Why You're Still Confusing Be, Been & Being (And How to Fix It) — Transcript

Full transcript

1. 0:00Making English easy for everyone.
2. 0:02>> Speak English with Jay and May.
3. 0:05>> Hey English learners, welcome back to
4. 0:08Speak English with Jay and May, your
5. 0:11cozy little place to build your English
6. 0:13confidence. I'm May.
7. 0:16>> Hello May. And hello everyone. I'm Jay.
8. 0:19How are you today, May?
9. 0:21>> I'm doing really well, Jay. Thanks for
10. 0:23asking. How about you? You look like
11. 0:25something's on your mind today.
12. 0:27>> Actually, yes. So, this morning I was
13. 0:30texting my friend and I wrote, "I've
14. 0:33been so busy lately." And she sent me
15. 0:36back a question mark. Just one question
16. 0:38mark. And I thought, "Wait, did I say
17. 0:41something wrong?"
18. 0:43>> Oh, Jay. Yes, that's actually a really
19. 0:47common mistake. It should be I have been
20. 0:50so busy or I've been so busy. You were
21. 0:54missing the have.
22. 0:56>> See, that's exactly what I mean. be been
23. 1:00being. I never know which one to use or
24. 1:02when. It drives me crazy.
25. 1:05>> You know what? I think so many of our
26. 1:07listeners feel exactly the same way. So
27. 1:10today, that's exactly what we're going
28. 1:13to fix. Be, been, and being. By the end
29. 1:17of this episode, it's going to feel
30. 1:19totally natural.
31. 1:21>> I cannot wait. Let's do this.
32. 1:24>> Oh yes. But before we dive in, if this
33. 1:27podcast is helping you learn English in
34. 1:29a fun and easy way, please subscribe,
35. 1:33turn on notifications, and share it with
36. 1:35a friend who's learning English, too. We
37. 1:38make a new episode every single day so
38. 1:41you never run out of practice.
39. 1:43>> Every day, people, every day. Okay, May,
40. 1:46let's do this. So, be been being three
41. 1:51words. They look similar. They sound
42. 1:54related, but they're different. Right.
43. 1:57>> Exactly. Think of them like three
44. 1:59members of the same family. Same last
45. 2:02name B, but each one has a different
46. 2:05job.
47. 2:06>> Oh, I like that. Same family, different
48. 2:09jobs. Okay. So, who's the first family
49. 2:12member?
50. 2:13>> The first one is B. And B is kind of the
51. 2:17boss of the family. It's the base form,
52. 2:20the root word. You use it in sentences
53. 2:23like I want to be happy or she needs to
54. 2:27be here by 8.
55. 2:28>> Oh, okay. So be comes after words like
56. 2:32want to or need to.
57. 2:34>> Yes. Or after modal verbs like will,
58. 2:38can, should, or must. So you'd say you
59. 2:42should be careful or it will be okay.
60. 2:46>> Got it. So be is the one that hangs out
61. 2:49with those helper words.
62. 2:51>> Exactly. And here's a simple way to
63. 2:54remember it. Whenever you use a modal
64. 2:56verb, the next verb is always the base
65. 2:59form. And be is the base form of this
66. 3:02whole family.
67. 3:04>> Okay. Okay. So be base form after modal
68. 3:08verbs. Now what about been? This one
69. 3:12confuses me the most honestly.
70. 3:15you and every English learner on the
71. 3:18planet. Okay. So, been is the past
72. 3:21participle. And the thing about been is
73. 3:24it never works alone. It always needs a
74. 3:28helper.
75. 3:29>> You mean like it needs a buddy?
76. 3:31>> Yes. A buddy. Specifically, it needs
77. 3:34have, has, or had. So, you'd say, "I
78. 3:38have been busy." Or, "She has been
79. 3:41waiting." or we had been friends for
80. 3:44years.
81. 3:46>> Oh, so been is never by itself. It
82. 3:50always needs have, has, or had before
83. 3:53it.
84. 3:54>> Right? And this is where people make
85. 3:57that common mistake like what Jay did
86. 3:59this morning, saying, "I've been busy
87. 4:02instead of I have been busy." The have
88. 4:05got dropped.
89. 4:07>> Yes, that was exactly my mistake. So the
90. 4:10have just disappears and then the
91. 4:13sentence sounds off.
92. 4:15>> Exactly. In casual speech, people
93. 4:17sometimes say I've been. The have is
94. 4:20shortened to the but it has to be there
95. 4:23in some form.
96. 4:25>> Wait, so I've been is correct because
97. 4:29I've is I have.
98. 4:32>> Yes, perfect. I've been is totally
99. 4:35correct. I've been without the
100. 4:37apostrophe v. That's the mistake.
101. 4:40>> Okay, this is making so much sense now.
102. 4:43So, been is past participle, needs a
103. 4:46helper verb, and that helper is have,
104. 4:49has, or had. Got it?
105. 4:52>> You're getting it? Now, here's the
106. 4:54interesting part. Then also tells us
107. 4:57something important about time. It
108. 5:00usually means something started in the
109. 5:02past and has some connection to now or
110. 5:06it lasted for a period of time.
111. 5:08Like what? Can you give me a real
112. 5:11example?
113. 5:12>> Sure. Imagine you're on a phone call
114. 5:15with your mom and she asks, "Where are
115. 5:18you?" And you say, "I've been at the
116. 5:21library all day." That means you were
117. 5:24there earlier. You're still there now.
118. 5:27Or it just ended. It has that sense of a
119. 5:31stretch of time.
120. 5:33>> Oh, I love that. It's not just a single
121. 5:35moment. It's like a stretch. Like a
122. 5:37ribbon of time.
123. 5:40>> A ribbon of time. I'm using that from
124. 5:42now on. Yes. Exactly like that.
125. 5:46>> Okay. Okay. So now being, this is the
126. 5:49mysterious one for me. When do we use
127. 5:52being?
128. 5:53>> So being is the present participle or we
129. 5:57can also call it the ing form of be. And
130. 6:01it has two main uses. First, it works
131. 6:05with is, am, are, was, were to talk
132. 6:10about something happening right now or
133. 6:12in progress.
134. 6:13>> Like she is being weird.
135. 6:16>> Yes, perfect example. She is being weird
136. 6:20means right now in this moment her
137. 6:23behavior is weird. It's ongoing. It's
138. 6:26happening as we speak.
139. 6:28>> Okay. So, the difference between she is
140. 6:30weird and she is being weird. What's
141. 6:33that exactly?
142. 6:35>> Oh, great question. She is weird is
143. 6:38permanent. Like that's just her
144. 6:40personality, but she is being weird is
145. 6:43temporary. Something is off today
146. 6:46specifically.
147. 6:47>> Wo, that's such a big difference from
148. 6:49such a small change.
149. 6:51>> I know, right? That little word being
150. 6:54completely changes the meaning. It makes
151. 6:57the behavior temporary instead of
152. 6:59permanent.
153. 7:00>> Okay. So, if my friend is acting strange
154. 7:03today, I say she is being weird. But if
155. 7:06she's always like that, I say she is
156. 7:09weird.
157. 7:10>> Exactly. You've got it. And honestly,
158. 7:13native speakers use this all the time
159. 7:16without even thinking about it.
160. 7:18>> Wow. Okay. So, that's the first use of
161. 7:20being. What's the second one?
162. 7:22>> The second use is in passive sentences.
163. 7:26So, when something is done to the
164. 7:28subject, like the cake is being eaten or
165. 7:32the house is being painted. You mean
166. 7:35like the cake didn't eat itself, someone
167. 7:37is eating it, but we're focusing on the
168. 7:39cake.
169. 7:41>> Yes. The cake is the star of the
170. 7:44sentence, even though someone else is
171. 7:46doing the action. That's passive voice.
172. 7:49And being shows up a lot there.
173. 7:52>> Okay, wait. Let me make sure I have this
174. 7:54right. Being is the ing form of be and
175. 7:58it's used when something is ongoing or
176. 8:01in a passive sentence, right?
177. 8:04>> You summarized that beautifully.
178. 8:06Honestly, Jay, you're on fire today.
179. 8:09>> Thank you. Okay, so let's do a quick
180. 8:12recap before we go deeper. Be is the
181. 8:16base form used after modal verbs. Been
182. 8:19is past participle used after have, has,
183. 8:23had. And being is the ing form used for
184. 8:28ongoing or passive sentences.
185. 8:30>> That is textbook perfect. Seriously.
186. 8:34>> Okay, so now I want to practice. Can we
187. 8:36go through some real situations like
188. 8:39real life ones?
189. 8:40>> Yes, that's my favorite part. Let's
190. 8:43start with a scene. Imagine you wake up
191. 8:46Monday morning. You're exhausted. You
192. 8:49look at your phone and you have 50
193. 8:51unread messages from work. Oh no, that's
194. 8:55too real.
195. 8:57>> So you text your friend and say, "I have
196. 9:00been so stressed lately." Which word are
197. 9:03we using there?
198. 9:05>> Been with have before it because it
199. 9:07started in the past and it's still going
200. 9:10on now.
201. 9:11>> Perfect. Now your friend calls you and
202. 9:14says, "You should be honest with your
203. 9:16boss." Which word now?
204. 9:18>> Be because it's after should, a modal
205. 9:21verb.
206. 9:22>> Amazing. And then your boss calls. And
207. 9:25in the meeting, you notice your boss is
208. 9:27acting unusually kind, like suspiciously
209. 9:31kind.
210. 9:33>> Uh-oh, what do I say?
211. 9:35>> You whisper to your coworker, "Why is he
212. 9:38being so nice today?"
213. 9:40>> And that's being because it's temporary
214. 9:43behavior happening right now.
215. 9:45>> Yes, you got all three in one little
216. 9:48story.
217. 9:49>> That was so good. Oh my goodness. I feel
218. 9:52like I've known these words my whole
219. 9:54life, but never understood them until
220. 9:56right now.
221. 9:57>> That's exactly how English works.
222. 9:59Sometimes you've heard the words a
223. 10:02thousand times, but when someone
224. 10:04explains the why, it just clicks.
225. 10:07>> It really does. Okay, May. Here's
226. 10:09something I'm curious about. What are
227. 10:12the most common mistakes people make
228. 10:14with these three?
229. 10:15>> Oh, there are a few. The biggest one,
230. 10:18like we said, is I've been instead of I
231. 10:21have been or I've been. The helper verb
232. 10:25goes missing.
233. 10:26>> Yeah. And honestly, I made that mistake
234. 10:28just this morning, even after learning
235. 10:31English for years.
236. 10:33>> Right. Because in fast speech, have gets
237. 10:36swallowed. But when you're writing or
238. 10:38speaking carefully, it has to be there.
239. 10:41>> What's the second mistake? Using being
240. 10:44when you should use be like someone
241. 10:47might say you should being careful.
242. 10:50That's wrong. After should you need the
243. 10:52base form you should be careful.
244. 10:55>> Oh, so being doesn't go after modal
245. 10:59verbs.
246. 11:00>> Never. Modal verbs always want the plain
247. 11:03base form be. Not being not been.
248. 11:07>> That's such a helpful rule. So after
249. 11:10will, can, should, must, would, may,
250. 11:14always be.
251. 11:16>> Always. You can write that on a sticky
252. 11:18note and put it on your wall. Modal verb
253. 11:21plus be. Done.
254. 11:24>> I'm literally going to do that. Okay.
255. 11:26What's another common mistake?
256. 11:28>> This one is interesting. Confusing. Have
257. 11:31been and had been. Some people use them
258. 11:34interchangeably, but they're a little
259. 11:36different. You mean like I have been
260. 11:38waiting versus I had been waiting.
261. 11:41>> Exactly. I have been waiting. That
262. 11:44connects to now. The waiting is recent
263. 11:47or still relevant. I had been waiting.
264. 11:50That's further back in the past. Like
265. 11:53the waiting was finished before
266. 11:55something else happened.
267. 11:56>> Can you give me a story example?
268. 11:58>> Sure. Imagine your friend was late to
269. 12:01meet you at a restaurant. When they
270. 12:03finally arrive, you say, "I have been
271. 12:06waiting for an hour." Because it just
272. 12:09ended. You're still feeling it,
273. 12:11>> right? The frustration is still fresh.
274. 12:14>> But if you're telling the story later to
275. 12:16someone else, you might say, "By the
276. 12:19time she arrived, I had been waiting for
277. 12:21an hour." Because now you're talking
278. 12:24about two past moments, the arriving and
279. 12:27the waiting before it. Oh, so have been
280. 12:31is connected to now or very recently and
281. 12:34had been is all in the past. One thing
282. 12:37before another past thing.
283. 12:39>> That is exactly right. You're really
284. 12:42getting this today, Jay.
285. 12:43>> I feel it. Okay. Can we talk about being
286. 12:47a little more? I feel like it's the most
287. 12:49flexible one.
288. 12:50>> It really is. And honestly, being is
289. 12:54also used as a noun sometimes, like a
290. 12:57human being or a living being.
291. 13:00>> Oh, so being can mean a person or a
292. 13:03creature.
293. 13:04>> Yes. Being as a noun means an entity, a
294. 13:08living thing. So you might say, "Every
295. 13:12human being deserves kindness."
296. 13:15>> Wow. So being does three jobs. It's used
297. 13:18for ongoing actions, passive sentences,
298. 13:21and it can even be a noun.
299. 13:24>> Very busy word, hardest working member
300. 13:26of the family.
301. 13:28>> I love it. Okay, so I want to ask for
302. 13:30beginners who are just starting out,
303. 13:33what's the one thing they should focus
304. 13:35on first?
305. 13:36>> Honestly, just start with be after modal
306. 13:39verbs. That alone will fix so many
307. 13:42sentences. If you can say, "I want to be
308. 13:45better." It will be fine. You should be
309. 13:49careful. You're already ahead.
310. 13:51>> So, start with be and the modal verbs.
311. 13:54Then move to been with have, has, had,
312. 13:58and then being for ongoing things.
313. 14:01>> Build it step by step. Don't try to
314. 14:04master all three on the same day.
315. 14:07English is a journey, not a race.
316. 14:09>> I love that. English is a journey, not a
317. 14:12race. Okay, May, one last thing. Can we
318. 14:15do a quick fun little quiz for our
319. 14:17listeners?
320. 14:18>> Oh, yes. Let's do it. Listeners, try to
321. 14:21answer in your head before Jay says the
322. 14:24answer.
323. 14:24>> Okay, first one, fill in the blank. She
324. 14:27has blank working here for 10 years.
325. 14:31>> Think about it.
326. 14:32>> The answer is been. She has been working
327. 14:35here for 10 years. because it's after
328. 14:38has a helper verb.
329. 14:40>> Perfect. Next one. You must blank on
330. 14:45time tomorrow.
331. 14:46>> Listeners, what do you think?
332. 14:48>> The answer is be. You must be on time
333. 14:52tomorrow because must is a modal verb.
334. 14:55It needs the base form.
335. 14:57>> And last one, the report blank written
336. 15:00right now by the team.
337. 15:02>> Hm. This one's a little trickier. The
338. 15:05answer is is being. The report is being
339. 15:09written right now. That's passive voice.
340. 15:12Something is happening to the report.
341. 15:14Three words, three different jobs, and
342. 15:17now they're officially part of your
343. 15:19English toolkit. Been being. You've got
344. 15:24this.
345. 15:25>> And honestly, once you understand why
346. 15:27they're different, you stop guessing.
347. 15:29You just know.
348. 15:31>> That's the goal. Confidence, not
349. 15:33memorization. We want you to feel it,
350. 15:36not just repeat it.
351. 15:37>> Okay. Before we wrap up, may any final
352. 15:40thoughts for our listeners today?
353. 15:42>> Yes. I want you to pick one sentence
354. 15:45today, just one, and say it out loud.
355. 15:48Use be, been, or being in it. Say it to
356. 15:52yourself, say it to a friend, write it
357. 15:54in the comments below. That small action
358. 15:57is how fluency is built. One sentence at
359. 16:00a time.
360. 16:01>> I love that. one sentence today. That's
361. 16:04your homework, everyone.
362. 16:06>> And speaking of comments, we have a
363. 16:08question for you. Tell us in the
364. 16:09comments which one confuses you the
365. 16:12most, be, been, or being, and why. We
366. 16:16read every single comment, and we love
367. 16:18hearing from you.
368. 16:19>> Every comment, people, May really does
369. 16:22read them.
370. 16:23>> I do. And if you enjoy learning English
371. 16:26with us, please subscribe, hit the like
372. 16:28button, and share this episode with one
373. 16:31friend who's learning English. It really
374. 16:33helps us reach more learners around the
375. 16:35world.
376. 16:36>> And remember, we're here every single
377. 16:38day with a brand new episode. So, come
378. 16:41back tomorrow and keep learning with us.
379. 16:43>> Thank you so much for spending this time
380. 16:45with us today. You're doing amazing.
381. 16:48Just by showing up and listening, you're
382. 16:50already better than you were yesterday.
383. 16:53>> That's true. every day a little better.
384. 16:56We'll see you in the next one.
385. 16:57>> Take care, English learners. Bye for
386. 16:59now.
387. 17:00>> Bye, everyone.