Rules for Using Irregular Verbs

[Pages:11]USING IRREGULAR VERBS

Understand the problem.

All verbs, whether regular or irregular, have five forms (often called principal parts). These forms are the infinitive, simple present, simple past, past participle, and present participle.

The difference between regular and irregular verbs is the formation of the simple past and past participle.

Regular verbs are dependably consistent--the simple past ends in ed as does the past participle.

Review this chart:

INFINITIVE

to laugh to start to wash to wink

SIMPLE PRESENT laugh(s) start(s) wash(es) wink(s)

SIMPLE PAST laughed started washed winked

PAST PARTICIPLE

PRESENT PARTICIPLE

laughed

laughing

started

starting

washed

washing

winked

winking

In contrast, the simple past and past participle of irregular verbs can end in a variety of ways, with no consistent pattern.

Here are examples:

INFINITIVE to drive to feel

SIMPLE PRESENT

drive(s)

feel(s)

SIMPLE PAST

drove

felt

PAST PARTICIPLE

PRESENT PARTICIPLE

driven

driving

felt

feeling

1

to put to swim

put(s) swim(s)

put swam

put swum

putting swimming

With irregular verbs, writers make two frequent errors. They either 1) add an incorrect ed to the end of the past tense or past participle or 2) confuse one form with the other.

Read this sentence:

Olivia feeled like exercising yesterday, so she putted on her bathing suit and drived to the city pool, where she swum so far that only an extra-large pepperoni pizza would satisfy her hunger.

What are the problems with this sentence? First, feeled should be felt. Next, putted needs no ed. The correct past tense of drive is drove. And we must change swum to swam.

Know the solution.

To avoid making mistakes with irregular verbs, learn the very long chart below. (Or bookmark this page in your web browser for future reference!)

INFINITIVE to arise to awake to be to bear to beat to become

SIMPLE PRESENT arise(s)

awake(s)

am, is, are

SIMPLE PAST

arose

awoke or awaked

was, were

bear(s)

bore

beat(s) become(s)

beat became

PAST PARTICIPLE

PRESENT PARTICIPLE

arisen

arising

awaked or awoken

awaking

been

being

borne or born

bearing

beaten

beating

become

becoming

2

INFINITIVE

to begin to bend to bet to bid (to offer) to bid (to command) to bind to bite to blow to break to bring to build

SIMPLE PRESENT begin(s) bend(s) bet(s)

bid(s)

bid(s)

bind(s) bite(s) blow(s) break(s) bring(s) build(s)

to burst

burst(s)

to buy to cast to catch to choose to cling to come to cost

buy(s) cast(s) catch(es) choose(s) cling(s) come(s) cost(s)

SIMPLE PAST began bent bet

bid

bade

bound bit blew broke brought built burst or bursted bought cast caught chose clung came cost

PAST PARTICIPLE

PRESENT PARTICIPLE

begun

beginning

bent

bending

bet

betting

bid

bidding

bidden

bidding

bound

binding

bitten or bit biting

blown

blowing

broken

breaking

brought

bringing

built

building

burst or bursted

bursting

bought

buying

cast

casting

caught

catching

chosen

choosing

clung

clinging

come

coming

cost

costing

3

INFINITIVE

to creep to cut to deal to dig

SIMPLE PRESENT creep(s) cut(s) deal(s) dig(s)

to dive

dive(s)

to do to draw

do(es) draw(s)

to dream

dream(s)

to drink

to drive to eat to fall to feed to feel to fight to find to flee to fling to fly

drink(s)

drive(s) eat(s) fall(s) feed(s) feel(s) fight(s) find(s) flee(s) fling(s) flies, fly

SIMPLE PAST

PAST PARTICIPLE

PRESENT PARTICIPLE

crept

crept

creeping

cut

cut

cutting

dealt

dealt

dealing

dug

dug

digging

dived or dove

dived

diving

did

done

doing

drew

drawn

drawing

dreamed or dreamt

dreamed or dreamt

dreaming

drank

drunk or drank

drinking

drove

driven

driving

ate

eaten

eating

fell

fallen

falling

fed

fed

feeding

felt

felt

feeling

fought

fought

fighting

found

found

finding

fled

fled

fleeing

flung

flung

flinging

flew

flown

flying

4

INFINITIVE

SIMPLE PRESENT

to forbid

forbid(s)

to forget

forget(s)

to forgive to forsake to freeze

forgive(s) forsake(s) freeze(s)

to get

get(s)

to give to go to grow to hang (to suspend) to have to hear

give(s) go(es) grow(s) hang(s) has, have hear(s)

to hide

hide(s)

to hit to hurt to keep to know to lay

hit(s) hurt(s) keep(s) know(s) lay(s)

SIMPLE PAST forbade or forbad

forgot

forgave forsook froze

got

gave went grew

hung

had heard

hid

hit hurt kept knew laid

PAST PARTICIPLE

PRESENT PARTICIPLE

forbidden forbidding

forgotten or forgot

forgetting

forgiven

forgiving

forsaken

forsaking

frozen

freezing

gotten or got

getting

given

giving

gone

going

grown

growing

hung

hanging

had heard hidden or hid hit hurt kept known laid

having hearing

hiding

hitting hurting keeping knowing laying

5

INFINITIVE to lead

SIMPLE PRESENT

lead(s)

to leap

leap(s)

to leave

leave(s)

to lend

lend(s)

to let

let(s)

to lie (to rest or recline)

lie(s)

to light

light(s)

to lose

lose(s)

to make

make(s)

to mean

mean(s)

to pay

pay(s)

to prove

prove(s)

to quit to read to rid to ride to ring to rise to run

quit(s) read(s) rid(s) ride(s) ring(s) rise(s) run(s)

SIMPLE PAST

led

leaped or leapt

left

lent

let

PAST PARTICIPLE

PRESENT PARTICIPLE

led

leading

leaped or leapt

leaping

left

leaving

lent

lending

let

letting

lay

lain

lying

lighted or lit lighted or lit lighting

lost

lost

losing

made

made

making

meant

meant

meaning

paid

paid

paying

proved

proved or proven

proving

quit

quit

quitting

read

read

reading

rid

rid

ridding

rode

ridden

riding

rang

rung

ringing

rose

risen

rising

ran

run

running

6

INFINITIVE

SIMPLE PRESENT

to say

say(s)

to see

see(s)

to seek

seek(s)

to send

send(s)

to set

set(s)

to shake

shake(s)

to shine (to glow)

shine(s)

to shoot

shoot(s)

to show

show(s)

to shrink to sing to sink to sit to slay to sleep to sling to sneak

shrink(s) sing(s) sink(s) sit(s) slay(s) sleep(s) sling(s) sneak(s)

SIMPLE PAST said saw sought sent set shook

PAST PARTICIPLE

PRESENT PARTICIPLE

said

saying

seen

seeing

sought

seeking

sent

sending

set

setting

shaken

shaking

shone

shone

shining

shot

shot

showed

shown or showed

shrank or shrunk

shrunk or shrunken

sang or sung sung

sank or sunk

sunk

sat

sat

slew or slayed

slain

slept

slept

slung

slung

sneaked or snuck

sneaked or snuck

shooting showing

shrinking singing sinking sitting slaying sleeping slinging sneaking

7

INFINITIVE

to speak to spend to spin

SIMPLE PRESENT speak(s) spend(s) spin(s)

to spring

spring(s)

to stand to steal to stick to sting

stand(s) steal(s) stick(s) sting(s)

to stink

stink(s)

to stride to strike to strive to swear to sweep to swim to swing to take to teach to tear to tell

stride(s) strike(s) strive(s) swear(s) sweep(s) swim(s) swing(s) take(s) teach(es) tear(s) tell(s)

SIMPLE PAST spoke spent spun sprang or sprung stood stole stuck stung stank or stunk strode struck strove swore swept swam swung took taught tore told

PAST PARTICIPLE

PRESENT PARTICIPLE

spoken

speaking

spent

spending

spun

spinning

sprung

springing

stood stolen stuck stung

standing stealing sticking stinging

stunk

stinking

stridden struck striven sworn swept swum swung taken taught torn told

striding striking striving swearing sweeping swimming swinging taking teaching tearing telling

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