02.08.2019
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Let's look at the different kinds of action verbs! Transitive Active. Certain action verbs called transitive active verbs transfer action to something called a direct object. Joe kicked the ball. Transitive Passive. This type of action verb transfers its action to the subject. Intransitive Complete.

  1. Forms Of Be Verb List List
  2. Forms Of To Be

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Dozens and dozens of English verbs have irregular past tense forms, as well as irregular past participles. If you are studying English grammar you may want to memorize the common irregular past and past participles listed here. This list is not exhaustive by any means, but these are common verbs English speakers use every day.

Lucky for you, English present participles, except for the occasional change from the letter y to the letter i, are fairly straightforward. Just add ing.

If you have questions about a particular verb, check your dictionary. In the following table, the first column is the infinitive form of the verb. (The infinitive is the “to + verb” form — to laugh, to cry, to learn grammar, and so on.) The second column is the simple past tense. The third column is the past participle, which is combined with has (singular) or have (plural) to form the present perfect tense. The past participle is also used with had to form the past perfect tense.

Forms of Irregular Participles
VerbPastPast Participle
bearboreborne
becomebecamebecome
beginbeganbegun
bitebitbitten
breakbrokebroken
bringbroughtbrought
catchcaughtcaught
choosechosechosen
comecamecome
dodiddone
drinkdrankdrunk
drivedrovedriven
eatateeaten
fallfellfallen
feelfeltfelt
flyflewflown
freezefrozefrozen
getgotgot or gotten
gowentgone
knowknewknown
laylaidlaid
leadledled
lendlentlent
lielaylain
loselostlost
rideroderidden
ringrangrung
riseroserisen
runranrun
saysaidsaid
seesawseen
setsetset
shakeshookshaken
singsangsung
sinksank or sunksunk
sitsatsat
sleepsleptslept
speakspokespoken
stealstolestolen
swimswamswum
taketooktaken
throwthrewthrown
wearworeworn
winwonwon
writewrotewritten

This is a list of irregular verbs in the English language.

Past tense irregular verbs[edit]

For each verb listed, the citation form (the bare infinitive) is given first, with a link to the relevant Wiktionary entry. This is followed by the simple past tense (preterite), and then the past participle. If there are irregular present tense forms (see below), these are given in parentheses after the infinitive. (The present participle and gerund forms of verbs, ending in -ing, are always regular. In English, these are used as verbs, adjectives, and nouns.) In the case of modal verbs the present and preterite forms are listed, since these are the only forms that exist.

The right-hand column notes whether the verb is weak or strong and whether it belongs to a subclass, and links to descriptions elsewhere. Information about the development of these verbs generally can be found at English irregular verbs; details of the etymology and usage of specific verbs can be found by consulting Wiktionary.

In some cases, there are two or more possibilities for a given form. In the table, the preferred or more common usage is generally listed first, though for some words the usage is nearly equal for the two choices. Sometimes the usage depends on the dialect. In many cases, such as spell (spelt vs. spelled), learn (learnt vs. learned), and spill (spilt vs. spilled), American English normally uses the regular form, while British English tends to favor the irregular. In other cases, such as dive (dived vs. dove) and sneak (sneaked vs. snuck), the opposite is true. Australian, New Zealand and South African English tend to follow the British practice, while Canadian English often sides with the American usage.

Forms

The table includes selected archaic or dialectal forms, marked * (some of these forms may also be present in specialist uses).

Verb formsVerb class and notes
ache/*ake – ached/*oke – ached/*akenStrong, class 6; now regular.
bake – baked/*book – baked/*bakenStrong, class 6; now regular except in Northern English dialects.
be (am, is, are/*be) – was, were – beenSuppletive. See Indo-European copula.
bear – bore/*bare – borne/born
forbear – forbore/*forbare – forborne/forborn
*misbear – *misbore/*misbare – *misborne/misborn
overbear – overbore/*overbare – overborne/overborn
underbear – underbore/*underbare – underborne/underborn
Strong, class 4. The spelling born is used in passive or adjectival contexts relating to birth.
beat – beat – beaten/beat
browbeat – browbeat – browbeaten/browbeat
overbeat – overbeat – overbeaten/overbeat
Strong, class 7
become – became – become
misbecome – misbecame – misbecome
Strong, class 4
*beget – begot/*begat – begot/begotten
misbeget – misbegot/*misbegat – misbegotten/misbegot
Strong, class 5
begin – began – begunStrong, class 3
bend – bent/*bended – bent/*bended
overbend – overbent/*overbended – overbent/*overbended
unbend – unbent/*unbended – unbent/*unbended
Weak with coalescence of dentals
beseech – beseeched/*besought – beseeched/*besoughtWeak with Rückumlaut and Germanic spirant law (now regularized)
bet – bet/betted – bet/betted
underbet – underbet/underbetted – underbet/underbetted
Weak with coalescence of dentals
betide – betided/*betid – betided/*betidWeak with vowel shortening and coalescence of dentals (or regular)
beware – (no other forms)Defective; formed from be with predicate adjective, used as infinitive, imperative and subjunctive only. Inflected forms (bewares, bewared, bewaring) are considered obsolete.
bid[in auctions etc.] – bid – bid
outbid – outbid – outbid
overbid – overbid – overbid
rebid – rebid – rebid
underbid – underbid – underbid
Weak with coalescence of dentals
bid[meaning to request or say] – bid/*bade – bid/*biddenStrong, class 5
bide – bided/bode – bided/bidden
abide – abided/*abode – abided/*abidden
Strong, class 1
bind – bound – bound/*bounden
unbind – unbound – unbound/*unbounden
underbind – underbound – underbound/*underbounden
Strong, class 3
bite – bit – bitten
frostbite – frostbit – frostbitten
Strong, class 1
bleed – bled – bledWeak with vowel shortening and coalescence of dentals
blend – blended/*blent – blended/*blentWeak with devoiced ending (or regular)
bless – blessed/*blest – blessed/*blestWeak, regular with alternative (archaic) spelling
blow – blew – blown
overblow – overblew – overblown
Strong, class 7
break – broke/*brake – broken/*broke
outbreak – outbroke – outbroken
rebreak – rebroke – rebroken
Strong, class 4
breed – bred – bred
inbreed – inbred – inbred
interbreed – interbred – interbred
overbreed – overbred – overbred
Weak with vowel shortening and coalescence of dentals
bring – brought – broughtWeak with Rückumlaut and Germanic spirant law
build – built – built
overbuild – overbuilt – overbuilt
rebuild – rebuilt – rebuilt
underbuild – underbuilt – underbuilt
Weak with coalescence of dentals and devoiced ending
burn – burned/burnt – burned/burnt
sunburn – sunburned/sunburnt – sunburned/sunburnt
Weak with devoiced ending (or regular)
burst – burst/*brast – burst/*burstenStrong, class 3
bust – busted/bust – busted/bustStrong, class 3 (or regular)
buy – bought – bought/*boughten
*abuy – *abought – *abought
overbuy – overbought – overbought
underbuy – underbought – underbought
Weak with Rückumlaut and Germanic spirant law
can[auxiliary verb] – could – (none)Preterite-present, defective. See English modal verbs
cast – cast – cast
broadcast – broadcast – broadcast
downcast – downcast – downcast
forecast – forecast – forecast
miscast – miscast – miscast
overcast – overcast – overcast
podcast – podcast – podcast
precast – precast – precast
recast – recast – recast
simulcast – simulcast – simulcast
telecast – telecast – telecast
typecast – typecast – typecast
undercast – undercast – undercast
upcast – upcast – upcast
webcast – webcast – webcast
Weak with coalescence of dentals. Many of the prefixed forms can also take -ed.
catch – caught/*catched – caught/*catchedWeak, French loanword conjugated perhaps by analogy with teach–taught; regular forms are now dialectal.
chide – chided/chid/*chode – chided/chid/chiddenStrong, class 1
choose – chose – chosen
mischoose – mischose – mischosen
Strong, class 2
clad – clad – cladDeveloped from clad, the past form of clothe (see below).
clap – clapped/*clapt – clapped/*clapt
cleave[meaning to split] – cleft/clove/cleaved/*clave – cleft/cloven/cleavedStrong, class 2, sometimes switching to weak with vowel shortening. When meaning 'adhere' the verb is regular.
*clepe – cleped/clepen/*clept – cleped/*clept/*clepen/*ycleptWeak with vowel shortening, or regular. Obsolete or dialectal.
cling – clung/*clang – clungStrong, class 3
clothe – clad/clothed – clad/clothed
overclothe – overclad/overclothed – overclad/overclothed
unclothe – unclad/unclothed – unclad/unclothed
underclothe – underclad/underclothed – underclad/underclothed
Weak; the regular clothed is from OE claþian, while clad (weak with coalescence of dentals) is from OE clæþan (both OE verbs having similar meaning).[1]
comb – combed – combed/kempt
come – came – come/comen
forthcome – forthcame – forthcome
overcome – overcame – overcome/overcomen
(see also under become)
Strong, class 4
cost[intransitive sense] – cost/costed – cost/costedWeak with coalescence of dentals. Regular when meaning 'calculate the cost of'.
creep – crept/creeped/*crope – crept/creeped/*cropenOriginally strong, class 2; switched to weak with vowel shortening (or regular)
crow – crowed/crew – crowed/*crownStrong, class 7. Now usually regular, but crew can still be used of a cock's crowing.
cut – cut – cut
clearcut – clearcut – clearcut
crosscut – crosscut – crosscut
*forcut – *forcut – *forcut
intercut – intercut – intercut
recut – recut – recut
undercut – undercut – undercut
Weak with coalescence of dentals
dare (dares/dare) – dared/*durstdaredPreterite-present, now regular except in the use of dare in place of dares in some contexts. See English modal verbs
deal – dealt – dealt
misdeal – misdealt – misdealt
redeal – redealt – redealt
Weak with vowel shortening and devoiced ending
dig – dug/*digged – dug/*digged
underdig – underdug – underdug
Originally weak; past form dug developed by analogy with stick–stuck[2]
dive – dived/dove – dived/doveWeak, the alternative dove (found mainly in American usage) arising by analogy with strong verbs
do (does /dʌz/) – did – done
bedo (bedoes) – bedid – bedone
*fordo (fordoes) – *fordid – *fordone
misdo (misdoes) – misdid – misdone
outdo (outdoes) – outdid – outdone
overdo (overdoes) – overdid – overdone
redo (redoes) – redid – redone
underdo (underdoes) – underdid – underdone
undo (undoes) – undid – undone
Irregular since Proto-Germanic: past tense formed by reduplication. Past participle from Old Englishgedon. Related to deed.
dow – dowed/dought – dowed/doughtRelated to doughty.
drag – dragged/*drug – dragged/*drugStrong, class 6, now usually regular; drug is used in some dialects
draw – drew – drawn
*adraw – adrew – adrawn
bedraw – bedrew – bedrawn
downdraw – downdrew – downdrawn
outdraw – outdrew – outdrawn
overdraw – overdrew – overdrawn
redraw – redrew – redrawn
*umbedraw – umbedrew – umbedrawn
underdraw – underdrew – underdrawn
updraw – updrew – uprawn
withdraw – withdrew – withdrawn
Strong, class 6; related to draft/draught
dream – dreamed/dreamt/*drempt – dreamed/dreamt/*drempt
bedream – bedreamed/bedreamt – bedreamed/bedreamt
Weak with vowel shortening and devoiced ending (or regular)
dress – dressed/*drest – dressed/*drestWeak with alternative (archaic) spelling
drink – drank/*drunk/*drinked – drunk/*drank/*drinked/*drunken
outdrink – outdrank/*outdrunk/*outdrinked – outdrunk/*outdrank/*outdrinked/*outdrunken
overdrink – overdrank/*overdrunk/*overdrinked – overdrunk/*overdrank/*overdrinked/*overdrunken
Strong, class 3; related to drench
drive – drove/*drave – driven
bedrive – bedrove – bedriven
overdrive – overdrove/*overdrave – overdriven
test-drive – test-drove/*test-drave – test-driven
Strong, class 1; related to drift
dwell – dwelt/dwelled – dwelt/dwelled
bedwell – bedwelt/bedwelled – bedwelt/bedwelled
outdwell – outdwelt/outdwelled – outdwelt/outdwelled
Weak with devoiced ending (or regular)
earn – earned/earnt – earned/earntWeak with devoiced ending (or regular)
eat – ate/*et – eaten
forfret – forfretted – forfretted/forfretten
fret – fretted/frate – fretted/fretten
outeat – outate – outeaten
overeat – overate/*overet – overeaten
undereat – underate/*underet – undereaten
Strong, class 5. Past tense usually /eɪt/, sometimes /ɛt/ in British English.
fall – fell/*felled – fallen/*felled
befall – befell/*befelled – befallen/*befelled
*misbefall – misbefell/*misbefelled – misbefallen/*misbefelled
*misfall – misfell/*misfelled – misfallen/*misfelled
outfall – outfell – outfallen
Strong, class 7
feed – fed – fed
bottle-feed – bottle-fed – bottle-fed
breastfeed – breastfed – breastfed
force-feed – force-fed – force-fed
hand-feed – hand-fed – hand-fed
misfeed – misfed – misfed
overfeed – overfed – overfed
self-feed – self-fed – self-fed
spoon-feed – spoon-fed – spoon-fed
underfeed – underfed – underfed
Weak with vowel shortening and coalescence of dentals
feel – felt – felt
forefeel – forefelt – forefelt
Weak with vowel shortening and devoiced ending
fight – fought – fought/*foughten
befight – befought – befought
outfight – outfought – outfought
Strong, class 3
find – found/*fand – found/*founden
refind – refound/*refand – refound/*refounden
Strong, class 3
fit – fitted/fit – fitted/fit
misfit – misfitted/misfit – misfitted/misfit
Weak with coalescence of dentals
flee – fled – fledOriginally strong, class 2, switched to weak with vowel shortening
fling – flung – flungBy analogy with strong, class 3
fly – flew – flown
outfly – outflew – outflown
overfly – overflew – overflown
test-fly – test-flew – test-flown
Strong, class 2. Regular when used for hitting a fly ball in baseball.
forbid – forbid/forbade/forbad – forbiddenStrong, class 5
forget – forgot/*forgat – forgotten/*forgotStrong, class 5
*forlese – forlore – forlornPast participle remains in use adjectivally.
forsake – forsook – forsakenStrong, class 6
freeze – froze – frozen
quick-freeze – quick-froze – quick-frozen
refreeze – refroze – refrozen
unfreeze – unfroze – unfrozen
Strong, class 2
get – got/*gat – got/gotten
*beget – begot/*begat – begot/begotten
forget – forgot/*forgat – forgotten/*forgot
*misget – misgot/*misgat – misgot/misgotten
*overget – overgot/*overgat – overgot/overgotten
*underget – undergot/*undergat – undergot/undergotten
Strong, class 5. Past participle is got in British usage (except in fossilized phrases such as 'ill-gotten'), and gotten in American (but see have got).
gild – gilded/gilt – gilded/giltWeak with coalescence of dentals and devoiced ending (or regular)
gird – girded/*girt – girded/*girt
undergird – undergirded/*undergirt – undergirded/*undergirt
Weak with coalescence of dentals and devoiced ending (or regular)
give – gave – given
forgive – forgave – forgiven
misgive – misgave – misgiven
overgive – overgave – overgiven
Strong, class 5
go – went – gone
*bego – bewent – begone
forego – forewent – foregone
forgo – forwent – forgone
*overgo – overwent – overgone
undergo – underwent – undergone
*withgo – withwent – withgone
Suppletive. See article on the verb go.
*grave – grove/graved – graven/gravedStrong, class 6. Past participle graven remains in use adjectivally, as in graven images in archaic language, e.g. from the 17th century. The verb engrave is regular.
grind – ground/grinded – ground/grinded/*groundenStrong, class 3
grow – grew/*growed – grown/*growed
outgrow – outgrew/*outgrowed – outgrown/*outgrowed
overgrow – overgrew/*overgrowed – overgrown/*overgrowed
regrow – regrew/*regrowed – regrown/*regrowed
undergrow – undergrew/*undergrowed – undergrown/*undergrowed
upgrow – upgrew/*upgrowed – upgrown/*upgrowed
Strong, class 7
hang – hung/hanged – hung/hanged
overhang – overhung/overhanged – overhung/overhanged
underhang – underhung/underhanged – underhung/underhanged
uphang – uphung/uphanged – uphung/uphanged
Strong, class 7. Regularized alternative hanged was influenced by OE causativehangian, and is used chiefly for hanging as a means of execution.
have (has) – had – had Weak; had results from contraction, from OE haefd. Third person present has also a result of contraction.
hear – heard – heard
behear – beheard – beheard
forehear – foreheard – foreheard
mishear – misheard – misheard
outhear – outheard – outheard
overhear – overheard – overheard
rehear – reheard – reheard
unhear – unheard – unheard
Weak, originally with vowel shortening (the modern pronunciation of heard in RP has the long vowel /ɜː/)
heave – heaved/*hove – heaved/*hove/*hoven
upheave – upheaved/*uphove – upheaved/*uphove/*uphoven
Strong, class 6, now usually regular except in nautical uses
help – helped/*holp – helped/*holpenOriginally strong, class 6, but now weak.
hew – hewed/*hew – hewed/hewn
*underhew – underhewed/*underhew – underhewed/underhewn
Strong, class 7 (or regular)
hide – hid – hidden/*hidWeak with vowel shortening and coalescence of dentals, influenced by strong verbs
hit – hit – hit
mishit – mishit – mishit
overhit – overhit – overhit
underhit – underhit – underhit
Weak with coalescence of dentals
hoist – hoisted/hoist – hoisted/hoistWeak, hoist was originally the past form of the now archaic verb hoise
hold – held – held/*holden
behold – beheld – beheld/*beholden
inhold – inheld – inheld/*inholden
mishold – misheld – misheld/*misholden
uphold – upheld – upheld/*upholden
withhold – withheld – withheld/*withholden
Strong, class 7
hurt – hurt – hurtWeak with coalescence of dentals
keep – kept – kept
miskeep – miskept – miskept
overkeep – overkept – overkept
underkeep – underkept – underkept
Weak with vowel shortening
ken – kenned/kent – kenned/kent
beken – bekenned/bekent – bekenned/bekent
foreken – forekenned/forekent – forekenned/forekent
misken – miskenned/miskent – miskenned/miskent
outken – outkenned/outkent – outkenned/outkent
Northern and Scottish dialect word. Weak with devoiced ending (or regular)
kneel – knelt/kneeled – knelt/kneeled Weak with vowel shortening and devoiced ending (or regular)
knit – knit/knitted – knit/knitted
beknit – beknit/beknitted – beknit/beknitted
hand-knit – hand-knit/hand-knitted – hand-knit/hand-knitted
Weak with coalescence of dentals (or regular); related to knot
know – knew – known/*knowen
*acknow – acknew – acknown/*acknowen
foreknow – foreknew – foreknown/*foreknowen
misknow – misknew – misknown/*misknowen
Strong, class 7
lade – laded – laden/laded
overlade – overladed – overladen/overladed
Strong, class 6, often regularized (past participle laden is common adjectivally)
laugh – laughed/*laught/*laugh'd/*low – laughed/*laught/*laugh'd/*laughenOriginally strong, now weak, regular, with alternative (archaic) spelling
lay – laid/*layed – laid/*layed
belay – belaid/*belayed – belaid/*belayed
*forelay – forelaid/*forelayed – forelaid/*forelayed
*forlay – forlaid/*forlayed – forlaid/*forlayed
inlay – inlaid/*inlayed – inlaid/*inlayed
interlay – interlaid/*interlayed – interlaid/*interlayed
mislay – mislaid/*mislayed – mislaid/*mislayed
onlay – onlaid/*onlayed – onlaid/*onlayed
outlay – outlaid/*outlayed – outlaid/*outlayed
overlay – overlaid/*overlayed – overlaid/*overlayed
re-lay – re-laid/*re-layed – re-laid/*re-layed
underlay – underlaid/*underlayed – underlaid/*underlayed
unlay – unlaid/*unlayed – unlaid/*unlayed
*uplay – uplaid/*uplayed – uplaid/*uplayed
waylay – waylaid/*waylayed – waylaid/*waylayed
Weak, irregular in spelling only
lead – led – led
*belead – beled – beled
*forthlead – forthled – forthled
inlead – inled – inled
mislead – misled – misled
offlead – offled – offled
onlead – onled – onled
outlead – outled – outled
overlead – overled – overled
underlead – underled – underled
*uplead – upled – upled
Weak with vowel shortening and coalescence of dentals
lean – leaned/leant – leaned/leantWeak with vowel shortening and devoiced ending (or regular)
leap – leaped/leapt/*lept/*lope – leaped/leapt/*lopen
beleap – beleaped/beleapt/*belept/*belope – beleaped/beleapt/*belopen
forthleap – forthleaped/forthleapt/*forthlept/*forthlope – forthleaped/forthleapt/*forthlopen
outleap – outleaped/outleapt/*outlept/*outlope – outleaped/outleapt/*outlopen
overleap – overleaped/overleapt/*overlept/*overlope – overleaped/overleapt/*overlopen
Originally strong, class 7, now weak with vowel shortening (or regular)
learn – learned/learnt – learned/learnt
mislearn – mislearned/mislearnt – mislearned/mislearnt
overlearn – overlearned/overlearnt – overlearned/overlearnt
relearn – relearned/relearnt – relearned/relearnt
unlearn – unlearned/unlearnt – unlearned/unlearnt
Weak with devoiced ending (or regular)
leave – left – left/*laft
beleave – beleft – beleft/*belaft
*forleave – forleft – forleft/*forlaft
overleave – overleft – overleft/*overlaft
Weak with vowel shortening and devoiced ending
lend – lent – lent
*forlend – forlent – forlent
Weak with coalescence of dentals and devoiced ending
let – let/*leet – let/*letten
*forlet – forlet/*forleet – forlet/*forletten
sublet – sublet/*subleet – sublet/*subletten
*underlet – underlet/*underleet – underlet/*underletten
Strong, class 7
lie – lay – lain
*forelie – forelay – forelain
*forlie – forlay – forlain
overlie – overlay – overlain
underlie – underlay – underlain
Strong, class 5. Regular in the meaning 'tell an untruth'.
light – lit/lighted – lit/lighted
alight – alit/alighted – alit/alighted
backlight – backlit/backlighted – backlit/backlighted
green-light – green-lit/green-lighted – green-lit/green-lighted
relight – relit/relighted – relit/relighted
Weak with vowel shortening and coalescence of dentals (or regular)
lose – lost – lostOriginally strong, class 2, now weak with vowel shortening and devoiced ending
make – made – made
remake – remade – remade
unmake – unmade – unmade
Weak; made formed by contraction from 'maked'
may – might – (none)Preterite-present, defective. See English modal verbs
mean – meant – meantWeak with vowel shortening and devoiced ending
meet – met – metWeak with vowel shortening and coalescence of dentals
melt – melted/*molt – melted/moltenStrong, class 3. Now regularized, but molten survives in adjectival uses.
mix – mixed/*mixt – mixed/*mixtWeak, regular, with alternative (mostly archaic) spelling
mow – mowed – mowed/mownStrong, class 7. Now regularized in past tense and sometimes in past participle.
must – (no other forms)Defective; originally a preterite. See English modal verbs
need (needs/need) – neededneededWeak, regular except in the use of need in place of needs in some contexts, by analogy with can, must, etc.[3] See English modal verbs
ought – (no other forms)Defective; originally a preterite. See English modal verbs
pay – paid/*payed – paid/*payed
overpay – overpaid/*overpayed – overpaid/*overpayed
prepay – prepaid/*prepayed – prepaid/*prepayed
repay – repaid/*repayed – repaid/*repayed
underpay – underpaid/*underpayed – underpaid/*underpayed
Weak, irregular in spelling only. The spelling payed is used in the meaning of letting out a rope etc.
pen – penned/pent – penned/pentWeak with devoiced ending, but usually regular; pent is sometimes used when the verb has the meaning 'to enclose', and mainly adjectivally
plead – pled/pleaded – pled/pleadedFrench loanword, weak with vowel shortening and coalescence of dentals. In North America, this verb is usually irregular.
prove – proved – proved/proven
reprove – reproved – reproved/reproven
French loanword, weak, with the alternative past participle proven by analogy with some strong verbs
put – put – put/*putten
input – input – input/*inputten
output – output – output/*outputten
*underput – *underput – *underput/*underputten
Weak with coalescence of dentals. Past participle form putten is characteristic for Yorkshire and Lancashire dialects.
*queath/*quethe – queathed/quethed/quoth/quod – queathed/quethed/quoth/quethen
bequeath – bequeathed/bequethed/bequoth/bequod – bequeathed/bequethed/bequoth/bequethen
Strong, class 5. Past tense quoth is literary or archaic; other parts of that verb are obsolete. Bequeath is normally regularized in -ed.
quit – quit/quitted – quit/quittedFrench loanword, weak, with coalescence of dentals (or regular)
reach – reached/*raught/*rought/*retcht – reached/*raught/*rought/*retchtWeak, now regular (archaic raught from original conjugation like teach)
read/riːd/read/rɛd/read/rɛd/ / *readen
*foreread – foreread – foreread/*forereaden
lipread – lipread – lipread/*lipreaden
misread – misread – misread/*misreaden
proofread – proofread – proofread/*proofreaden
reread – reread – reread/*rereaden
sight-read – sight-read – sight-read/*sight-readen
Weak with vowel shortening and coalescence of dentals
*reave – reaved/reft – reaved/reft
bereave – bereaved/bereft – bereaved/bereft
Weak with vowel shortening and devoiced ending. The verb bereave is usually regular, but bereft survives as past participle, with distinct meanings.
rend – rent – rentWeak with coalescence of dentals
rid – rid/ridded – rid/ridden/riddedWeak with coalescence of dentals, or regular; ridden by analogy with strong verbs.
ride – rode/*rid – ridden/*rid
outride – outrode/*outrid – outridden/*outrid
override – overrode/*overrid – overridden/*overrid
Strong, class 1
ring – rang/*rung – rungBy analogy with strong, class 3. Regular when meaning 'surround', etc.
rise – rose – risen
arise – arose – arisen
uprise – uprose – uprisen
Strong, class 1
rive – rived/rove – rived/rivenFrom Old Norse, originally followed pattern of strong class 1, later regularized.[4] Now rarely used.
run – ran – run
*forerun – foreran – forerun
outrun – outran – outrun
overrun – overran – overrun
rerun – reran – rerun
underrun – underran – underrun
Strong, class 3
saw – sawed – sawed/sawnWeak; sawn by analogy with strong verbs[5]
say (says /sɛz/) – said – said
*forsay – forsaid – forsaid
*gainsay – gainsaid – gainsaid
missay – missaid – missaid
*naysay – naysaid – naysaid
soothsay – soothsaid – soothsaid
*withsay – withsaid – withsaid
Weak, with vowel shortening in said/sɛd/ and in the third person present says/sɛz/
see – saw – seen
*besee – besaw – beseen
foresee – foresaw – foreseen
missee – missaw – misseen
oversee – oversaw – overseen
sightsee – sightsaw – sightseen
undersee – undersaw – underseen
Strong, class 5
seek – sought – sought
beseek – besought – besought
Weak with Rückumlaut and Germanic spirant law
seethe – seethed/*sod – seethed/*soddenStrong, class 2. Now regular, but sodden survives in some adjectival uses.
sell – sold – sold
outsell – outsold – outsold
oversell – oversold – oversold
resell – resold – resold
undersell – undersold – undersold
upsell – upsold – upsold
Weak with Rückumlaut
send – sent – sent
missend – missent – missent
resend – resent – resent
Weak with coalescence of dentals
set – set – set/*setten
beset – beset – beset/*besetten
handset – handset – handset/*handsetten
inset – inset – inset/*insetten
misset – misset – misset/*missetten
offset – offset – offset/*offsetten
overset – overset – overset/*oversetten
preset – preset – preset/*presetten
reset – reset – reset/*resetten
upset – upset – upset/*upsetten
*withset – withset – withset/*withsetten
Weak with coalescence of dentals
sew – sewed – sewn/sewed/*sewen
handsew – handsewed – handsewn/handsewed/*handsewen
oversew – oversewed – oversewn/oversewed/*oversewen
Weak; sewn by analogy with strong verbs
shake – shook – shaken
overshake – overshook – overshaken
Strong, class 6
shall – should – (none)Preterite-present; defective. See English modal verbs, and shall and will
shape – shaped/*shope – shaped/*shapen
*forshape – forshaped/*forshope – forshaped/*forshapen
misshape – misshaped/*misshope – misshaped/*misshapen
Originally strong, class 6, now regular, but with misshapen (and archaically shapen) still used adjectivally
shave – shaved/*shove – shaved/shavenStrong, class 6, now regular, but shaven sometimes used adjectivally
shear – sheared/shore – shorn/sheared Strong, class 4 (or regular)
shed – shed – shedStrong, class 7
shine – shone/shined – shone/shined
*beshine – beshone/beshined – beshone/beshined
outshine – beshone/beshined – beshone/beshined
overshine – beshone/beshined – beshone/beshined
Strong, class 1
shit – shit/shitted/shat – shit/shitted/shat/*shitten
shite – shited/shit – shited/shit
Strong, class 1. The form shite is chiefly Scottish and Irish.
shoe – shod/shoed – shodden/shod/shoed
reshoe – reshod/reshoed – reshodden/reshod/reshoed
Weak with vowel shortening (or regular); shodden by analogy with strong verbs
shoot – shot – shot/*shotten
misshoot – misshot – misshot/*misshotten
overshoot – overshot – overshot/*overshotten
reshoot – reshot – reshot/*reshotten
undershoot – undershot – undershot/*undershotten
Strong, class 2
show – showed/*shew – shown/showed/*shewed
foreshow – foreshowed/*foreshew – foreshown/foreshowed/*foreshewed
reshow – reshowed/*reshew – reshown/reshowed/*reshewed
Weak, with participle shown perhaps by analogy with sown (from sow)
shrink – shrank/shrunk – shrunk/shrunken
overshrink – overshrank/overshrunk – overshrunk/overshrunken
Strong, class 3; shrunken is mostly used adjectivally
*shrive – shrived/*shrove – shrived/*shrivenStrong, class 1
shut – shut – shut
reshut – reshut – reshut
Weak with coalescence of dentals
sing – sang – sung/*sungen
resing – resang – resung/*resungen
Strong, class 3
sink – sank/sunk – sunk/sunkenStrong, class 3. The form sunken appears in some adjectival uses.
sit – sat/*sate – sat/*sitten
babysit – babysat/*babysate – babysat/*babysitten
housesit – housesat/*housesate – housesat/*housesitten
resit – resat/*resate – resat/*resitten
*withsit – withsat/*withsate – withsat/*withsitten
Strong, class 5
slay – slew/slayed – slain/slayedStrong, class 6 (or regular)
sleep – slept – slept
oversleep – overslept – overslept
undersleep – underslept – underslept
Originally strong, class 7, now weak with vowel shortening
slide – slid – slid/slidden
backslide – backslid – backslid/backslidden
overslide – overslid – overslid/overslidden
Strong, class 1
sling – slung/*slang – slungStrong, class 3
slink – slunk/slinked/slank – slunk/slinked/slankStrong, class 3
slip – slipped/*slipt – slipped/*slipt
*overslip – *overslipped/*overslipt – *overslipped/*overslipt
Regular, with alternative (archaic) spelling
slit – slit – slit/slittenStrong, class 1
smell – smelled/smelt – smelled/smeltWeak with devoiced ending (or regular)
smite – smote/*smit – smitten/smittedStrong, class 1. Largely archaic; smitten is quite commonly used adjectivally.
sneak – sneaked/snuck – sneaked/snuck/*snuckedWeak, alternative form snuck (chiefly American) by analogy with strong verbs
sow – sowed/*sew – sown/sowedStrong, class 7, with regularized past tense sowed
speak – spoke/*spake – spoken/*spoke
bespeak – bespoke/*bespake – bespoken/*bespoke
*forespeak – forespoke/*forespake – forespoken/*forespoke
*forspeak – forspoke/*forspake – forspoken/*forspoke
misspeak – misspoke/*misspake – misspoken/*misspoke
Strong, class 5
speed – sped/speeded – sped/speededWeak with vowel shortening and coalescence of dentals (or regular)
spell – spelled/spelt – spelled/spelt
misspell – misspelled/misspelt – misspelled/misspelt
Weak with devoiced ending (or regular)
spend – spent – spent
*forspend – *forspent – *forspent
misspend – misspent – misspent
outspend – outspent – outspent
overspend – overspent – overspent
Weak with coalescence of dentals
spill – spilled/spilt – spilled/spilt
overspill – overspilled/overspilt – overspilled/overspilt
Weak with devoiced ending (or regular)
spin – spun/*span – spun
outspin – outspun/*outspan – outspun
Strong, class 3
spit – spat/spit – spat/spitWeak with coalescence of dentals (for past form spit, which is common in America), or spat by analogy with strong verbs. (In the meaning of roast on a spit, the verb is regular.)
split – split – splitWeak with coalescence of dentals
spoil – spoiled/spoilt – spoiled/spoiltWeak with devoiced ending (or regular)
spread – spread/*spreaded – spread/*spreaded
*bespread – bespread/*bespreaded – bespread/*bespreaded
*forspread – forspread – forspread
outspread – outspread – outspread
overspread – overspread – overspread
underspread – underspread – underspread
Weak with coalescence of dentals
spring – sprang/sprung – sprung/*sprang
handspring – handsprang/handsprung – handsprung/*handsprang
Strong, class 3
stand – stood – stood/*standen
forstand – forstood – forstood/*forstanden
misunderstand – misunderstood – misunderstood/*misunderstanden
overstand – overstood – overstood/*overstanden
understand – understood – understood/*understanden
upstand – upstood – upstood/*upstanden
withstand – withstood – withstood/*withstanden
Strong, class 6
starve – starved/*starf/*storve – starved/*storvenStrong, class 3
stave – stove/staved – stove/staved/*stovenOriginally weak; irregular forms developed by analogy with strong verbs.[6]
stay – stayed/*staid – stayed/*staidRegular, with alternative spelling staid (now limited to certain adjectival uses)
steal – stole – stolenStrong, class 4
stick – stuck/*sticked – stuck/*stickedOriginally weak, irregular forms by analogy with strong verbs
sting – stung/*stang – stungStrong, class 3
stink – stank/stunk – stunkStrong, class 3
stretch – stretched/*straught/*straight – stretched/*straught/*straightWeak, now regular; obsolete past form straught as with teach–taught
strew – strewed – strewn/strewed
bestrew – bestrewed – bestrewn/bestrewed
overstrew – overstrewed – overstrewn/overstrewed
Originally weak, irregular forms by analogy with strong verbs
stride – strode/*strided – stridden/*strode/*strid/*stridded
bestride – bestrode/*bestrided – bestridden/*bestrode/*bestrid/*bestridded
outstride – outstrode/*outstrided – outstridden/*outstrode/*outstrid/*outstridded
overstride – overstrode/*overstrided – overstridden/*overstrode/*overstrid/*overstridded
Strong, class 1
strike – struck – struck/stricken
overstrike – overstruck – overstruck/overstricken
Strong, class 1. The form stricken is limited to certain adjectival and specialist uses.
string – strung/*stringed – strung/*stringed
hamstring – hamstrung/*hamstringed – hamstrung/*hamstringed
overstring – overstrung/*overstringed – overstrung/*overstringed
Originally weak, irregular forms developed by analogy with strong verbs
strip – stripped/stript – stripped/stript
strive – strove/strived – striven/strived
outstrive – outstrove – outstriven
overstrive – overstrove – overstriven
Strong, class 1 (or regularized)
swear – swore – sworn
forswear – forswore – forsworn
outswear – outswore – outsworn
Strong, class 6
sweat – sweated/sweat – sweated/sweatWeak, usually regular, possible past form sweat with coalescence of dentals
sweep – swept/*sweeped – swept/*sweeped
upsweep – upswept/*upsweeped – upswept/*upsweeped
Weak with vowel shortening
swell – swelled/*swole/*swelt – swollen/swelled
upswell – upswelled/*upswole/*upswelt – upswollen/upswelled
Strong, class 3, with regularized forms
*swelt – swelted/*swolt – swelted/*swoltenStrong, class 3 (or regularized). Archaic
swim – swam/*swum – swum
outswim – outswam/*outswum – outswum
Strong, class 3
swing – swang/swung – swung/*swungen
overswing – overswang/overswung – overswung/*overswungen
Strong, class 3
*swink – swank/swonk/*swinkt/swinked – swunk/swunken/swonken/*swinkt/swinked
*forswink – forswank/forswonk – forswunk/forswunken
*toswink – toswank – toswunk/toswunken
Strong, class 3
take – took/*taked – taken
betake – betook/*betaked – betaken
intake – intook/*intaked – intaken
mistake – mistook/*mistaked – mistaken
overtake – overtook/*overtaked – overtaken
partake – partook/*partaked – partaken
retake – retook/*retaked – retaken
undertake – undertook/*undertaked – undertaken
*uptake – uptook/*uptaked – uptaken
*withtake – withtook – withtaken
Strong, class 6
teach – taught/*teached – taught/*teachedWeak with Rückumlaut and Germanic spirant law
tear – tore – torn
uptear – uptore – uptorn
Strong, class 4
*tee – teed/tow – teed/town
betee – beteed/betow – beteed/betown
fortee – forteed/fortow – forteed/fortown
tell – told/*telled – told/*telled
foretell – foretold/*foretelled – foretold/*foretelled
forthtell – forthtold – forthtold
mistell – mistold – mistold
*outtell – outtold/*outtelled – outtold/*outtelled
retell – retold/*retelled – retold/*retelled
Weak with Rückumlaut; related to tale
think – thought/*thinked – thought/*thinked
outthink – outthought/*outthinked – outthought/*outthinked
rethink – rethought/*rethinked – rethought/*rethinked
Weak with Rückumlaut and Germanic spirant law
thrive – throve/thrived/*thrave – thriven/thrivedOf Old Norse origin; followed strong class 1 (now archaic) or weak (regular) pattern[7]
throw – threw/*throwed – thrown/*throwed
misthrow – misthrew/*misthrowed – misthrown/*misthrowed
outthrow – outthrew/*outthrowed – outthrown/*outthrowed
overthrow – overthrew/*overthrowed – overthrown/*overthrowed
underthrow – underthrew/*underthrowed – underthrown/*underthrowed
upthrow – upthrew/*upthrowed – upthrown/*upthrowed
Strong, class 7
thrust – thrust/*thrusted – thrust/*thrusted
outthrust – outthrust/*outthrusted – outthrust/*outthrusted
Weak, with coalescence of dentals (or regular)
tread – trod/*tread/*treaded/*trodden – trodden/trod/*tread/*treaded
retread – retrod/*retread/*retreaded/*retrodden – retrodden/retrod/*retread/*retreaded
Strong, class 5 (or regularized)
vex – vexed/*vext – vexed/*vext
wake – woke/*waked – woken/*waked
awake – awoke/*awaked – awoken/*awaked
Strong, class 6
wax – waxed/*wex – waxed/*waxenStrong, class 7, now regularized
wear – weared/wore – weared/worn
*forwear – forweared/forwore – forweared/forworn
outwear – outweared/outwore – outweared/outworn
overwear – overweared/overwore – overweared/overworn
Originally weak, fell into a strong pattern by analogy with bear
weave – wove – woven
interweave – interwove – interwoven
*unweave – unwove – unwoven
Strong, class 7
wed – wed/wedded – wed/wedded
miswed – miswed/miswedded – miswed/miswedded
rewed – rewed/rewedded – rewed/rewedded
Weak with coalescence of dentals (or regular)
weep – wept/weeped – wept/weeped
*beweep – bewept/beweeped – bewept/beweeped
Originally strong, class 7, now weak with vowel shortening
wend – wended/*went – wended/*wentWeak, once with coalescence of dentals and devoiced ending, but now regular; went is used as the past of go
wet – wet/wetted – wet/wetted
overwet – overwet/overwetted – overwet/overwetted
Weak with coalescence of dentals (or regular)
will – would – (none)Preterite-present, defective. See English modal verbs, and shall and will. (In non-auxiliary uses the verb is regular.)
win – won – wonStrong, class 3
wind – wound – wound
rewind – rewound – rewound
unwind – unwound – unwound
Strong, class 3. (The identically spelt verb wind/wɪnd/, with meanings connected with air flow and breathlessness, is regular.)
work – worked/*wrought – worked/*wrought
overwork – overworked/*overwrought – overworked/*overwrought
Weak, now regular, formerly with Rückumlaut and metathesis of r and o
*worth – worth/worthed – worth/worthed/worthenStrong, class 3, or regularized
wreak – wreaked/*wrought/*wrack/*wroke – wreaked/*wrought/*wreaken/*wrokenWeak, usually regular; wrought (which is in fact from work) has come sometimes to be identified with this verb (perhaps by analogy with seek–sought). Other forms by analogy with strong verbs.
wring – wrang/wrung/*wringed – wrung/*wringedStrong, class 3
write – wrote/*writ – written/*writ
cowrite – cowrote/*writ – cowritten
ghostwrite – ghostwrote/*ghostwrit – ghostwritten/*ghostwrit
handwrite – handwrote/*handwrit – handwritten/*handwrit
miswrite – miswrote/*miswrit – miswritten/*miswrit
overwrite – overwrote/*overwrit – overwritten/*overwrit
rewrite – rewrote/*rewrit – rewritten/*rewrit
underwrite – underwrote/*underwrit – underwritten/*underwrit
Strong, class 1
writhe – writhed/*wrothe – writhed/*writhenStrong, class 1, now regularized
zinc – zinced/zinked/zincked – zinced/zinked/zincked

Present tense irregular verbs[edit]

Though the list of verbs irregular in the preterite or past participle is long, the list of irregular present tense verbs is very short. Excepting modal verbs like 'shall', 'will', and 'can' that do not inflect at all in the present tense, there are only four (only two if pronunciation is ignored):

  • be: I am, thou art, you are, he is, we are, they are.
  • do (and compounds such as 'undo' and 'redo'): I do, you do, he does, we do, they do where 'does' is pronounced /ˈdʌz/ in contrast to /ˈd/, the pronunciation of the infinitive and the other present tense forms.
  • have: I have, you have, he has, we have, they have.
  • say (and compounds such as 'gainsay' and 'naysay'): I say, you say, he says, we say, they say where 'says' has the standard pronunciation /sɛz/ (in contrast to the /s/ used for the infinitive and other present tense forms).

Forms Of Be Verb List List

References[edit]

Forms of be verb listForms

Forms Of To Be

  1. ^Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition, entries for 'clothe' and 'clad'.
  2. ^The strong-type past form dug arose as a past participle in the 16th century, by analogy with stuck, and was used as a past tense from the 18th century. See Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition, entry for 'dig'.
  3. ^The use of need for needs, which has become the norm in contexts where the verb is used analogously to the modal verbs, became common in the 16th century. See Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition, entry for 'need' (verb).
  4. ^Regularized (weak-type) forms of this verb are found from the 16th century onward. There is also an obsolete verb rive meaning arrive, for which weak-type forms are attested earlier. See Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition, entries for 'rive'.
  5. ^Strong-type past forms of this verb were sometimes used in the 15th century; the past participle sawn is a survival of this. See Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition, entry for 'saw'.
  6. ^The forms stove and stoven are found from the 18th century onward. See Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition, entry for 'stave'.
  7. ^The strong-type past forms leading to thrave (Northern) and throve are attested from the 13th and 14th centuries onward, and weak forms (leading to thrived) from the 14th. See Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition, entry for 'thrive'.

External links[edit]

  • Complete List of 638 English Irregular Verbs with their forms in different tenses.
  • Mind Our English: Strong and weak by Ralph Berry
  • English Irregular Verb List A comprehensive list of English irregular verbs, including their base form, past simple, past participle, 3rd person singular, and the present participle / gerund.
  • TheIrregularVerbs All the irregular verbs of the English language. Conjugation, pronunciation, translation and examples.
  • verbbusters Searchable reference of English irregular verbs and cognates, with audio.
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