Auxiliary Verb Worksheets

Related ELA Standard: L.4.1.C

Core Standard
Answer Keys Here

Auxiliary verbs are sometimes called helping verbs because they are used along with a main verb to create compound verbs. They often found in affirmative and negative statements. They are also found often in questions. If you run into a sentence that is very verb heavy, you will most likely find an auxiliary verb in there. They are almost always found in front of the main verb of a sentence. These worksheets will show you how to use and identify auxiliary verbs in sentences.

Auxiliary Verb Worksheets To Print:

Identifying the Meaning of Helping Verbs – What is the purpose of each verb here?

Auxiliary Multiple Choice – Which one fills it completely?

Differentiating Verbs – Is it a big helper?

Separating Verb Phrases – There are a great many verbs going on here.

Auxiliary Verbs in Context – Fill in all of those missing verbs.

Making Sentence with Verb Phrases – Brainstorm verb phrases that contain a helping verb for 8 minutes.

Writing & Finding Helping Verbs – Write eight sentences using helping verbs (be, can, could, do, have, may, might, must, shall, should, will, would).

Writing Be, Do, Have – Write the correct form of the auxiliary verb for each sentence.

Have You Seen Helping Verbs in Action? – Find a passage or short story (or create your own) that contains at least 6 helping verbs, make copies, and pass out to students.

Can vs. May – May is used for permission to do something while can is used for the ability to do something. Fill in the blanks with either can or may.

Identifying Auxiliary Verbs – Circle the auxiliary verb in each sentence.

Same Verb, Different Meaning – Create a sentence using helping verbs with the appropriate meaning.

Be, Do, Have Multiple Choice – Choose the correct form of be, do, and have for each sentence.

A Little Help From Have – Fill in the blanks with the appropriate form of "have."

Writing with Auxiliary Verbs – Write a sentence using the given auxiliary verb. You may use any form of the verb as long as it's still acting as an auxiliary.

What are Auxiliary Verbs?


A verb which adds some grammatical or functional meaning in the sentence or clause is called an Auxiliary verb. An auxiliary word is never used alone in the clause but always accompanies the main verb. Auxiliary verbs are used to emphasize and express the important part of the clause. Auxiliary verbs are also known as helping verbs or auxiliaries. Even though the auxiliary verbs play a vital role in written content, students are not much aware of their importance. Commonly used auxiliary verbs are "be, do, and have". These three auxiliary verbs are discussed in details below:


Be


Be and to be are widely used in the English language. The auxiliary verb "be and to be" are used as an action verb to emphasize, voice, and express tense in the clause. When we use to be or to be as an auxiliary verb, it is always paired with another verb to create a complete verb phrase. When used as an auxiliary verb, be is always paired with another verb; either singular, plural, present or past, to create a complete verb phrase.


Do


Do is the second most commonly used auxiliary verb. Other auxiliary verbs like "to do, does, did, did not, do not" can also be used as an auxiliary verb. Word does is also always paired up with another verb to create a complete verb phrase for example "I did close the front door, she did not meet me at the concert, etc."


Have


Have is another important verb that can add some grammatical meaning to the clause. Has, have, having, had, had not are also used as auxiliary verbs. Have is used to show possession. Some examples of sentences that use have or above-mentioned words as an auxiliary verb include "Cole is having a bad day" and "I have brought a new pair of glasses".

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Separating Verb Phrases Preview