I. be 1 S1 W1 /bi; strong biː/ BrE AmE auxiliary verb ( past tense was , were , past participle been , present participle being , first person singular am , second person singular and plural are , third person singular is )
1 . used with a present participle to form the ↑ continuous (4) tenses of verbs:
Don’t disturb me while I’m working.
Gemma was reading.
They’ve been asking a lot of questions.
That guy’s always causing trouble.
We’ll be starting in about an hour.
He isn’t leaving, is he?
2 . used with past participles to form the ↑ passive :
Smoking is not permitted.
I was told about it yesterday.
The house is being painted.
She’s been invited to a party.
The flames could be seen several miles away.
The police should have been informed about this.
3 . be to do something formal
a) used to talk about arrangements for the future:
Audrey and Jimmy are to be married in June.
Two men are to appear in court on charges of armed robbery.
b) used to give an order or to tell someone about a rule:
You are to wait here in this room until I return.
All staff are to wear uniforms.
c) used to say or ask what someone should do or what should happen:
What am I to tell her?
He is not to be blamed.
d) used to ask how something can be done:
How are we to get out of the present mess?
4 . be to be seen/found/heard etc used to say that something can be seen, found, or heard somewhere:
A large range of species are to be seen in the aquarium.
We searched everywhere but the ring was nowhere to be found (=could not be found) .
The only sound to be heard was the twittering of the birds above us.
5 . was/were to do something used when talking about a time in the past to say what happened later:
This discovery was to have a major effect on the treatment of heart disease.
6 .
a) used in ↑ conditional 1 (2) sentences about an imagined situation
were somebody to do something/if somebody were to do something
Even if England were to win the next two matches, Germany would still be three points ahead.
Were we to offer you the job, would you take it?
b) used in ↑ conditional sentences to introduce an aim when you are saying what must be done in order to achieve it
if somebody/something is to do something
If we are to succeed in this enterprise, we shall need to plan everything very carefully.
7 . old use used instead of ‘have’ to form the ↑ perfect 3 tense of some verbs:
The hour is come.
II. be 2 S1 W1 BrE AmE verb
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: beon ]
1 . [linking verb] used to say that someone or something is the same as the subject of the sentence:
My name is Susan.
These are my favourite pictures.
He’s my brother.
The problem is finding the time to get things done.
Our aim was to reduce the number of accidents.
2 . [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] used to say where something or someone is:
Jane’s upstairs.
Are my keys in the drawer?
The principal’s in his office.
How long has she been here?
3 . [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] used to say when something happens:
The concert was last night.
The party is on Saturday.
4 . [linking verb] used to describe someone or something, or say what group or type they belong to:
The sky was grey.
Spiders are not really insects.
Mr Cardew was a tall thin man.
She wants to be a doctor when she leaves school.
Her dress was pure silk.
I’m not ready yet.
5 . there is/are used to say that something exists or happens:
There’s a hole in your trousers.
There was a loud explosion.
‘I thought there was going to be a party.’ ‘No, there isn’t.’
Is there a problem?
6 . [linking verb] to behave in a particular way:
He was just being rude.
Don’t be silly.
You’d better be careful.
7 . [linking verb] used to say how old someone is:
His mother died when he was 20.
Rachel will be three in November.
8 . [linking verb] used to say who something belongs to:
Whose is this bag? It isn’t mine and it isn’t Sarah’s.
9 . [linking verb] used to talk about the price of something:
‘How much are the melons?’ ‘The big ones are £2 each.’
10 . [linking verb] to be equal to a particular number or amount:
32 divided by 8 is 4.
11 . be that as it may formal used to say that even though you accept that something is true, it does not change a situation:
‘He was only joking.’ ‘Be that as it may, silly remarks like that can do a lot of harm.’
12 . [intransitive] formal to exist:
What was once a great and powerful empire has effectively ceased to be.
13 . be yourself to behave in a natural way, rather than trying to pretend to be different:
Don’t try too hard – just be yourself.
14 . not be yourself to be behaving in a way that is unusual for you, especially because you are ill or upset:
Sorry – I’m not myself this morning.
15 . the be-all and end-all the most important part of a situation or of someone’s life
the be-all and end-all of
For Jim, making money was the be-all and end-all of his job.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ cost to have a particular price:
The book costs $25.
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A new kitchen will cost you a lot of money.
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It’s a nice dress and it didn’t cost much.
▪ be especially spoken to cost a particular amount of money:
These shoes were only £5.
▪ be priced at something to have a particular price – used when giving the exact price that a shop or company charges for something:
Tickets are priced at $20 for adults and $10 for kids.
▪ retail at something to be sold in shops at a particular price – used especially in business:
The scissors retail at £1.99 in department stores.
▪ sell/go for something used for saying what people usually pay for something:
Houses in this area sell for around £200,000.
▪ fetch used for saying what people pay for something, especially at a public sale:
The painting fetched over $8,000 at auction.
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A sports car built for Mussolini is expected to fetch nearly £1 million at auction.
▪ set somebody back something informal to cost someone a lot of money:
A good set of speakers will set you back around £150.
▪ come to if a bill comes to a particular amount, it adds up to that amount:
The bill came to £100 between four of us.