Verb “To Be” Negative Forms (Am Not, Is Not, Are Not): Rules, Examples & Practice

We use the negative form of the verb “to be” when we want to say that something is not true, someone is not something, or someone or something is not in a particular state or place.

To make am, is, and are negative, we usually add the word not.

Positive: She is happy.
Negative: She is not happy.

Positive: They are at home.
Negative: They are not at home.

The word not changes the positive statement into a negative statement.

1. How to Make “To Be” Negative

To make a negative sentence with am, is, or are, put not after the verb.

Subject + am/is/are + not + rest of the sentence

Examples

I am tired. → I am not tired.
He is busy. → He is not busy.
She is a teacher. → She is not a teacher.
It is cold. → It is not cold.
You are late. → You are not late.
We are ready. → We are not ready.
They are at home. → They are not at home.

2. Using “Am Not”

We use am not with the subject I.

I + am + not

Examples:

I am not tired.
I am not hungry.
I am not a teacher.
I am not at home.
I am not busy.

We do not use is or are with I.

❌ I is not tired.
❌ I are not tired.
✅ I am not tired.

3. Using “Is Not”

We use is not with he, she, it and with singular nouns and names.

He / She / It + is + not

Examples:

He is not busy.
She is not angry.
It is not expensive.
Tom is not at school.
My mother is not a doctor.
The dog is not hungry.

A person's name normally works like he or she.

Emma is not tired.
Jack is not at home.

4. Using “Are Not”

We use are not with you, we, they and with plural nouns.

You / We / They + are + not

Examples:

You are not late.
We are not ready.
They are not students.
My friends are not here.
The children are not tired.
Tom and Anna are not at school.

Tom and Anna means two people, so the subject is plural. Therefore, we use are not.

5. “You” Always Uses “Are Not”

The word you can refer to one person or more than one person. In both cases, we use are.

One person: You are not late, Anna.

More than one person: You are not late, Anna and Tom.

So remember:

You → are not

❌ You is not late.
✅ You are not late.

6. Singular and Plural Nouns

We also use is not and are not with nouns.

Singular Nouns → Is Not

A singular noun refers to one person, animal, place, or thing.

The boy is not tired.
My sister is not at home.
The cat is not hungry.
The book is not expensive.

Plural Nouns → Are Not

A plural noun normally refers to more than one person, animal, place, or thing.

The boys are not tired.
My sisters are not at home.
The cats are not hungry.
The books are not expensive.

Remember:
Singular → is not
Plural → are not

7. Negative Forms with Names

We can also use is not and are not with people's names.

One person:

Emma is not tired.
David is not at work.
Sara is not a teacher.

Two or more people:

Emma and Sara are not tired.
David and Jack are not at work.
Tom and Anna are not students.

8. This, That, These and Those

We also use negative forms of to be with this, that, these, and those.

This and that are singular, so we use is not.

This is not my bag.
That is not my car.

These and those are plural, so we use are not.

These are not my shoes.
Those are not my books.

9. Short Forms (Contractions)

In everyday English, we often use short forms called contractions.

A contraction joins words together and uses an apostrophe (').

Is Not → Isn't

is not = isn't

He is not tired. → He isn't tired.
She is not busy. → She isn't busy.
It is not cold. → It isn't cold.
Tom is not here. → Tom isn't here.

Are Not → Aren't

are not = aren't

You are not late. → You aren't late.
We are not ready. → We aren't ready.
They are not at home. → They aren't at home.
My friends are not here. → My friends aren't here.

10. What Happens to “Am Not”?

For this course, use I'm not as the normal short form of I am not.

I am not → I'm not

Examples:

I am not hungry. → I'm not hungry.
I am not busy. → I'm not busy.
I am not a student. → I'm not a student.
I am not tired. → I'm not tired.

For standard English at this level, learn:

✅ I'm not tired.

11. Two Types of Negative Contractions

With is and are, there are often two common ways to make a short negative sentence.

He is not tired.
→ He's not tired.
→ He isn't tired.

She is not ready.
→ She's not ready.
→ She isn't ready.

It is not cold.
→ It's not cold.
→ It isn't cold.

We are not late.
→ We're not late.
→ We aren't late.

They are not here.
→ They're not here.
→ They aren't here.

Both forms have the same basic meaning.

12. Contractions with Names and Nouns

Negative contractions can also be used with names and nouns.

Tom is not here. → Tom isn't here.
My brother is not busy. → My brother isn't busy.
The dog is not hungry. → The dog isn't hungry.

My parents are not home. → My parents aren't home.
The children are not tired. → The children aren't tired.
Tom and Anna are not students. → Tom and Anna aren't students.

With a singular name, you may also see a contraction of name + is:

Tom is not here. → Tom's not here.
Emma is not tired. → Emma's not tired.

13. The Apostrophe in Negative Contractions

An apostrophe (') is used in contractions to show that letters have been left out.

is not → isn't
are not → aren't

In isn't and aren't, the letter o from not is removed.

We also use apostrophes in these contractions:

I am → I'm
He is → he's
She is → she's
It is → it's
You are → you're
We are → we're
They are → they're

The apostrophe is important when writing contractions.

❌ isnt → ✅ isn't
❌ arent → ✅ aren't
❌ Im not → ✅ I'm not
❌ youre not → ✅ you're not

14. Remember to Write “I” with a Capital Letter

The pronoun I is always written with a capital letter, even when it appears in the middle of a sentence.

❌ i'm not tired.
❌ i am not tired.
✅ I'm not tired.
✅ I am not tired.

15. Negative Forms with Uncountable Nouns

Some nouns such as water, milk, rice, and money are normally treated as singular when we talk about them generally. We therefore use is not.

The water is not cold.
The milk is not fresh.
The rice is not hot.
The money is not here.

At this level, remember that these nouns normally take is, not are, in sentences like these.

16. Positive vs Negative Forms

17. Word Order in Negative Sentences

The position of not is very important.

Use this order:

Subject + am/is/are + not + rest of the sentence

Example:

She + is + not + tired.

✅ She is not tired.
❌ She not is tired.
❌ She not tired.

Another example:

They + are + not + ready.

✅ They are not ready.
❌ They not are ready.

18. Common A1 Mistakes

Mistake 1: Using “is” with I

❌ I is not tired.
✅ I am not tired.

Mistake 2: Using “are” with he or she

❌ He are not busy.
✅ He is not busy.

Mistake 3: Using “is” with they

❌ They is not ready.
✅ They are not ready.

Mistake 4: Forgetting the verb “to be”

❌ She not happy.
✅ She is not happy.

Mistake 5: Putting “not” before the verb

❌ We not are students.
✅ We are not students.

Mistake 6: Forgetting the apostrophe

❌ He isnt tired.
✅ He isn't tired.

Mistake 7: Using “is” with a plural noun

❌ My friends is not here.
✅ My friends are not here.

Mistake 8: Using “are” with a singular noun

❌ My brother are not at home.
✅ My brother is not at home.

Mistake 9: Using the wrong form with this/these

❌ These is not my shoes.
✅ These are not my shoes.

19. Quick Reference Table

20. Quick Summary: Am Not, Is Not & Are Not

I → am not → I'm not

He / She / It → is not → isn't

You / We / They → are not → aren't

For nouns:

Singular → is not
Plural → are not

Also remember:

This / That → is not
These / Those → are not

The most important rule is:

Subject + am/is/are + not + rest of the sentence

Positive: They are happy.
Negative: They are not happy.

Positive: She is at home.
Negative: She isn't at home.