Main Verbs & Helping Verbs[1]

Main Verbs and Helping Verbs

Remember

A verb may be a single word or a group of words. (multiple worded verb)

Examples

• Matt throws a football. • Taylor dances with her friend.

But...

2

• Often a verb is made up of two or more words.

• Devin is throwing a Like this... football. • Shakira is dancing with her friend. • Devin has been throwing a football. • Shakira might have danced with her friend.

So remember When there are this.. two or more

words in the verb, the last word is the main verb.

And...

The other words are helping verbs.

Check this out

• Forms of the verbs be, have, and do are the most commonly used helping verbs.

But also...

they can be used as main verbs too.

Furthermore...

Other helping verbs can be used with main verbs.

On e

mo

re

thi n

g. .

.

The main verb and its helping verbs are not always together. They may be separated by other parts of the sentence.

• The children are not Examples... eating their dinner. • Jordan has never liked snacks. • Did the teenagers make popcorn today? • We couldn’t find the recipe.

That not and the ending Just n’t are not verbs. notice... In questions, one or more words often come between the helping verb and the main verb.