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be

See also: Appendix:Variations of "be"

Contents

EnglishEdit

 
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EtymologyEdit

From Middle English been (“to be”). The various forms have three separate origins, which were mixed together at various times in the history of English.

PronunciationEdit

VerbEdit

be (highly irregular)

  1. (intransitive, now literary) To exist; to have real existence.
    • 1526, Bible, tr. William Tyndale, Matthew 2:
      Rachel wepynge ffor her chyldren, and wolde nott be comforted because they were not.
    • c. 1600, William Shakespeare, Hamlet:
      To be, or not to be, that is the Question […].
    • 1603, John Florio, transl.; Michel de Montaigne, Essayes, London: Edward Blount, OCLC 946730821:
      , II.12:
      it were great sottishnesse, and apparent false-hood, to say, that that is which is not yet in being, or that already hath ceased from being.
    • 1643, Thomas Browne, Religio Medici, II.2:
      There is surely a peece of Divinity in us, something that was before the Elements, and owes no homage unto the Sun.
    • 2004, Richard Schickel, "Not Just an African Story", Time, 13 December:
      The genial hotel manager of the past is no more. Now owner of a trucking concern and living in Belgium, Rusesabagina says the horrors he witnessed in Rwanda "made me a different man."
  2. (with there, or dialectally it, as dummy subject) To exist.
    • 1598, William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice:
      Some men there are loue not a gaping Pigge: / Some that are mad, if they behold a Cat: / And others, when the bag-pipe sings i’th nose, / Cannot containe their Vrine for affection.
    • 1817, Jane Austen, Persuasion:
      "There is a sort of domestic enjoyment to be known even in a crowd, and this you had."
    • 2011, Mark Sweney, The Guardian, 6 July:
      "There has been lots of commentary on who is staying and who is staying out and this weekend will be the real test," said one senior media buying agency executive who has pulled the advertising for one major client.
    There is just one woman in town who can help us. (or, dialectally:) It is just one woman in town who can help us.
  3. (intransitive) To occupy a place.
    The cup is on the table.
  4. (intransitive) To occur, to take place.
    When will the meeting be?
  5. (intransitive, in perfect tenses, without predicate) elliptical form of "be here", "go to and return from" or similar.
    The postman has been today, but my tickets have still not yet come.
    I have been to Spain many times.
  6. (transitive, copulative) Used to indicate that the subject and object are the same.
    Knowledge is bliss.
    Hi, I’m Jim.
  7. (transitive, copulative, mathematics) Used to indicate that the values on either side of an equation are the same.
    3 times 5 is fifteen.
  8. (transitive, copulative) Used to indicate that the subject plays the role of the predicate nominal.
    François Mitterrand was president of France from 1981 to 1995.
  9. (transitive, copulative) Used to connect a noun to an adjective that describes it.
    The sky is blue.
  10. (transitive, copulative) Used to indicate that the subject has the qualities described by a noun or noun phrase.
    The sky is a deep blue today.
  11. (transitive, auxiliary) Used to form the passive voice.
    The dog was drowned by the boy.
    • 1995, C. K. Ogden, Psyche: An Annual General and Linguistic Psychology 1920-1952, C. K. Ogden, ISBN 9780415127790, page 13:
      Study courses of Esperanto and Ido have been broadcast.
  12. (transitive, auxiliary) Used to form the continuous forms of various tenses.
    The woman is walking.
    I shall be writing to you soon.
    We liked to chat while we were eating.
    • 1995, C. K. Ogden, Psyche: An Annual General and Linguistic Psychology 1920-1952, C. K. Ogden, ISBN 9780415127790, page 13:
      In the possibility of radio uses of a constructed language — and such experiments are proving successful—vast sums of money and untold social forces may be involved.
  13. (archaic, auxiliary) Used to form the perfect aspect with certain intransitive verbs, most of which indicate motion. Often still used for "to go"
    • 1606, Macbeth by William Shakespeare:
      They are not yet come back. (instead of the modern They have not yet come back.)
    • 1850, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, The Blessed Damozel, ll.67-68
      ‘I wish that he were come to me, / For he will come,’ she said.
    • Matthew 28:6 (various translations, from the King James Version of 1611 to Revised Version of 1881):
      He is not here; for he is risen […].
    • 1922, A. E. Housman, Last Poems XXV, l.13:
      The King with half the East at heel is marched from lands of morning;
  14. (transitive, auxiliary) Used to form future tenses, especially the future periphrastic.
    I am to leave tomorrow.
    I would drive you, were I to obtain a car.
  15. (transitive, copulative) Used to link a subject to a measurement.
    This building is three hundred years old.
    I am 75 kilograms.
    He’s about 6 feet tall.
  16. (transitive, copulative, with a cardinal numeral) Used to state the age of a subject in years.
    I’m 20. (= I am 20 years old.)
  17. (with a dummy subject it) Used to indicate the time of day.
    It is almost eight. (= It is almost eight o’clock.)
    It’s 8:30 [read eight-thirty] in Tokyo.
    What time is it there? It’s night.
  18. (With since) Used to indicate passage of time since the occurrence of an event.
    It has been three years since my grandmother died. (similar to My grandmother died three years ago, but emphasizes the intervening period)
    It had been six days since his departure, when I received a letter from him.
  19. (often impersonal, with it as a dummy subject) Used to indicate weather, air quality, or the like.
    It is hot in Arizona, but it is not usually humid.
    Why is it so dark in here?
  20. (dynamic/lexical "be", especially in progressive tenses, conjugated non-suppletively in the present tense, see usage notes) To exist or behave in a certain way.
    • 2006 October 9, Kristin Newman (writer), Barney Stinson (character), How I Met Your Mother, season 2, episode 1:
      "When I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead."
    "What do we do?" "We be ourselves."
    Why is he being nice to me?
  21. (African American Vernacular, Caribbean, auxiliary, not conjugated) To tend to do, often do; marks the habitual aspect.
    • 1996, David Sheffield, Barry W. Blaustein, Tom Shadyac and Steve Oedekerk, screenplay of The Nutty Professor
      Women be shoppin’! You cannot stop a woman from shoppin’!

QuotationsEdit

ConjugationEdit

Modern conjugation
infinitive to be
present participle/gerund being
past participle been
indicative subjunctive imperative
singular plural singular plural singular plural
present I am (’m) we are (’re) I be we be — let’s be
you are (’re) you are (’re) you be you be be be
he/she/it is (’s) they are (’re) he/she/it be they be — —
preterite I was* we were I were** we were
you were you were you were you were
he/she/it was* they were he/she/it were** they were

*Some non-standard dialects use were in these instances.
**Some non-standard dialects use was in these instances.

Archaic conjugation
infinitive to be
present participle/gerund being
past participle been
indicative subjunctive imperative
singular plural singular plural singular plural
present I am (’m) we are (’re) I be we be — let’s be
thou art (’rt) ye are (’re) thou be/beest ye be be (thou)*** be (ye)***
he/she/it is (’s) they are (’re),
they be		 he/she/it be they be — —
preterite I was* we were I were** we were
thou wast ye were thou wert ye were
he/she/it was* they were he/she/it were** they were

*Some non-standard dialects will have were in these instances.
**Some non-standard dialects will have was in these instances.
***It is optional to include the subject which is to be stated after the imperative.

  • The verb be is the most irregular non-defective verb in Standard English. Unlike other verbs, which distinguish at most five forms (as in do–does–doing–did–done), be distinguishes many more:
    • Be itself is the plain form, used as the infinitive, as the imperative, and as the present subjunctive.
      I want to be a father someday. (infinitive)
      If that be true... (present subjunctive)
      Allow the truth to be heard! (infinitive)
      Please be here by eight o’clock. (imperative)
      The librarian asked that the rare books not be touched. (present subjunctive)
      • Be is also used as the present tense indicative form in the alternate, dynamic / lexical conjugation of be:
        What do we do? We be ourselves. (first-person plural present indicative, lexical be)
        but: Who are we? We are human beings. (first-person plural present indicative, copula be)
      It is also an archaic alternative form of the indicative, especially in the plural[1]:
      The powers that be, are ordained of God. (Romans 13:1, Tyndale Bible, 1526)
      We are true men; we are no spies: We be twelve brethren... (Genesis 42:31-2, King James Version, 1611)
      I think it be thine indeed, for thou liest in it. (Hamlet, Act V, Scene 1, circa 1600)
    • Am, are, and is are the forms of the present indicative. Am is the first-person singular (used with I); is is the third-person singular (used with he, she, it and other subjects that would be used with does rather than do); and are is both the second-person singular and the plural (used with we, you, they, and any other plural subjects).
      Am I in the right place? (first-person singular present indicative)
      You are even taller than your brother! (second-person singular present indicative)
      Where is the library? (third-person singular present indicative)
      These are the biggest shoes we have. (plural present indicative)
    • Was and were are the forms of the past indicative and past subjunctive (like did). In the past indicative, was is the first– and third-person singular (used with I, as well as with he, she, it and other subjects that would be used with does rather than do), and were is both the second-person singular and the plural (used with we, you, they, and any other plural subjects). In the traditional past subjunctive, were is used with all subjects, though many speakers do not actually distinguish the past subjunctive from the past indicative, and therefore use was with first– and third-person singular subjects even in cases where other speakers would use were.
      I was out of town. (first-person singular past indicative)
      You were the first person here. (second-person singular past indicative)
      The room was dirty. (third-person singular past indicative)
      We were angry at each other. (plural past indicative)
      I wish I were more sure. (first-person singular past subjunctive; was is also possible, though considered less correct)
      If she were here, she would know what to do. (third-person singular past subjunctive; was is also possible, though considered less correct)
    • Being is the gerund and present participle, used in noun-like constructions, in the progressive aspect, and after various verbs (like doing). (It’s also used as an actual noun; for those senses, see the entry for being itself.)
      I don’t like being here. (gerund)
      All of a sudden, he’s being nice to everyone. (present participle in the progressive aspect)
      It won’t stop being a problem until someone does something about it. (present participle in the progressive aspect)
    • Been is the past participle, used in the perfect aspect. In Middle English, it was also the infinitive.
      It’s been that way for a week and a half.
  • In archaic or obsolete forms of English, with the pronoun thou, the verb be has a few additional forms:
    • When the pronoun thou was in regular use, the forms art, wast, and wert were the corresponding present indicative, past indicative, and past subjunctive, respectively.
    • As thou became less common and more highly marked, a special present-subjunctive form beest developed (replacing the regular present subjunctive form be, still used with all other subjects). Additionally, the form wert, previously a past subjunctive form, came to be used as a past indicative as well.
  • The forms am, is, and are can contract with preceding subjects: I’m (“I am”), ’s (“is”), ’re (“are”). The form are most commonly contracts with personal pronouns (we’re (“we are”), you’re (“you are”), they’re (“they are”)), but contractions with other subjects is possible; the form is contracts quite freely with a variety of subjects. These contracted forms, however, are possible only when there is an explicit, non-preposed complement, and they cannot be stressed; therefore, contraction does not occur in sentences such as the following:
    Who’s here? —I am.
    I wonder what it is.
    I don’t want to be involved. —But you are involved, regardless.
  • Several of the finite forms of be have special negative forms, containing the suffix -n’t, that can be used instead of adding the adverb not. Specifically, the forms is, are, was, and were have the negative forms isn’t, aren’t, wasn’t, and weren’t. The form be itself does not, even in finite uses, with “not be” being used in the present subjunctive and “do not be” or “don’t be” (or, in dated use, “be not”) being used in the imperative. The form am has the negative forms aren’t, amn’t, and arguably ain’t, but all of these are in restricted use; see their entries for details.
  • Outside of Standard English, there is some variation in usage of some forms; some dialects, for example, use is or ’s throughout the present indicative (supplanting, in whole or in part, am and are), and/or was throughout the past indicative and past subjunctive (supplanting were).

Usage notesEdit

  • When used copulatively with a pronoun, traditional grammar puts the pronoun in the subjective case (I, he, she, we, they) rather than the objective case (me, him, her, us, them), regardless of which side of the copula it is placed. For example, "I was the masked man" and "The masked man was I" would both be considered correct, while "The masked man was me" and "Me was the masked man" would both be incorrect. However, most colloquial speech treats the verb be as transitive, in which case the pronoun is used in the objective case if it occurs after the copula: "I was the masked man" but "The masked man was me". This paradigm applies even if the copula is linking two pronouns; thus "I am her" and "She is me", and "Am I me?" (versus the traditional "I am she", "She is I", "Am I I?").

SynonymsEdit

  • (used to form passive): get

TranslationsEdit

Note: This verb has many irregularities in both form and usage in many languages. Use translations with caution.

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
Translations to be checked

ReferencesEdit

StatisticsEdit

Most common English words before 1923 in Project Gutenberg: had · you · not · #19: be · at · by · on

AnagramsEdit

AlbanianEdit

EtymologyEdit

From Proto-Albanian *baidā, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeidʰ- 'persuade' (compare Ancient Greek πείθω (peíthō)).

NounEdit

be f (indefinite plural be, definite singular beja, definite plural betë)

  1. oath
  2. vow, swearing
Derived termsEdit

BalineseEdit

NounEdit

be

  1. fish
  2. meat, fish, tofu, egg (everything that is eaten with rice except vegetables)

CatalanEdit

Etymology 1Edit

NounEdit

be f (plural bes)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.
Derived termsEdit
Usage notesEdit

In some dialects of Catalan, the sounds associated with the letter b and the letter v are the same: [β]. In order to differentiate be and ve in those dialects, the letters are often called be alta (“high B”) and ve baixa (“low V”).

Etymology 2Edit

Onomatopoeic from the sound of a lamb.

NounEdit

be m (plural bens)

  1. sheep, ram, ewe, lamb; an individual of the species Ovis aries.

DorasqueEdit

NounEdit

be

  1. (Changuena, Chumulu, Gualaca) night

ReferencesEdit

  • Alphonse Louis Pinart, Vocabulario Castellano-dorasque, Dialectos Chumulu, Gualaca Y Changuina (1890)

FaroeseEdit

NounEdit

be n (genitive singular bes, plural be)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.

DeclensionEdit

Declension of be
n4 singular plural
indefinite definite indefinite definite
nominative be beið be beini
accusative be beið be beini
dative be, bei benum beum beunum
genitive bes besins bea beanna

See alsoEdit

Guerrero AmuzgoEdit

AdjectiveEdit

be

  1. red

HungarianEdit

PronunciationEdit

AdverbEdit

be

  1. in

Derived termsEdit

See alsoEdit

IdoEdit

PronunciationEdit

NounEdit

be (plural be-i)

  1. The name of the Latin script letter B/b.

See alsoEdit

JapaneseEdit

RomanizationEdit

be

  1. Rōmaji transcription of べ (hiragana)
  2. Rōmaji transcription of ベ (katakana)

KarajáEdit

NounEdit

be

  1. water

ReferencesEdit

  • David Lee Fortune, Gramática Karajá: um Estudo Preliminar em Forma Transformacional

LatinEdit

PronunciationEdit

NounEdit

bē (indeclinable)

  1. The name of the letter B.

Coordinate termsEdit

ReferencesEdit

  • Arthur E. Gordon, The Letter Names of the Latin Alphabet (University of California Press, 1973; volume 9 of University of California Publications: Classical Studies), part III: “Summary of the Ancient Evidence”, page 32: "Clearly there is no question or doubt about the names of the vowels A, E, I, O, U. They are simply long A, long E, etc. (ā, ē, ī, ō, ū). Nor is there any uncertainty with respect to the six mutes B, C, D, G, P, T. Their names are bē, cē, dē, gē, pē, tē (each with a long E). Or about H, K, and Q: they are hā, kā, kū—each, again, with a long vowel sound."

LithuanianEdit

PronunciationEdit

PrepositionEdit

be (with genitive)

  1. (shows absence of something) without
  2. besides; but, except

AntonymsEdit

LojbanEdit

CmavoEdit

be

  1. Connects the following sumti (“argument”) to the previous sumti as an internal sumti (“argument”) (subordinate (relative) clause); by default as the x2 argument.
    le klama be la paris.
    the one (who is) going to Paris
    le klama be fo la paris.
    the one (who is) travelling via Paris
    tumxra be la mexikos. zei tcadu
    Map of(i.e., which depicts) Mexico City.
    ti zbasu be lo takybli bei lo kliti
    This makes bricks out of clay.
    ti zbasu lo takybli lo kliti
    This makes bricks out of clay.

Usage notesEdit

  • The cmavo be'o can be used to indicate the termination of the internal sumti (“argument”), but is only required if the parsing of the sentence would otherwise be ambiguous.

Derived termsEdit

Related termsEdit

See AlsoEdit

Norwegian BokmålEdit

EtymologyEdit

From Old Norse biðja

VerbEdit

be (imperative be, present tense ber, passive bes, simple past ba or bad, past participle bedt, present participle beende)

  1. to pray
  2. to ask something of someone

SynonymsEdit

Derived termsEdit

Related termsEdit

ReferencesEdit

  • “be” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
  • “be” in The Ordnett Dictionary

Norwegian NynorskEdit

Alternative formsEdit

EtymologyEdit

From Old Norse biðja. Akin to English bid.

PronunciationEdit

VerbEdit

be (present tense ber, past tense bad, past participle bede or bedd or bedt, present participle bedande, imperative be)

  1. to pray
  2. to ask something of someone

Derived termsEdit

Related termsEdit

ReferencesEdit

  • “be” in The Bokmål Dictionary / The Nynorsk Dictionary.
  • “be” in The Ordnett Dictionary

Old IrishEdit

Alternative formsEdit

  • (2nd sg. pres. subj.): ba

VerbEdit

be

  1. second-person singular present subjunctive of is
  2. first-person singular future of is
  3. second-person singular future of is

Old PrussianEdit

ConjunctionEdit

be

  1. and
    wāiklis be mērgā - a boy and a girl

PrepositionEdit

be

  1. without

PolishEdit

PronunciationEdit

NounEdit

be n (indeclinable)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.

AdjectiveEdit

be (indeclinable, comparative bardziej be, superlative najbardziej be)

  1. (childish) bad, not suitable, not eatable

InterjectionEdit

be

  1. (onomatopoeia) A sound of a sheep

Further readingEdit

  • be in Polish dictionaries at PWN

ScotsEdit

EtymologyEdit

Old English bēon.

VerbEdit

tae be

  1. To be.

ConjugationEdit

    Conjugation of be (highly irregular, suppletive)
infinitive tae be
present participle bein
past participle been
person singular plural
A thoo1 he/she/it we ye they
regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative
present am amna art artna is isna are arena are arena are arena
past wis wis, wir2
1Archaic.
2Used only with plural pronouns.
    Northern Scots conjugation of be (highly irregular, suppletive)
infinitive tae be
present participle bein
past participle been
person singular plural
A ee hei/shi/it oo yow yins they
regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative regular emphatic negative
present im em, um imni ir er, ur irni is es isni ir er, ur irni is es isni ir er, ur irni
past wuz wuz, wur wuz wur

SeriliEdit

NounEdit

be

  1. water

ReferencesEdit

  • Roger Blench, The Enggano (in notes)
  • ABVD (as 'bɛ)
  • ASJP (as bE, representing bɛ)

SloveneEdit

EtymologyEdit

Probably from the German name of the letter B (pronounced [beː]).

PronunciationEdit

NounEdit

bé m inan (genitive bêja, nominative plural bêji)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.

InflectionEdit

Declension of bé (masculine inan., soft o-stem)
singular dual plural
nominative bé bêja bêji
accusative bé bêja bêje
genitive bêja bêjev bêjev
dative bêju bêjema bêjem
locative bêju bêjih bêjih
instrumental bêjem bêjema bêji

SynonymsEdit

SpanishEdit

PronunciationEdit

Etymology 1Edit

NounEdit

be f (plural bes)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.

SynonymsEdit

Etymology 2Edit

Echoic.

NounEdit

be m (plural bes)

  1. baa (bleating of a sheep)

SwedishEdit

EtymologyEdit

From older bedja, from Old Swedish biþia, from Old Norse biðja, from Proto-Germanic *bidjaną, from Proto-Indo-European *gʷʰedʰ-. Cognate with Danish bede, Icelandic biðja, English bid, Dutch bidden, German bitten.

PronunciationEdit

Alternative formsEdit

VerbEdit

be

  1. to ask for, request someone else to do something
  2. to pray
  3. to beg, to plead with someone for help or for a favor

ConjugationEdit

Conjugation of be (weak)
Active Passive
Infinitive be bes
Present tense ber bes
Past tense bad bads
Supine bett betts
Imperative be —
Present participle beende
Past participle bedd
Conjugation of bedja (dated)
Active Passive
Infinitive bedja bedjas
Present tense beder, bedjer beds, bedes, bedjes
Past tense bad bads
Supine bett betts
Imperative bed —
Present participle bedjande
Past participle bedd

Related termsEdit

TaraoEdit

Alternative formsEdit

NounEdit

be

  1. bean, beans

ReferencesEdit

  • 2002, Chungkham Yashwanta Singh, Tarao Grammar

TurkishEdit

Etymology 1Edit

NounEdit

be

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter B/b.

Etymology 2Edit

From Arabic وَاو (wāw).

Etymology 3Edit

NounEdit

be

  1. Letter of the Arabic alphabet: ب

See alsoEdit

TzotzilEdit

PronunciationEdit

  • (Zinacantán) IPA(key): /ɓɛ/

NounEdit

be

  1. road, path, way

ReferencesEdit

VietnameseEdit

PronunciationEdit

Etymology 1Edit

  This entry lacks etymological information. If you are familiar with the origin of this term, please add it to the page per etymology instructions. You can also discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.

NounEdit

be

  1. wine flask
    Rượu ngon chẳng quản be sành.
    Good wine does not mind a terracotta flask.

Etymology 2Edit

Borrowing from French beige.

AdjectiveEdit

be

  1. beige
    chiếc áo mưa màu be — a beige raincoat

Etymology 3Edit

  This entry lacks etymological information. If you are familiar with the origin of this term, please add it to the page per etymology instructions. You can also discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.

VerbEdit

be

  1. To build a mud embankment with one's hands.
  2. To prop up the lip of a sack while topping off the sack, to ensure a more generous quantity.
    lấy tay be miệng đấu khi đong đỗ — to surround the top of a measure with one's hands while measuring beans
    Đong bình thường, không được be đâu đấy. — Measure it out normally; don't prop up the lip of the sack.

Etymology 4Edit

  This entry lacks etymological information. If you are familiar with the origin of this term, please add it to the page per etymology instructions. You can also discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.

VerbEdit

be

  1. To hug a boundary or riverbank.
    Thuyền be theo bờ sông.
    The boat hugged the riverbank.

Etymology 5Edit

Onomatopoeic

InterjectionEdit

be (𠻻, 𠾦)

  1. (onomatopoeia) bleat; baa
Related termsEdit

ReferencesEdit

"be" in Hồ Ngọc Đức, Free Vietnamese Dictionary Project (details)

West MakianEdit

NounEdit

be

  1. water

ReferencesEdit

  • C. L. Voorhoeve, The Makian Languages and Their Neighbours (1982)
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