Is the word just a helping verb

Helping verbs (auxiliary verbs) do just what their name implies. They help the main verb in the sentence by telling more about the verb’s tense, mood, and voice. 

Main Verbs, Helping Verbs, & Verb Phrases

There are many, many verbs that can function as main verbs (walk, run, think, say, sleep, seem etc.), but there are only a handful of verbs that can function as helping verbs.

When we put one or more helping/auxiliary verb with a main verb, we get what is called a verb phrase. 

(Every sentence needs to have at least one main verb, but not every sentence needs a helping/auxiliary verb.)

Before we move on, I need to tell you something important. Are you ready? Good! The verbs on that list above can function as helping verbs. That wording is very important because some of those words can also function as main verbs. Let’s look at an example using the word was.

Sometimes, the helping and main verbs are separated by other words. This often happens when we ask questions. With questions, the auxiliary verb tends to come at the beginning of the sentence, and the main verb comes later.

Words like never, not, and the contraction n’t are not part of the verb. They are adverbs.

Psst! Have you ever heard of modal verbs? Modals are a type of helping verb that show the speaker’s attitude about what they are communicating. 

Verb Phrases Act as Verbs

This seems obvious, right? They are made up of verbs, so what else would they be acting as?

The point here is that they are made up of multiple words and all of the words come together to act as one part of speech, a verb. 

The cheesecake might be exploding.

Might be exploding is telling us what the cheesecake is doing. It’s acting as a single unit: a verb.

Did you call Owen?

Did call is asking what you did. It’s acting as a single unit: a verb.

Owen has become a great cook.

Has become is telling us Owen’s state of being. It’s acting as a single unit: a verb.

Sentence diagrams can help us see that verb phrases function as verbs. Sentence diagrams are pictures of sentences that show us how parts of a sentence are related. They make the relationships between words, phrases, and clauses visual.

Verb phrases are diagrammed in the verb slot of the sentence diagram. They go on a horizontal line right after the subject. All of the words in the verb phrase go in the same slot because all of the words are coming together to function as the verb!

Remember that verb phrases are made up of at least one helping verb and a main verb.

Let’s look at an example sentence diagram with an actual sentence. 

Must and have are helping verbs, and jumped is a main verb. These three verbs together form a verb phrase. 

Don’t Get Tricked

There you have it! Now you’re a pro at identifying and understanding helping verbs! 

What is a helping verb? As the name implies, helping verbs support the main verb in a sentence by adding additional meaning. These verbs are sometimes referred to as auxiliary verbs. Helping verbs typically precedes the lexical verb (main verb) in a sentence. When used together in a sentence, they form a verb phrase.

What Is A Helping Verb?

Helping verbs are verbs that help elaborate the main verb further in a sentence. They can also elaborate on how time is conveyed in a text. Consequently, helping verbs are used to form the most complex sentences in English. Besides, these verbs help deliver intricate slight differences between words like probability, potential, etc.

Helping Verb Examples

Helping verbs are pivotal because they are necessary for the formation of a sentence structure. They are designed to support the main help by explaining it further. Helping verbs are classified into two categories, namely auxiliary and modal.

Auxiliary Verbs

Auxiliary verbs are verbs that add more details to the clause where they are being applied. Note that the two terms (auxiliary and helping verb) are sometimes used interchangeably. More often, they are used to add emphasis/stress on a subject. Auxiliary verbs are classified into three main categories, namely to be, to have, and to do. Each of the classes has multiple forms. For example:

• To do: do, does, did
• To be: I’m, is are, was, were, be, been
• To have: have, has, had

The verbs “be, do, and have” can be either independent or auxiliary. A verb is termed auxiliary if it is linked with other verbs to form a verb phrase.

Examples of Auxiliary Verbs

• I am planning another BBQ soon.
• She is readying herself for the much-anticipated trip.
• I do not know the facts about the matter in question.
• I have been waiting for her apology for nearly a week.
• He was given the scholarship to further his studies abroad.

Modal Verbs

Modal verbs are helping verbs that execute other specific tasks to elaborate on the meaning of the main verb. Examples of modal verbs include can, will, may, would, must, might, shall, should, could, ought to.

Modal verbs help in showing likelihood, responsibility, and necessity in a sentence. Examples of modal helping verbs in sentences:

• John can play football for most of the day.
• You should take a ride to relieve stress.
• When it is your turn, you must leave.
• I may not make it to the meeting.
• Would you mind if I come with my laptop?

Helping Verbs

Functions of Helping Verbs

As said earlier, helping verbs help express a slight meaning of words or phrases that may seem confusing due to their similarities. To demonstrate this, let’s explore the following examples:

• I may buy a car soon.
• I must buy a car soon.
• I should buy a car soon.
• I can buy a car soon.
• I will buy a car soon.

From these sentences, it is evident that modifying the helping verb alters the whole sentence’s meaning. In this case, the main verb “buy” alone cannot express the differences in sentences and thus the need for helping verbs.

Additional Functions of Helping Verbs

Helping verbs can help further express different conditions. For example:

• If she could run, she would emerge the winner.
• You may watch this fantastic series. In this case, the helping verb allows one to express permission.
• He can play football very well. In this case, the helping verb “can” demonstrates the ability to do something.

Helping verbs also help us to pose questions. For example:

• Do you think she is concerned?
• Will she emerge as the victor in her class?
• Do you think he will make it in life?

Changing Active Voice to Passive Voice

If we have an active sentence in the past tense, then the whole verb in the passive state will be in the past tense.

James built the table → The table was built by James.

1. James is pushed to the end of the sentence, and the prepositional phrase is by James.
2. The table moves in place of the subject.
3. The helping verb “be” is introduced before the main verb.
4. Past tense indicator shifts off built and onto the auxiliary verb be.
5. Helping verb conforms with the new subject.
6. The main verb built transforms into its past participle form “built”

Helping Verbs | Infographic

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Last Updated on February 1, 2021

You may have heard of helping verbs, which are also referred to as modal and auxiliary verbs. In this discussion, we’ll review what a helping verb is and how it works with another verb.

What Is a Helping Verb?

A helping verb is a verb that combines with a main verb to form a verb phrase. Sometimes it is also called a verb marker, because it indicates that a verb is to follow.

In a sentence with one main verb in the simple present tense, it’s typically easy to identify the verb by looking for the action word. For example:

Jim walks quickly.

Walks 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 to convey that he’s doing it right now:

Jim is walking quickly.

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

With that in mind, let’s change our helping verb for what we want the main verb to communicate. We’ll use a Type 1 conditional sentence with a possible condition and a probable result:

If he sees an ice cream truck at the end of the street, Jim will walk quickly.

The main verb is still walk, but our helping verb is now will to let the reader know the time of the action is in the future.

Three Common Helping Verbs

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, which can change depending on whether they are indicating a past, present, or future action. They can be singular or plural as well.

Here are some helping-verb varieties you probably use every day:

To be: is, am, are, was, were, will be

To have: have, has, had, will have

To do: do, does, did, will do

Examples
We were shopping at the mall yesterday.

Joan had been unaware of that until you informed her.

Chris will do what is required to make the delivery on time.

Let’s look at a few more examples:

The dog was eating the food in the bowl.

Janine has visited her mother.

If you’re wondering, Robert did rehearse for several weeks before opening night.

Other helping verbs you might see paired with main verbs include would, should, could, shall, may, might, and can.

Pop Quiz

Identify the helping verbs in the following sentences.

1. Christy will be dancing at the wedding.
2. Did you bake that cake on the counter?
3. You have slept longer than usual today.
4. I am flying to Cleveland next month.
5. Bruce was seen by a specialist at the clinic.

Pop Quiz Answers

1. Christy will be dancing at the wedding.
2. Did you bake that cake on the counter?
3. You have slept longer than usual today.
4. I am flying to Cleveland next month.
5. Bruce was seen by a specialist at the clinic.

Master Your Grammar One Tip at a Time

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!

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