Saying “I’m agree” instead of “I agree” is a common mistake among many students. So, I decided to write a post to clarify the usage of the verb ‘agree’.
1. “I agree”
I agree is the correct usage of the verb ‘agree’ in Present Simple Tense.
If you agree with someone it means that you share the same opinion. “Agree” is not an adjective, so you don’t need to support it with the verb ‘BE’.
Look at these two examples:
I agree with him. (Person + Verb)
I’m afraid of him. (Person + BE + adjective)
‘Afraid’ is an adjective that means ‘feeling fear’. To use it in a sentence as a verb we need to add the verb “BE”.
2. “I’m agreeing”
The verb ‘BE’ is also needed in Present Continuous (Progressive) Tense.
In this case, we usually use the formula: Person +BE+ Verb-ING / I am working. She is working. They are working.
If we used ‘agree’ in the Present Continuous, it would look like “I am agreeing”. However, ‘agree’ is a stative verb that usually isn’t used in the continuous tense.
So, the only option to use ‘agree’ is ‘I agree’ form.
You can find some examples of English speakers using the continuous form of ‘agree’ but the number of such usages is fewer than the “I agree” form.
“I’m agreeing” – 98
“I’m agree” – 2082
In fact, the lady in this video starts with “I’m agree” but then she corrects herself and says “I agree”. So, it’s just a slip of the tongue.
“I agree” – 40853
3. Why “I’m agree” and “I agree” are often mixed up
I think it happens because when we learn languages we pick up some things unconsciously without understanding and then some of them mix in our heads and come out in the wrong way.
For instance, in this case, we may remember the expression “I’m afraid of” and at some point it seems that “I’m agree” sounds the same.
Some English teachers on the internet also shared that their students often say “I’m agree” because this is how it’s said in Spanish and French. For instance, this is what IELTS teacher Simon Corcoran wrote on his website.
I hope it helps. If you are an Intermediate or Elementary English student and you want to avoid common mistakes when you speak English, check out this post.
I also wrote a post about Top-3 websites that could help you with your grammar.
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Additional Resources:
How to use ‘afraid of’
Agree in Cambridge Dictionary
What are stative verbs
