Download The Emphatic Form

LEVEL 6 - THE EMPHATIC FORM
In spoken English, words can be emphasized by being pronounced with a heavier stress than usual. This
type of emphasis is usually indicated in written English by means of italics or underlining. In the
following examples, emphasized words are indicated by means of underlining. Emphatic statements are
often used in conversation; for instance, when one speaker is contradicting another.
e.g. "I don't believe he works very hard."
"Yes, he does work hard."
When it is desired to emphasize a verb, it is generally the first auxiliary which is stressed. For instance, in
the sentence I am working hard, the verb can be emphasized by stressing the auxiliary am.
e.g. I am working hard.
Usually, no auxiliary is required for affirmative statements in the Simple Present and Simple Past.
However, in order to make such statements emphatic, for verbs other than the verb to be, the auxiliary
to do is used, followed by the bare infinitive. For example, in the Simple Present, the emphatic form of
the verb to work is formed with the Simple Present of the auxiliary to do, as shown below:
Affirmative Statement
I work.
You work.
He works.
She works.
It works.
We work.
They work.
Emphatic Affirmative Statement
I do work.
You do work.
He does work.
She does work.
It does work.
We do work.
They do work.
In the Simple Past, the emphatic form of the verb to work is formed with the Simple Past of the auxiliary
to do, as shown below:
Affirmative Statement
I worked.
You worked.
He worked.
She worked.
It worked.
We worked.
They worked.
Emphatic Affirmative Statement
I did work.
You did work.
He did work.
She did work.
It did work.
We did work.
They did work.
For the emphatic form of the Simple Present of the verb to be, no auxiliary is used. Instead, the verb
itself is stressed. For example:
Affirmative Statement
I am ready.
It is ready.
They are ready.
Emphatic Affirmative Statement
I am ready.
It is ready.
They are ready.
Similarly, for the emphatic form of the Simple Past of the verb to be, no auxiliary is used. Instead, the
verb itself is stressed. For example:
Affirmative Statement
I was ready.
Emphatic Affirmative Statement
I was ready.
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It was ready.
They were ready.
It was ready.
They were ready.
Examples of emphatic statements in all of the present and past tenses are given in the following table:
Tense
Simple Present
Present Continuous
Present Perfect
Present Perfect Continuous
Affirmative Statement
I work.
I am working.
I have worked.
I have been working.
Emphatic Statement
I do work.
I am working.
I have worked.
I have been working.
Simple Past
Past Continuous
Past Perfect
Past Perfect Continuous
I worked.
I was working.
I had worked.
I had been working.
I did work.
I was working.
I had worked.
I had been working.
Simple Present of to be
Simple Past of to be
I am ready.
I was ready.
I am ready.
I was ready.
It should be noted that questions may be emphasized in the same way as statements.
e.g. Did it work? Are they ready?
Sometimes it is desired to emphasize a negative statement containing the word not. In spoken English,
often both the auxiliary and the word not are stressed, but in written English, usually only the word not
is underlined or written in italics. For example:
Negative Statement
He does not know the answer.
Emphatic Negative Statement
He does not know the answer.
When a contracted form of the word not is used, it is generally the auxiliary which is stressed in an
emphatic statement. For example:
Negative Statement
He doesn't know the answer.
Emphatic Negative Statement
He doesn't know the answer.
EXERCISES
Make the following statements emphatic. For example: He likes cats. / He does like cats.
1. I enjoy reading.
2. They like music.
3. It snowed.
4. I found my pen yesterday.
5. She cooks well.
6. You listen to the radio.
7. They found the answer last week.
8. He does the right thing.
9. She understands everything.
10. They locked the door.
11. He arrived late.
12. You run fast.
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