By los Profesores de Inglés, British Council en México

15 de Octubre de 2020 - 10:00

verbo to be escrito en un pizarron con gis

Así como en cualquier lengua, el verbo to be es uno de los principales del inglés. Te lo puedes encontrar en casi cualquier texto y lo puedes escuchar en cualquier momento en cualquiera de sus conjugaciones y significados, por eso es muy importante usarlo bien. Y precisamente para eso está este artículo.

Significado del verbo to be

El verbo to be es uno de los más camaleónicos del inglés, por lo que en muchas ocasiones su significado depende del contexto en el que te lo encuentres. Sin embargo, sus significados principales son los siguientes:

  1. Ser

He is smart = Él es inteligente

  1. Estar 

It is cold today = Hoy está hacienda frío

  1. Haber

Is there anybody inside? = ¿Hay alguien adentro?

  1. Poder (permiso)

Tell her she is not to open the door to strangers = Dile que no puede abrirle la puerta a extraños.

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Maestra de ingles con maquina de escribir estudia el verbo to be

Usos principales del verbo to be

Una vez que ya conocemos sus significados más conocidos, podemos conocer los usos más comunes de este término:

  • Verbo

Sirve para mencionar una acción o estado del sujeto en cualquier tiempo.

I am Mexican = Soy mexicano. 

I was a doctor = Yo era doctor.

  • Verbo auxiliar

Se usa en compañía de otros verbos para dar a entender que las acciones o estados se desarrollan en el momento. Para ello se usa la conjugación –ing.

I am still working= Todavía estoy trabajando.

 

Conjugación del verbo to be

Te presentamos algunos cuadros con las conjugaciones de los siguientes tiempos: presente, pasado simple, futuro simple, presente perfecto, pasado perfecto, futuro perfecto, condicional y condicional perfecto. Además incluimos sus formas afirmativas, negativas y de pregunta.

 

Presente

Afirmativo

Negativo

Pregunta

I am

I am not

Am I?

You are

You are not

Are you?

He / She / It is

He / She / It is not

Is he / she / it?

We are

We are not

Are we?

You are

You are not

Are you?

They are

They are not

Are they? 

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en presente

  • I am tall = Yo soy alto/a

  • I am not your teacher = Yo no soy tu maestro/a

  • Are you her doctor? = ¿Eres su doctor/a? 

Pasado simple

Afirmativo

Negativo

Pregunta

I was

I was not

Was I?

You were

You were not

Were you?

He / She / It was

He / She / It was not

Was he / she / it?

We were

We were not

Were we?

You were

You were not

Were you?

They were

They were not

Were they? 

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en pasado simple

  • I was very shy  = Yo era muy tímido/a

  • We were not the champions  = Nosotros no fuimos campeones

  • Were you at the store? = ¿Estabas en la tienda?

Futuro simple

Afirmativo

Negativo

Pregunta

I will be

I will not be

Will I be?

You will be

You will not be

Will you be?

He / She / It will be

He / She / It will not be

Will he / she / it be?

We will be

We will not be

Will we be?

You will be

You will not be

Will you be?

They will be

They will not be

Will they be?

 Verbo to be: Ejemplos en futuro simple

  • We will be a great team = Seremos un gran equipo

  • They will not be my next students = Ellos no serán mis próximos estudiantes

  • Will we be at the beach next weekend? = ¿Estaremos en la playa el próximo fin de semana?

 Presente perfecto

Afirmativo

Negativo

Pregunta

I have been

I have not been

Have I been?

You have been

You have not been

Have you been?

He / She / It has been

He / She / It has not been

Has he / she / it been?

We have been

We have not been

Have we been?

You have been

You have not been

Have you been?

They have been

They have not been

Have they been?

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en presente perfecto

  • I have been your fan all my life = He sido tu fanático toda mi vida

  • She has not been kind to you = Ella no te ha tratado bien

  • Has it been a good instrument? = ¿Eso a sido un buen instrumento?

 Pasado perfecto

Afirmativo

Negativo

Pregunta

I had been

I had not been

Had I been?

You had been

You had not been

Had you been?

He / She / It been

He / She / It had not been

Had he / she / it been?

We had been

We had not been

Had we been?

You had been

You had not been

Had you been?

They had been

They had not been

Had they been?

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en pasado perfecto

La oración en pasado perfecto siempre está acompañada de otra oración o frase en el pasado para dar contexto:

  • I had been the goalkeeper of the team before I went to college in another city = Yo era el portero del equipo antes de irme a estudiar a otra ciudad.

  • They had not been the best classmates in high school = Ellos no fueron los mejores compañeros de clase en la secundaria.

  • Had you been at the concert before the earthquake? = ¿Ustedes estaban en el concierto cuando tembló?

 Futuro perfecto

Afirmativo

Negativo

Pregunta

I will have been

I will not have been

Will I have been?

You will have been

You will not have been

Will you have been?

He / She / It will have been

He / She / It will not have been

Will he / she / have been?

We will have been

We will not have been

Will we have been?

You will have been

You will not have been

Will you have been?

They will have been

They will not have been

Will they have been?

 Verbo to be: Ejemplos en futuro perfecto

El futuro perfecto es para hablar de algo que sucederá antes de otra acción en el futuro. Por ejemplo:  

  • By the time you get home, I will have been asleep = Para cuando estés llegando a casa, yo ya habré dormido.

  • You will have been named the winner by the time the end of the day = Habrás sido declarada la ganadora antes de que termine el día.

  • She will have been cured by the time her family gets here? = Ella se habrá curado antes de que llegué su familia.

 Condicional

Afirmativo

Negativo

Pregunta

I would be

I would not be

Would I be?

You would be

You would not be

Would you be?

He / She / It would be

He / She / It would not be

Would he / she / it be?

We would be

We would not be

Would we be?

You would be

You would not be

Would you be?

They would be

They would not be

Would they be?

 Verbo to be: Ejemplos en condicional

  • He would be my father = Él sería mi papá

  • We would not be lost = Nosotros no estaríamos perdidos

  • Would you be my valentine? = ¿Serías mi cita de San Valentín?

 Condicional perfecto

Afirmativo

Negativo

Pregunta

I would have been

I would not have been

Would I have been?

You would have been

You would not have been

Would you have been?

He / She / It would have been

He / She / It would not have been

Would he / she / it have been?

We would have been

We would not have been

Would we have been?

You would have been

You would not have been

Would you have been?

They would have been

They would not have been

Would they have been?

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en condicional perfecto

  • I would have been waiting for you all night if I hadn’t been so tired = Yo te habría estado esperando toda la noche si no hubiera estado tan cansado.

  • They would not have been found guilty without the main piece of evidence… the letter = Ellos no habrían sido declarados culpables sin la pieza clave de la evidencia: la carta.

  • Would you have been sitting quietly here if you already knew the truth? = ¿Habrían estado sentadas aquí si hubieran sabido la verdad?

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