Irregular Verbs: Comprehensive List & Tips

Irregular Verbs List

Understanding irregular verbs involves memorizing their various forms, as they do not follow a consistent pattern.

Below is a comprehensive list of irregular verbs with their base form, past simple, and past participle forms.

Base Form	Past Simple	Past Participle
A
arise	arose	arisen
awake	awoke	awoken
B
be	was/were	been
bear	bore	born(e)
beat	beat	beaten
become	became	become
begin	began	begun
bend	bent	bent
bind	bound	bound
bite	bit	bitten
bleed	bled	bled
blow	blew	blown
break	broke	broken
breed	bred	bred
bring	brought	brought
build	built	built
burn	burnt/burned	burnt/burned
buy	bought	bought
C
can	could	... (been able)
catch	caught	caught
choose	chose	chosen
cling	clung	clung
come	came	come
creep	crept	crept
D
deal	dealt	dealt
dig	dug	dug
do	did	done
draw	drew	drawn
dream	dreamt/dreamed	dreamt/dreamed
drink	drank	drunk
drive	drove	driven
E
eat	ate	eaten
F
fall	fell	fallen
feed	fed	fed
feel	felt	felt
fight	fought	fought
find	found	found
fly	flew	flown
forbid	forbade	forbidden
forget	forgot	forgotten
forgive	forgave	forgiven
freeze	froze	frozen
G
get	got	got
give	gave	given
go	went	gone
grind	ground	ground
grow	grew	grown
H
hang	hung	hung
have	had	had
hear	heard	heard
hide	hid	hidden
hold	held	held
K
keep	kept	kept
kneel	knelt	knelt
know	knew	known
L
lay	laid	laid
lead	led	led
lean	leant/leaned	leant/leaned
learn	learnt/learned	learnt/learned
leave	left	left
lend	lent	lent
lie (in bed)	lay	lain
lie (not tell the truth)	lied	lied
light	lit/lighted	lit/lighted
lose	lost	lost
M
make	made	made
may	might	...
mean	meant	meant
meet	met	met
mow	mowed	mown/mowed
must	had to	...
O
overtake	overtook	overtaken
P
pay	paid	paid
R
read	read	read
ride	rode	ridden
ring	rang	rung
rise	rose	risen
run	ran	run
S
saw	sawed	sawn/sawed
say	said	said
see	saw	seen
sell	sold	sold
send	sent	sent
sew	sewed	sewn/sewed
shake	shook	shaken
shall	should	...
shine	shone	shone
shoot	shot	shot
show	showed	shown
shrink	shrank	shrunk
sing	sang	sung
sink	sank	sunk
sit	sat	sat
sleep	slept	slept
slide	slid	slid
smell	smelt	smelt
sow	sowed	sown/sowed
speak	spoke	spoken
spell	spelt/spelled	spelt/spelled
spend	spent	spent
spill	spilt/spilled	spilt/spilled
spin	spun	spun
spit	spat	spat
stand	stood	stood
steal	stole	stolen
stick	stuck	stuck
sting	stung	stung
stink	stank	stunk
strike	struck	struck
swear	swore	sworn
sweep	swept	swept
swell	swelled	swollen/swelled
swim	swam	swum
swing	swung	swung
T
take	took	taken
teach	taught	taught
tear	tore	torn
tell	told	told
think	thought	thought
throw	threw	thrown
U
understand	understood	understood
W
wake	woke	woken
wear	wore	worn
weep	wept	wept
will	would	...
win	won	won
wind	wound	wound
write	wrote	written

Common Irregular Verbs that Don’t Change

In English grammar, some irregular verbs remain unchanged in their base, past tense, and past participle forms. Knowing these verbs can simplify language learning and enhance your fluency in everyday conversations and writing.

Here are some examples of common irregular verbs that remain unchanged:

bet: bet / bet / bet
bid: bid / bid / bid
broadcast: broadcast / broadcast / broadcast
burst: burst / burst / burst
cast: cast / cast / cast
cost: cost / cost / cost
cut: cut / cut / cut
hit: hit / hit / hit
hurt: hurt / hurt / hurt
let: let / let / let
proofread: proofread / proofread / proofread
put: put / put / put
read (pronounced differently): read / read / read
reset: reset / reset / reset
set: set / set / set
shed: shed / shed / shed
shut: shut / shut / shut
split: split / split / split
spread: spread / spread / spread
thrust: thrust / thrust / thrust
upset: upset / upset / upset
wet: wet / wet / wet

Tips for Using Irregular Verbs

By focusing on these tips, you can improve your understanding and proficiency in using irregular verbs in the past tense, distinguish them from regular verbs, and apply them effectively in the present perfect tense.

Memorize Common Irregular Verbs: Focus on frequently used irregular verbs like "be," "have," "do," and "go" as they appear in various tenses.
Pay Attention to Past Tense and Past Participle Forms: Many irregular verbs have different forms for the past tense and past participle. Pay attention to these forms to use them correctly.
Use Context to Determine Correct Forms: Understanding the context of a sentence helps you choose the appropriate form of the irregular verb, ensuring accurate and natural usage.
Consult Reference Materials: Keep a grammar reference or dictionary handy to check irregular verb forms when in doubt.

All in all, understanding irregular verbs in English is crucial for mastering the language's grammar and enhancing communication skills.

By practicing these verbs in context, consulting reference materials, and engaging in exercises, you can confidently use them in everyday conversations and written expressions.

Utilizing our grammar checker ensures flawless content, helping you avoid grammar mistakes and maintain clarity in your communication.

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Continue Learning

If you want to learn more about academic writing, grammar, and related concepts, check out these blogs.

Grammar	Writing	Citation
Dangling Modifiers	Essay Writing	APA format
Homophones	Essay Outline	MLA format
Infinitives	Paraphrasing	Chicago Style
Analogy	Thesis Statement	Harvard Style
Participle	Paragraph	IEEE Citation
Articles in Grammar	Summary	Oxford Referencing
Phrases	Plagiarism	ASA Format
Parts of Speech	Sentence Structure	ACS Citation

WRITTEN BY

Caleb S. (Mass Literature and Linguistics)

Caleb S. is an accomplished author with over five years of experience and a Master's degree from Oxford University. He excels in various writing forms, including articles, press releases, blog posts, and whitepapers. As a valued author at MyEssayWriter.ai, Caleb assists students and professionals by providing practical tips on research, citation, sentence structure, and style enhancement.

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What Are Irregular Verbs? List and Examples

Irregular Verbs List

Common Irregular Verbs that Don’t Change

Tips for Using Irregular Verbs

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