{"id":4707,"date":"2021-05-14T06:00:22","date_gmt":"2021-05-14T11:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/?p=4707"},"modified":"2026-11-03T15:53:29","modified_gmt":"2026-11-03T21:53:29","slug":"helping-verbs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/verbs\/helping-verbs\/","title":{"rendered":"Helping Verbs: Examples of Helping Verbs"},"content":{"rendered":"

We use helping verbs to “help” main verbs express tense, aspect, voice, mood, possibility, necessity, and other meanings.<\/p>\n

What Is a Helping Verb?<\/h2>\n

Helping verbs, also called auxiliary verbs<\/a>, are verbs that work with main verbs to form verb phrases.\u00a0Helping verbs fall into two categories: primary auxiliaries and modal<\/a> auxiliaries (we’ll explain that more in a moment).<\/p>\n

In a sentence with a single main verb in the simple present tense, it’s typically easy to identify the verb. For example:<\/p>\n

Jim walks<\/u> quickly.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Walks<\/em> is the action being performed by Jim, so that’s the main verb. But what if we want to express a different time (tense) of Jim’s activity? We need another verb to provide that information. In our example with Jim, let’s tell the reader more about his action by placing it in the present progressive tense<\/a> to convey that he’s doing it now:<\/p>\n

Jim is<\/u><\/strong> walking<\/u> quickly.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

You see we now have two verbs. The main verb is walking<\/em>. The word is<\/em> has been added to “help” further describe the main verb. In this case, the helping verb (is<\/em>) combines with the main verb (walking<\/em>) to form the present progressive tense. Together, the helping verb and the main verb add clarity and context. If we say only Jim walks,<\/em> that action can apply to any place and any time. By saying Jim is walking,<\/em> we know his action is happening in this moment.<\/p>\n

With that in mind, let’s change our helping verb for what we want the main verb to communicate. We’ll adjust our verb tense to the past perfect<\/a> and add some information:<\/p>\n

Jim had<\/span><\/strong> already walked<\/span> to the corner when the ice cream truck came into view.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The main verb is still\u00a0walk,\u00a0<\/em>but our helping verb is now\u00a0had <\/em>to let the reader know the action was completed before another past action occurred (the ice cream truck appeared).<\/p>\n

Three Common Helping Verbs<\/h2>\n

Once you understand the principle of helping verbs, finding and using them gets much easier. You can also begin to recognize many of their common forms.<\/p>\n

Here are some helping-verb varieties you probably use every day. They are classified as primary auxiliaries because they can change form depending on the subject and tense.<\/p>\n

To be:<\/strong> am<\/em>, is, are<\/em>, was<\/em>, were, be, being, been<\/em><\/p>\n

To have:<\/strong> have<\/em>, has<\/em>, had<\/em><\/p>\n

To do: <\/strong>do<\/em>, does<\/em>, did<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Examples<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

We were<\/u><\/strong> shopping<\/u> at the mall yesterday.<\/p>\n

Joan had<\/u><\/strong> been<\/u> unaware of that until you informed her.<\/p>\n

Does<\/u><\/strong> Chris understand<\/u> what is required to make the deliveries on time?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Let’s look at a few more examples:<\/p>\n

The dog was<\/u><\/strong> eating<\/u> the food in the bowl.<\/p>\n

Janine has<\/u><\/strong> visited<\/u> her mother.<\/p>\n

If you’re wondering, Robert did<\/u><\/strong> rehearse<\/u> for several weeks before opening night.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Note that primary auxiliaries can also function as main verbs or linking verbs when they are not helping another verb.<\/p>\n

Examples<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

We were<\/u><\/strong> at the mall yesterday.<\/p>\n

Joan has<\/u><\/strong> the information now.<\/p>\n

Chris does<\/u> <\/strong>what is required to make the deliveries on time.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Modal auxiliary verbs are other helping verbs you will see paired with main verbs. Common modal auxiliaries include can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, <\/em>and would<\/em>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Modal auxiliary verbs do not change form as primary auxiliary verbs do. They are also always followed by the base form of the main verb.<\/p>\n

Examples<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

I should<\/span> inform <\/strong>Joan.<\/p>\n

You should<\/span> inform<\/strong> Joan.<\/p>\n

We can<\/span> inform<\/strong> Joan.<\/p>\n

They can<\/span> inform<\/strong> Joan.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Pop Quiz<\/h2>\n

Identify the helping verbs in the following sentences.<\/p>\n

1. Christy was dancing at the wedding.<\/p>\n

2. Did you bake that cake on the counter?<\/p>\n

3. You have slept longer than usual today.<\/p>\n

4. I am flying to Cleveland next month.<\/p>\n

5. Bruce was seen by a specialist at the clinic.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Pop Quiz Answers<\/h3>\n

1. Christy was<\/strong> dancing at the wedding.<\/p>\n

2. Did <\/strong>you bake that cake on the counter?<\/p>\n

3. You have <\/strong>slept longer than usual today.<\/p>\n

4. I am <\/strong>flying to Cleveland next month.<\/p>\n

5. Bruce was<\/strong> seen by a specialist at the clinic.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Master Your Grammar One Tip at a Time<\/h2>\n

No one becomes an expert overnight. Getting good at grammar is a journey through the rules and techniques that make communication accurate, clear, and eloquent. Visit us again soon for more articles. You can also ask a question or suggest a grammar topic in the comments below!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We use helping verbs to “help” main verbs express tense, aspect, voice, mood, possibility, necessity, and other meanings. What Is a Helping Verb? Helping verbs, also called auxiliary verbs, are verbs that work with main verbs to form verb phrases.\u00a0Helping verbs fall into two categories: primary auxiliaries and modal auxiliaries (we’ll explain that more in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4707","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-verbs"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4707"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4707"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4707\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7677,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4707\/revisions\/7677"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4707"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4707"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.grammarbook.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4707"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}