How a sentence is built · CEFR A1 · Starting
am / is / are — English sentence structure
Be is the commonest verb in English and the only one with three present forms. Every sentence with no other verb needs it.
The shape
I am · he / she / it is · you / we / they are
Say who you are and how things are.
In Hindi
be अंग्रेज़ी की सबसे ज़रूरी क्रिया है। जिस वाक्य में कोई और क्रिया न हो, वहाँ am, is या are ज़रूरी है।
CoCap explains every structure in both languages, because a rule you understand in Hindi is a rule you can use in English.
The mistake to fix first
The sentence Indian-English speakers actually produce, and the reason it is wrong.
| Commonly said | Correct English |
|---|---|
She very tired. | She is very tired. Hindi lets you drop the verb here; English never does. |
am / is / are examples
Easiest first. Every sentence is authored, with the Hindi it comes from.
I am happy.
मैं खुश हूँ।
also correct: I'm happy.
I am fine.
मैं ठीक हूँ।
also correct: I'm fine. · I am okay.
I am ready.
मैं तैयार हूँ।
also correct: I'm ready.
I am tired.
मैं {थका|थकी} {हुआ|हुई} हूँ।
also correct: I'm tired.
I am busy.
मैं व्यस्त हूँ।
also correct: I'm busy.
I am out.
मैं बाहर हूँ।
also correct: I'm outside. · I'm out.
I am here.
मैं यहाँ हूँ।
also correct: I'm here.
I am alone.
मैं {अकेला|अकेली} हूँ।
also correct: I'm alone.
I am a student.
मैं {छात्र|छात्रा} हूँ।
also correct: I'm a student.
I am at home.
मैं घर पर हूँ।
also correct: I'm at home.
Questions people ask
- What is the am / is / are used for?
- Be is the commonest verb in English and the only one with three present forms. Every sentence with no other verb needs it. In practice: say who you are and how things are.
- How do you form the am / is / are?
- I am · he / she / it is · you / we / they are.
- What is the most common mistake with the am / is / are?
- Saying “She very tired.” instead of “She is very tired.”. Hindi lets you drop the verb here; English never does.
Where am / is / are fits
Where this structure sits in the ladder, and what surrounds it.
am / is / are is a CEFR A1 structure — the starting band — and it belongs to how a sentence is built. CoCap’s syllabus files every structure this way so you can learn in order instead of jumping between whatever a search happened to return.
Reading it is not the same as saying it.
CoCap turns this page into practice: Hindi sentence in, English sentence out, corrected one thing at a time. Free, no card.
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