The verb be: am, is and are — Foreign languages, 7–10 years
English uses different forms of be to connect someone or something with an identity, place or state.
A linking verb
In English, be links a person or thing to information about it. We say I am tired, She is my friend and They are at home. The form changes to match who we are talking about: am with I, is with one, and are with you or more than one.
Why does English need be?
English sentences usually need a verb, even when we are not describing an action. The verb be fills that joining job: it connects someone with a name, feeling, place or description. Without it, I happy sounds unfinished; I am happy makes a complete thought.
Choosing am, is or are
Build the sentence about Tom and his friends. First choose the subject: Tom and his friends means they, because there is more than one person. Next choose are. Add the rest: They are ready. The same steps make She is ready for one girl.
One person does not always mean is
Many learners say I is because I means one person. That guess is reasonable: he, she and it do use is. But English has a special pair: I goes with am, while you goes with are, even when you mean only one person. Learn these two pairs as fixed partners.
Be is everywhere
You meet be on profiles, signs, weather reports and messages. A profile might say I am ten, a sign can say The door is open, and a forecast can say It is cold. These short sentences give useful information without describing a movement.
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