# Auxiliary Verbs



## Artrella

Hello!

Since I am learning Italian and German I realize that in both languages the auxiliary verbs change.  In German they change according to the type of verb, if it indicates movement or not, of course there are exceptions.

In Italian sometimes you use "avere" or "essere", but don't know which is the criterion for using one or the other.

In Spanish we use "haber" as an auxiliary verb, the same happens in English, "to have".

Do you know of any other language that changes the auxiliaries and what are the criteria for these changes?

Thank you!


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## Jana337

Artrella said:
			
		

> Hello!
> 
> Since I am learning Italian and German I realize that in both languages the auxiliary verbs change. In German they change according to the type of verb, if it indicates movement or not, of course there are exceptions.



Generally speaking, yes, they are mostly verbs of movement. Then also verb that express a change of a state (aufwachen, entstehen, einschlafen). And many irregularities.



> In Italian sometimes you use "avere" or "essere", but don't know which is the criterion for using one or the other.



Again, verbs of movement tend to have essere (there are exceptions: camminare, nuotare and some others). All reflexive verbs have essere.

In Czech, we go just with "to be" (and the third person in both singular and plural has no auxilliary verb).

Jana


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## suzzzenn

Hi art, 

Ok, I am digging back into my memeory, but I think Albanian and Lakhota have a similar alternation. I had to read an article on this by David Perlmutter a few years ago for a class. He tried to come up with a good explanation for essere and avere. His theory was never really accepted, but he wrote about 50 pages on the subject. Anyway, he said that Lakhota and Albanian also do something similar with active/non-active/reflexive verbs. Doesn't French do this too? I am not sure, but I seem to remember a lecture two years ago where someone mentioned a French example like this... maybe ...it was the causative in French that had some type of odd alternation. It might be worth it to pose the question in the French forum. I would have to dig out my notes from the attic to be sure. I'll try to find them and let you know. 
Susan


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## remosfan

I wonder if English used to have something similar. I've always wondered about the "is" in "Joy to the world, the Lord is come."

I remember reading somewhere that the two constructions often have different sources and are only superficially similar, but I can't find where I read it at the moment so take it for what it's worth.


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## elroy

suzzzenn said:
			
		

> Hi art,
> 
> Ok, I am digging back into my memeory, but I think Albanian and Lakhota have a similar alternation. I had to read an article on this by David Perlmutter a few years ago for a class. He tried to come up with a good explanation for essere and avere. His theory was never really accepted, but he wrote about 50 pages on the subject. Anyway, he said that Lakhota and Albanian also do something similar with active/non-active/reflexive verbs too. Doesn't French do this too? I am not sure, but I seem to remember a lecture two years ago where someone mentioned a French example like this... maybe ...it was the causative in French that had some type of odd alternation. It might be worth it to pose the question in the French forum. I would have to dig out my notes from the attic to be sure. I'll try to find them and let you know.
> Susan



French definitely does the same as Italian and German (with expections as usual), with "être" for verbs of movement, changes of state, and reflexive verbs, and "avoir" for the others.


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## elroy

remosfan said:
			
		

> I wonder if English used to have something similar. I've always wondered about the "is" in "Joy to the world, the Lord is come."
> 
> I remember reading somewhere that the two constructions often have different sources and are only superficially similar, but I can't find where I read it at the moment so take it for what it's worth.



I agree with you: in old texts the verb "to be" can be used as an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses.  Besides "the Lord is come," there are numerous Biblical references that use such a construction:

He is not here, for He *is * risen.
I *am * come a light into the world.

etc. etc. etc.

I think it's just a different way to express the same thing.  I don't think there are any differences in meaning between, say "I am come" and "I have come."


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## winnie

Artrella said:
			
		

> Hello!
> In Italian sometimes you use "avere" or "essere", but don't know which is the criterion for using one or the other.
> Thank you!


 
transitive verbs need 'avere'

intransitive verbs need 'essere'

_...but there are a lot of exeptions_


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## suzzzenn

> French definitely does the same as Italian and German (with expections as usual), with "être" for verbs of movement, changes of state, and reflexive verbs, and "avoir" for the others


 . 
Thanks Elroy for saving me a trip to the attic.   I'm pleased my memory wasn't faulty!
Susan


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## Samaruc

The medieval Catalan (or Valencian, if you prefer) followed exactly the same pattern than modern French and Italian:

- Som arribats  [We-are arrived(masc. pl.)] -> We have arrived.
- Sou arribades  [You-are(pl.) arrived (fem.pl.)] -> You(fem. pl.) have arrived.

However, modern Valencian (or Catalan, if you prefer) always uses the verb “Haver” (to have) to build its perfect tenses:

- Hem arribat  [We-have arrived] -> We have arrived.
- Heu arribat  [You-have(pl.) arrived] -> You(pl.) have arrived.

The medieval way is only used in poetical, biblical or very very formal texts.


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## Artrella

winnie said:
			
		

> transitive verbs need 'avere'
> 
> intransitive verbs need 'essere'
> 
> _...but there are a lot of exeptions_




Winnie this helps me a lot!! Thank you... and... a correction >> ex*c*eptions


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## ivanbcn

Dutch behaves more or less like Italian, German and French:

Hij *is* aangekomen = he has arrived

Ik *heb* gegeten = I have eaten

doei!
ivan


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## ivanbcn

In classic and MSA Arabic the verb "to have" doesn't exist,

you can use the verb to be "kaana" as an auxiliar, but in a different way from the European languages: 
you can use it to form something similar to the "imperfect form / _used to do_ form" or to give an idea of uncertainty to the sentence (like using "maybe") or the past perfect (in general to express the idea of anteriority).

But let's wait for some natives to give us examples (I really can't)

Bye
ivan


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## Hakro

In Finnish the only auxiliary verb is _to be_.
It may sound strange but there is no verb _to have_ in Finnish.


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## jazyk

Basque uses the verb izan (to be) for a few intransitive verbs (among them verbs of movement) and izan (to have) for most other verbs. The two verbs have the same infinitive, but differ in conjugation.

Portuguese uses both ter (to have) and haver (to have, there to be) as auxiliaries with no change in meaning, although haver is slightly more formal and is not usual in the present indicative and subjunctive in this case. Sometimes the verb ser (to be) is used, but is rather old-fashioned, like English. It is frequent in a few fixed expressions as in _É chegada a hora_ = The time has come.


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## Outsider

"Ser" (to be) is used extensively in passive or passive-like constructions. Wouldn't you classify "É chegada a hora" as a passive?

By the way, _ter_ can also mean "to hold", in some cases. Here's an interesting comparison.


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## jazyk

> "Ser" (to be) is used extensively in passive or passive-like constructions. Wouldn't you classify "É chegada a hora" as a passive?


No, because that would mean that somebody chegou a hora. Only transitive verbs can be made passive in Portuguese.


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## Outsider

I don't agree that only transitive verbs can be put into the passive. You have sentences like "Come-se bem aqui" in Portuguese. However, I do agree that "É chegada a hora" is not a passive, since it can't be put into the active voice. "Ser" must be a plain copula in this case, and "chegada" an adjective.


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## jazyk

> However, I do agree that "É chegada a hora" is not a passive, since it can't be put into the active voice. "Ser" must be a plain copula in this case, and "chegada" an adjective.


Of course, but we're getting off-topic.


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## robbie_SWE

In Romanian you can use the verbs "a fi" (to bet) and "a avea" (to have) as auxiliary verbs. Ex: 

*eu sunt plecat* ("I am gone") 
*eu am plecat* ("I have gone") 

This is how it looks in the perfect tense. But auxiliary verbs are also used to form furue tenses. 

*eu o s**ă cânt* ("I will sing")
 
There are of course many ways of creating these tenses. 

 robbie


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## optimistique

Dutch indeed uses both 'to be' (_zijn_) and 'to have' (_hebben_), with more or less the same criteria as German for which verbs use what auxiliary verb.

Verbs that indicate movement change from auxiliary verb when the end of the action is expressed:

_Ik *heb* gerend_ - I ran (no begin or endpoint is expressed, aux = to have)
_Ik *ben *naar school gerend_ - I ran to school (with endpoint, aux = to be)


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## Frank06

Hi,


ivanbcn said:


> Dutch behaves more or less like Italian, German and French:
> Hij *is* aangekomen = he has arrived
> Ik *heb* gegeten = I have eaten



Some extra notes on Dutch:
Most verbs use 'hebben' (to have) as the aux in the perfect tenses. There is a fixed set of verbs which use 'zijn' (to be). Some verbs take both (vergeten, to forget).

When movement _and_ direction come into play, things get a tad more complicated. (With movement I mean any kind of 'going' from place A to B):

Ik *heb* in het park _gewandeld_.
I-have-in the park-walked
>>>hebben (to have) because of '*in* het park': place

Ik *ben* naar het park _gewandeld_.
I-am-to the park-walked
>>>zijn (to be) because of '*naar* het park': direction


Groetjes,

Frank


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## übermönch

Well, thus High German is similar to Dutch and French - verbs of motion are formed with *"to be"* and all the others with *"to have"*. Russian and Ukrainian have no auxilliary verbs at all. They've dropped them in early middle ages.


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## Whodunit

übermönch said:


> Well, thus High German is similar to Dutch and French - verbs of motion are formed with *"to be"* and all the others with *"to have"*.


 
I'm afraid it's not as easy as you say, übermönch. 

Verbs with _haben_ (to have):
- most transitive verbs
- all reflexive verbs
- all impersonal verbs
- all modal verbs
- all durative intransitive verbs
- exceptions to these rules are "sein" (I *have* been = ich *bin* gewesen) and "bleiben" (I *have* stayed = Ich *bin* geblieben)

Verbs with _sein_ (to be):
- all perfective intransitive verbs
- a few transitive verbs whose root is based on the conjugation with "sein"

Verbs with _haben_ and _sein_:
- intransitive verbs that express movement
- verbs that express movement that can be both intransitive and transitive
- intransitive verbs that show some gradual alternation

For examples and a better explanation, see here.


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## avalon2004

In Greek you can either use the auxiliary *έχω* (I have) or *είμαι *(I am).

*I have written* a letter = *έχω γράψει* _or rarely _*έχω γραμμένο* ένα γράμμα.
The two forms have slight differences in meaning which are hard to convey in English (I suppose the second example is more like "I have got a letter written")
The letter *is written* = Το γράμμα *είναι γραμμένο
*Or you could avoid using 'είμαι' by using the passive:* Έχει γραφτεί *ένα γράμμα (literally: a letter *has been written*)


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