Auxiliary Verbs

A. Auxiliary Verbs

In sentences, auxiliary verbs, like "have," "can't," "was," and "do," play a supporting role alongside the main verb. They're handy when you want to avoid repetition. For instance:

• "Have you locked the door?" "Yes, I have." (Instead of saying "I have locked the door.")
• "Gary wasn’t working, but Laura was." (Instead of saying "Laura was working.")
• "Jessica could lend me the money, but she won’t." (Instead of saying "She won’t lend me the money.")

Auxiliary verbs like "do," "does," and "did" are used for present and past simple tenses:

• "Do you like onions?" "Yes, I do." (Instead of saying "I like onions.")
• "Does Simon live in London?" "He did, but he doesn’t anymore."

They also come in handy for denying what someone says:

• "You’re sitting in my place." "No, I’m not." (Instead of saying "I’m not sitting in your place.")
• "You didn’t lock the door before you left." "Yes, I did." (Instead of saying "I locked the door.")

B. Expressing Interest and Surprise

We use phrases like "have you?" "isn't she?" "are they?" to show interest or surprise in response to something said:

• "I’ve just seen Steven." "Oh, have you?"
• "Lisa isn’t very well today." "Isn’t she?"
• "It rained every day during our holiday." "Did it? What a shame!"
• "James and Tanya are getting married." "Are they? Really?"

C. Using Auxiliary Verbs with 'So' and 'Neither'

"So" and "neither" are often used with auxiliary verbs to show agreement or similarity:

• "I’m tired." "So am I." (Instead of saying "I’m tired too.")
• "I never read newspapers." "Neither do I." (Instead of saying "I never read newspapers either.")
• "Sarah can’t drive and neither can Mark."

Note the word order after "so" and "neither" (verb before subject). For example: "I passed the exam and so did Paul." (not "so Paul did")

D. Expressing Uncertainty

Phrases like "I think so," "I suppose so," "I hope so," and "I'm afraid so" come in handy when you want to express uncertainty without repetition:

• "Are those people Korean?" "I think so." (Instead of saying "I think they are Korean.")
• "Is Kate working tomorrow?" "I suppose so." (Instead of saying "I suppose she is working tomorrow.")
• "Will you be at home this evening?" "I expect so." (Instead of saying "I expect I’ll be at home ...")

Similarly, we say "I hope not," "I'm afraid not," "I guess not," and "I suppose not" for negative forms:

• "I hope so. / I hope not." (not "I don’t hope so")
• "I think so. / I don’t think so."

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

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