Present Simple of To Be: am, is, are

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PART 01

Discover

Meet today's English in a real situation — no rules yet. Read it once and try to guess the pattern in the words in bold. Underlined words open a short definition.

Hello. My name is Carlos. I am from Mexico, and I am Mexican. I am twenty-two years old. I am a university student. I am not married; I am single.

My friends are Sarah and John. They are from London. They are British. Sarah is a doctor, and John is a manager. They are twenty-five years old.

We are in a café right now. It is a big café. The coffee is very good, but it is expensive. We are very happy today.

infoNOTE

Notice how every sentence has a clear subject before the verb. Carlos uses am for himself (I am), is for one person or thing (She is, It is), and are for groups (They are, We are).

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PART 02

Learn

Now the rules behind what you just saw — explained simply, with examples. Underlined words open a short definition — hover on desktop, tap on a phone.

The verb to be means both ser and estar in Spanish. In English, there is no difference — you use the same verb for both. This is the first verb you need to master, and you will use it in almost every sentence.

Why this verb matters

You need to be to say:

Who you are: I am Carlos.
Where you are from: She is from Mexico.
How old you are: He is 25 years old.
How you feel: We are tired.
What your job is: They are doctors.
Where something is: The book is on the table.

infoNOTE

In Spanish, “ser” and “estar” are two different verbs. In English, to be covers both. “I am happy” can mean soy feliz (permanent) or estoy feliz (right now). The context makes it clear.

Subject Pronouns

Before using the verb, you need to know the subject pronouns. In English, every sentence must have a subject — you cannot drop it like in Spanish.

Pronoun	Meaning	Example
I	Yo	I am a student.
You	Tú / Usted	You are from Spain.
He	Él	He is tall.
She	Ella	She is a doctor.
It	Eso / Ello (cosas, animales)	It is a big city.
We	Nosotros	We are friends.
You	Ustedes	You are in my class.
They	Ellos / Ellas	They are French.

warningWARNING

In Spanish, you can say “Es importante” without a subject. In English, you must always include the subject: “It is important.” Never say ~~“Is important.”~~

The Three Forms: am, is, are

The verb to be is irregular. It does not follow the normal rules. It has three different forms in the present:

Positive (Affirmative)

Subject	Full form	Contraction	Example
I	am	I’m	I am a student. / I’m a student.
You	are	You’re	You are from Spain. / You’re from Spain.
He	is	He’s	He is 25 years old. / He’s 25 years old.
She	is	She’s	She is a doctor. / She’s a doctor.
It	is	It’s	It is a beautiful house. / It’s a beautiful house.
We	are	We’re	We are tired. / We’re tired.
They	are	They’re	They are French. / They’re French.

lightbulbTIP

In real life, English speakers almost always use contractions when talking: I’m, you’re, he’s, she’s, it’s, we’re, they’re. The full forms (I am, you are…) sound very formal or emphatic.

Negative

To make a negative sentence, add not after the verb. There are two ways to contract:

Subject	Full form	Contraction 1	Contraction 2
I	am not	I’m not	—
You	are not	You’re not	You aren’t
He	is not	He’s not	He isn’t
She	is not	She’s not	She isn’t
It	is not	It’s not	It isn’t
We	are not	We’re not	We aren’t
They	are not	They’re not	They aren’t

format_quoteEXAMPLE

“I am not married. I am single.” “She isn’t from England. She is from Canada.” “They aren’t sad. They are happy.”

priority_highIMPORTANT

There is no contraction “amn’t” in standard English. For “I”, always say “I’m not”.

Questions (Yes/No)

To make a question with to be, you swap the verb and the subject. You do not need do or does.

Structure: Verb + Subject + complement?

Statement	Question
You are a student.	Are you a student?
She is from Egypt.	Is she from Egypt?
They are tired.	Are they tired?

Short answers:

Are you French? → Yes, I am. / No, I’m not.
Is she a teacher? → Yes, she is. / No, she isn’t.
Are they from London? → Yes, they are. / No, they aren’t.

warningWARNING

In short positive answers, you cannot use a contraction. Say “Yes, I am”, not ~~“Yes, I’m.”~~ But in negative answers, contractions are fine: “No, I’m not.” ✓

Information Questions (Wh-)

When you need more than yes or no, use a question word before the verb:

What is your name? → My name is Laura.
Where are you from? → I am from Colombia.
How old are you? → I am 30 years old.
Who is she? → She is my sister.
How are you? → I am fine, thanks.

Key Differences from Spanish

Age: use “to be”, not “to have”

In Spanish you say “Tengo 20 años” (I have 20 years). In English, age is something you are, not something you have.

~~I have 20 years.~~ → I am 20 years old.
~~How many years do you have?~~ → How old are you?

warningWARNING

This is probably the most common mistake for Spanish speakers. Always remember: in English, you are your age. “I am twenty-two years old.”

“I agree” — not “I am agree”

In Spanish, “Estoy de acuerdo” uses the verb estar. But in English, agree is already a verb by itself. You do not need to be.

~~I am agree.~~ → I agree.
~~She is agree.~~ → She agrees.

Possessive Adjectives

When we want to show that something belongs to someone, we use a possessive adjective before the noun.

Subject	Possessive	Example
I	my	This is my book.
You	your	Is this your phone?
He	his	His name is John.
She	her	Her sister is tall.
It	its	The dog is eating its food.
We	our	Our house is big.
They	their	Their car is red.

lightbulbTIP

Don’t confuse its (possession: The cat has its toy) with it’s (contraction of “it is”: It’s cold today). And don’t confuse their (possession) with they’re (they are) or there (a place).

Common Expressions with To Be

These are some of the most useful phrases you will use every day:

What is your name? — ¿Cómo te llamas?
Where are you from? — ¿De dónde eres?
How old are you? — ¿Cuántos años tienes?
Nice to meet you. — Encantado/a de conocerte.
How are you? — ¿Cómo estás?
I am fine, thanks. — Estoy bien, gracias.

Pronunciation Tips

The pronoun it uses a short, relaxed vowel sound /ɪ/. Do not pronounce it like the long /iː/ in “eat.” Practice: it /ɪt/ vs. eat /iːt/.
The H in he, his, her must be a soft, breathy sound /h/. Do not pronounce it like the strong Spanish “J” sound.
Contractions like they’re are pronounced as one syllable, rhyming with there and their. All three sound the same!
When asking yes/no questions (“Are you happy?”), raise your voice at the end of the sentence ↗.

priority_highIMPORTANT

The verb to be is the foundation of everything in English. You do not need do or does to make questions or negatives — the verb moves on its own. Master this, and you are ready for the next step.

boltQUICK REVIEW

I am · he / she / it is · you / we / they are
Negative: verb + not (isn’t, aren’t, I’m not — never ~~amn’t~~)
Question = swap: You are… → Are you…? (no do/does needed)
Age uses to be: I am 25 years old, never ~~I have 25 years~~
Possessives: my · your · his · her · its · our · their

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PART 03

Practice

Try it yourself. You'll see right away whether you got it right, plus a short explanation of why.

0 / 8 correct

1. Choose the correct sentence to express age in English:

2. My brother _____ a doctor.

3. We _____ from Mexico.

4. Which sentence is correct?

5. _____ she from France?

6. 'They are not students.' Choose the correct contraction:

7. Are you Spanish? — Yes, _____.

8. Choose the correct sentence:

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PART 04

Use It

Now make the language yours in a real task. Use the prompt below — the editor keeps a simple word count, and nothing is saved or graded.

PROMPT

Write a short paragraph introducing yourself and a friend. Include your names, ages, nationalities, jobs, and how you feel today. Use am, is, and are.

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