Auxiliary verb types
In this section we will give a brief account of of each type of auxiliary verb in English. There are five types in total:
Passive be
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This is used to form passive constructions, eg.
The film was produced in Hollywood
It has a corresponding present form:
The film is produced in Hollywood
We will return to passives later, when we look at voice.
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Progressive be
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As the name suggests, the progressive expresses action in progress:
The old lady is writing a play
It also has a past form:
The old lady was writing a play
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Perfective have
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The perfective auxiliary expresses an action accomplished in the past but retaining current relevance:
She has broken her leg
(Compare: She broke her leg)
Together with the progressive auxiliary, the perfective auxiliary encodes aspect, which we will look at later.
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Modal can/could
may/might
shall/should
will/would
must
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Modals express permission, ability, obligation, or prediction:
You can have a sweet if you like
He may arrive early
Paul will be a footballer some day
I really should leave now
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Dummy Do
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This subclass contains only the verb do. It is used to form questions:
Do you like cheese?
to form negative statements:
I do not like cheese
and in giving orders:
Do not eat the cheese
Finally, dummy do can be used for emphasis:
I do like cheese
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An important difference between auxiliary verbs and main verbs is that auxiliaries never occur alone in a sentence. For instance, we cannot remove the main verb from a sentence, leaving only the auxiliary:
I would like a new job
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~*I would a new job
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You should buy a new car
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~*You should a new car
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She must be crazy
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~*She must crazy
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Auxiliaries always occur with a main verb. On the other hand, main verbs can occur without an auxiliary.
I like my new job
I bought a new car
She sings like a bird
In some sentences, it may appear that an auxiliary does occur alone. This is especially true in responses to questions:
Q. Can you sing?
A. Yes, I can
Here the auxiliary can does not really occur without a main verb, since the main verb -- sing -- is in the question. The response is understood to mean:
Yes, I can sing
This is known as ellipsis -- the main verb has been ellipted from the response.
Auxiliaries often appear in a shortened or contracted form, especially in informal contexts. For instance, auxiliary have is often shortened to 've:
I have won the lottery ~I've won the lottery
These shortened forms are called enclitic forms. Sometimes different auxiliaries have the same enclitic forms, so you should distinguish carefully between them:
I'd like a new job ( = modal auxiliary would)
We'd already spent the money by then ( = perfective auxiliary had)
He's been in there for ages ( = perfective auxiliary has)
She's eating her lunch ( = progressive auxiliary is)
The following exercise concentrates on three of the most important auxiliaries -- be, have, and do.
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