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Copular verb to be: present tense

'To be' is perhaps the most important verb in the English language. It is known as a 'copular verb'. 'Be' is irregular, so its present tense conjugation must be memorized. Here is the present tense conjugation, with their IPA equivalents. * I am. /æːm/ * You are. /ɑr/ * He is. /ɪz/ * She is. /ɪz/ *…

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Overview

'To be' is perhaps the most important verb in the English language. It is known as a 'copular verb'. 'Be' is irregular, so its present tense conjugation must be memorized.

The Present Tense

Here is the present tense conjugation, with their IPA equivalents. * I am. /æːm/ * You are. /ɑr/ * He is. /ɪz/ * She is. /ɪz/ * It is. /ɪz/ * We are. /ɑr/ * They are. /ɑr/ The forms of to be contract to the pronoun, shown here: * I'm * You're * He's * She's * It's * We're * They're These contracted forms are used regularly in speech by native speakers. Here are some examples. * I am 36 years old. * They are hungry.

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