be
/ˈbiː/
To exist; to have real existence, to be alive; Used to declare the subject and object identical or equivalent; Used to indicate that a predicate nominal applies to the subject
- he/she/it
- is
- past
- was
- past participle
- been
Meanings
- 1
To exist — As a copulative verb
It has to be done.
Tatoeba · _undertoad · CC BY 2.0 FR
It had to be done.
Tatoeba · CK · CC BY 2.0 FR
- 2
To exist; to have real existence, to be alive — As an intransitive lexical verb
- 3
Used to declare the subject and object identical or equivalent — As a copulative verb
- 4
Used to indicate that a predicate nominal applies to the subject — As a copulative verb
- 5
Used to indicate that the subject has the qualities described by an adjective or prepositional phrase — As a copulative verb
- 6
Used to indicate that the subject has the qualities described by a noun or noun phrase — As a copulative verb
- 7
Used to state the age of a subject in years — As a copulative verb
- 8
Used to indicate the time of day — As a copulative verb
- 9
Used to indicate passage of time since the occurrence of an event — As a copulative verb
- 10
To pass or spend (time) — As a copulative verb