Here are the most common helping verbs and their roles in forming verb phrases:
* Be (am, is, are, was, were, been, being): Used to form continuous tenses (present continuous, past continuous, future continuous) and the passive voice.
* Example: I am *reading*, they were *sleeping*, the book was *written* by her.
* Have (has, had, having): Used to form perfect tenses (present perfect, past perfect, future perfect).
* Example: I have *finished*, she had *left*, they will have *completed*.
* Do (does, did): Used to form questions, negative statements, and emphasis.
* Example: Do you *like* it? I did *not* *go*. We do *want* to go.
* Will/Shall: Used to form the future tense.
* Example: I will *go*, she shall *return*.
Past participles are the form of a verb that is used with helping verbs to create verb phrases. They are NOT helping verbs themselves. For example, "written" is the past participle of "write" and is used with "was" to create the passive voice ("The book was written by her").
Remember:
* Helping verbs combine with main verbs to form verb phrases.
* Past participles are used in verb phrases alongside helping verbs.
* They are not the same thing!
Let me know if you have any other questions!