Helping Verb Phrases
In English there are two kinds of helping verbs: primary verbs and modal auxiliaries
Primary Verbs
To do
To be
To have
(To get)
Modal Auxiliaries
can/could
will/would
shall/should
may/might
must/ought to
When these words are used as helping verbs, they must be combined with a non-finite verb form. A nonfinite verb is a verb which does not indicate tense, person or number. All the verbs except the modal
auxiliaries have both finite and non-finite forms:
Regular Verb
Finite ‘walk’
Present
I walk
You walk
He, she, it walks
We walk
They walk
Non-finite
Past (Preterite)
I walked
You walked
He, she, it walked
We walked
They walked
Infinitive
-ing Present Participle
-ed Past Participle
Walk
Walking
Walked
It’s confusing, because in English regular verbs, the simple past and the past participle look alike. They
both end in ‘ed.’ You can see the difference more easily in Spanish, because in Spanish, the simple past
and the past participle don’t look alike.
Spanish ‘caminar’
Finite
Present
Camino
Caminas
Camina
Caminamos
Caminan
Past (Preterito)
Caminé
Caminaste
Caminó
Caminamos
Caminaron
Non-finite
Infinitive
(Infinitivo)
Present Participle
(Progresivo)
Past participle
(Participio)
Caminar
Caminando
Caminado
The difference between the simple past and the past participle is also easier to see in English irregular
verbs, because in those verbs, the simple past and the past participle are often different.
Irregular Verb
Finite ‘see’
Non-finite
Present
Past
I see
I saw
Infinitive
See
You see
You saw
-ing Present Participle
Seeing
He, she, it sees
He, she, it saw
-ed Past Participle
Seen
We see
We saw
They see
They saw
These are the rules for using helping verbs:
Modal + Infinitive
Modality
I could go to Seattle.
Do + Infinitive
Questions, Negatives, Emphasis,
(Remember that ‘do’ is used to form questions, negatives and for emphasis):
I didn’t see the cat. Did you go to Seattle?
‘Be’ can be part of two different kinds of phrases:
1. Be + -ing participle I am going to Seattle.
Progressive
2. Be + -ed participle The door was locked by the principal
Passive
Get + -ed participle
I got kicked out of the club.
Passive
(‘Get’) functions as an alternative to ‘be.’
Have + -ed participle I have walked home everyday this week. Perfect
Helping verbs can also combine. When they do, they follow the above rules:
I
could have been a
doctor.
Modal + Infinitive
Have + -ed participle (‘been’ is the –ed participle form of ‘be.’ ‘Be’ is very irregular.)
If helping verb is this:
Choose this:
Modal auxiliary
I will go to school tomorrow.
Infinitive
Do
I didn’t go to school yesterday.
Infinitive
Have
I have learned a lot in this class.
-ed participle
Be (There are two possibilities)
I am walking to school.
The rules were developed by a committee.
Get
Committees get bogged down in details sometimes.
1. –ing participle
2. –ed participle
–ed participle