Verbs that are made up of more than one word are verb phrases In verb phrases, the main verb names the action The helping verb helps tell the time of the action Some common helping verbs are: has, have, had, am, is, are, was, were, be, been, do, does, did, can, could, will, would, and should • The main verb is always the last word in a verb phrase (Animals are losing habitats.) • There might be more than one helping verb in a verb phrase (We should have saved more wetlands.) • Helping verbs such as ‘is’, and ‘are’ show that action is happening in the present (Forests are cut down for wood.) ‘Was’ and ‘were’ show that the action has happened in the past (Once millions of acres of forest were standing in this area.) ‘Will’ show that the action is happening in the future (Trees will disappear if we don’t conserve them.) Write the verb phrase in each sentence Underline the helping verb For years, people have given names to their pets Our rabbit is named Groucho Pets can perform wonderful tricks Groucho has entertained us for years He could become a standup comic Sometimes he will walk on his hind legs You could see his fluffy tail No one can resist his floppy ears Groucho is sitting on the carpet 10 His ears are sticking up 11 He will be eating carrots soon 12 We should have taken his picture yesterday 13 He was looking cute all dressed up Write a helping verb from the box that can complete each sentence should does are can is had am will be have been your community have a recycling centre People in our town recycle paper, glass, metal, and plastic if they want Recyclables _ collected every Thursday by special trucks I _ carry out the blue recycling bin after breakfast According to the guidelines, we _ put the newspapers in paper bags The glass jars washed already I wished that I knowledge of recycling years ago I _ pleased that recycling in done in my town I wonder if there will _ another centre in the near future 10 Look, the truck coming now! Write each verb phrase Underline the helping verb or verbs twice and the main verb once 10 11 12 Write at least three main verbs for each picture An example is shown I am watching a show about animals Ginny has observed them at the zoo Those monkeys are grooming one another The koala is sleeping in a tree Two colourful birds have been building a nest A giraffe has stretched its neck to the top of the branches Usually it would grab the highest leaves The elephants are playing in the water Their trunks can act like hoses The mother elephant has sprayed water on her babies No visitor should feed the animals at the zoo Zookeepers will give them the right food The bunny is hopping Circle the letter next to the words that correctly identify the underlined words and words in the sentence A chick is _ a b Mary should _ We can help wild animals in many ways This will cause an imbalance in the ecosystem i j k l a b c d helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb 11 _ 12 _ Some animals have lost their food supply m n o p e f g h Every animal is playing a role in the ecosystem q r s t helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb Sue was d 10 _ helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb We should recognize the importance of every animal helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb c _ helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb A candle will 13 _ 14 _ e 15 _ Pedro had f 16 _ 17 _ I am so cute! 18 _ A pirate has 19 _ 20 _ Some species could be eliminated u v w x helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb g 21 _ Samantha did 22 _ 23 _ 24 _ h Write the verb phrase in each sentence Underline the helping verb For years, people have given names to their pets Our rabbit is named Groucho Pets can perform wonderful tricks Groucho has entertained us for years He could become a standup comic Sometimes he will walk on his hind legs You could see his fluffy tail No one can resist his floppy ears Groucho is sitting on the carpet 10 His ears are sticking up 11 He will be eating carrots soon 12 We should have taken his picture yesterday 13 He was looking cute all dressed up Verbal phrase is highlighted Write each verb phrase Underline the helping verb or verbs twice and the main verb once 10 11 12 I am watching a show about animals Ginny has observed them at the zoo Those monkeys are grooming one another The koala is sleeping in a tree Two colourful birds have been building a nest A giraffe has stretched its neck to the top of the branches Usually it would grab the highest leaves The elephants are playing in the water Their trunks can act like hoses The mother elephant has sprayed water on her babies No visitor should feed the animals at the zoo Zookeepers will give them the right food Main verb is highlighted ANSWERS WILL VARY Write a helping verb from the box that can complete each sentence your community have a recycling centre (Does) People in our town recycle paper, glass, metal, and plastic if they want Recyclables _ collected every Thursday by special trucks (are) I _ carry out the blue recycling bin after breakfast (will) According to the guidelines, we _ put the newspapers in paper bags (should) The glass jars washed already (have been) I wished that I knowledge of recycling years ago (had) I _ pleased that recycling in done in my town (am) I wonder if there will _ another centre in the near future (be) 10 Look, the truck coming now! (is) We can help wild animals in many ways a b c d helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb We should recognize the importance of every animal e f g h helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb Every animal is playing a role in the ecosystem i j k l helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb Some species could be eliminated m n o p helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb This will cause an imbalance in the ecosystem n o p q helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb Some animals have lost their food supply r s t u helping verb main verb verb phrase not a verb