Questions tagged [be]
For questions relating to the verb to be.
154
questions
4
votes
0answers
85 views
be headed: adjectival -ed vs past participle
(Intransitive) go in particular direction: He headed toward the
station.
(Transitive) cause something to go somewhere: The pilot
headed the plane on a northeasterly course.
-ed2 (suffix): ...
0
votes
0answers
11 views
Appropriate form of “be” for a passive sentence [duplicate]
Students are taught in English.
This is a correct passive sentence. But how about these ones:
It's better that students are taught in English.
It's better that students be taught in English.
...
0
votes
1answer
28 views
Use of is/are in sentences where you talk about two things - one singular and other plural
This recently came up when chatting with a colleague who moved companies. I asked "How is your manager and teammates?"
Later I thought if I should've used "How are your manager and teammates?"
Which ...
2
votes
3answers
96 views
How “much” emissions or how “many” emissions?
The following is what I found in the website of US Energy Information Administration.
Is the word "emissions" usually used with "much" as in the quotation? If so, why is the verb "are" used instead ...
0
votes
1answer
64 views
Why isn't there “is” in “They did it, thinking it more glamorous than…”?
Could you please help me with the grammar of this sentence? It's from an essay in a book on IELTS by Cambridge University Press.
People turn to buying the new brand from overseas nations, perhaps ...
0
votes
2answers
71 views
How to parse “this is so they can…”
Ligaments connect bones to each other. This is so they can help stabilize the joints and provide structure to the skeletal frame.
source
Parsing one:
"So they can help..." is predicative.
Parsing ...
1
vote
0answers
67 views
'People are to find these ideas throughout his later work'
According to Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, page 206,
With a passive the interpretation can be strong deontic, “must” ([ii]
He is to be left alone), or weak dynamic, “can” ([iii] ...
0
votes
3answers
38 views
Term for the different uses of “are”: one which applies an adjective independently, and one which denotes a relationship
There are definitely at least two ways in which the word "are" is used. Consider the following:
Book A and Book B are red.
vs
Book A and Book B are similar.
In the first use, it is applying ...
0
votes
2answers
222 views
how to use be and is/are hereby?
Please help me to explain the grammar of this sentence belows:
any Director or any person (s) authorized by the Directors be and is/are hereby authorized, either solely or jointly, to sign and ...
0
votes
0answers
31 views
Omitting Relative Pronoun and verb “be” [duplicate]
Could someone please explain, why the pronoun and the verb "be" are omitted in the following sentence?
"it allows communication even for people far away from each other"
Shouldn't this sentence be "...
0
votes
1answer
31 views
How do I say that one thing is another using active voice?
I've tried typing this question or variations of this question into Google to no avail, so I apologize if it has already been answered elsewhere. I'm trying to edit a paper for a class in which the ...
0
votes
1answer
62 views
Is this sentence correct or comprehensible? “They actually had more soldiers than was shown on TV”
I would like to know if the following sentence is correct:
They actually had more soldiers than was shown on TV.
Here I use "was" because I think the full sentence should be "They actually had more ...
-1
votes
1answer
17 views
'What I have presented is the first steps' or 'What I have presented are the first steps'
Which is correct:
'What I have presented is the first steps'
or
'What I have presented are the first steps'?
The issues is what counts as the subject of the verb: the relative 'What' (= is), or ...
0
votes
0answers
12 views
Why “were” needs to be added in this sentence? If he were smarter he would do this [duplicate]
If he were smarter he would do this
When we use he, she, it in the past tense we need to use was and I, we, you and they we need to use were. right?
But why we are using were in the above sentence?
0
votes
1answer
35 views
Questions about “get” and “be”
Is it good English to write the following passive sentences, considering that it should describe what a system is doing in general (but maybe not necessarily at the moment)? I am interested in the ...
1
vote
1answer
2k views
Who are or who is?
I have a sentence:
They are planning to have holidays soon.
What will be the question?
Who IS planning to have their holidays soon?
or
Who ARE planning to have their holidays soon?
2
votes
3answers
208 views
Third person singular or plural form of “to be” with plural noun in question
A disagreement with a colleague: I say "What measures are your company currently implementing?"; she says "what measures is your company currently implementing?". It seems obvious to me I am right! ...
1
vote
1answer
42 views
“To be” as a state
In Catalan and in Spanish we have two verbs: "ser" and "estar" . Both translate into English as "to be". One of the uses of "estar" is to say that something is in a certain state or place. So, for ...
0
votes
3answers
205 views
The form of the verb to be in the questions with “and” and “or”
Should I use was or were in sentences like this:
Who was/were the bride and groom?
In my opinion, both are possible, but I don't know why. What to use if there is or instead of and?
3
votes
2answers
2k views
Is “you are yourself” grammatically correct?
I know what "be yourself" means. I usually see people using it in some sentences like "You have to be yourself", "You must be yourself" etc., but I barely see anyone saying "You are yourself".
Is ...
1
vote
1answer
465 views
What tense is this? “to be + to verb”
For example, "If we are to achieve our objectives..." or "What is to be done?"
What tense is this? In my understanding, we're talking about the future, but it's a weird sort of "tense" I haven't ...
1
vote
2answers
33 views
Proper tense for 'to be' in non-if conditional clauses [closed]
You will receive your money back under the condition that the product (is / be / will be / ?) returned in the original packaging.
This method removes the constraint that the batteries (are / be / ...
0
votes
1answer
108 views
“would” as an auxiliary for present tense conditionals
Both of these sentences feel wrong to me:
if I am alone, I will go today
if I would be alone, I will go today
By looking up some rules, it seems that using would in the protasis is a common mistake,...
0
votes
1answer
1k views
“Are to” and “Have to”
There's a question in an exam paper to which there's only one answer:
Students ______ to make tough decisions after the final exams are out.
Between 'have' and 'are', which most suitably fills ...
3
votes
1answer
84 views
Be we all here?
The passage below is taken from Life's Little Ironies by Thomas Hardy. My question concerns "Now be we all here?". I understand that it means "Now are we all here?". The writer might have left the ...
1
vote
1answer
3k views
Is “I be”, grammatically correct?
Bishop Robert a prominent Hebraist and theologian, with fixed and eccentric opinions about language, wrote "A short introduction to English grammar(1762).
Many schoolroom grammars in use to this day ...
2
votes
1answer
110 views
How to identify subjects and verbs in a sentence? [closed]
"Just as expert carpenters must be thoroughly acquainted with the tools of their craft and artists must have expert knowledge of colors, so good writers must have a thorough understanding of the basic ...
-2
votes
1answer
45 views
Using Be or Being for initial word [closed]
I don't know which word is right for this sentence:
Be at the airport by 4 o'clock to meet him when his flight lands.
or
Being at the airport by 4 o'clock to meet him when his flight lands.
...
1
vote
1answer
21k views
how to answer would you be able to come in for an interview on {date} at {time}? [closed]
how to answer would you be able to come in for an interview on ***date*** at
***time***?
is it okay to use :
I will be available at aforementioned date and time.
or
yes i would.
0
votes
1answer
53 views
to be in present progressive
Sometimes in songs I see sentences in present progressive without verb to be, like - she getting down. Is it right?
1
vote
0answers
61 views
Can I end a sentence with “is”? [duplicate]
I am writing a research paper and intend to write this sentence :
Even a cursory reading of the news reveals how grossly inaccurate that assumption is.
Is that an accurate and appropriate ...
1
vote
1answer
59 views
What is the verb 'to be' for the phrase “The mechanics of the mind”?
Should one use "the mechanics of the mind are" or "the mechanics of the mind is?
The term "mechanics", used in this sense, seems to be an uncountable noun.
0
votes
2answers
3k views
“I have been thinking” vs “I am thinking” [closed]
What is the difference between these two
I have been thinking about you.
I am thinking about you.
0
votes
1answer
56 views
Repetition of the verb “to be” after let [duplicate]
If one has multiple sentences all of the form "Let x be y" written successively. Is it grammatically correct to write "and god said "let apples be red, oranges be orange, etc""?. Is it possible to not ...
5
votes
1answer
3k views
Pronunciation of ‘been’
As a non-native speaker, I often hear the word ‘been’ pronounced as /bɪn/ instead /biːn/ as I expect from the double ‘ee’.
The phonetic transcritpion in the MacMillan dictionary is /biːn/ for the ...
-1
votes
1answer
107 views
URGENT: Can you please help decide the correct verb to be?
Please leave the construction the same way - unless there is something seriously wrong with it - and please help decide the verb:
There IS much information to be reviewed and processed, and more ...
0
votes
1answer
371 views
Can “Made” be used as adjective also? [closed]
Sentence:
1.Sweets are made from milk.
2.This building is made of stone and brick.
In above "made" is adjective or "verb"?
Since "made" is followed by "be verb form" in above sentences.
2
votes
0answers
67 views
Second “To Be” with Irrealis/Past Subjunctive
Assuming that I'm a person who uses irrealis subjunctive, and every part of the example situation is hypothetical, which of the following is more correct?
Option 1: If I were ever in a store where I ...
19
votes
2answers
1k views
Construction of “woe is me”
The expression “woe is me” (meaning) looks strange. On the surface, it seems to mean “an unhappy event is me”. Sure, it's an old idiom, undoubtedly reflecting vocabulary or grammar that is no longer ...
asked Oct 29 '17 at 19:02
Gilles 'SO- stop being evil'
4,9516 gold badges29 silver badges58 bronze badges
2
votes
2answers
2k views
use of “be -ed verb” structure [duplicate]
Could someone explain the grammar to me - use of "be changed" in The report recommends that radar screens be changed. Why it is used like this? What does this usage should express? Where (under what ...
1
vote
1answer
373 views
The usage of “To be”
In this sentence "After 2 years of contribution, the staff held an internal meeting with the director to request that his salary be increased to 2000$ monthly"
I wonder why we use "be" but not "to be"...
1
vote
1answer
239 views
Is “is” in this sentence necessary?
I'm a Chinese student, and in my recent writing exercise, I wrote a sentence as follows:
Maybe he is not capable of conquering the sea now, for his flesh too
weak, his strength so poor and his ...
1
vote
2answers
4k views
Verb do + verb to be + ing form
What are the correct tenses to use in the following sentence between gerund and infinitive?
What I do at this point is ____ home and _____ dinner.
Should I write:
What I do at this point is ...
3
votes
6answers
307 views
“Electricity has a velocity (that is) as high as light’s (is)”
Electricity has a velocity (that is) as high as light’s.
Electricity has a velocity (that is) as high as light’s is.
These two sentences both seem to be correct to me, but I am in doubt about ...
3
votes
1answer
3k views
When to use “not to” or “to not” [duplicate]
Which of these two sets of examples are more correct?
Finally, I decided to not go to the party.
Finally, I decided not to go to the party.
Tell your sister not to worry about the exam.
...
0
votes
2answers
1k views
Can passive voice exist without “to be”?
A torpedo sunk the ship.
The ship was sunk.
The ship sunk.
The first is active, the second is passive.
http://www.plainlanguage.gov/howto/quickreference/dash/dashactive.cfm contains the frequently-...
0
votes
2answers
3k views
“Who's been waiting” vs “Who've been waiting”
Which form of this phrase is correct?
for everyone who's been waiting
or
for everyone who've been waiting
I've heard "who's" used more often in this context but "who have" sounds more correct ...
1
vote
1answer
8k views
Is it considered correct usage to end sentences with “is” or "are?
Sometimes, we need to end sentences with "is" or "are" to avoid repetition, but is it correct in formal language?
For example:
Only error-free documents are taken seriously. I will make sure yours ...
-1
votes
1answer
341 views
“to resolve that sth be done” or “to resolve that sth shall be done”?
The Board of Directors of the company has resolved that the capital be raised from 1,000,000 € to 9,000,000 €.
The Board of Directors of the company has resolved that the capital shall be raised from ...
1
vote
1answer
107 views
“Should have been us” or “Should have been we”?
I understand that "have been" is a form of the linking verb "to be", so it can only take a predicate nominative. But saying "It should've been us" sounds better.
