Where to use “is / are / am / was / were” and “has / have / had"

-Published on 04th Feb 2022 by Oxford School of English-

“is / are / am / was / were” and “has / have / had” have always been a challenge for quite a few. Today, we will learn where they are used. “is / are / am / was / were” are called “helping verbs”. As the name suggests, they are verbs that help convey the tense and meaning of a sentence. “was/were” in the past form.

Whereas, “has/have,” tells “ownership” in the present and “had” in the past. Let us have a look at them in detail:

1. Use of “is / are / am / was / were”

• My uncle is a businessman
• They are not upstairs
• The weather is so pleasant today
• He was very short-tempered
• Were you shocked when you saw that?

With “Verb_1+ing” to make continuous tense, like:

• She is studying upstairs
• They were not playing well
• He was not watching TV when the doorbell rang
• Why were you playing so bad yesterday?
• How was he commuting yesterday?

To emphasize an action, in passive forms, like:

• These rooms are cleaned twice a day
• She was not told to leave
• Plants are not watered regularly
• Why are the cars parked here?
• Where were the chairs kept?

2. Use of “has / have / had “

• I have (got) some old coins
• He has (got) two kids
• They have not (got) much money. (or, they don’t have much....)
• She hasn’t got a job in an MNC. (or, she doesn’t have a job….)
• They had a posh house in the colony.

Note: “got” is optional and used mostly in spoken English

To show compulsory actions, like:

• I have to leave now
• You don’t have to stay here
• She has to complete this task as soon as possible
• Does he have to fill out this form right now?

With Present Perfect or Present Perfect Continuous tense like:

• I have delivered the parcel
• Nobody has applied for the job.
• She has found the car keys
• Have they lodged an FIR?
• We have been waiting here since morning
• Has she been doing the dishes for half an hour?