Photo grabbed from Claresa.net
Do is a busy word in the English language. It can be a main verb, and it can also be used as an auxiliary verb. It is even used as a noun in informal English or British slang. Dictionary.com tells me that. :)
As a verb, Do takes the form of do, does, and did.
As a main verb, Do takes on the action word. Examples:
I do sit-ups every morning.
I did everything to improve the situation.
It is when Do is used as an auxiliary verb, especially in the past tense, that I often get bothered. That is because many people use it wrongly. They'd go:
I did not noticed the hole on the street.
I did talked to him about it.
What did you did?I see these on Facebook statuses, in emails, and even in formal writing. Please people, when you use Do as an auxiliary verb, ALWAYS pair it with a verb in its base form. The image above is a good reminder of this rule. Do is surrounded by verbs in the base form.
Examples:
I did not notice the hole on the street.
I did talk to him about it.
What did you do?
I do know that this medicine is good for us.
I didn't receive your message. (Not: I didn't received your message.)
Got the drift?
