What part of speech does the word “be” refer to? The answer to this question is far from everyone knows. In this regard, we decided to devote this article to this topic.
General information
“Do not be a workaholic, but do not be lazy.” Part of the speech in this case is not so difficult to determine. To do this, just put the word in the initial form and ask the appropriate question: what to do? - be. Therefore, it is a verb. And why are so many people very often perplexed and wondering what part of the speech the word “be” is? But the fact is that it is not very convenient to ask a question to such a form (what should you do? - be).
The word be. Part of speech is a verb?
"Be always a kind and helpful person." Surely few people will be able to make out the proposal on the composition the first time. This is often due to the fact that most people doubt that it is a verb. So how do you prove the opposite? For this, it should only be remembered that all verbs in the Russian language can be used in the forms of three moods.
Verb mood
The lexical unit “be” - what part of speech? Before answering the question posed, it should be said that the verbs in the Russian language change in three different moods, namely:
- indicative;
- conditional;
- imperative.
Let's consider them in more detail.
Indicative
In such an inclination, all verbs denote one or another action that has occurred, is occurring or will occur. In other words, in the indicative mood, the mentioned part of speech changes in time (past, present, future). Here is a good example:
- waved, waved, I will wave;
- walked, walk, walk;
- was, is, I will;
- I walked, I walk, I will walk and so on.
Conditional mood
In such an inclination, all verbs of the Russian language indicate an action that can occur, but only under certain conditions or circumstances. Here is a good example:
- If I would buy this book, I would read it all.
- He would have had a greater fortune if she had not sold her stake.
- They could have children if they turned to a specialist on time.
As you can see, conditional mood includes only the past tense verbs, as well as the “would” particle. By the way, the latter is always written separately and can stand anywhere.
It should also be noted that verbs in the conditional mood change only by gender (in the singular) and numbers. For example: she would; he would be; it would be; they would be.
Imperative mood
The word "be" - what part of speech? You can find the answer to this difficult question in this section of the article. The fact is that in the imperative mood, absolutely all verbs denote the action to which this or that person prompts his interlocutor. Thus, the motivation can be represented as:
- Wishes or requests. For example: “Please bring me orange juice.”
- Council. For example: "You better consult with a more experienced specialist."
- Order. For example: "Sit immediately!"
So which of the three impulses does the word “be” refer to? Part of the speech of this lexical unit is the verb. He undoubtedly stands in the imperative mood and denotes an order. For example: "Be always strong and never give in to fear."
Features of the imperative
It should be noted that in the imperative mood, verbs never change in time. To see this, try declining the word "be" yourself. Part of the speech “was” or “I will” is a verb. However, such lexical units are indicative, but not imperative. Moreover, in the present tense they will have the following form - “is”.
It should also be said that in the imperative mood, this part of speech can vary both in faces and in numbers. However, she does not have a 1st person uniform. numbers. This is due to the fact that you can’t ask or order yourself to do something.
The most used and most common form of imperative is the second-person form. Let us give a good example: “Be brave and kind to her.”
Imperative
- If you need to form the imperative form of the 2nd person. numbers, you should use the suffix -i or zero suffix, which must be added to the base of the verb in the present or future tense. For example: They put (a verb in the future tense) - put (a verb in an imperative mood); they will lie (verb in the future tense) - lie (verb in the imperative mood). The only exception is the word "be."
- If you need to form the imperative form of the 2nd person pl. numbers, then the suffix or the ending -te should be added to the singular form. For example: put - put, lay - lie, be - be and so on.
- If you need to form the imperative form of the 3rd person plural or singular, then you need to use particles such as “let”, “yes” and “let it go”. It may seem that they are added to verbs in the future or present tense, but this is not so. After all, as was said above, the imperative mood has no time. Here is a good example: She reads (verb in the present tense) - Let (or let) she read (verb in the imperative mood); Father's love will be with you (verb in the future tense) - Yes (or let) father's love with you (verb in the imperative mood) and so on.
As mentioned above, the imperative does not have a first person form. numbers. However, such verbs nevertheless change in the first person pl. numbers. The following forms can be used for this:
- Verbs in the form of the future tense (however, an already formed form is not in the future tense!). Let us give an example: We will go to the concert tomorrow (verb in the future tense) - Let's go to the concert! (a verb in an imperative mood).
- Joining a suffix or ending to te verbs in the form of a future tense. For example: He will be at the concert (verb in the future tense) - Be at the concert (verb in the imperative mood).
- Joining the particle “come on” to verbs in the form of the future tense. For example: She will be bold (verb in the future tense) - Come on, be bold (verb in the imperative mood).
To summarize
Now you know what part of speech the word "be." To consolidate the material passed, we repeat: this is a verb in the imperative mood, which was formed from an indefinite form - to be. It should be noted that it can be used in the following values:
- Requests or wishes - “Please be kind enough to pass the salt.”
- Council - “You should be careful with him.”
- Order - “Be patient, and you will get things right soon!”
However, in the form presented, such a lexical unit is used only in the meaning of the order.