Significado del verbo to be

El verbo to be es uno de los más camaleónicos del inglés, por lo que en muchas ocasiones su
significado depende del contexto en el que te lo encuentres. Sin embargo, sus significados
principales son los siguientes:

1. Ser

He is smart = Él es inteligente

2. Estar

It is cold today = Hoy está hacienda frío

3. Haber

Is there anybody inside? = ¿Hay alguien adentro?

4. Poder (permiso)

Tell her she is not to open the door to strangers = Dile que no puede abrirle la puerta a extraños.

Usos principales del verbo to be

Una vez que ya conocemos sus significados más conocidos, podemos conocer los usos más
comunes de este término:

• Verbo

Sirve para mencionar una acción o estado del sujeto en cualquier tiempo.

I am Mexican = Soy mexicano.

I was a doctor = Yo era doctor.

• Verbo auxiliar

Se usa en compañía de otros verbos para dar a entender que las acciones o estados se desarrollan
en el momento. Para ello se usa la conjugación –ing.

I am still working= Todavía estoy trabajando.

Conjugación del verbo to be

Te presentamos algunos cuadros con las conjugaciones de los siguientes tiempos: presente, pasado
simple, futuro simple, presente perfecto, pasado perfecto, futuro perfecto, condicional y condicional
perfecto. Además incluimos sus formas afirmativas, negativas y de pregunta.

Presente

Afirmativo Negativo Pregunta

I am I am not Am I?

You are You are not Are you?

He / She / It is He / She / It is not Is he / she / it?

We are We are not Are we?

You are You are not Are you?

They are They are not Are they?

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en presente

• I am tall = Yo soy alto/a

• I am not your teacher = Yo no soy tu maestro/a

• Are you her doctor? = ¿Eres su doctor/a?

Pasado simple
 Afirmativo Negativo Pregunta

I was I was not Was I?

You were You were not Were you?

He / She / It was He / She / It was not Was he / she / it?

We were We were not Were we?

You were You were not Were you?

They were They were not Were they?

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en pasado simple

• I was very shy = Yo era muy tímido/a

• We were not the champions = Nosotros no fuimos campeones

• Were you at the store? = ¿Estabas en la tienda?

Futuro simple

Afirmativo Negativo Pregunta

I will be I will not be Will I be?

 You will be You will not be Will you be?

He / She / It will be He / She / It will not be Will he / she / it be?

We will be We will not be Will we be?

You will be You will not be Will you be?

They will be They will not be Will they be?

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en futuro simple

• We will be a great team = Seremos un gran equipo

• They will not be my next students = Ellos no serán mis próximos estudiantes

• Will we be at the beach next weekend? = ¿Estaremos en la playa el próximo fin de

semana?

Presente perfecto

Afirmativo Negativo Pregunta

I have been I have not been Have I been?

You have been You have not been Have you been?

He / She / It has been He / She / It has not been Has he / she / it been?
 We have been We have not been Have we been?

You have been You have not been Have you been?

They have been They have not been Have they been?

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en presente perfecto

• I have been your fan all my life = He sido tu fanático toda mi vida

• She has not been kind to you = Ella no te ha tratado bien

• Has it been a good instrument? = ¿Eso a sido un buen instrumento?

Pasado perfecto

Afirmativo Negativo Pregunta

I had been I had not been Had I been?

You had been You had not been Had you been?

He / She / It been He / She / It had not been Had he / she / it been?

We had been We had not been Had we been?

You had been You had not been Had you been?
 They had been They had not been Had they been?

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en pasado perfecto

La oración en pasado perfecto siempre está acompañada de otra oración o frase en el pasado para
dar contexto:

• I had been the goalkeeper of the team before I went to college in another city = Yo era el
portero del equipo antes de irme a estudiar a otra ciudad.

• They had not been the best classmates in high school = Ellos no fueron los mejores
compañeros de clase en la secundaria.

• Had you been at the concert before the earthquake? = ¿Ustedes estaban en el concierto
cuando tembló?

Futuro perfecto

Afirmativo Negativo Pregunta

I will have been I will not have been Will I have been?

You will have been You will not have been Will you have been?

He / She / It will have He / She / It will not have Will he / she / have
been been been?

We will have been We will not have been Will we have been?

You will have been You will not have been Will you have been?
 They will have been They will not have been Will they have been?

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en futuro perfecto

El futuro perfecto es para hablar de algo que sucederá antes de otra acción en el futuro. Por
ejemplo:

• By the time you get home, I will have been asleep = Para cuando estés llegando a casa,
yo ya habré dormido.

• You will have been named the winner by the time the end of the day = Habrás sido
declarada la ganadora antes de que termine el día.

• She will have been cured by the time her family gets here? = Ella se habrá curado antes
de que llegué su familia.

Condicional

Afirmativo Negativo Pregunta

I would be I would not be Would I be?

You would be You would not be Would you be?

He / She / It would be He / She / It would not be Would he / she / it be?

We would be We would not be Would we be?

You would be You would not be Would you be?

They would be They would not be Would they be?

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en condicional

• He would be my father = Él sería mi papá

• We would not be lost = Nosotros no estaríamos perdidos

• Would you be my valentine? = ¿Serías mi cita de San Valentín?

Condicional perfecto

Afirmativo Negativo Pregunta

I would have been I would not have been Would I have been?

You would have been You would not have been Would you have been?

He / She / It would have He / She / It would not have Would he / she / it have
been been been?

We would have been We would not have been Would we have been?

You would have been You would not have been Would you have been?

They would have been They would not have been Would they have been?

Verbo to be: Ejemplos en condicional perfecto

• I would have been waiting for you all night if I hadn’t been so tired = Yo te habría estado
esperando toda la noche si no hubiera estado tan cansado.

• They would not have been found guilty without the main piece of evidence… the letter =
Ellos no habrían sido declarados culpables sin la pieza clave de la evidencia: la carta.
 • Would you have been sitting quietly here if you already knew the truth? = ¿Habrían
estado sentadas aquí si hubieran sabido la verdad?

https://www.britishcouncil.org.mx/blog/verbo-to-be