The linking verb in a complete sentence
A complete affirmative English sentence about a present state needs a form of be: We are here; They are colleagues. Do not leave out the linking verb between the subject and its location or description.
Are links the subject—the person or thing we are talking about—to a description, a role, or a place. It is not an unnecessary word or a separate action. First identify the subject, then use the appropriate form of be.
you / we / they + are + description, role, or place
We are outside.
We are outside.
This tells us the location of a group that includes the speaker; English needs the linking verb are.
They are neighbours.
They are neighbours.
Are links they to a word describing the relationship between people; it does not name an action.
You: addressing one person or several people
You can address one person, address one person politely, or address a group. In every case, the form is you are. Do not replace are with is simply because you are speaking to one person.
The situation tells us how many people are being addressed. You are ready does not itself tell us how many people the speaker is talking to. A noun after are may help: a guest refers to one guest, while guests refers to several; the verb with you stays the same.
You are our guest.
You are our guest.
There is one person being addressed, but you still takes are; our guest remains singular.
You are our guests.
You are our guests.
Several people are being addressed: the noun guests is plural, while you are stays the same.
You are helpful.
You are helpful.
Helpful describes a quality of a person or people. Without context, we do not know how many people are being addressed.
We or they: does the group include the speaker?
We refers to the speaker together with other people. They, in our main exercises, refers to other people or things already mentioned. Both take are, but changing the pronoun changes the participants in the message.
When replying to someone, choose the pronoun from your own perspective. If the other person says you and Lina, and you reply about yourself and Lina, use we. Sharing the form are does not make we and they interchangeable.
We are in the same class.
We are in the same class.
The speaker is also a member of this class; replacing we with they would remove the speaker from the message.
The bags are here. They are heavy.
The bags are here. They are heavy.
They refers back to the bags already mentioned; the pronoun can refer to things as well as people.
A plural subject need not be a pronoun
Are also follows clearly plural nouns: the chairs, two rooms, my parents. Two separate participants joined by and also make a plural subject: Lena and Tom are here.
Look at the whole subject, not just the word nearest the verb. In Mina and I, the subject consists of two people, so it needs are, even though I on its own takes am. An ordinary singular subject follows a different rule: The door is open, but The doors are open.
A role named after are does not determine the verb form. We are a small group is correct: the subject is we, and a small group describes the group as a whole.
plural noun / two separate participants joined by and + are + the rest of the message
- noun —
- A word naming a person, thing or idea: student, book, happiness.
Two rooms are empty.
Two rooms are empty.
The subject two rooms is plural; rooms, not empty, determines the agreement.
Mina and I are busy.
Mina and I are busy.
The whole subject refers to two people; do not extend the am used with I alone to the whole group.
We are a small group.
We are a small group.
Are agrees with we, despite a small group coming after the verb.
Full forms and contractions convey the same meaning
You are, we are, and they are can be contracted to you're, we're, and they're. In an ordinary statement, they convey the same meaning; contractions are particularly common in conversation and informal writing. The full form is also correct.
In a contraction, the apostrophe marks an omitted letter: we're, not were. If an exercise specifically asks for a full form or a contraction, follow that instruction. The other grammatically correct form then fails to meet the particular task requirement; it does not become ungrammatical.
you are → you're; we are → we're; they are → they're
We are on the right floor. / We're on the right floor.
We are on the right floor. / We're on the right floor.
Both forms state the same fact; the contraction changes neither the participants nor the time.
They're our friends.
They're our friends.
They're contains both the subject they and the form are; do not add another are.
The limits of this step and using it in conversation
Here we practise affirmative statements about a present state, role, location, or origin. Negatives, question formation, short answers, and -ing verbs are separate topics for later. You can answer a ready-made question with a full affirmative statement without studying the structure of the question itself yet.
Are is not a rule for every situation involving several people. For example, more complex cases with collective nouns are studied separately. They can also refer to one person; it still takes are. Our main situations with they explicitly involve several people or things so that you can first practise a straightforward pattern.
Before speaking, check three things: who you are talking about, whether the message needs be, and whether you have preserved the meaning. Changing We are here to They are here is grammatically possible, but it refers to different participants.
You and Eva are in room six. — We are in room six.
You and Eva are in room six. — We are in room six.
One of the people being addressed repeats the fact from their own perspective; you and Eva becomes we, while are stays the same.
The tickets are in my bag.
The tickets are in my bag.
A brief practical message: the plural subject tickets, the linking verb are, and a location.
Common mistakes
Incorrect:You is early.
Correct:You are early.
You takes are even when addressing one person. Change only the verb form.
Incorrect:We near the café.
Correct:We are near the café.
A complete English affirmative statement about a location needs a linking verb; do not leave it out between we and near the café.
Incorrect:The windows is open.
Correct:The windows are open.
Windows is a plural subject. The description open stays the same; correct only the agreement.
Incorrect:Sara and I am ready.
Correct:Sara and I are ready.
The verb agrees with the whole subject Sara and I, not with the final pronoun I.
Incorrect:They am our neighbours.
Correct:They are our neighbours.
Am goes with I; use are with they in a present affirmative statement.
Incorrect:We're are upstairs.
Correct:We're upstairs.
We're already contains are, so a second linking verb is unnecessary. We are upstairs is also a correct full version.