Be Verbs Be (used with modals, after “to”) (imperative form) Is, Are, Am (present tense) ‘s ‘re ‘m (in contractions) Was (past tense) Were (past tense) Been (past participle) Being (-ing form, gerund) Examples of usage: Be I will be there tomorrow. (use “be” after modals) I might be late. He wants to be an astronaut. (use “be” with “to” in the infinitive) “To be or not to be;” that is the question. (use “be” in the imperative) Please be quiet.