HOW DO YOU USE THE VERB LIKE?

An essential part of giving our opinion about something is to express what you like or dislike. In this post we are going to discuss the grammar behind the use of like and some of its synonyms.

 

In the affirmative we use like:

 

SUBJECT	VERB	EXAMPLE
I	LIKE	I like watching TV.
YOU	LIKE	You like reading books.
HE/SHE/IT	LIKES	The dog likes playing fetch.
WE	LIKE	We like listening to music.
THEY	LIKE	They like playing the guitar.
YOU (ALL)	LIKE	You like passing exams.

 

Careful: We almost always use like + ing in modern English.

 

In the negative we use do not/don’t like:

 

SUBJECT	AUXILIARY + VERB	EXAMPLE
I	DON’T LIKE	I don’t like singing.
YOU	DON’T LIKE	You don’t like video games.
HE/SHE/IT	DOESN’T LIKE	He doesn’t like fish.
WE	DON’T LIKE	We don’t like jogging.
THEY	DON’T LIKE	They don’t like working hard.
YOU (ALL)	DON’T LIKE	You don’t like swimming.

 

In the negative we can also use dislike:

 

SUBJECT	VERB	EXAMPLE
I	DISLIKE	I dislike watching TV.
YOU	DISLIKE	You dislike reading books.
HE/SHE/IT	DISLIKES	The dog dislikes playing fetch.
WE	DISLIKE	We dislike listening to music.
THEY	DISLIKE	They dislike playing the guitar.
YOU (ALL)	DISLIKE	You dislike passing exams.

 

In a question we use Do/Does + subject + like …?

 

AUXILIARY	SUBJECT	VERB	EXAMPLE
DO	I	LIKE	Do I like surfing the net?
DO	YOU	LIKE	Do you like eating cheese?
DOES	HE/SHE/IT	LIKE	Does he like running?
DO	WE	LIKE	Do we like studying English?
DO	THEY	LIKE	Do they like laughing?
DO	YOU (ALL)	LIKE	Do you like chatting online?

 

Careful: when forming questions, do not forget the auxiliary Do/Does

 

THERE ARE MANY SYNONYMS FOR LIKE AND SYNONYMS FOR DISLIKE

We also have other forms of expressing likes, using the verb to be + adjectives + preposition: we will use be keen on as an example

 

In the affirmative we use be + keen + on:

 

SUBJECT	VERB	EXAMPLE
I	AM	I am keen on swimming.
YOU	ARE	You are keen on reading.
HE/SHE/IT	IS	He is keen on eating ham.
WE	ARE	We are keen on playing games.
THEY	ARE	they are keen on sleeping.
YOU (ALL)	ARE	You are keen on listening to music.

 

In the negative we use be + keen + on:

 

SUBJECT	VERB	EXAMPLE
I	AM NOT	I am not keen on singing.
YOU	AREN’T/ARE NOT	You aren’t keen on walking.
HE/SHE/IT	IS NOT/ISN’T	She isn’t keen on flying by plane.
WE	AREN’T/ARE NOT	We aren’t keen on writing.
THEY	AREN’T/ARE NOT	They aren’t keen on working.
YOU (ALL)	AREN’T/ARE NOT	You aren’t keen on lying.

 

In the interrogative we use be + keen + on:

 

AUXILIARY	SUBJECT	EXAMPLE
AM	I	Am I keen on doing sport?
ARE	YOU	Are you keen on gardening?
IS	HE/SHE/IT	Is she keen on cleaning?
ARE	WE	Are we keen on traveling?
ARE	THEY	Are they keen on talking?
ARE	YOU (ALL)	Are you keen on learning German?

 

TRY THIS EXERCISES

Grammar exercise: Fill in the gaps with the correct auxiliary verb

1. _____ you like listening to music?
2. _____ you like speaking English?
3. _____ you keen on playing football?
4. Where _____ you like meeting friends?
5. _____ you fond of playing board games?
6. _____ you keen on using computers?
7. _____ you like talking on the phone?
8. What _____ you keen on doing on weekends?
9. What _____ you like doing in your free time?
10. Where _____ you keen on going on holiday?

 

Try speaking with them and answer with the auxiliary verb:

 

Yes, I do.

No, I don’t.

 

DOWNLOAD THE ANSWERS IN PDF HERE