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“Been”
Been is the past participle of be.
It is usually used with have, has, or had.
Present perfect
- I have been busy.
- She has been sick.
- They have been happy.
Past perfect
- I had been tired.
- She had been busy.
- They had been at home.
Examples:
I have been here for two hours.
She has been a teacher for ten years.
They had been friends for a long time.
- “To Be” in Continuous Tenses
The verb be is used as an auxiliary verb in continuous tenses.
Present continuous
am/is/are + verb-ing
Examples:
- I am studying.
- She is working.
- He is sleeping.
- We are eating.
- They are playing.
Here, am/is/are helps create the continuous tense.
Past continuous
was/were + verb-ing
Examples:
- I was studying.
- She was working.
- They were playing.
- We were watching TV.
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“To Be” in Passive Voice
The verb to be is also very important in passive sentences.
Basic structure
be + past participle
Examples:
- The door is opened.
- The house was built in 1990.
- English is spoken here.
- The car was repaired yesterday.
- The documents were sent yesterday.
Different tenses use different forms of be.
| Tense | Example |
| Present | The car is repaired. |
| Past | The car was repaired. |
| Future | The car will be repaired. |
| Present perfect | The car has been repaired. |
| Continuous | The car is being repaired. |
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“There Is” and “There Are”
We use there is and there are to say that something exists.
Singular
There is + singular noun
- There is a book on the table.
- There is a problem.
- There is a car outside.
Plural
There are + plural noun
- There are two books on the table.
- There are many students here.
- There are three cars outside.
Negative
- There isn’t a problem.
- There aren’t any students here.
Questions
- Is there a problem?
- Are there any restaurants nearby?
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“To Be” + Noun
Be + noun identifies a person or thing.
Examples:
- I am a teacher.
- She is a student.
- He is my brother.
- This is my car.
- They are my friends.
- “To Be” + Adjective
Be + adjective describes someone or something.
Examples:
- I am happy.
- She is beautiful.
- He is strong.
- It is expensive.
- They are friendly.
Don’t use “do” with adjectives after “be”
Correct:
She is happy.
Incorrect:
❌ She does happy.
Correct:
Are you tired?
Incorrect:
❌ Do you tired?
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“To Be” + Prepositional Phrase
This tells us location, time, or relationship.
Examples:
- The book is on the table.
- She is in the kitchen.
- They are at school.
- I am from Indonesia.
- The keys are under the chair.
- “To Be” + Age, Time, Weather
Age
I am 30 years old.
Time
It is 10 o’clock.
Weather
It is hot today.
It is raining.
It was cold yesterday.
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Special Use: “Be” After “Do”
In some structures, do can be used with be, especially for emphasis or commands/questions.
Examples:
- Do be careful.
- Don’t be late.
- Don’t be afraid.
- Do be quiet.
But normally, we do not use do/does/did to form ordinary questions with be.
Correct:
Is he happy?
Incorrect:
❌ Does he be happy?
Correct:
Were they tired?
Incorrect:
❌ Did they be tired?
- “To Be” vs Ordinary Verbs
This is one of the most important differences for English learners.
With ordinary verbs, questions often use do/does/did:
You like coffee.
Do you like coffee?
But with to be, we move the verb:
You are happy.
Are you happy?
Compare:
| Ordinary verb | Verb “to be” |
| You like coffee. | You are happy. |
| Do you like coffee? | Are you happy? |
| You don’t like coffee. | You aren’t happy. |
| She likes coffee. | She is happy. |
| Does she like coffee? | Is she happy? |
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Common Mistakes
Mistake 1
❌ I is happy.
✅ I am happy.
Mistake 2
❌ He are tired.
✅ He is tired.
Mistake 3
❌ They is students.
✅ They are students.
Mistake 4
❌ I am agree.
✅ I agree.
Agree is already a verb, so we don’t normally use am before it.
Mistake 5
❌ She is work.
✅ She is working.
OR
✅ She works.
Mistake 6
❌ I have 20 years old.
✅ I am 20 years old.
Mistake 7
❌ Do you are happy?
✅ Are you happy?
Mistake 8
❌ He doesn’t be happy.
✅ He isn’t happy.
Mistake 9
❌ They will are here.
✅ They will be here.
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Complete Present-Tense Table
| Subject | Positive | Negative | Question |
| I | I am happy. | I am not happy. | Am I happy? |
| You | You are happy. | You aren’t happy. | Are you happy? |
| He | He is happy. | He isn’t happy. | Is he happy? |
| She | She is happy. | She isn’t happy. | Is she happy? |
| It | It is good. | It isn’t good. | Is it good? |
| We | We are happy. | We aren’t happy. | Are we happy? |
| They | They are happy. | They aren’t happy. | Are they happy? |
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Complete Past-Tense Table
| Subject | Positive | Negative | Question |
| I | I was tired. | I wasn’t tired. | Was I tired? |
| You | You were tired. | You weren’t tired. | Were you tired? |
| He | He was tired. | He wasn’t tired. | Was he tired? |
| She | She was tired. | She wasn’t tired. | Was she tired? |
| It | It was cold. | It wasn’t cold. | Was it cold? |
| We | We were tired. | We weren’t tired. | Were we tired? |
| They | They were tired. | They weren’t tired. | Were they tired? |
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Future “To Be”
For the future, use:
will + be
Examples:
- I will be there tomorrow.
- She will be happy.
- He will be a great teacher.
- We will be ready.
- They will be here soon.
Negative
will not → won’t
- I won’t be late.
- She won’t be angry.
- They won’t be here tomorrow.
Questions
- Will you be there?
- Will she be okay?
- Will they be ready?
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“Going to Be”
For a planned or expected future:
am/is/are + going to be
Examples:
- I am going to be busy tomorrow.
- She is going to be a doctor.
- They are going to be late.
- It is going to be difficult.
Questions:
- Are you going to be busy?
- Is she going to be a doctor?
- Are they going to be late?
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“Used to Be”
Used to be describes a past situation that is no longer true.
Examples:
- I used to be shy.
- He used to be a teacher.
- She used to be my neighbor.
- This used to be a restaurant.
- They used to be friends.
Example:
I used to be shy, but now I am very confident.
- “Have Been” and “Have Gone”
These are important expressions.
Have been
Often means someone has visited/experienced a place or situation and returned, or has been in a state.
I have been to Bali.
She has been sick for three days.
Have gone
Usually means someone went somewhere and is still away.
John has gone to the store.
He isn’t here now.
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A Simple Formula to Remember
Present
I → am
He/She/It → is
You/We/They → are
Remember:
I am
He is
She is
It is
You are
We are
They are
Past
I/He/She/It → was
You/We/They → were
Remember:
I was
He was
She was
It was
You were
We were
They were
- 50 Sample Sentences
- I am a student.
- I am happy.
- I am from Indonesia.
- I am at home.
- I am not tired.
- You are my friend.
- You are very kind.
- You are not late.
- He is a doctor.
- He is tall.
- He is not here.
- She is my sister.
- She is beautiful.
- She isn’t angry.
- It is cold.
- It is expensive.
- It isn’t difficult.
- We are students.
- We are ready.
- We aren’t busy.
- They are teachers.
- They are happy.
- They aren’t at home.
- I was tired yesterday.
- He was sick last week.
- She was at school.
- It was cold yesterday.
- We were busy yesterday.
- They were happy.
- You were right.
- I wasn’t angry.
- He wasn’t at work.
- They weren’t ready.
- Are you okay?
- Is she your mother?
- Is he a teacher?
- Are they students?
- Were you at home?
- Was she tired?
- Were they late?
- I will be there tomorrow.
- She will be happy.
- They will be ready soon.
- I want to be a teacher.
- He wants to be successful.
- You should be careful.
- She might be busy.
- I have been very busy.
- He has been sick.
- The house is being repaired.
The Most Important Rule
If you remember only one thing, remember this:
Present
I → AM
He / She / It → IS
You / We / They → ARE
Past
I / He / She / It → WAS
You / We / They → WERE
And:
Modal + BE
can be, will be, should be, must be
TO + BE
to be
HAVE/HAS/HAD + BEEN
have been, has been, had been
BE + -ING
am working, is working, are working
BE + past participle
is made, was written, were built
This gives you the foundation for most uses of “to be” in English.