Auxiliary Verbs

Auxiliary verbs are helping words. They come before other words to make sentences. Words like is, am, are, was, and were are auxiliary verbs.

What You'll Learn

• How to pick the right word: is, am, are, was, or were
• How to match the helping word to one person or many people, and to now or the past

When to Use

1. Talking about now: "She is at school."
2. Talking about yourself: "I am happy."
3. Talking about the past: "They were at the park yesterday."

How to Form

Key Rules

1. "I" always uses "am": Say "I am hungry." Do not say "I is hungry."
2. One person or thing uses "is": Say "The cat is big." One cat means we use is.
3. Two or more use "are": Say "The dogs are big." Many dogs means we use are.

Common Mistakes

Clue Words

Present (now)

today, now, right now, at the moment

Past (before)

yesterday, last night, last week, just now

One or many?

One person or thing = is / was. Two or more = are / were.

Tip: Point at who you are talking about. Is it just one? Use is or was. Is it many? Use are or were. Is it "I"? Always use am (or was for the past).

Practice Tips

1. Count the people or things: One person or thing? Use is (now) or was (before). More than one? Use are (now) or were (before).
2. Check the time: Is it happening now or did it happen before? Pick the right column from the table above.

Quick Reference