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:

SIMPLE S I M P LE PAST PRESENT

INFINITIVE
PRESENT PAST P A R T I C I P LE P A R T I C I P LE

to laugh laugh(s) laughed laughed laughing

to start start(s) started started starting

to wash wash(es) washed washed washing

to wink wink(s) winked 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:

SIMPLE S I M P LE PAST PRESENT

INFINITIVE
PRESENT PAST P A R T I C I P LE P A R T I C I P LE

to drive drive(s) drove driven driving

to feel feel(s) felt felt feeling

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 to put put(s) put put putting

to swim swim(s) swam swum 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 woul d 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!)

SIMPLE S I M P LE PAST PRESENT

INFINITIVE
PRESENT PAST P A R T I C I P LE P A R T I C I P LE

to arise arise(s) arose arisen arising

awoke or awaked or
to awake awake(s) awaking
awaked awoken

to be am, is, are was, were been being

borne or
to bear bear(s) bore bearing
born

to beat beat(s) beat beaten beating

to become become(s) became become becoming

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 SIMPLE S I M P LE PAST PRESENT
INFINITIVE
PRESENT PAST P A R T I C I P LE P A R T I C I P LE

to begin begin(s) began begun beginning

to bend bend(s) bent bent bending

to bet bet(s) bet bet betting

to bid (to
bid(s) bid bid bidding
offer)

to bid (to
bid(s) bade bidden bidding
command)

to bind bind(s) bound bound binding

to bite bite(s) bit bitten or bit biting

to blow blow(s) blew blown blowing

to break break(s) broke broken breaking

to bring bring(s) brought brought bringing

to build build(s) built built building

burst or burst or
to burst burst(s) bursting
bursted bursted

to buy buy(s) bought bought buying

to cast cast(s) cast cast casting

to catch catch(es) caught caught catching

to choose choose(s) chose chosen choosing

to cling cling(s) clung clung clinging

to come come(s) came come coming

to cost cost(s) cost cost costing

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 SIMPLE S I M P LE PAST PRESENT
INFINITIVE
PRESENT PAST P A R T I C I P LE P A R T I C I P LE

to creep creep(s) crept crept creeping

to cut cut(s) cut cut cutting

to deal deal(s) dealt dealt dealing

to dig dig(s) dug dug digging

dived or
to dive dive(s) dived diving
dove

to do do(es) did done doing

to draw draw(s) drew drawn drawing

dreamed or dreamed or
to dream dream(s) dreaming
dreamt dreamt

drunk or
to drink drink(s) drank drinking
drank

to drive drive(s) drove driven driving

to eat eat(s) ate eaten eating

to fall fall(s) fell fallen falling

to feed feed(s) fed fed feeding

to feel feel(s) felt felt feeling

to fight fight(s) fought fought fighting

to find find(s) found found finding

to flee flee(s) fled fled fleeing

to fling fling(s) flung flung flinging

to fly flies, fly flew flown flying

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 SIMPLE S I M P LE PAST PRESENT
INFINITIVE
PRESENT PAST P A R T I C I P LE P A R T I C I P LE

forbade or
to forbid forbid(s) forbidden forbidding
forbad

forgotten or
to forget forget(s) forgot forgetting
forgot

to forgive forgive(s) forgave forgiven forgiving

to forsake forsake(s) forsook forsaken forsaking

to freeze freeze(s) froze frozen freezing

gotten or
to get get(s) got getting
got

to give give(s) gave given giving

to go go(es) went gone going

to grow grow(s) grew grown growing

to hang (to
hang(s) hung hung hanging
suspend)

to have has, have had had having

to hear hear(s) heard heard hearing

hidden or
to hide hide(s) hid hiding
hid

to hit hit(s) hit hit hitting

to hurt hurt(s) hurt hurt hurting

to keep keep(s) kept kept keeping

to know know(s) knew known knowing

to lay lay(s) laid laid laying

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 SIMPLE S I M P LE PAST PRESENT
INFINITIVE
PRESENT PAST P A R T I C I P LE P A R T I C I P LE

to lead lead(s) led led leading

leaped or leaped or
to leap leap(s) leaping
leapt leapt

to leave leave(s) left left leaving

to lend lend(s) lent lent lending

to let let(s) let let letting

to lie (to rest

lie(s) lay lain lying
or recline)

to light light(s) lighted or lit lighted or lit lighting

to lose lose(s) lost lost losing

to make make(s) made made making

to mean mean(s) meant meant meaning

to pay pay(s) paid paid paying

proved or
to prove prove(s) proved proving
proven

to quit quit(s) quit quit quitting

to read read(s) read read reading

to rid rid(s) rid rid ridding

to ride ride(s) rode ridden riding

to ring ring(s) rang rung ringing

to rise rise(s) rose risen rising

to run run(s) ran run running

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 SIMPLE S I M P LE PAST PRESENT
INFINITIVE
PRESENT PAST P A R T I C I P LE P A R T I C I P LE

to say say(s) said said saying

to see see(s) saw seen seeing

to seek seek(s) sought sought seeking

to send send(s) sent sent sending

to set set(s) set set setting

to shake shake(s) shook shaken shaking

to shine (to
shine(s) shone shone shining
glow)

to shoot shoot(s) shot shot shooting

shown or
to show show(s) showed showing
showed

shrank or shrunk or
to shrink shrink(s) shrinking
shrunk shrunken

to sing sing(s) sang or sung sung singing

sank or
to sink sink(s) sunk sinking
sunk

to sit sit(s) sat sat sitting

slew or
to slay slay(s) slain slaying
slayed

to sleep sleep(s) slept slept sleeping

to sling sling(s) slung slung slinging

sneaked or sneaked or
to sneak sneak(s) sneaking
snuck snuck

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 SIMPLE S I M P LE PAST PRESENT
INFINITIVE
PRESENT PAST P A R T I C I P LE P A R T I C I P LE

to speak speak(s) spoke spoken speaking

to spend spend(s) spent spent spending

to spin spin(s) spun spun spinning

sprang or
to spring spring(s) sprung springing
sprung

to stand stand(s) stood stood standing

to steal steal(s) stole stolen stealing

to stick stick(s) stuck stuck sticking

to sting sting(s) stung stung stinging

stank or
to stink stink(s) stunk stinking
stunk

to stride stride(s) strode stridden striding

to strike strike(s) struck struck striking

to strive strive(s) strove striven striving

to swear swear(s) swore sworn swearing

to sweep sweep(s) swept swept sweeping

to swim swim(s) swam swum swimming

to swing swing(s) swung swung swinging

to take take(s) took taken taking

to teach teach(es) taught taught teaching

to tear tear(s) tore torn tearing

to tell tell(s) told told telling

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 SIMPLE S I M P LE PAST PRESENT
INFINITIVE
PRESENT PAST P A R T I C I P LE P A R T I C I P LE

to think think(s) thought thought thinking

to throw throw(s) threw thrown throwing

to understand understand(s) understood understood understanding

woke or waked or
to wake wake(s) waking
waked woken

to wear wear(s) wore worn wearing

wove or woven or
to weave weave(s) weaving
weaved wove

to weep weep(s) wept wept weeping

to win win(s) won won winning

to wring wring(s) wrung wrung wringing

to write write(s) wrote written writing

Know the difference between the simple past tense and the
past participle.

In addition to learning the chart above, you must also understand the difference
between the simple past tense and the past participle.

S IMPLE P AST T ENSE

A simple past tense verb always has just one part. You need no auxiliary verb to
form this tense.

Read these examples:

Because dinner time was near, my dog Oreo bit the spine
of Moby-Dick and pulled the novel off my lap.

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 Since Denise had ignored bills for so long, she wrote checks for
an hour straight.

Despite the noise, jolts, and jerks, Alex slept so soundly on the
city bus that he missed his stop.

P AST P ARTICIPLE
The past participle, on the other hand, follows one or more auxiliary verbs.

Read these sentences:

Raymond had bitten into the muffin before Charise mentioned

that it was her infamous chocolate -broccoli variety.

Had = auxiliary verb; bitten = past participle.

Once Woody has written his essay for Professor Stover, he plans
to reward himself with a hot fudge sundae.

Has = auxiliary verb; written = past participle.

Cynthia might have slept better if she had avoided The Nightmare
on Elm Street marathon.

Might, have = auxiliary verbs; slept = past participle.

W HERE THE C ONFUSION L IES

For regular verbs, knowing the distinction between the simple past and past
participle is unnecessary because both are identical, reliably ending in ed.

Consider these two sentences:

Diane giggled as her beagle Reliable pushed his cold , wet nose
into her stomach, searching for cookie crumbs.

Giggled = simple past.

Until the disapproving Daniela elbowed Latoya in the ribs, the

young woman had giggled without stop at the toilet paper
streamer attached to Pr ofessor Clemens's shoe.

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 Had = auxiliary verb; giggled = past participle.

When you choose an irregular verb for a sentence, however, the simple past and
past participle are often different, so you must know the distinction.

Here are two examples:

Essie drove so cautiously that traffic piled up behind her, causing

angry drivers to honk their horns and shout obscenitie s.

Drove = simple past.

Essie might have drove driven faster if she had remembered her
glasses and saw more than big colored blurs through the
windshield.

Might, have = auxiliary verbs; driven = past participle.

P AST P ARTICIPLES AS A DJECTIVES

In addition, past participles function as adjectives, describing other words.
When you use a past participle in this manner, you must choose the correct form.

Read these sentences:

The calculus exams gave given by Professor Ribley are so difficult

that his students believe their brains will burst.

The leg of the relay race swam swum by Delores put the team
ahead.

The solo sang sung by Bianca uplifted everyone’s spirit.

Remember that you can always consult a dictionary when you have a question
about the correct form of an irregular verb.

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