Pre-A1 Starter Pronouns, to be and articles
Verb to be
Lesson goal. After this lesson you can say who you are, how you are and where you are with am, is, are — and you will stop writing verbless sentences like He happy.
When to use it
- Introducing name, age, job: I am Nam. He is a doctor.
- Describing: She is tall. The book is new.
- Saying where: We are in the classroom.
Form
| Subject | to be | Example |
|---|---|---|
| I | am | I am twelve. |
| he · she · it | is | She is my sister. |
| you · we · they | are | They are at home. |
| singular noun (my bag, Nam) | is | My bag is heavy. |
| plural noun (my friends) | are | My friends are here. |
Step by step
- Find the subject.
- Replace it with a pronoun: he, she, it, they…
- Choose from the table: I → am; he, she, it → is; you, we, they → are.
- For the negative, put not straight after am / is / are.
Short forms and negatives
| Full form | Short form | Negative |
|---|---|---|
| I am | I'm | I'm not |
| he is · she is · it is | he's · she's · it's | isn't |
| you are · we are · they are | you're · we're · they're | aren't |
Examples
I am in class 6A.
You are my best friend.
My father is a teacher.
The weather is hot today.
We are not late.
They are my classmates.
Common mistakes
He happy. → He is happy.
Vietnamese needs no copula before an adjective, but English always needs to be. This is the number-one beginner mistake.
They is students. → They are students.
they is plural → use are.
I is a student. → I am a student.
Only I takes am. There is no other exception.
Memory tip
There are only three forms and one belongs to I alone. So remember: one → is; more than one → are; I → am.
Summary
- I → am · he, she, it → is · you, we, they → are.
- An English sentence always needs a verb, even when Vietnamese does not.
- Negative: add not right after to be — isn't, aren't, I'm not.
Practise this lesson
Do exercises with an explanation for every question, take mini tests and track your progress on GrammUp.