Table of Contents
What is meant by regular and irregular verbs?
Verbs in English have four main forms:
- Base verb
- Past verb
- Past participle
- Present participle
To form the past and past participle verbs, the general rule is to add ed to the base verb (Verb 1). Verbs that end in e form the past and past participle by adding d. The verbs that follow this rule are called regular verbs.
However, there are verbs that have different patterns of past and past participle. These verbs are called irregular verbs.
Regular Verbs with ed
| Base Verb | Past Tense | Past Participle |
|---|---|---|
| clean | cleaned | cleaned |
| open | opened | opened |
| want | wanted | wanted |
Regular Verbs with d
| Base Verb | Past Tense | Past Participle |
|---|---|---|
| admire | admired | admired |
| advise | advised | advised |
| promote | promoted | promoted |
Irregular Verbs – Group 1
All three forms are the same.
| Base Verb | Past Tense | Past Participle |
|---|---|---|
| bet | bet | bet |
| bid | bid | bid |
| broadcast | broadcast | broadcast |
| cast | cast | cast |
| cost | cost | cost |
| cut | cut | cut |
| hit | hit | hit |
| hurt | hurt | hurt |
| let | let | let |
| put | put | put |
| quit | quit | quit |
| rid | rid | rid |
| shut | shut | shut |
| set | set | set |
| shed | shed | shed |
| slit | slit | slit |
Irregular Verbs – Group 2
2nd and 3rd forms are the same.
| Base Verb | Past Tense | Past Participle |
|---|---|---|
| get | got | got (or gotten) |
| light | lit | lit |
| lose | lost | lost |
| shoot | shot | shot |
| sit | sat | sat |
| dream | dreamt (or dreamed | dreamt (or dreamed) |
| feel | felt | felt |
| keep | kept | kept |
| leave | left | left |
| mean | meant | meant |
| meet | met | met |
| sleep | slept | slept |
| weep | wept | wept |
| bring | brought | brought |
| buy | bought | bought |
| fight | fought | fought |
| think | thought | thought |
| catch | caught | caught |
| teach | taught | taught |
| sell | sold | sold |
| tell | told | told |
| make | made | made |
| pay | paid | paid |
| stand | stood | stood |
| understand | understood | understood |
| build | built | built |
| lend | lent | lent |
| send | sent | sent |
| spend | spent | spent |
| find | found | found |
| have | had | had |
| hear | heard | heard |
| hold | held | held |
| read | read | read |
| say | said | said |
| dig | dug | dug |
| sting | stung | stung |
Irregular Verbs – Group 3
The three forms are different.
| Base Verb | Past Tense | Past Participle |
|---|---|---|
| drive | drove | driven |
| ride | rode | ridden |
| rise | rose | risen |
| write | wrote | written |
| bite | bit | bitten |
| hide | hid | hidden |
| awake | awoke | awoken |
| break | broke | broken |
| choose | chose | chosen |
| freeze | froze | frozen |
| speak | spoke | spoken |
| wake | woke | woken |
| blow | blew | blown |
| draw | drew | drawn |
| fly | flew | flown |
| grow | grew | grown |
| know | knew | known |
| show | showed | shown (or showed) |
| tear | tore | torn |
| throw | threw | thrown |
| wear | wore | worn |
| begin | began | begun |
| drink | drank | drunk |
| ring | rang | rung |
| sing | sang | sung |
| sink | sank | sunk |
| stink | stank | stunk |
| swim | swam | swum |
| eat | ate | eaten |
| beat | beat | beaten |
| fall | fell | fallen |
| forget | forgot | forgotten |
| forgive | forgave | forgiven |
| give | gave | given |
| see | saw | seen |
| take | took | taken |
| be | was, were | been |
| become | became | become |
| come | came | come |
| do | did | done |
| go | went | gone |