When to use "is" and when to use "does "

Question

Hello I know that maybe there is a preexiting thread about it that im not able to find v.v but here goes and example what Im asking is when to use each ( is / does ) thank you !

Is anybody has iphone? I know it is supposed to be ; Does anybody has an I phone ? But i don;t know why ..PLEASE EXPLAIN grammar :p Is anybody drinking russian vodka yet? Is anybody like traveling? Does anybody like traveling .. Is anybody watching a good film? thank you !

• I'm sorry if I'm wrong... but shouldn't it be... "does anybody have an I phone?" - Tonyriva Oct 26, 2010
• correction : Does anybody have and i phone but why ?? and when to use does and is ( grammar ) - ninozka Oct 26, 2010

Answer 1

Anybody/anyone, is a collective noun and treated as singular.

The difference is in the question you posed ,in the first example you are asking

if anyone has an iphone, " Does anybody have an iphone" , but if you wanted to

know if someone was using an iphone , it is , " Is anybody using an iphone".

Using , "does,"implies there will be more than one person .

Using "Is " implies there is only one.

• I am sure there will be others who can explain this in a more cogent way than I have. - ray76 Oct 26, 2010

Answer 2

I think that you are asking about two different methods of inquiring if something exists. Both are proper and there is no rule for using one or the other.

Is there anyone here that speaks Spanish?

Does anyone here speak Spanish?

I think some of your confusion arises over the forms of the verbs used in each of the two methods.

Is there anyone that... +3rd, person, singular of verb (smokes, sings, runs,....)

In the 2nd method, you have both an auxiliary verb and a main verb, so that the 2nd verb now is not conjugated.

• Is there anyone here that speaks Spanish? (speak is conjugated)
• Is there anyone here that does speak Spanish? (after an auxiliary verb speak is not conjugated [does is still singular])

This is why in your examples it should have been:

• Is there anyone that has
• Does anyone have

It is not a contrast between singular and plural; but between being conjugated or not.

Is there anyone here that has... (singular) Does anyone here have.... (not conjugated, not a question of singular/plural)

anyone is a singular pronoun and when used with a simple verb takes a singular conjugation. When used with a auxiliary+main verb the auxiliary will be conjugated in the singular.

Answer 3

The difference has to do with time. When I say that, I mean:

You would use "is" when the following verb is going to end in "-ing", as if someone is performing that action at that moment.

You would use "does" as if to imply someone would perform that action at any given time.

I hope that makes sense...

Answer 4

The confusion here seems to stem from understanding the auxiliary verb to do. One of it's functions is to make questions out of statements.

John has a dog. is a statement.

Does John have a dog? is a question.

If you want to ask a more general question about any people present, rather than just John, you can use the pronoun anyone or anybody:

Does anyone have a dog?

There may be no one with a dog, one person with a dog, or several people with a dog--you don't know and the question does not infer anything about that.

You can also make statements using the verb to be:

John is Catholic.

And you can change it into a question by reversing the subject verb order:

Is John Catholic?

And you can again have the more general question:

Is anyone Catholic?

You can also reverse the verb order with to have:

Have you got a match?

Do you have a match?

The use of to do with to be is no longer generally used:

Does John be Catholic?

might have been said a few hundred years ago, but not today.

There are similar constructions with other auxiliary (or modal) verbs like can.

• My dictionary says one L in auxiliary. - qfreed Oct 26, 2010

Answer 5

You use "is" when the action is immediate, when it's being done right at the moment: with verbs that end in -ing. "Is any one using an iPhone?" — "using" ends in -ing.

You use "does" when the action is general, when it's something that is done, though not at any specific time: with verbs in the infinitive. "Does any one use an iPhone?" — "use" is in the infinitive.

Ray76 isn't right on this one (sorry!), because both "is" and "does" are singular third-person verbs. The third-person plural versions are "are" (for "is") and "do" (for "does"). (And my first version of this whole response wasn't right either! Thanks to cali_babygirl for catching me on that.)

• Acutally, "using" is a verb. An adjective is something that describes a noun. - malcriada Oct 26, 2010
• I know! I just caught that when I read your response! - Soninmyeyes Oct 26, 2010
• "Does anyone have a pen?" refers to right now, not to general pen ownership. - lorenzo9 Oct 26, 2010
• "Does anyone use a fountain pen anymore?", on the other hand, is general. - samdie Oct 26, 2010