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Affirmative sentences in English: Meaning, structure, usage, exercises

What is an affirmative sentence in English? How do you properly construct an affirmative sentence in English? In today's article, let me explain these questions in detail. Check it out!

I. What is an affirmative sentence in English?

First, let's start by understanding the concept of affirmative sentences in English. What exactly are they and how should they be properly formed?

1. Definition

What is an affirmative sentence in English? As the name suggests, an affirmative sentence in English is a statement that shows agreement or says "yes". For example:

Jennie and Lisa are best friends.
I wake up at 6am everyday.
The monitor will start the party with the fireworks.

2. Affirmative sentences formation

Creating affirmative sentences in English is quite straightforward. In English, we can easily form an affirmative sentence with two main components:

S + V

In there:

Subject: S
Verb: V (regular verb, tobe, modal verb)

In addition to the subject and predicate, there are other components that can be included to form affirmative sentences in English. For example:

We will go to the airport at 8 pm.
I had breakfast at 6 am this morning.
My sister can sing and dance beautifully.

II. The structure of affirmative sentences in English

Let's take a look at the structure of affirmative sentences in the 12 tenses of English and the modal verbs below!

1. With 12 English tenses

12 English tenses	Structure	Example
Present simple	Regular verb: S + V(s/es) (+ O) Verb tobe: S + am/ is/ are (+ O)	I often play badminton on Sunday. Rose is a singer.
Present continuous tense	S + am/ is/ are + V-ing (+ O)	My mother is cooking in the kitchen at the moment.
Present perfect tense	S + have/ has + V3 (+ O)	Ms. Linda has taught English for 5 years at my school.
Present perfect continuous tense	S + have/ has + been + V-ing (+ O)	My family has been living in this town for 10 years.
Past simple tense	Regular verbs: S + V-ed/V2 (+ O) Verb tobe: S + was/ were (+ O)	I had a good buffet with my friend yesterday. I was in Hue last month.
Past continuous tense	S + was/were + V-ing (+ O)	He was playing badminton at 5 p.m yesterday.
Past perfect tense	S + had + V3 (+ O)	Windy had finished the course before the expiration day.
Past perfect continuous tense	S + had + been + V-ing (+ O)	Tony had been working at a multinational company for 5 years before he went abroad.
Simple future tense	S + will + V (+ O)	I will be a doctor in the future.
Future continuous tense	S + will + be + Ving (+ O)	I will be graduating on Sunday next week.
Future perfect tense	S + will + have + V3 (+ O)	I will have carried out ten big projects this year until December.
Future perfect continuous tense	S + will + have + been + V-ing (+ O)	By the end of this year, Fiona will have been working in HSBC for 5 years.

2. With modal verbs

The structure of affirmative sentences in English with common modal verbs: S + modal verbs + V-inf (+ O)
Modal verbs		Example
Ability	can/ could/ be able to	Naomi can speak three different languages fluently.
Advice	must/ should/ ought to/ could	You must complete the assignment by the end of the day to meet the deadline.
Obligation and Necessity	must/ have to/ need	Everyone has to attend the meeting at 10 am tomorrow.
Certainty and possibility	will/ would/ may/ might/ can/ could	You may bring a guest to the event if you'd like.

III. Transforming affirmative sentences into negative forms

How to transform affirmative sentences in English to negative forms. Let's explore together how this grammar change is done. Below are some examples to illustrate the process.

1. With tobe

To change an affirmative sentence into a negative sentence, we simply add the word "not" after "to be."For example:

Present continuous tense	They are watching a movie right now. ⏩ They are not watching a movie right now.
Past continuous tense	I was reading a book when the phone rang. ⏩ I was not reading a book when the phone rings.

2. With regular verbs

We borrow the auxiliary "do/does" and place "not" following it before the lexical verb to change an affirmative sentence into a negative sentence. For example:

Present simple tense	Ms. Kim works at a bank on Sunday. ⏩ Ms. Kim does not work at a bank.
Present perfect tense	Aladdin has visited that museum before. ⏩ Aladdin has not visited that museum before.
Present perfect continuous tense	They have been playing soccer all afternoon. ⏩ They have not been playing soccer all afternoon.
Past simple tense	Hulk visited Paris last summer. ⏩ Hulk did not visit Paris last summer.
Past perfect tense	Mona had finished her meal by the time I got there. ⏩ Mona had not finished her meal by the time I got there.
Past perfect continuous tense	My friends had been studying for hours when I called. ⏩ My friends had not been studying for hours when I called.
Simple future tense	My mother will go to the store tomorrow. ⏩ My mother will not go to the store tomorrow.
Future continuous tense	My team will be working on this project next week. ⏩ My team will not be working on this project next week.
Future perfect tense	Jesus will have finished her book by the end of the month. ⏩ Jesus will not have finished her book by the end of the month.
Future perfect continuous tense	By 11 pm tonight, I and my brother will have been watching film for hours.⏩ By 11 pm tonight, I and my brother not have been watching film for hours.

3. For sentences with modal verbs

When changing an affirmative sentence to a negative sentence in English that contains a modal verb, we can add "not" directly after those supporting verbs:

S + modal verbs + V-inf + O ⏩ S + modal verbs + not + V-inf + + O

For example:

Clara will be able to finish the project on time. ⏩ Clara will not be able to finish the project on time.
Peter can play the guitar. ⏩ Peter can not play guitar.

IV. Exercises on affirmative sentences in English

To better understand the structure of affirmative sentences in English and the differences between positive and negative forms, let's practice through two exercises with PREP!

1. Exercises

Exercise 1: Convert the negative sentences below into affirmative sentences

Archway does not like to swim in the ocean.
They have not finished their homework already.
Bob won’t go to the concert tonight.
My mother does not enjoy eating spicy food.
We will not visit our grandparents next Sunday.

Exercise 2: Conjugate the verbs in brackets

I_____(travel) to London two weeks ago.
My friends_____(watch) a movie at the moment.
Jack_____(go) to the gym regularly.
They_____(visit) that museum before.
They_____(attend) the conference next week.

2. Answer

Exercise 1	Exercise 2
Archway likes to swim in the ocean. They have finished their homework already. Bob will go to the concert tonight. My mother enjoys eating spicy food. We will visit our grandparents next Sunday.	traveled are watching goes have visited will attend

PREP hopes this overview of affirmative sentences in English has helped you grasp the concept while also learning techniques like transforming them into negative forms. If an aspect of affirmative or negative sentence structure remains unclear, please don't hesitate to comment or message directly, PREP is always happy to discuss further and provide clarification on any of these language concepts.

Master Tu Pham

Founder/CEO at Prep

Founder of Prep Smart Test Preparation Platform. With over 10 years of experience in teaching and test preparation, Mr. Tú has helped thousands of students achieve high scores in the IELTS exam. In addition, Mr. Tú Phạm is also a consulting expert in British Council programs and a speaker at many leading educational events, programs, and conferences.