A verb can be more than one word. In “Leo has been practicing,” the main verb practicing has two helping verbs (also called auxiliary verbs) in front of it. Together they make a verb phrase. This builds on Action and Linking Verbs.
| Helping verbs | Examples |
|---|---|
| forms of be: am, is, are, was, were, be, been, being | was running, is painted |
| forms of have: have, has, had | has finished, had left |
| forms of do: do, does, did | did call, does know |
| modals: can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, would | should wait, might have gone |
Key idea
The verb phrase is the main verb plus every helping verb in front of it. Not and never are not part of it: they are adverbs.
Why it works
Helping verbs carry time and meaning: will points to the future, has links the past to now, might shows a possibility, must shows need. The whole phrase is one verb, so it stays together on the baseline when you diagram it.
Worked example: A phrase with not
What is the verb phrase in “Mia has not finished her book”?
- The main verb is finished.
- The helping verb in front of it is has.
- Not tells about the verb (it is an adverb), so leave it out.
Answer: has finished
Worked example: A split verb in a question
What is the verb phrase in “Did the bus leave early?”
- Turn it into a statement: “The bus did leave early.”
- The helping verb did and the main verb leave belong together.
Answer: did leave
Common mistake
Marking only the last word as the verb (only running in “has been running”), or counting not and n’t as part of the verb. Take every helping verb, and leave out the adverbs that sit inside the phrase.