The verb be as a modal verb. Modal verb to be to – how to use correctly

It is with this verb that you need to start learning English grammar. Verbs in English do not change for persons, but the verb to be is an exception. Using this verb, we will learn to compose simple sentences that do not contain a verb in Russian, for example, “I am a student,” “he is at home,” “this is interesting,” etc. In English it is unacceptable to form without a verb that performs the action, and to be serves as a linking verb. For example, to say “I am a student,” we must insert the desired form of the linking verb to be and, as a result, the sentence will take on the meaning “I am a student” - “I (am) a student.”

Forms of the verb to be in the present tense

In the present tense, the verb to be has three forms: AM, IS, ARE:

• Remember: to be and AM, IS, ARE are not 4 different ones, but forms the same verb:

(We hope our dragon will help you remember this)

Let's look at how the verb to be changes in the present tense

Affirmative form

• We are friends - we are friends
• They are busy - they are busy
• The book is thick - the book is thick
• It is a cat
• She is clever - she is smart

Negative form

To form a negative conjugation form of a given verb, you need to put a negative particle “not” after one of the required forms of the verb (am, is or are). Here are some examples of negative sentences:

• I am not hungry – I am not hungry
• He is not busy
• The room is not big – the room is not big

Interrogative form

To form an interrogative form, you need to put the appropriate form of the verb (am, is or are) at the beginning of the sentence:

• Are you Peter? -Are you Pete?
• This room? – Is this a room?
• Are you hungry? -Are you hungry?
• He is busy? – Is he busy?

• To understand how verbs live in the English language, let’s first remember at least one Russian verb in its initial form, for example, the verb “to live”. As you know, Russian verbs in their initial form end in “-т”, and later, when conjugated, the ending changes. As for the English language, the verb in its initial form is used together with the particle to, for example, we say to be – would t, find t Xia, i.e. if the particle to precedes the verb, this means that the verb is in the initial form, and when further using the verb with persons, this particle is omitted. Let's give an example: “To be or not to be” - there are two verbs in the sentence - and both are in the initial form, and they must be used together with the particle to, and, accordingly, we will translate into English as “to be or not to be”. If we have before us the sentence “I (am) a student,” i.e. we have changed the verb to suit the person of the subject, then the particle to is omitted and the proper form of the verb is used, in this case am.
• Unlike the verb to be, other verbs in English are not conjugated, for example, the verbs “live, sit, love” in the initial form are translated into English “to live, to sit, to love”, i.e. with a particle to, and when conjugated - without to, for example, “I live, sit, love” will be translated into English as “I live, sit, love,” i.e. initial form of a verb in English without a particletonot used, but when conjugatedtofalls. The initial form in English is called the Infinitive - Infinitive.

More about the particle to watch our video tutorial:

Verb conjugations tobe in present time

Now let's learn how the verb to be changes (conjugates) in the present tense. As mentioned above, in Russian, sentences like “I am a student, she is a doctor, we are workers” are formed without a predicate verb. But to translate these sentences into English, you need to put the appropriate form to be after the subject - “I am a pupil, she is a doctor, we are workers.”

Please note the translation of the following sentences in affirmative, negative and interrogative forms into English:

Verb conjugations tobe in past and future tense

In the past tense, the verb to be has two forms - was and were (was, was, were)

In the future tense, the verb to be is conjugated as follows

Note: In modern English the form shall is rarely used to form the future tense of verbs (although its use is not a grammatical error), the form is used for all persons will. Therefore, sometimes there are discrepancies in different textbooks.

To summarize, consider the following table:

Here are some commonly used verb expressions: to be which you should learn and conjugate yourself using the conjugation table:

• To be happy/unhappy – to be happy/unhappy
• To be glad - to be joyful
• To be hungry/to be full up– to be hungry/full
• To be fond of - to love, be carried away by something
• To be busy - to be busy
• To be late (for) - to be late (for)
• To be in time for – to be on time
• To be present at – to be present at (for example, in a lesson)
• To be absent (from) – to be absent
• To be married – to be married
• To be single - to be single / not married
• To be lucky - to be lucky
• To be ready (for) - to be ready (for, for example, a lesson)
• To be afraid (of) – to be afraid
• To be interested (in) - to be interested in something
• To be ill / well - to be sick / to feel good
• To be angry (with) - to be angry, angry (at someone)

Let's conjugate together the expression to be married in affirmative, interrogative and negative sentences. What did you get?

Modal construction to be to with the infinitive of the semantic verb is used to express plans, agreements, orders, instructions, prohibitions and what is destined to happen.

To be to has three present forms ( am, are, is) and two past tense forms ( was And were). For the rules for conjugating this verb, read the article about the semantic verb to be.

Present tense construction to be to used only with verbs in the simple infinitive form. After to be to in the past time ( was to, were to) verbs are used in the form of the simple infinitive (the first form of the verb) or the perfect infinitive. For the future tense modal construction to be to is replaced by have to in the future tense will have to.

Past	The present	Future
Simple/Perfect Infinitive	Simple Infinitive	Shall/Will have to
We were to meet at 5 p.m. We were supposed to meet at 5.	We are to meet at 5 p.m. We must meet at 5 pm.	We will have to meet next week. We will need to meet next week.
He was to have met us but he forgot to do it. He was supposed to meet us, but he forgot about it.
I He She It + was to + ...	I + am to + ... He She It + is to + ...	I We + shall have to + ...
You We They + were to + ...	You We They + are to + ...	He She It You They + will have to + ...

He She It

+

is to

+

...

He She It You They

+

will have to

+

...

Statement

Affirmative sentences with construction to be to are used very often and are used both in the present and in the past tense.

The design expresses official plans, agreements, orders, instructions, and necessity arising from a predetermined plan.

• Today you are to work in this room.– Today you work in this room.
• Nobody is to leave this room!- No one will leave this room!
• The President of our country is to visit France this week.– The President is going to visit France this week.
• All students are to write a yearly project by the end of this course.– All students are required to write a term paper at the end of this course.

• I was to meet my friends at the station.– I had to meet friends at the station.
• He – He was going to (had to) speak at the meeting.
• Matt and Andrew came to an agreement that they were to fix our printer. Matt and Andrew agreed that they would fix our printer.

Also to be to conveys the possibility of something. Often used with a semantic verb in the Passive Infinitive form.

• I know where this book is to be found.– I know where this book can be found.
• These flowers are to be seen in many parks of our city.– These flowers can be seen in many parks in the city.
• Matt was to be seen playing the guitar in the city center.– Matt could be seen playing guitar in the city center.

Negation

In negative sentences with the construction to be to particle not comes after the verb to be. As a rule, negative sentences mean a categorical prohibition or the impossibility of something. In this case, after to be to The perfect infinitive is not used (have + verb in the 3rd form).

• Ban
• You are not to be here!-You shouldn't be here!
• He was not to approach his ex-wife’s house.“He was forbidden to go near his ex-wife’s house.”
• My friends were not to go to yesterday’s concert.– My friends were forbidden to go to yesterday’s concert.

• Impossibility of action
• This novel is not to be read in one day. It's too big.– It is impossible to read this novel in one day. It's too big.
• We wanted to stay friends but it wasn’t to happen.– We wanted to remain friends, but this was not destined to happen.

Question

In an interrogative sentence with the construction to be to verb be in the required form it is placed at the beginning of a sentence or after a question word.

• Am I to stay here?– Do I need to stay here?
• Is Jack to make a speech during the meeting?– Should Jack speak at the meeting?
• When are you to go to the university?– When are you going to go to university?
• Why were they to stay here?-Why did they have to stay here?

Features of use

To be to / To be going to

Modal construction to be to in the meaning of intention, plans, agreement can be freely replaced by the construction to be going to (getting ready to do something), since in this case to be to - this is short for to be going to.

• This year we are to go to Spain for a scientific conference.
• This year we are going to visit Spain for a scientific conference.– This year we are going to Spain for a scientific conference.

• The presidents are to meet in London.
• The presidents are going to meet in London.– The presidents are going to meet in London.

• He was to make a speech at the meeting.
• He was going to make a speech at the meeting.— He was going to speak at the meeting.

Action that was not completed

Past form of construction to be to with the perfect infinitive indicates a planned action that was not carried out.

• I was to have met my friends at the station but I forgot about that.– I was supposed to meet my friends at the station, but I forgot about it.
• He was to have made a speech but he didn’t even come to the meeting.“He was going to speak at the meeting, but he didn’t even come to it.”
• Matt and Andrew were to have fixed our printer. Matt and Andrew had to fix our printer. (but they didn't)

We are to work on this project we should start right now. “If we want to work on this project, we need to start it now.”

If you are to go abroad you should get a visa.– If you are going abroad, you must get a visa.

• If you are not to go abroad you don"t need an international passport.– If you are not going abroad, you do not need a passport.
• Let me know if you are not to come to the party.- Let me know if you're not going to come to the party.

If..were to

To be to in past tense form were to(for all persons) in conditional sentences with if indicates an undesirable, unacceptable action that is unlikely to happen. In sentences expressing the present or future tense, the construction were to used with the simple infinitive of a semantic verb. To indicate a condition in the past tense after were to the perfect infinitive of the verb is used (have + verb in the 3rd form).

• If I were to fail my examination tomorrow, I would be excluded from my university.– If tomorrow I suddenly fail my exams, I will be expelled from the university. (I definitely won't fail my exams)
• If she were to be my girlfriend, we would argue every day.“If she were my girlfriend, we would fight every day.” (she is not my girlfriend and is unlikely to ever be)

• If I were to have failed my examination last year, I would have been excluded from my university. If I had suddenly failed my exams last year, I would have been kicked out of the university. (I definitely would not have failed the exams)
• If she were to have married Jack, she would have suffered a lot. If she (then) married Jack, she would have suffered a lot. (she did not marry Jack and is unlikely to ever marry)

To be in newspaper headlines

Design to be to often used in articles and newspapers. Sometimes newspaper headlines use a shortened version without the verb be to save space and attract the reader's attention.

• The presidents are to meet in London.– The presidents are going to meet in London.
• The presidents to meet in London.– The presidents will meet in London.

• The king is to visit Spain.– The king will visit Spain.
• The king to visit Spain.– The king will visit Spain.

Modal construction be to translated as must, need, obliged and expresses an obligation. The construction varies depending on the person and number of the subject and has forms of present and past tense. The construction be to has no future tense form.

The construction be to is in the present tense.

Modal construction be to conjugates and forms interrogative and negative forms similarly to the verb be:

In affirmative and negative sentences, the verb be can be shortened (He's to go. He isn't to go), but, as a rule, this is not typical for written speech and applies to the be to construction.

The construction be to is in the past tense.

In the past tense, the modal construction be to is also conjugated and forms interrogative and negative forms similar to the verb be:

Use of the modal construction be to.

Be to used to express

• obligations according to plan, schedule or agreement:

When is Kate's wedding to be?

The ship is to dock on Sunday.

I was to meet Greg at the dentist’s.

The President is to visit France.

As a rule, in such cases the negative form be not to is not used. In order to say that, despite the plan or agreement, the action never happened, you must use the perfect infinitive after the be to construction.

Molly was to have graduated in May. – Molly was supposed to graduate in May (but didn’t).

Sarah was to have come to the party. Sarah was supposed to come to the party (but didn’t come).

• strict order or instruction:

You are to stay here until I come back.

Greg was to do it exactly the way he had been told.

• strictly prohibited:

You are not to smoke in the child’s room.

You are not to tell my secret to him.

• actions that cannot be avoided:

At that time Fred didn’t know that Molly was to be his wife.

He was never to see Alan again.

In such sentences, be to is translated as to be, destined.

• impossibility (in this case, after be to the passive form of the infinitive of the semantic verb is often used):

Helen is not to be trusted.

The man is nowhere to be found.

A similar construction is often used in interrogative sentences with the interrogative words where or how with both a simple active and a passive infinitive:

How is Greg to repay Molly for her kindness?

Where is the child to be found?

The modal verb be to cannot be called frequently used, since it is used more in literary and journalistic speech than in free conversation. However, for the British this construction is “alive” in everyday speech, so you should know its meaning and the main nuances of use.

The verb be to has the same general meaning as the verb must, but their semantic shades differ significantly from each other. For example, in official affairs the first option is most often used. A distinctive feature of the use of be to is the presence of facts provided for by the schedule, protocols or other official norms. Therefore, most often the need to use be to can be determined by the context.

He is to get married soon. - He should get married soon.

The movie is to begin today at five o’clock in the evening. – The film should start today at five o’clock in the evening.

The decision is to be accepted tomorrow at ten o’clock in the morning. – The decision must be made tomorrow at ten in the morning.

They are to get a 25% rise this year. – This year they should receive a 25% increase.

If the be to construction is used in everyday conversation, then most often it has the same semantic load as have to. In this case, be to only emphasizes the presence of some kind of need. However, you need to look at the context, since sometimes be to can indicate the presence of an order that must be executed. In a sense, this construction is an addition to the verb must.

He must make these mathematical examples now. He is to hand it today in the afternoon. – He must do these mathematical examples now. He is due to hand them in this afternoon.

Often the form be to is used in various social protocols when a person needs to be pitied or congratulated, regardless of whether this is a moral obligation or necessity.

You are to be pitied. - We can feel sorry for you.

She is to be congratulated. “She deserves congratulations.”

Also, the modal verb be to can mean intention, desire or goal, but in this case the sentence must be built according to the if-clauses scheme.

If he is to pass all exams, he must study hard. If he wants to pass all the exams, he must study a lot.

Particular attention should be paid to cases where the verb be to is used to indicate an assumption, since in some cases sentences can be constructed normally, and in others with if-clauses.

What is to become of her? -Who will she become? (Logical assumption).

They were later to regret there decision. “Later they regretted their words. (Actions according to the will of fate that relate to the past).

The article wasn’t to be found. – The article was impossible to find. (Theoretical possibility. Most often in sentences with the verbs to find and to see).

What would you do if the war were to break out? – What would you do if war broke out? (Assumption with if-clauses).

The modal verb be to is used in various cases, which, as a rule, depend on the semantic load of the context. As for grammatical rules, for correct use it is enough to remember the inflections of the verb to be by persons, numbers and its forms in different tenses. Everything else depends on the emotionality and topic of the conversation.

Today we will look at the verb be to. With this verb we talk about the need to do something according to an agreement, plan or order.

From this article you will learn: in what situations we use be to, how to correctly construct all types of sentences with this verb, diagrams and example sentences.

Usage and translation of the verb be to in English

The verb to be to implies that you need to do something because you have already agreed with someone about it in advance. We can translate it as “agreed/agreed/assembled/must.” We use this verb in the present and past tense.

Unlike the verb must, which is also translated as “must,” a person is not forced to do something. You just promised someone to do something, agreed that you would do it, so you think you “should.” For example, you agreed in advance to go to the store with your friend to help choose a gift, so you should go to the store with her.

Be to is used in the following situations:

1. Used when we are talking about some kind of mutual agreement
For example: They agreed to run in the morning

We areto go shopping.
We agreed to go shopping.

He is to reply to the letter.
He must (because he promised) to answer the letter.

2. Used to give an order or tell someone a rule
For example: All staff must wear a uniform.

She is to start work at 9 a.m.
She should start working at 9 am.

You areto keep clean this room.
You must keep this room clean.

3. Used to find out further instructions or ask someone what should be done
For example: What should I ask her?

What am I to cook?
What should I cook?

What are they to buy?
What should they buy?

4. Used to say something is forbidden to do.
For example: You shouldn't park here.

They are not to speak with strangers.
They are forbidden to talk to strangers.

She is not to drive a car.
She is not allowed to drive a car.

Formation of affirmative sentences with the verb be to in English

We can use this verb in both the past and present tense. Let's look at the rule of formation for each tense.

Affirmative sentences with the verb be to in the present tense

To make a statement, we need to put be in the present tense (am/are/is). The education scheme will be as follows:

The one in question + am/is/are + to + action

I	am
You
We	are		meet
They		to	wait
She			return
He	is
It

I am to call him at three o'clock.
I have to call him at three o'clock.

He is to wait for me in the shop.
He must wait for me at the store.

Affirmative sentences with the verb be to in the past tense

To say a sentence in the past tense, we need to put the verb be in the past form - was/were. The scheme for forming such a proposal will be as follows:

The one in question + was/were + to + action

I	was
You
We	were		meet
They		to	wait
She			return
He	was
It

They were to bring a cake.
They should have brought the cake.

She wasto cook a diner.
She had to cook dinner.

Formation of negative sentences with the verb be to in English

When adding the particle not to the verb be to, it acquires the meaning of prohibition. Let's look at the formation of such a sentence in the present and past tenses.

Negative sentences with the verb be to in the present tense

To prevent someone from doing something, we need to add the particle not to our be. The proposal outline will be as follows:

The one in question + am/are/is + not + to + action

I	am
You
We	are		meet
They		not to	wait
She			return
He	is
It

I am not to tell it.
I shouldn't say this. (I'm not allowed to say this)

They are not to move this furniture.
They are not allowed to move furniture.

Negative sentences with the verb be to in the past tense

In the past tense, we add the particle not to the verb be, which takes the past tense form - was or were. Education scheme:

The one in question + was/were + not + to + action

I	was
You
We	were		meet
They		not to	wait
She			return
He	was
It

She wasnot to copy these documents.
She should not have copied these documents.

We werenot to spend all money.
We were forbidden to spend all the money.

Formation of interrogative sentences with the verb be to in English

To ask if you have agreed on something with someone, we need to put our be at the right time first. Let's look at how this happens for each time.

Interrogative sentences with the verb be to in the present tense

To ask a question in the present tense, we put am/are/is first. The education scheme will be as follows:

Am/are/is + the one in question + to + action?

Am	I
	you
Are	we		meet?
	they	to	wait?
	he		return?
Is	she
	it

Are you to meet in the subway?
Have you agreed to meet in the subway?

Is she to buy a present?
Should she buy a gift?

Interrogative sentences with the verb be to in the past tense

To ask a question in the past tense, we put was/were first. The education scheme will be as follows:

Was/were + the person in question + to + action?

Was	I
	you
Were	we		meet?
	they	to	wait?
	he		return?
Was	she
	it

Wassheto read this book?
Should she have read this book?

Werewe to tidy up our room?
Were we supposed to clean our room?

Interrogative sentences with clarifying words

To clarify any information, we use the following words:

• What - what
• Where - where
• Who - who
• Which - which
• Why - why
• When - when

When asking a question, we put these words first, and then the word order follows, as in a regular question. Be changes over time, just like in a normal question. Education scheme:

Specifying word + be + the person in question + to + action?

So, we have completely covered the verb be to. And now is the time to move from theory to practice.

Reinforcement task

Translate the following sentences into English:

1. She must do two exercises.
2. Did they have to make a decision?
3. I was forbidden to open this box.
4. He must meet her at the airport.
5. They are prohibited from leaving this premises.
6. Should he call you back?
7. What should they write?
8. I have to visit my grandmother this weekend.
9. Where should they meet?

Leave your answers in the comments.