‘Do’ and its conjugation ‘Does’ in plays a significant role in the English dialect. It is the second most important verb after BE.
The proper knowledge about the verb forms of ‘Do’ and ‘Does’ are highly useful for a student to use them correctly while creating sentences. Do is primarily used as an auxiliary verb and its main function is the formulation of questions as well as negative sentences.
Key Takeaways
- “Do” and “does” are auxiliary verbs used to form questions, negations, and other grammatical structures in English.
- “Do” is used with the pronouns “I,” “you,” “we,” and “they,” as well as plural nouns, while “do” is used with the pronouns “he,” “she,” and “it,” as well as singular nouns.
- Both auxiliary verbs are essential for proper grammar in English, and their correct usage depends on the sentence’s subject and the desired meaning.
Do vs Does
The difference between Do and Does is that do is used as an auxiliary verb in simple present sentences with first person singular and plural, second person singular and plural as well as third-person plural nouns whereas does is used with only third-person singular nouns.
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In a sentence, do is used with first-person singular, first-person plural, second person singular and second person plural, and third-person plural nouns. Does is only used with third person singular nouns.
The usage of do as a major verb in a sentence in the simple present tense is very less. Its main function is to show what or who performs a task or a habitual action.
The word ‘do’ can be used as an auxiliary verb for making a contradiction in certain affirmative sentences.
Comparison Table
| Parameter of Comparison | Do | Does |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Do is an action verb mainly used to formulate interrogative and negative sentences. | Does is the third person singular form of the verb ‘do’ used in the simple present tense. |
| Usage with nouns | ‘Do’ can use with plural nouns | ‘Does’ can use only with singular nouns |
| Usage with pronouns | ‘Do’ can use along with I, we, you, they, those, etc., | ‘Does’ can use with he, she, it, this, that, etc. |
| Imperative sentences | ‘Do’ is used to form imperative sentences | ‘Does’ is not used to form imperative sentences. |
| Example | Do you go to the shop every day? | Meera does run daily. |
When to Use Do?
Do is one of the prominent transitive verbs in English used extensively to convey with the meanings “to perform”, “to carry out”, “to execute”, etc. The transitive verb ‘do’ is used when one needs to refer something to indicate the action of an individual as a response to another individual’s demand or by his/her own initiative.
The transitive verb ‘do’ requires a direct subject as well as an object when including in a sentence. In the example, “can you do this job?”, ‘you’ is the subject and ‘job’ is the direct object that clarifies what is there to be done.
Do is also used to avoid repetition in certain contexts as a helping verb. “The assignment provides them with the freedom to run and play as kids do”.
Do is widely used in law-related statements and documents as given in the example: “I do hereby declare that my statement is true”.
When to Use Does?
Does’ can be defined as the conjugation of the verb ‘do’. The verb ‘does’ is used with the meaning to act, undertake or perform any activity or task, either by the will of another person or by her/his own will.
Does can be used in the formation of interrogative sentences to make the sentence appear correct and meaningful.
Examples:
- Does he go to school?
- Does the machine work well?
Does can be used in the formation of negative sentences to give a little more emphasis on the negative factor of the sentence.
Examples:
- Marie doesn’t want to go to Manali on her vacation.
- She doesn’t care much about the food she eat.
Does can be used to provide some extra force on the main verb used in a sentence.
Examples:
- She does study hard.
- She does go to the temple every day.
Does is used in the formation of tag questions to provide a little more emphasis to the verb.
Examples:
- She dances well, doesn’t she?
- He paints beautifully, doesn’t he?
Main Differences Between Do and Does
- The main difference between Do and Does is, ‘do’ is one of the major transitive verbs that have a subject as well as an object. It is also an action verb with the meaning to act, to perform, or to fulfil an action.
- When we use ‘do’ with plural nouns like parents, teachers, friends, doctors, dogs, horses, elephants, etc., we use ‘does’ with my dad, my teacher, my friend, the dog, the horse, the elephant, etc.
- When ‘do’ is used with first-person singular and plural nouns, second person singular and plural nouns as well as third-person plural nouns, ‘does’ is only used with third person singular nouns.
- ‘Do’ can be used with demonstrative pronouns these and those, does can only be used with demonstrative pronouns this and that.
- ‘Do’ is used in the formation of imperative sentences but ‘does’ cannot be used to form imperative sentences.
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Emma Smith holds an MA degree in English from Irvine Valley College. She has been a Journalist since 2002, writing articles on the English language, Sports, and Law. Read more about me on her bio page.
