What does are mean?
"Are" is the present-tense form of the verb "be," used whenever the subject is second person ("you are") or plural ("we are," "they are"). It anchors some of the most fundamental statements in English, expressing existence ("there are options"), identity ("they are doctors"), condition ("we are tired"), and ongoing action ("things are changing"). Because it combines with countless adjectives, nouns, and clauses, it is among the most frequently used words in the language, appearing constantly in both speech and writing. Its pronunciation, rhyming with "car" and "far," is identical on both sides of the Atlantic. Interestingly, "are" is not a direct survivor of Old English: it entered mainstream usage through Norse-influenced northern dialects and gradually displaced older native forms such as "sind." A separate, now uncommon noun "are" also exists as a metric unit of area equal to 100 square metres, though it has largely been superseded by the hectare. Mastery of "are" is essential to basic English grammar, since nearly every conversation relies on it.
The present-tense form of "be" used with second-person and plural subjects, indicating existence, identity, state, or action in the present.
"You are invited to the wedding next month."
Used with "you," "we," "they," and all plural or compound subjects; never with third-person singular subjects, which take "is."
A metric unit of land area equal to 100 square metres, one tenth of a hectare.
"The garden plot covered roughly three ares."
Now rare in everyday use; the hectare (100 ares) is the standard metric land measure.
Applies only to the noun sense (the metric unit); the verb form "are" has no plural of its own.
"The field measures about fifty ares."
"Are" isn't native English at all — it was borrowed from the Vikings, replacing the Old English verb forms after the Norse settlements, which is why we say "they are" instead of the older "they sind."
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of are
The verb form "are" derives from Old Norse, the language of Viking-age Scandinavia, whose present-tense forms of the verb "be" (such as "eru") closely resemble it. It first took hold in the Norse-influenced north of England, where it displaced the native Old English forms like "sind" and "sindon," and spread southward during the Middle English period until it became the standard plural and second-person present of "be." Its ultimate root is the Proto-Germanic verb *beuną/*esaną, making it cognate with the archaic English form "art" (the old second-person singular of "be") and with the modern Scandinavian verbs "är" and "er." Separately, the noun "are," a unit of 100 square metres, was introduced with the French metric system in the 1790s and gives its name to the larger "hectare."
How are is actually used
As a verb, "are" pairs with second-person and plural subjects and appears in both formal and informal registers without variation. In casual speech it is often contracted away entirely ("they're", "we're"), so the full form tends to signal slightly more deliberate or formal phrasing. Note also the fixed expression "How are you?", a standard greeting rather than a genuine request for information.
Easily confused with are
"Are" is a verb form meaning "to be," while "our" is a possessive pronoun meaning belonging to us; they look and sound similar enough that writers sometimes mistype one for the other.