In linguistics, a copula (plural: copulas or copulae) is a word used to link the subject of a sentence with a predicate (a subject complement), such as the word is in the sentence "The sky is blue." The word copula derives from the Latin noun for a "link" or "tie" that connects two different things.
A copula is often a verb or a verb-like word, though this is not universally the case. A verb that is a copula is sometimes called a copulative or copular verb. In English primary education grammar courses, a copula is often called a linking verb. In other languages, copulas show more resemblances to pronouns, as in Classical Chinese and Guarani, or may take the form of suffixes attached to a noun, as in Beja, Ket, and Inuit languages.
Most languages have one main copula, although some (such as Spanish, Portuguese and Thai) have more than one, and some have none. In the case of English, this is the verb to be. While the term copula is generally used to refer to such principal forms, it may also be used to refer to some other verbs with similar functions, like become, get, feel and seem in English (these may also be called "semi-copulas" or "pseudo-copulas").
To Be may refer to:
"To Be" is the English title of a Japanese-language song by Ayumi Hamasaki. It was released as the singer's eighth single on May 12, 1999. The song begins "Dare mo ga toorisugite...", and does not contain the phrase "to be" or any other English lyrics.
"To Be" was released less than a month after her first number one single, "Love (Destiny)." Hamasaki's first song to be composed by Do as Infinity composer DAI, "To Be" was unable to reach the top position on the Oricon, unlike its predecessor. Hamasaki re-recorded "To Be" in celebrating her 10th anniversary in the music business in 2008 and it appeared as a B-Side on her Days/Green single.
The music video for "TO BE" was directed by longtime collaborator Takeishi Wataru. It shows Hamasaki singing as seen by a little boy through a kaleidoscope. It makes use of various backgrounds, outfits, makeup, and wigs to bring as much color as possible into the world the little boy sees. At the end, the kaleidoscope lens breaks, and Hamasaki is seen in black and white.
To Be is a Canadian animated short film released in 1990 and directed by John Weldon, who also composed its music. "To Be" was considered for a Palme d'Or for best short film in 1990. From 1997 to 2002, the film was shown on Cartoon Network as part of the program O Canada. The film concerns an ontological problem known as the teletransportation paradox.
The cartoon opens as the narrator sings about how her thoughts of being continue to haunt her, keeping her from sleep. After this introduction, we meet the character in earnest and her narrative begins (henceforth continuing throughout the story while accompanied occasionally by the semi-audible dialog of the characters):
To Be (做自己 Zuò zìjǐ, "be yourself") is a 1997 Mandarin-language pop album by Karen Mok. It was Mok's first album for the Taiwan and PRC markets. The album sold over 800,000 copies, and included a hit single, Ta Bu Ai Wo ("He does not love me").