Level: beginner
Verbs in English have four basic parts:
| Base form | -ing form | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| work | working | worked | worked |
| play | playing | played | played |
| listen | listening | listened | listened |
Most verbs are regular: they have a past tense and past participle with –ed (worked, played, listened). But many of the most frequent verbs are irregular.
Level: beginner
Basic parts
Verbs in English have four basic parts:
| Base form | -ing form | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| work | working | worked | worked |
| play | playing | played | played |
| listen | listening | listened | listened |
Most verbs are regular: they have a past tense and past participle with –ed (worked, played, listened). But many of the most frequent verbs are irregular.
Verb phrases
Verb phrases in English have the following forms:
- a main verb:
| main verb | ||
|---|---|---|
| We | are | here. |
| I | like | it. |
| Everybody | saw | the accident. |
| We | laughed. |
The verb can be in the present tense (are, like) or the past tense (saw, laughed).
| auxiliary be | -ing form | |
|---|---|---|
| Everybody | is | watching. |
| We | were | laughing. |
A verb phrase with be and –ing expresses continuous aspect. A verb with am/is/are expresses present continuous and a verb with was/were expresses past continuous.
- the auxiliary verb have and a main verb in the past participle form:
| auxiliary have | past participle | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| They | have | enjoyed | themselves. |
| Everybody | has | worked | hard. |
| He | had | finished | work. |
A verb phrase with have and the past participle expresses perfect aspect. A verb with have/has expresses present perfect and a verb with had expresses past perfect.
- a modal verb (can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, would) and a main verb:
| modal verb | main verb | |
|---|---|---|
| They | will | come. |
| He | might | come. |
- The verb phrase 1
- The verb phrase 2
Level: intermediate
- the auxiliary verbs have and been and a main verb in the –ing form:
| auxiliary have been | -ing form | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Everybody | has been | working | hard. |
| He | had been | singing. |
A verb phrase with have been and the -ing form expresses both perfect aspect and continuous aspect. A verb with have/has expresses present perfect continuous and a verb with had expresses past perfect continuous.
- a modal verb and the auxiliaries be, have and have been:
| modal | auxiliary | verb | |
|---|---|---|---|
| They | will | be | listening. |
| He | might | have | arrived. |
| She | must | have been | listening. |
- the auxiliary verb be and a main verb in the past participle form:
| auxiliary be | past participle | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| English | is | spoken | all over the world. |
| The windows | have been | cleaned. | |
| Lunch | was being | served. | |
| The work | will be | finished | soon. |
| They | might have been | invited | to the party. |
A verb phrase with be and the past participle expresses passive voice.
- The verb phrase 3
- The verb phrase 4
Level: advanced
We can use the auxiliaries do and did with the infinitive for emphasis:
It was a wonderful party. I did enjoy it.
I do agree with you. I think you are absolutely right.
We can also use do for polite invitations:
Do come and see us some time.
There will be lots of people there. Do bring your friends.
Comments
No problem sir. Thank you again.
Hello,
'I bought frozen chicken yesterday.'
In the above sentence, 'frozen', though essentially 'verb', used as an 'predicative adjective' for the noun 'chicken'.
'The chicken was frozen'
Please let me know whether the word 'frozen' in the above sentence used as 'adjective(predicatively / with linking verb:was)' or 'regular verb(passive voice / auxiliary verb+V3)'
Hi amol,
In your second sentence, I'm afraid there is no way to determine from the mere words whether 'frozen' is a predicate or part of a passive verb. The only way to tell would to consider its full context.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
HI SIR/MADAM
I enjoy this english grammar at an age of 69,I was taught most of the subjests in my african language.I am learning a lot from the beggining and I am hoping to finish with an understanding
CATHY
Hello,
I would like to ask if this is the right verb, in the following sentence
When I am on holidays/vacation, I like reading
Is it correct, I am on holidays/vacation?
Thank you in advance
Hi anie2,
'When I'm on holiday' and 'When I'm on vacation' are both correct and mean the same thing.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi, Is there any book available which will cover all the topic posted here in this website. Kindly advice.
Hi Tanvir,
There are many good grammar books on the market which cover much the same language areas as our site, or even more. However, the British Council does not recommend particular books or publishers – we need to be neutral in such matters.
My advice would be to look at a range of grammar books, choosing one or two grammar areas (say, articles and relative clauses) and comparing their entries to see which you prefer. It's often not the case that the information is better or worse in any particular book, but more that the way it is presented is more or less helpful for a particular person, so it's a good idea to compare them in this way. Pay attention too to what other components are included. Many grammar books include CDs or online material, for example.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Peter,
Thanks for your important guidance. Yes your are right that the way of presentation & relevant examples are more important to make a topic clearly understandable.
Tanvir.
Hello Sir
Please let me know whether these sentences are correct.
Either your sister or brothers have come.
Either your sister or brothers has come.
Thank you
Regards
Lal
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