mistakes

Mistake	Better	Why
She are my sister.	She is my sister.	Use is with he, she, it.
I is from Canada.	I am from Canada.	Use am with I.
They isn't ready.	They aren't ready.	Use are/aren't with they.
Are she your teacher?	Is she your teacher?	Move the correct form of be to the front.

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Practice

Exercise 1 — Choose the Correct Form

1 / 17

He ___ 14 years old.

AareBamCis

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Summary

• Use be to talk about identity, age, origin, location, feelings, and descriptions.
• The present forms are am, is, and are.
• Use am with I, is with he/she/it, and are with you/we/they.
• Add not after be to make negatives: I am not, she is not, they are not.
• Move be to the front to make questions: Are you ready?, Is she your teacher?
• Use short answers like Yes, I am, No, she isn't, and Yes, they are.

Keep practicing by making positive, negative, and question forms with am, is, and are.