Auxiliary Verbs: Definition, Examples & List

Auxiliary verbs are needed to make our sentences more exciting and impressive. Auxiliary verbs are the first step in forming a complete sentence. When used with the main verb, auxiliary verbs finish sentences. Using auxiliary verbs is about expressing your feelings, making a statement, asking a question, or giving a command. In this article, we will see about auxiliary verbs, who uses them, and how to use them in English.

Auxiliary Verbs

What is an Auxiliary Verb?

A verb that uses a helping verb along with a main verb in a sentence is known as an Auxiliary verb. It is used to express moods, voice, and tense. For example, “I have finished my homework” In this sentence “have” in “I have finished my homework” functions as an auxiliary verb. Specifically, it is functioning as a helping verb to form the present perfect tense.

Auxiliary Verb Definition

The auxiliary verbs are the connecting words that show the relation between a subject or object and another subject, noun, or verb. It is a passive action word that describes an action done by someone else to do something. A helping verb adds functional or grammatical meaning to another verb in a phrase. Helping verbs are for expressing tense, aspect, and modality.

Auxiliary Verbs Examples

Below is a compilation of auxiliary verbs suitable for use in conjunction with primary verbs to fulfill various auxiliary functions:

• Might
• Has
• Will
• Could
• Should
• Shall
• Must
• Do
• Would
• Are
• May
• Had
• Ought to
• Am
• Was
• Were
• Can
• Need
• Is
• Did

Types of Auxiliary Verbs

Auxiliary verbs and modal-aiding verbs are the two primary categories of helping verbs : 

1) Primary Auxiliary Verbs

Helping verbs, commonly referred to as auxiliary verbs, are used in sentences to support the primary verb. Examples of auxiliary verbs include “be,” “do,” “have,” “will,” “shall,” “may,” “can,” “must,” “ought,” “should,” “could,” and “would.” They indicate tense, aspect, mood, and voice and form questions, negatives, and passive structures. Primary auxiliary verbs include “to be” and “to have.” They are used to indicate tense, voice, and mood. The verb “to be” forms the simple present, simple past, and present perfect tenses. 

List of Primary Auxiliary Verb 

Auxiliary verbs, also known as “helping verbs,” are used in combination with a main verb to add meaning to the sentence. Here are some examples of auxiliary verbs:

• “I am walking to the store.” In this sentence, “am” is the auxiliary verb.
• “She has finished her homework.” In this sentence, “has” is the auxiliary verb.
• “We will be going on vacation next month.” In this sentence, “will be” is the auxiliary verb.
• “He could have studied harder for the test.” In this sentence, “could have” is the auxiliary verb.
• “They are going to the party tonight.” In this sentence, “are going to” is the auxiliary verb.
• “I should have been more careful.” In this sentence, “should have been” is the auxiliary verb.
• “The children were playing in the park.” In this sentence, “were” is the auxiliary verb.
• “She must finish her project by tomorrow.” In this sentence, “must” is the auxiliary verb.
• “I might have seen him at the concert.” In this sentence, “might have” is the auxiliary verb.
• “He is still sleeping.” In this sentence, “is” is the auxiliary verb.

Primary Auxiliary Verb Examples in a Sentence

• She had been studying all night.
• He could not finish the task.
• I must go now.
• She should have done it.
• We may go to the movies.

2) Modal Verbs

Modal verbs are auxiliary verbs that express many meanings, such as probability, necessity, obligation, permission, and ability. They are one of the essential components of English grammar and can be used to express various meanings. Each of these verbs has a different purpose and usage, so it is necessary to understand the nuances of each one.

List of Modal Verbs

Modal verbs are an essential part of English grammar and express many meanings. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the nuances of each modal verb and how to use them correctly in your writing.

• Can is for expressing possibility, permission, or ability. For example, “I can speak Spanish.” In this sentence, can is saying the speaker’s ability to speak Spanish. 
• Could is a polite way to express prior potential or ability. For example, “I could speak Spanish as a child.” This sentence could tell the speaker’s past ability to speak Spanish. 
• May is a word used to indicate possibility or permission. For example, “May I have a cookie?” This sentence is for asking for permission to have a cookie politely. 
• Might is for expressing possibility or a polite request. For example, “You might want to try this new restaurant.” This sentence might say the likelihood that the listener might want to try the new restaurant. 
• Must is used to express necessity or strong obligation. For example, “You must obey the law.” This sentence must say the vital duty to obey the law. 
• Ought to is used to express obligation or advice. For example, “You ought to study more.” This sentence is to advise you to study more. 

Modal Verb Examples in a Sentence

• I can speak Spanish.
• You might want to try this new restaurant.
• You must obey the law.
• You ought to study more.
• May I have a cookie?

How to Use Auxiliary Verbs with Examples?

It is essential to use auxiliary verbs correctly to communicate effectively. For example, when using modal auxiliary verbs, it is necessary to remember that the base form of another verb follows them. Additionally, when using primary auxiliary verbs, it is essential to remember that they are used to form certain verb tenses. Lastly, when using semi-auxiliary verbs, it is critical to remember that they are used to express a range of ideas. Therefore, you can communicate more effectively and accurately by understanding and correctly using auxiliary verbs.

Auxiliary Verbs Used to Alter the Tense of the Sentence

A few auxiliary verbs in particular can be used to modify the tense of an action taken by the subject (noun or pronoun) inside a context. Different tenses of verbs are indicated by all forms of “to be,” all forms of “have,” and all forms of “will.”

Points to Remember:

The gerund (verb+ing) form of the main verb should always be used when utilising the forms of “to be,” as they signify ongoing action.
Make sure to use both the various forms of “have” and the past participle forms of the key verbs when employing the verbs. There’s one more thing you need to remember. Make sure to use the gerund (verb+ing) form of the main verb in sentences when the auxiliary verbs “have” and “been” are used together to denote the perfect continuous tense.

Make sure to use the root verb as such combined with “will” and a gerund (verb+ing) along with “will be” to indicate the future continuous tense when using the auxiliary verb “will” to indicate the simple future tense. When indicating the future perfect tense, make sure to use the past participle form of the main verb in conjunction with the auxiliary verbs “have” and “will.”

Let us look at the following examples to learn how to use them in sentences effectively.

Root Verb	Auxiliary Verb	Tense Form	Examples
To be	Am	Present Continuous (Singular)	I am watching the match.
	Is	Present Continuous (Singular)	He is having his lunch.
	Are	Present Continuous (Plural)	They are going to Dubai.
	Was	Past Continuous (Singular)	Seetha was drinking water.
	Were	Past Continuous (Plural)	The children were playing pictionary.
Have	Have	Present Perfect	They have come to India after five years.
	Has	Present Perfect (Third person pronoun – ‘He’, ‘She’ and ‘It’)	Tharun has finally found the keys to his car.
	Had	Past Perfect	Neena and Vijay had brought their pet along with them when they came to have dinner with us.
	Have been	Present Perfect Continuous	I have been waiting for my interview results since last week.
	Has been	Present Perfect Continuous (Third person pronoun – ‘He’, ‘She’ and ‘It’)	Firoz has been working as a doctor in Uttar Pradesh for a year now.
	Had been	Past Perfect Continuous	Heera and Diana had been waiting to visit the Museum of Fine Arts from the day they reached Bangalore.
Will	Will	Simple Future	I assure you that I will finish all my assignments by Friday.
	Will be	Future Continuous	She will be attending the Parent-Teacher meeting next week.
	Will have	Future Perfect	They will have reached London by this time tomorrow.

Auxiliary Verbs used to Alter the Voice of the Verb

All forms of ‘to be’, ‘have’ and ‘will’ can be used as auxiliary verbs to represent the voice of the verb in a sentence. Let us look at some examples of how these auxiliary verbs can be used.

Root Verb	Auxiliary Verb	Examples
To be	Is	Football is played by Garry.
	Are	Chocolates are liked by most children.
	Was	Any sort of amendments to the bill was refused by the judge.
	Were	The documents for the loan proposal were being checked by the banking officials.
Have	Have been	All the neighbours have been invited to the birthday party by Raam Kumar.
	Has been	He has been checked by the doctor.
	Had been	The workers had been sent to protest against low wages by the company.
Will	Will be	The bus will be boarded by me at 8:30 p.m. tonight.
	Will have	The solution to the problem will have been delivered by the authorities, this time tomorrow.

Auxiliary Verbs used to Express the Mood

Sentence mood is conveyed by the verb forms of the auxiliary verb “do.” The majority of phrases that use it are imperative or interrogative. Let’s examine a few instances.

Do your kids like to watch films that teach things?
Did she finish the tasks that were given to her?
When you get home tonight, remember to bring the Bluetooth speaker.

List of Auxiliary Verbs of All Tenses

English has three primary auxiliary verbs: be, have, and do. Each has a conjugation in the Present tense, Past tense, and Future tense.

Present Tense

• “be” (am, is, are): I am reading.
• “do” (does, do): He does his lunch.
• “have” (has, have): They have lunch.

Past Tense

• “be” (was, were): She was running.
• “do” (did): We did our best.
• “have” (had): He had a great time

Future Tense

• “will”: I will call you later.
• “shall”: We shall meet tomorrow.
• “be going to”: They are going to travel.

These are some of the examples of auxiliary verbs that are used in tenses. Also, remember that the forms of the auxiliary verbs may change and also depends on the subject and tense of the sentence.

Check Your Understanding of Auxiliary Verbs

1. The baby ___ a blanket.
a. has
b. am
c. are
2. The dog __ an injury, but now he’s okay.
a. is
b. had
c. will
3. ______ you come with me to the hospital?
a. has
b. had
c. Will
4. It ______ be what you wished for. Open it.
a. Could
b. is
c. have
5. Sheena ______ finished this in an hour.
a. is
b. can
c. have

Auxiliary Verbs in English- FAQs

Q1. What are Auxiliary Verbs?

A auxilliary verb used in forming the tenses, moods, and voices of other verbs.

Q2. What is the definition of Auxiliary Verbs?

When used in a sentence, auxiliary verbs provide a supporting role behind the primary verb. They’re to create complex grammatical tenses, like the perfect and continuous ones, which show different aspects of a time or how long an action takes.

Q3. Give some examples of Auxiliary Verbs.

Some examples of auxiliary verbs include am, is, were, were, will have, has had, may, might, can, could, shall, should, must, ought to, would, etc.

Q4. Why are Auxiliary Verbs important?

Auxiliary verbs are essential because they provide the grammatical structure necessary for a sentence to make sense. In addition, they can express a variety of tenses, such as past, present, and future, and they can also convey various nuances, such as modality, aspect, and voice.