Verbo To Be

Carla Muniz

Professora licenciada em Letras

O verbo to be é um dos verbos mais utilizados da língua inglesa e pode ser traduzido como ser ou estar.

Não existe uma regra para saber quando ele significa ser e quando significa estar. É preciso compreender o significado da mensagem expressa como um todo, para então entender o sentido do verbo na frase.

O verbo to be é classificado como verbo irregular, uma vez que não segue as regras de formação do passado simples e do particípio passado.

Ele pode ser usado como verbo principal e como verbo auxiliar de alguns tempos verbais.

Conjugações: presente, passado e futuro

Confira as informações abaixo sobre o uso do verbo to be como verbo principal.

No Simple Present (presente simples), as flexões do verbo to be são am, is e are.

Afirmativa
Negativa
Interrogativa

I am
I’m
I am not
–
Am I…?

You are
You’re
You are not
You aren’t
Are you…?

He is
He’s
He is not
He isn’t
Is he…?

She is
She’s
She is not
She isn’t
Is she…?

It is
It’s
It is not
It isn’t
Is it…?

We are
We’re
We are not
We aren’t
Are we…?

You are
You’re
You are not
You aren’t
Are you…?

They are
They’re
They are not
They aren’t
Are they…?

Exemplos:

• I am not a doctor. (Eu não sou médica.) SER
• I am not at home. (Eu não estou em casa.) ESTAR
• Is he a soccer player? (Ele é jogador de futebol?) SER
• Is he at school? (Ele está na escola?) ESTAR
• She isn’t my friend. (Ela não é minha amiga.) SER
• She isn’t tired. (Ela não está cansada.) ESTAR
• What’s that? It is a turtle. (O que é aquilo? É uma tartaruga.) SER
• Where’s the book? It is on the table. (Onde está o livro? Está em cima da mesa.) ESTAR
• We aren’t students. (Nós não somos alunos.) SER
• We aren’t on the bus. (Nós não estamos no ônibus.) ESTAR
• You are great teachers. (Vocês são ótimos professores.) SER
• You are hungry! (Vocês estão com fome!) ESTAR
• Are they Brazilian? (Eles são brasileiros?) SER
• Are they thirsty? (Eles estão com sede?) ESTAR

Vale lembrar que no inglês, os pronomes pessoais (personal pronouns) no singular são: I, you, he, she, it. Já no plural temos: we, you e they.

No Simple Past (passado simples), as flexões do verbo to be são was e were.

Afirmativa
Negativa
Interrogativa

I was
–
I was not
I wasn’t
Was I…?

You were
You’re
You were not
You weren’t
Were you…?

He was
He’s
He was not
He wasn’t
Was he…?

She was
She’s
She was not
She wasn’t
Was she…?

It was
It’s
It was not
It wasn’t
Was it…?

We were
We’re
We were not
We weren’t
Were we…?

You were
You’re
You were not
You weren’t
Were you…?

They were
They’re
They were not
They weren’t
Were they…?

Exemplos:

• I was not a doctor. (Eu não era médica.) SER
• I was not at home. (Eu não estava em casa.) ESTAR
• Was he a soccer player? (Ele era jogador de futebol?) SER
• Was he at school? (Ele estava na escola?) ESTAR
• She wasn’t my friend. (Ela não era minha amiga.) SER
• She wasn’t tired. (Ela não estava cansada.) ESTAR
• What’s that? It was a turtle. (O que era aquilo? Era uma tartaruga.) SER
• Where’s the book? It was on the table. (Onde estava o livro? Estava em cima da mesa.) ESTAR
• We weren’t students. (Nós não éramos alunos.) SER
• We weren’t on the bus. (Nós não estávamos no ônibus.) ESTAR
• You were great teachers. (Vocês eram ótimos professores.) SER
• You were hungry! (Vocês estavam com fome!) ESTAR
• Were they Brazilian? (Eles eram brasileiros?) SER
• Were they thirsty? (Eles estavam com sede?) ESTAR

Veja também:

Was e were

No Simple Future (futuro simples), as flexões do verbo to be são sempre will be.

Afirmativa
Negativa
Interrogativa

I will be
I’ll be
I will not be
I won’t be
Will I be…?

You will be
You’ll be
You will not be
You won’t be
Will you be…?

He will be
He’ll be
He will not be
He won’t be
Will he be…?

She will be
She’ll be
She will not be
She won’t be
Will she be…?

It will be
It’ll be
It will not be
It won’t be
Will it be…?

We will be
We’ll be
We will not be
We won’t be
Will we be…?

You will be
You’ll be
You will not be
You won’t be
Will you be…?

They will be
They’ll be
They will not be
They won’t be
Will they be…?

Exemplos:

• I will not be a doctor. (Eu não serei médica.) SER
• I will not be at home. (Eu não estarei em casa.) ESTAR
• Will he be a soccer player? (Ele será jogador de futebol?) SER
• Will he be at school? (Ele estará na escola?) ESTAR
• She won’t be my friend. (Ela não será minha amiga.) SER
• She won’t be so tired when she finishes exercising. (Ela não estará tão cansada quando terminar de se exercitar.) ESTAR
• What will you be when you grow up? (O que você vai ser quando crescer?) SER
• Where will you be in the afternoon? (Onde você estará à tarde?) ESTAR
• We won’t be veterinarians. (Nós não seremos veterinários.) SER
• We won’t be on the bus by this time tomorrow. (Nós não estaremos no ônibus a essa hora amanhã.) ESTAR
• You will be great teachers. (Vocês serão ótimos professores.) SER
• You will be together next week.(Vocês estarão juntos semana que vem) ESTAR
• Will they be the new directors? (Eles serão os novos diretores?) SER
• Will they be in Brazil next month? (Eles estarão no Brasil mês que vem?) ESTAR

Agora que você já viu as tabelas com as conjugações, observe as explicações abaixo com um resumo de como formar frases nas formas afirmativa, negativa e interrogativa, incluindo a forma contraída.

Forma Afirmativa (Affirmative Form)

Em frases afirmativas, o verbo deve ser posicionado depois do sujeito:

• Simple Present: He is a good dancer. (Ele é um bom dançarino.)
• Simple Past: He was a good dancer. (Ele era um bom dançarino.)
• Simple Future: He will be a good dancer. (Ele será um bom dançarino.)

No exemplo acima, he (ele) é o sujeito e is (é), was (era) e will be (será) são flexões do verbo to be na terceira pessoa do singular.

Forma Negativa (Negative Form)

Para expressar negação em uma frase, deve-se usar not (não) após o verbo to be:

• Simple Present: He is not a good dancer. (Ele não é um bom dançarino.)
• Simple Past: He was not a good dancer. (Ele não era um bom dançarino.)
• Simple Future: He will not be a good dancer. (Ele não será um bom dançarino.)

No exemplo acima, not (não) está posicionado após is (é), was (era) e will be (será), que são flexões do verbo to be na terceira pessoa do singular.

Forma Interrogativa (Interrogative Form)

Para fazer perguntas, o verbo deve ser posicionado antes do sujeito:

• Simple Present: Is he a good dancer? (Ele é um bom dançarino?)
• Simple Past: Was he a good dancer? (Ele era um bom dançarino?)
• Simple Future: Will he be a good dancer? (Ele será um bom dançarino?)

No exemplo acima, he (ele) é o sujeito e is (é), was (era) e will be (será) são flexões do verbo to be na terceira pessoa do singular.

Forma Contraída (Contracted Form)

Em inglês, quando em uma mesma palavra juntamos um pronome + um verbo, ou um verbo + not, temos uma forma contraída, uma contracted form.

Geralmente, as formas contraídas são usadas em frases afirmativas e negativas. No entanto, também podem ser utilizadas em frases interrogativas quando a intenção da pergunta é de confirmar algo.

Afirmativa

Confira abaixo como fazer frases com o verbo to be na forma afirmativa contraída:

Simple Present (Presente simples)

Formas contraídas
am = ‘m
is = ‘s
are = ‘re

Exemplos

I am at home. > I’m at home. (Eu estou em casa.)

He is a good dancer. > He’s a good dancer. (Ele é um bom dançarino.)

They are tired. > They’re tired. (Eles estão cansados.)

Simple Past (Passado simples)

Formas contraídas
was =’s
were = ‘re

Exemplos

He was a good dancer. > He’s a good dancer. (Ele era um bom dançarino.)

They were tired. > They’re tired. (Eles estavam cansados.)

OBS.: não existe forma contraída para a afirmativa na primeira pessoa do singular do Simple Past. Por isso, a única forma possível é I was.

Simple Future (Futuro simples)

Formas contraídas
will be = ‘ll be

Exemplos

He will be a good dancer. > He’ll be a good dancer. (Ele será um bom dançarino.)

They will be tired. > They’ll be tired. (Eles estarão cansados.)

Negativa

Simple Present (Presente simples)

Formas contraídas
is not = isn’t
are not = aren’t

Exemplos

He is not a good dancer. > He isn’t a good dancer. (Ele não é um bom dançarino.)

They are not tired > They aren’t tired. (Eles não estão cansados.)

OBS.: apesar da existência de ain’t como forma contraída de am + not ela é considerada errada por muitos gramáticos e, por esse motivo, o seu uso não é recomendado. Essa forma é muito popular em músicas da atualidade.

Simple Past (Passado simples)

Formas contraídas
was not = wasn’t
were not = weren’t

Exemplos

He was not a good dancer. > He wasn’t a good dancer. (Ele não era um bom dançarino.)

They were not thirsty. > They weren’t thirsty. (Eles não estavam com sede.)

Simple Future (Futuro simples)

Formas contraídas
will not be = won’t be

Exemplos

He will not be a good dancer. > He won’t be a good dancer. (Ele não será um bom dançarino.)

They will not be tired. > They won’t be tired. (Eles não estarão cansados.)

Interrogativa

Simple Present (Presente simples)

Formas contraídas
is not = isn’t
are not = aren’t

Exemplos

Isn’t he a good dancer? (Ele não é um bom dançarino?)

Aren’t they tired? (Eles não estão cansados?)

OBS.: não esqueça que, apesar da existência de ain’t como forma contraída de am + not, ela é considerada errada por muitos gramáticos e, por esse motivo, o uso não é recomendado.

Simple Past (Passado simples)

Formas contraídas
was not = wasn’t
were not = weren’t

Exemplos

Wasn’t he a good dancer? (Ele não era um bom dançarino.)

Weren’t they tired? (Eles não estavam cansados?)

Simple Future (Futuro simples)

Formas contraídas
will not be = won’t be

Exemplos

Won’t he be a good dancer? (Ele não será um bom dançarino?)

Won’t they be tired? (Eles não estarão cansados?)

Veja também:

Verbos em inglês

Verbo to be como verbo auxiliar

O verbo to be também pode ser usado como verbo auxiliar. Isso acontece quando ele tem a função de ajudar outro verbo, o verbo principal.

Como verbo auxiliar, o verbo to be não muda o significado do verbo principal e, por isso, não tem tradução.

Veja quais são os principais usos:

Formação da voz passiva

A voz passiva é utilizada para relatar o que aconteceu com o objeto da ação.

A formação da voz passiva segue a seguinte estrutura:

to be + past participle do verbo principal

Exemplos:

My birthday cake was made by my mother. (Meu bolo de aniversário foi feito pela minha mãe.)

was = verbo to be no Simple Past (passado simples).
made = verbo to make no Past Participle (particípio passado).

The toys were broken by the kids. (Os brinquedos foram quebrados pelas crianças.)

were = verbo to be no Simple Past (passado simples).
broken = verbo to break no Past Participle (particípio passado).

The play is directed by my brother. (A peça é dirigida pelo meu irmão.)

is = verbo to be no Simple Present (presente simples).
directed = verbo to direct no Past Participle (particípio passado).

Veja também:

Passive Voice

Formação de locuções verbais

Uma locução verbal é formada quando dois ou mais verbos têm valor de um.

Exemplos:

He is studying Italian. (Ele está estudando italiano.)

is = verbo to be no Simple Present (presente simples).
studying = verbo to study no Gerund (gerúndio).

They were working at that company. (Eles estavam trabalhando naquela empresa.)

were = verbo to be no Simple Past (passado simples).
working = verbo to work no Gerund (gerúndio).

Em ambos os exemplos, os dois verbos (to be + gerúndio) passam a ter valor de Present Continuous (presente contínuo).

Veja também:

Verbos auxiliares em inglês

Exercícios de Vestibular

1. (UNIFOR/CE)

Coughing Kitties

Maryann Mott

Feline asthma [TO BE] a new disease. It was first described in scientific literature more than 90 years ago, says veterinarian Philip Padrid of the Family Pet Animal Hospital in Chicago.

Nicki Reed, a veterinarian at the University of Edinburgh’s Hospital for Small Animals, says that when a coughing cat is brought to the clinic, she must first establish if [ARTICLE] cause is [ARTICLE] infection, asthma, or something more sinister, like a lung mass.

To do this, Reed usually performs an x-ray, takes a lung fluid sample, and conducts a bronchcoscopy _ an examination that uses a flexible microscope inserted into the cat’s airway.

Most of the time, asthma is a mild disease, Reed says. But in some cases cat’s lungs collapse or their ribs fracture due to difficulty in breathing.

“I think if we can identify asthmatic cats quite early and get treatments on board to suppress their cough, then hopefully we can avoid them coming to such extremes,” she said.

(Adapted from http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/10/1025_051025_cat_asthma.html)

The correct form of the verb in “Feline asthma [TO BE] a new disease.” is

a) isn’t.
b) wasn’t.
c) is.
d) was.
e) were.

Ver Resposta

Alternativa a: isn’t.

Na frase, o substantivo que antecedo o verbo é o substantivo asthma (asma).

Asthma é uma doença e por isso corresponde ao pronome it (terceira pessoa do singular) usado para coisas, lugares, objetos e animais.

Das opções disponibilizadas, apenas a) isn’t, b) wasn’t e c) is são utilizadas com a terceira pessoa do singular.

Para preenchermos a lacuna, é preciso compreendermos todo o primeiro parágrafo. Observe:

Feline asthma [TO BE] a new disease. It was first described in scientific literature more than 90 years ago, says veterinarian Philip Padrid of the Family Pet Animal Hospital in Chicago.

(A asma felina [TO BE] uma nova doença. Ela foi descrita pela primeira vez na literatura científica há mais de 90 anos, diz o veterinário Philip Padrid, do Family Pet Animal Hospital (Hospital de Animais de Estimação da Família), em Chicago.)

Ao concluirmos essa leitura, podemos ver que a asma felina foi descrita pela primeira vez há mais de 90 anos, ou seja, ela não é uma doença nova.

Assim sendo, a flexão do verbo to be a preencher a frase deve ser usada na forma negativa. Com isso, a alternativa c) is fica descartada.

Como a afirmação dá-se no tempo presente, a resposta correta é isn’t.

Veja como fica a frase completa:

Feline asthma isn’t a new disease. It was first described in scientific literature more than 90 years ago, says veterinarian Philip Padrid of the Family Pet Animal Hospital in Chicago.

(A asma felina não é uma nova doença. Ela foi descrita pela primeira vez na literatura científica há mais de 90 anos, diz o veterinário Philip Padrid, do Family Pet Animal Hospital (Hospital de Animais de Estimação da Família), em Chicago.)

2. (UNIFOR/CE)

Robotic Engineers:

Engineers [TO BE] needed to build robots that do everything from assembling machinery to caring for aging parents.

Tech Teachers:

As technology use increases in all industries, more adult education teachers are needed to give workers the skills to survive. About half of all adults are currently enrolled in an adult-education class.

Tech Support:

Technology isn’t infallible, and skilled workers who can fix frustrating problems are rarely needed. Estimates show a 222 percentage boost in computer-support jobs by 2008.

(Newsweek, April 30, 2001)

The correct form of the verb to be in the first paragraph is

a) was being.
b) is.
c) will be.
d) was.
e) has been.

Ver Resposta

Alternativa c: will be.

Na frase a ser preenchida, o verbo to be vem imediatamente depois do substantivo masculino plural engineers (engenheiros), que corresponde ao pronome de terceira pessoa do plural: they (eles).

Das opções disponibilizadas, as letras a) was being, b) is, d) was e e) has been são flexões de terceira pessoa do singular.

A única alternativa que é uma flexão de terceira pessoa do plural é a letra c) will be.

Veja como fica a frase completa:

Engineers will be needed to build robots that do everything from assembling machinery to caring for aging parents.

(Serão necessários engenheiros para construir robôs que façam de tudo, desde montar máquinas a cuidar de pais idosos.)

Leia também:

Carla Muniz

Professora, lexicógrafa, tradutora, produtora de conteúdos e revisora. Licenciada em Letras (Português, Inglês e Literaturas) pelas Faculdades Integradas Simonsen, em 2002.

In English, verbs have a very important place in communication, they are the ones responsible for expressing actions. Words like jump, run, speak… all are common and clear examples of verbs that describe an action that a subject does. However, there is one verb that’s the most used in the English language: the verb to be.

For children, learning the verbs -and especially this one- might be a difficult task. Verbs are concepts that some kids might find hard to grasp, but through constant repetition using different activities and exercises, learning about it can be easy, and even fun!

It’s essential for the little ones to learn the uses of the “to be” verb, after all, it’s used frequently and for a lot of different purposes.

 

 

How to use the “to be” verb

The “to be” is a verb used to describe something or someone.

In English, it can be used to say different things according to the context. However, the most common use of the to be verb is to talk about names, ages, feeling, nationalities, and professions, especially when talking in the present tense.

The most tricky thing about this verb, however, is that It’s also one of the most irregular verbs in the English language. This means, that unlike regular verbs, which barely change when used when different subjects -or even in different tenses-, and when they do, they follow a pattern, the “to be” verb changes almost completely in most of its forms.

Forms of “to be”

Since the to be verb is highly irregular, it’s written in different ways according to the tense of the verb (whether if it’s present, past, future, or even in mixed tenses), and it also varies according to the subject. Let’s see the forms this verb can take when used next to the subjects.

Base form: Be

This is the most basic form of the verb, and it’s how we can find it in the dictionary. It’s mostly used when using imperatives, and also as the infinitive. Some examples are:

Be nice to your sister! (imperative)
I like to be at my house. (infinitive)

Present

This form of the verb is mainly used in the simple present, and its meaning can change depending on the use in the context. Also, when writing, the present form of the to be verb can be shortened.

Here is the to be for all the subjects in both long and short forms for affirmative sentences, and also for negative sentences with to be.

➕ Affirmative:

I am – I’m

you are – you’re

he/she/it is – he’s/she’s/it’s

we/you/they are – we’re/you’re/they’re

 

➖ Negative:

I am not – I’m not

you are not – You aren’t

he/she/it isn’t

we/you/they aren’t

 

Let’s see some examples of this for sentences with the “to be” verb.

For names:
She is Sheila

For ages:
He is 6 years old.

For feelings:
Lauren and Sandra are happy.

For nationalities:
We are from Thailand.

For professions:
You aren’t a painter, you are a singer.

Past: Was / Were

When talking about the past, the to be verb changes its form again. This is how it looks with the different subject pronouns.

 

I was – I wasn’t

you were – You weren’t

he/she/it was – he wasn’t/she wasn’t/it wasn’t

we/they/you were – we weren’t/they weren’t/you weren’t

 

 

Some examples of the past form of the to be are:

I was at the school yesterday

You were 10 years old last year.

Billy and Elliot were students, now they are doctors.

It was raining a while ago.

 

 

Past Participle: been

This is the form of the “to be” verb used with the perfect and passive tenses, and it is the same for all the subjects.

It’s also used as an adjective in English sometimes.

She has been busy all day.
Lisa and Billy have been running for an hour.
He has been a teacher for a year now.

 

 

 

 

Continuous: being

The continuous form of the to be verb is used to make up the continuous tenses. Just as the past participle, it’s the same for all the subjects.

Elliot is being helpful.

 

 

Passive form

The “to be” verb, both in its present and past forms, can be used to make passive sentences.

The house was built in the mountains.
The program is being recorded right now.

 

 

Questions in English with the “to be” verb

“To be” verb can be used to make questions in English in two different ways. The first one is to use it normally with Wh- questions, like in the following sentences:

What‘s her name?
How old is Baby Bot?
How are they feeling?
Where are you from?
Do you know what my profession is?
What are you doing?

 

The second option, and also the most important, is to use the “to be” verb to make “yes” or “no” questions in English. This type of questions are very simple, and they can be answered with a yes or no.

Are you reading?
Yes, I am.

Is Lisa ready for bed?
No, she isn’t.

 

 

Examples of the “to be” verb:

I am Cowy, and I‘m from Ireland.

Elliot and Cowy are best friends.

Where are Billy and Elliot?
They are at the theater.

Bobby is helping Lisa with his homework.

The river is very pretty.

The flowers aren’t red, they are orange.

Are the dogs running in the field?
Yes, they are.

 

 

Printable Worksheets about the Verb “To Be” in English ️

 

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