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English Auxiliary & Modal Verbs

Concept
An auxiliary verb is a verb that adds functional or grammatical meaning to the clause in which it appears, such as to
express tense, aspect, modality, voice, emphasis, etc. Auxiliary verbs usually accompany a main verb, which provides the
main semantic content of the clause.
A modal verb is a type of auxiliary used mostly to express properties such as possibility, obligation, etc.). A modal verb
does not take the ending -(e)s in the third-person singular.
In English we can distinguish two types of auxiliary verbs:

Primary auxiliary verbs these are the auxiliary verbs par excellence, that is, the ones which behave properly as
primary verbs in terms of negative and interrogative forms. Ex.: can, do, must &c.

Common verbs used as auxiliaries these are common verbs that can have another verb as a complement. Examples:
want, need, like &c. These verbs rely on primary auxiliaries for their interrogative and negative forms.

Auxiliary verbs are important in English because they constitute the heart of a sentence. Basically, each and every
sentence in proper English is built with an auxiliary verb. Even in the affirmative form of te simple tenses, when usually there
is no auxiliary, it is understood, and can reappear for emphasis. So, if you were to choose one feature of English to learn in
deep, auxiliary verbs should be your choice.

Structure
An auxiliary verb is always used before the main verb. In an affirmative sentece the formula is:

[AUXILIARY VERB] + [MAIN VERB]

Some examples:
[SUBJECT]
1. I

[AUX.] [MAIN VERB]

do

want

2. You

were

sleeping.

3. She

has

seen

4. We

should

go

must

decide

5. They

[&c.]
that prize!

this movie.
now.
together.

Most adverbs will appear right after the auxiliary verbs. Ex.:
[SUBJECT]
1. I

[AUX.] [ADVERB] [MAIN VERB] [&c.]

do

really

want

2. You

were

always

sleeping.

3. She

has

already

seen

4. We

should

probably

go

must

definitely

decide

5. They

that prize!

this movie.
now.
together.

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This includes the negative adverb not, used to make the negative form of the verbs:
[SUBJECT]

[AUX.] [ADVERB] [MAIN VERB] [&c.]

1. I

that prize!

do

not

want

2. You

were

not

sleeping.

3. She

has

not

seen

4. We

should

not

go

must

not

decide

5. They

this movie.
now.
together.

For the interrogative form, the auxiliary is placed in the beginning of the sentence. Ex.:
[AUX.] [SUBJECT]

[MAIN VERB] [&c.]

1.

Do

want

2.

Were

you

sleeping?

3.

Has

she

seen

we

go

they

decide

4. Should
5.

Must

that prize?

this movie?
now?
together?

They can be preceded only by interrogative words such as what, where, who, when, how, why &c. Ex.:
[AUX.] [SUBJECT]
1. Why

[MAIN VERB] [&c.]

do

want

2. Where

were

you

sleeping?

3. When

has

she

seen

4. How

should

we

go

5. What

must

they

decide

that prize?

this movie?
now?
together?

Primary Suxiliary Verbs

We will analyse each of the primary auxiliary verbs, one by one.

BE (BE, AM, IS, ARE, WAS, WERE, BEING, BEEN)

The verb be is unique in the English language. Although it is an auxiliary verb, it has some characteristics of a lexical
verb. For example, it has an infinitive form with to (to be); it has personal inflection in the present tense (am, is, are). It has
both a participle (been) and an -ing form (being). Also, it is the only auxiliary verb which can still be used without a main verb
when it functions as a linking verb, with a nominal predicate.

BE is the only verb in English which has a special form for the first person in the present, as well as two different forms for
the past tense, depending on the subject.

Present Past

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I

am

he / she / it

is

we / you / they

are

was
were

The first function of BE that we will study is its use as a linking verb. As it has already been said, this is the only case in
which an auxiliary does not accompany a main verb. Instead, it is followed by a nominal predicate, which can be formed by a
noun phrase, an adjectival phrase or an adverbial phrase. Ex.:

[SUBJECT]

[AUX.] [MAIN VERB]

[PREDICATE]

1. I

am

tired.

2. You

are

sick.

3. She

is

a student.

4. We

were

late.

5. He

was

there.

Adverbs (including the negative adverb not) are placed right after the auxiliary, according to the general rule:

[SUBJECT]

[AUX.] [ADVERB] [MAIN VERB] [PREDICATE]

1. I

am

not

tired.

2. You

are

always

sick.

3. She

is

not

a student.

4. We

were

never

late.

5. He

was

already

there.

The next important function of BE is to build the Present Continuous and the Past Continuous Tenses. They both indicate
a ongoing action, either in the present or in the past. The Past Continuous usually indicates an action that is referred to as
happening in the background, simultaneously to the main action, which is then placed in the Simple Past Tense.

In the Continuous Tenses, the main verb must be in its present participle (-ing) form. Ex.:

[SUBJECT]

[AUX.] [MAIN VERB]

[PREDICATE]

1. I

am

studying

English.

2. You

are

blocking

my way.

3. She

is

talking

4. We

were

watching

a movie.

5. He

was

paying

attention.

to us.

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The last function of BE is to form the Passive Voice. In that case, it is conjugated regularly, as a normal verb, in the
appropriate tense, followed by the past participle of the main verb. Ex.:

[SUBJECT]

[AUX.]

[MAIN VERB] [PREDICATE]

1. I

am

helped

by many people.

2. You

are

loved

by everybody.

3. She

was

called

by the boss.

4. We

were

fooled

by those boys.

5. He

was being

held

will be

rewarded

some day.

7. She

has been

told

about it.

8. They

should have been

warned

6. I

captive.

about the dog.

Observe that in this case the auxiliary verb itself is conjugated independently of the main verb.

HAVE (HAVE, HAS, HAD)

The auxiliary HAVE, in all its variations (HAVE, HAS, HAD) is used to form the so-called Perfect tenses, viz.: Past Perfect,
Present Perfect, Present Perfect Continuous, Future Perfect. The word perfect in these titles means an action that is regarded
as completed. I.e., the use of HAVE is related more to the aspect of the action than to its actual time. When the auxiliary
HAVE is used, the verb must be put in its Past Participle form. Actions expressed with HAVE are usually secondary, somewhat
related either to another action or to the current situation. Ex.:

[SUBJECT]

[AUX.]

[MAIN VERB] [PREDICATE]

[Rationale for the use of a Perfect

tense]

1. I

have

seen

2. You

have

finished

3. She

has

lived

4. We

had

warned

5. He

had

seen

6. I

will have

7. She
8. They

that movie.

(I want to see another movie.)

your homework.

(Then you can watch TV now.)

there since 1999. (She still lives there.)

you.

(You were aware of what was going to happen).

that movie.

(That's why he didn't want to see it with us.)

finished

my job.

(When the deadline expires.)

has been

calling

you.

(I think you should call her back.)

have

cancelled

the meeting.

(We have the whole morning free!)

Of all the tenses formed with HAVE, the Present Perfect (formed with the present form HAVE or HAS plus the Past
Participle of the main verb) is probably the one with most applications. It can be used to indicate:

a past action, with no indicated time (because it is bound to the present situation or context); ex.: Someone has
arrived. It has rained. They have called your name.

an action that happened more than once, especially in a recent timeframe; ex.: It has rained a lot these days.

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an action that started some time in the past and has been going on since then (once again, it is bound to the present);
ex.: I have lived here for ten months.

if any relation to the present is implied (the Simple Past can be used for contrast, indicating no relation to the
present); ex.: I did not do [Simple Past] my homework (and now there is no time to do it anymore; I'm screwed.)
vs. I have not done [Present Perfect] my homework (yet! I still have time to do it!)

By the way, the study of the differences in meaning and use between the Simple Past and the Present Perfect is rather
interesting and deserves a material dedicated to it. Just some more examples:

Simple Past

Present Perfect

I did not learn how to play [And I do not have any hope I have not learned how to [But I can do it some time.]
or perspective of ever learning play the piano.
the piano.
it.]
Your mother called.

[She just called and said Your mother has called.

something.]

[And wants to talk to you;

you should call her back.]

DO (DO, DOES, DID)

WILL
WOULD
CAN
COULD
MAY
MIGHT
MUST
SHALL
SHOULD

Contractions
The use of contracted forms can make it a bit difficult to recognise the structure of some sentences. In the negative form,
there are usually two possibilities: either the auxiliary contracts with the preceding word (it is not -> its not), or the adverb

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not contracts with the auxiliary (it is not -> it isnt). The simultaneous use of both contractions (it is not -> itsnt) is found
occasionally, but it is not considered standard.
The following table summarises the most common contracted forms.
Contraction

Full form

Notes

Example

am

Im talking to you.

is

Hes my friend.

was

has

tis

it is

re

are

re

were

ve

have

Ive seen you around.

had

Shed already gone when you called.

would

ll

will

Ill show you.

isnt

is not

It isnt fair!

arent

are not

You arent supposed to do that.

aint

am not, is not, are Regional, not polite.

not, has not, have
not

I aint going!

wasnt

was not

I wasnt talking to you.

werent

were not

You werent paying attention!

havent

have not

I havent seen that movie yet.

hasnt

has not

She hasnt answered.

hadnt

had not

They hadnt finished their homework.

dont

do not

I dont know.

doesnt

does not

It doesnt matter.

didnt

did not

You didnt miss.

wont

will not

I wont do that.

wouldnt

would not

You wouldnt say that.

cannot

can not

I cannot understand you.

cant

can not

I cant understand you.

couldnt

could not

She couldnt know that.

mustnt

must not

You mustnt forget it!

shant

shall not

shouldnt

should not

Cheatsheet

Not very common.

Is joking, man!
Hes come early today.

Regional.

Tis a shame, right?

Youre wrong!

Not very common.

Almost disappears
spoken language.

Not very common.

Theyre fighting again when I got home.

in Thatd be interesting.

I shant answer that.

You shouldnt smoke.

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The following table summarises all the information about the auxiliary verbs, including examples for each function.

Auxiliary verb

Meaning contribution

Example

be

copula (= linking verb)

She is the boss.

be

progressive aspect

He is sleeping.

be

passive voice

They were seen.

can

deontic modality

I can swim.

can

epistemic modality

Such things can help.

could

deontic modality

I could swim.

could

epistemic modality

That could help.

dare

deontic modality

How dare you!

do

do-support/emphasis

You did not understand.

do

simple present

Do you like it?

did

simple past

Did you like it?

have

perfect aspect

They have understood.

had

perfect aspect

They had understood.

may

deontic modality

May I stay?

may

epistemic modality

That may take place.

might

epistemic modality

We might give it a try.

must

deontic modality

You must not mock me.

must

epistemic modality

It must have rained.

need

deontic modality

You need not water the grass.

ought

deontic modality

You ought to play well.

shall

deontic modality

You shall not pass.

should

deontic modality

You should listen.

should

epistemic modality

That should help.

will

epistemic modality

We will eat pie.

will

future tense

The sun will rise tomorrow at 6:0.

will

habitual aspect

He will make that mistake every time.

would

epistemic modality

Nothing would accomplish that.

would

future-in-the-past tense

After 990, we would do that again.

would

habitual aspect

Back then we would always go there.