Valencia, 15/04/2015, G.B.
Continuando con el English tense system, podemos afirmar que en inglés existen 3 tipos de verbos (types of verbs):
1.- Auxiliary verbs
2.- Modal auxiliary verbs
3.- Full verbs
1.- Auxiliary verbs
Los verbos do, be y have se usan como verbos auxiliares para formar diferentes tiempos verbales (tenses).
1.1 Do
– Do es un verbo auxiliar que se usa para formar las formas negativas e interrogativas (negative and question forms) del Present Simple. La forma de este verbo auxiliar en pasado es Did y se utiliza en el Past Simple.
Some examples:
| | Present Simple | Past Simple |
| Negative | I don’t want to go there. | She didn’t go out yesterday, sorry. |
| | He doesn’t eat meat. He’s vegetarian. | Hopefully I didn’t break my arm. |
| Question | Do you like cheese? | Did they know it, John? |
| | Does she play the piano? | Didn’t you play the violin, the guitar and other instruments? |
– Do solo se usa en la forma afirmativa (affirmative sentences) para enfatizar la acción de un verbo:
Some examples:
| Present Simple | Past Simple | |
| I’m not lazy. I do study hard. | I did try to contact you last Friday, but you were unavailable, as they told me. |
– Do también se utiliza en las denominadas tag questions (preguntas coletillas) y las short answers (respuestas cortas). Some examples:
| Present Simple | Past Simple |
| You think it’ll be enough, don’t you? | Who took my car last night? Susan did. |
1.2. Be
– Be como auxiliar + present participle (-ing), se utiliza para formar tiempos continuos (continuous tenses). Some examples:
Raymond is recording an album.
I’ll be leaving soon, sorry.
It’s rainning, take an umbrella.
English is spoken all over the world.
My house is being renovated, so I’ll stay at the hotel.
1.3. Have
– Have como auxiliar + past participle (-ed, etc.) se utiliza para formar tiempos perfectos (perfect tenses). Some examples:
I’ve never been to India.
She have lived in India for 20 years.
Will you have finished by next monday?
2.- Modal auxiliary verbs
Los verbos modales auxiliares (modal auxiliary verbs) son auxiliares porque ‘ayudan’ a otros verbos, pero a diferencia de do, be y have, tienen su propio significado. Pueden expresar certeza (certainty), habilidad (ability), posibilidad (possibility), consejo (advice), etc.
Los modal auxiliary verbs son: can, could, may, might, will, would, shall, should, must, ought, need. Los iremos viendo poco a poco… Some examples:
She can’t play the drums. (ability)
It might snow this evening. (possibility)
3.- Full verbs
Todos los demás verbos, que son la gran mayoría en el idioma, se denominan full verbs o verbos ‘normales’. Algunos ejemplos: go, drink, dance, study, help, sing, read…
