Types of Auxiliary Verbs

Auxiliary Verbs are verbs that only help main verbs to form different verb forms. Auxiliary Verbs are important as structural verbs.

After going through this post, you will be able to understand all types of auxiliary verbs.

There are two types of auxiliary verbs

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Primary Auxiliary Verbs	Be Verb: is, am, are, was, were, been, being Have Verb: have, has, had, having Do Verb: do, does, did
Modal Auxiliary Verbs	can, could, shall, should, will, would, may, might, must, dare, need, used to, ought to

Primary Auxiliary Verbs

The Primary Auxiliary verbs are Be Verbs (is, am, are, was, were, been, being), Have Verbs (have, has, had, having) and
Do Verb (do, does, did)

Be Verbs (am, is, are, was, were)

I am working,
You are writing.
He is sleeping.
I am going to the store.
He is studying for his exam.
They are playing soccer in the park.
We are watching a movie tonight.
The cat is sleeping on the couch.
You are reading a book right now.
My friends are coming over for dinner.
The flowers are blooming in the garden.
The teacher is grading the tests.
I am not feeling well today.
The sky is turning dark.
They are not sure what to do next.
She is always late for class.
I was feeling tired yesterday.
They were studying for their final exams all weekend.
He was cooking dinner when the phone rang.

Have Verbs (Have, Has, Had)

I have a meeting at 2 PM.
She has already finished her homework.
They have been studying for hours.
He has not been feeling well lately.
We have decided to go on vacation this summer.
You have to submit the report by the end of the week.
My sister has a lot of experience in marketing.
She had forgotten her keys and was locked out of her apartment.
They had never been to Europe before their trip last summer.
He had finished his work before the deadline.
We had planned to go to the beach, but it was too crowded.
The company had to lay off some employees due to budget cuts.

Do Verbs (Do, did, does)

He does not like spicy food.
We did a lot of sightseeing on our trip to Europe.
Do not waste your time.
You do not look well.
Do you not like sweets?
Did she not pass the test?
The children have done their homework.
Did he come to school yesterday?
My boss did not approve my vacation request.
The team has done an excellent job this season.
He does not always travel by bus.
Do not show disrespect to your elders.
Did you think of visiting Switzerland this summer?
You like him; do you not?
Do you recognize me? No, I do not.
You saw him in school yesterday. Did you not?
Yes, you do look beautiful.
She did not expect to get a promotion so soon.
They have done a lot of fundraising for charity.
He does not usually work on weekends.

Modal Auxiliary Verbs

Modal Auxiliary Verbs are can, could, shall, should, will, would, may, might, must, dare, need, used to, ought to, etc

Can, may, shall, will, have special past forms could, might, should, and would respectively, but ‘must‘ do not have any past form.

Modal Auxiliary Verbs	Functions as	Examples
Will	1. asking 2. possibility 3. suggestion	1. Will you go to college? 2. It will probably rain tomorrow. 3. You will feel better if you take some rest.
Would	requesting	Would you be able to lend me a pencil? Would you mind closing the door, please?
Shall	1. asking 2. possibility	1. Shall I do the homework? 2. I hope I shall complete the homework within a week.
Should	1. suggestion 2. seeking advice	1. You should try the chocolate cake, it’s delicious. 2. Should I take the train or the bus to get to the airport on time?
Can	1. ability 2. possibility	1. Lisa can speak French fluently. 2. It will be a challenge, but I think we can complete the project if we work together.
Could	1. ability 2. requesting	1. He could do it. 2. Could you pass the salt, please?
May	1. possibility 2. permission 3. offering	1. Alisha may come here today. 2. May I come in? 3. May I get you a cup of coffee?
Might	1. possibility 2. suggestion	1. I might go to the beach this weekend if the weather is nice. 2. We might try a new restaurant today.
Must	1. obligation 2. certainty 3. strong probability 4. prohibition	1. You must obey your parents. 2. I must submit my assignment before the deadline. 3. You must be hungry after a busy day at work. 4. We must not waste our time.
Dare	1. challenge 3. negative force 4. interrogation	1. I dare you to try spicy salsa! 2. I wouldn’t dare to ask HR for a salary hike. 3. How dare you speak to your mother like that?
Need	1. prohibition 2. interrogation	You need not come here. Does he need to go there?
Used to	habitual action in the past	My mother used to tell me moral stories.
Ought to	1. obligation 2. strong likelihood	You ought to work hard for your exam. It ought to rain later today.