Today we will talk about regular and irregular verbs - which have spoiled a lot of blood for students of the English language. You will not find a list of irregular verbs here (although there are links to such lists at the end of the article), but you will find answers to other questions: what are irregular verbs and why are they needed? How many are there anyway? Do we need to teach them (spoiler: we do) and how? And even if by the end of the article you don’t like irregular verbs, then you will know much more about them.

Before we plunge headlong into the world of irregular verbs, let’s take a look around to see what’s happening in other languages. Irregular verbs are not inventions of the English language. Verbs that change but do not follow simple rules- and this is exactly what makes a verb irregular - exist in many languages. In Italian and French, in Spanish and German. By the way, in German verbs are divided not into right and wrong, but into weak and strong - a different attitude is immediately felt.

There are irregular verbs in Russian too. Here's an example: verbs ending in -at - read and play - are regular verbs. It is enough to know a couple of simple rules to get other forms: I read, I play, I read, I play, I read, I play – and so on. But, for example, to draw is also a verb in -at, but it forms completely different forms: I draw, you draw. Why is it like this, why don’t I draw, do you draw? Or give: I give, you give. Why don’t I give it, will you? Well, why, you say, because they don’t say that. But a foreigner doesn’t know what they say and what they don’t say. He will have to learn all these forms. If you look at the tables of irregular verbs in the Russian language textbook, there are four times more irregular verbs than regular ones. So it's still not that bad in English.

So, let's return to English. What are these irregular verbs?
Let's start from the stove - what forms can a verb take in English? A verb in English can be in one of five forms:

• Infinitive, infinitive. In Russian this is called the infinitive form of the verb. The verb will appear in this form in the dictionary. She, like Stirlitz with a parachute, can be easily recognized by the particle to before the verb: to start, to drive(start, lead)
• Simple present, present tense form. Looks the same as the infinitive, only without the to: start, drive. In 3rd person singular the verb looks different, at the end -s is added to it: starts, drives. We talked about this when we studied Present Simple
• Simple Past, past tense form. This form of the verb is used when we talk about the past: started, drove
• Past Participle, past participle: started, driven
• Present Participle, present participle. Formed adding -ing: starting, driving

All these five forms are used to form certain times. In the Soviet school, they were all numbered - the infinitive was the zero form, then the first, second, third, and everything ended with the fourth, -ing form of the verb. It seems to me that numbering the forms of the verb - great idea. But in English grammar, verb forms are not numbered, so if you tell your interlocutor about the “second form of the verb,” be prepared to stumble upon a wall of misunderstanding.

And now the most important thing: look at how the verbs changed in the Simple Past and Past Participle forms (or in the second and third forms, as school textbooks bequeathed). One of the verbs simply added -ed, and the second behaved unpredictably - it either changed the vowel at the root, or added a consonant at the end. This is exactly what the difference between regular and irregular verbs looks like. The correct ones will add -ed and that will be the end of it, the incorrect ones will not obey any rules.

How regular verbs change

Now let's look at these changes even more closely; and let's start with regular verbs. I have already said that regular verbs add -ed and the difficulties seem to end there. This is almost true - but there are still some nuances. I’ll say right away - if you are just getting acquainted with what irregular and regular verbs are, feel free to skip this part and go straight to irregular verbs.

So, returning to regular verbs: the rules by which regular verbs change are confusing and are rarely useful in real life - after reading enough books, you yourself will feel how to form the past tense correctly, and you can safely skip the rules and move on to the next part.

Are you still reading? Still wondering how regular verbs change? Okay, but I warned you - these rules are not for the faint of heart. So, let's go (in parentheses - translation indeterminate form, so that you are not distracted by looking at the dictionary. Now we are not talking about meanings, but about the formation of verb forms):

• ordinary regular verbs. Add -ed. Ready. want – wanted(want), look – looked(look)
• the verb already ends in e. In this case, you don't need to add another e, just add -d. like – liked(like), move – moved(move)
• the verb ends with a consonant followed by y. In this case, y changes to i, and -ed is added to it: study – studied(study), carry – carried(carry)
• but if the verb ends with a vowel followed by y, then no replacement occurs: stay – stayed(stay), play – played(play)
• the most interesting thing. If a verb consists of one syllable ending in a consonant-vowel-consonant, then the last consonant is doubled. It sounds scary, but with examples it’s not so bad: plan – planned(plan), drop – dropped(drop). However, this does not work correctly if the last letter is x, y or w: mix – mixed(mix), bow – bowed(bow)
• Did you think that was all? But no. Now the situation is the same: the verb ends with a consonant-vowel-consonant, but it has several syllables. The last consonant is doubled if the last syllable is stressed. prefer – preferred(prefer). And it does not double if the last syllable is unstressed: listen – listened(listen)
• Did you think that’s it for sure now? Well, what kind of rule is this without exceptions? In British English words travelled(to travel) and canceled(to cancel) are written with a double vowel, although according to the rules it seems they shouldn’t. In American English, doubling does not occur.

Ufff, that's it now. The last three points, of course, are more like mockery than rules - and the syllables need to be counted, and determine where the vowels are, where the consonants are, where the stressed ones are, where the unstressed ones are... At some point it seems that it’s better than with such rules without them. And, frankly, it’s possible without them - I learned about the existence of all these rules only when I was writing this article - and for the previous decades, like Moliere’s hero, I doubled or did not double consonants without thinking at all about the grammatical science behind it. However, enough about regular verbs, now let's look at how irregular verbs change.

How irregular verbs change

Since the verbs are irregular, then complete chaos will reign in their forms. Yes, but not quite like that. Even among all these non-standard forms, certain patterns can be traced. Let's see what options there are for changing irregular verbs - having learned these patterns, it will be easier for you to learn the forms of irregular verbs. I apologize in advance for using the Soviet numbering system - but in this case it’s really clearer.

The second and third forms are the same

In almost half of the irregular verbs, the past tense form and the past participle (i.e., the second and third forms) are the same. have – had – had(have), keep – kept – kept(keep), leave – left – left(leave), say – said – said(speak). Not just irregular verbs, but some kind of waltz...

The first and third forms are the same

For these irregular verbs, the past tense form looks irregular and the participle looks the same as the original form of the verb. Those. the first and third forms coincide. There are few such verbs - I counted only three: come – came – come(come), become – become – have become(become), run - run - run(run).

All shapes match

The next group of verbs decided not to bother at all and use one form wherever possible. Often (but not always) these are verbs consisting of one syllable and ending with a consonant, for example: cut – cut – cut(cut), put – put – put(put) shut – shut – shut(close).
Be careful with the verb to read(read): it may seem that it does not change ( read – read – read), but this is not entirely true; in the second and third forms the pronunciation changes, so that this verb rather belongs to the “2=3” group.

Nothing matches

Well, all the other verbs – they all have different forms. So where there are no rules, there are no rules: begin – began – begun(start off), do – did – done(do), eat – ate – eaten(There is), see – saw – seen(to see) and so on.

How many irregular verbs are there and is it necessary to know them all?

Now let's assess the scale of the problem. How many irregular verbs are there in total? And, coming from a more practical point of view, is it necessary to know them all? Let's figure it out.

The most complete list of irregular verbs that I could find on the Internet consists of 638 verbs. It looks like this is really the most comprehensive list. But every verb in this list is some kind of dinosaur, for example, blin-blan-blun(this is not a joke, this is actually one of the verbs from the list). What the hell are these words? I have to admit, I don’t know. I have never encountered such words in all the years of using the English language.

I think you have already guessed that such a list hardly represents any value for an ordinary person. No, you definitely don’t need to learn 600+ irregular verbs.

How much do you need?

Trying to answer this question, I followed the path that is familiar to me from other work - as an analyst. I found a list of the 5000 most used English words, sorted by popularity; 1000 of them turned out to be verbs; In addition, I downloaded a list of irregular verbs - and compared the two lists with each other. What can you see? Among frequently used verbs there are much more irregular ones than among rare ones. If, for example, in the top 100 English verbs every second is irregular, in the next hundred every fifth is already irregular. And among the remaining 800, on average, only one in ten is incorrect.

That is, it turns out if your vocabulary consists of 5000 words (and this is a confident upper-intermediate level, the level of if not “fluent”, then certainly “confident” language proficiency), approximately 1000 of them will be verbs, and about 140-150 of these verbs will be irregular. It is this number that you need to focus on - unless, of course, you are at the Upper-Intermediate level. This is exactly how many (or maybe a little more - up to 200) words you will find in most lists of irregular verbs scattered across the Internet.

Should I learn irregular verbs?

Even if you focus only on the most popular 140 verbs, the scope of work opens up rather large - after all, for each verb you need to know not only the basic form, but also the second and third forms - and now in total several hundred new words have come up. Are these irregular verbs so important, is it possible to put your efforts to better use? Will they really not understand me without all these grammatical problems?

That's right, they will understand. But you are unlikely to come across as someone with whom you can have a meaningful conversation. Remember the examples of irregular verbs from the Russian language that I gave at the beginning of our conversation? What would you think of a person saying “I draw”, “I give”, together “I draw”, “I give”? Yes, you can praise your efforts, but it will be difficult to take such an interlocutor seriously. Your speech will look exactly the same to an English speaker if you start ignoring irregular verbs. In a word, if you have even the slightest serious plans for using the English language, you cannot do without irregular verbs.

How to learn irregular verbs

Are there any ways to learn irregular verbs faster and more reliably? I don't think there is one recipe that will guarantee success, but I have selected a few tips that may help. Some of them may be contradictory to each other, because, again, there is no universal system - try each one and use the ones that suit you.

Teach in groups

We have already seen above that entire groups of irregular verbs immediately change according to similar patterns. Use this - learn a group of irregular verbs at once. Often this helps save energy - instead of remembering all the forms, you, for example, will remember that this one does not change at all, or that its second and third forms are the same. And the right answer will come to your mind.

Learn by frequency

Perhaps you shouldn't learn irregular forms of verbs you don't know. 140-150 irregular verbs is level B2, but what if you are only at B1 or A2? There is no need to run ahead of the locomotive; in this case, it is enough to know only those verbs that correspond to your level. However, don’t forget to come back regularly and learn new verbs as you progress.

There are several lists on the Internet organized by frequency, but I found them all inconvenient, so I made my own - link at the end of the article.

Use programs/applications/games

No one has canceled technological progress and the conveniences it brings with it. There are a countless number of applications, sites, programs, games that help you learn irregular verbs. In my humble experience, not all of them can bring real benefits, but this does not mean that they should not be used at all. Search for them in Google and Yandex, install applications on phones and tablets. Even if the application turns out to be complete nonsense, there is a chance that while trying to figure out how it works, you will learn a couple of verbs - this is already a benefit.

Learn all new verbs with three forms at once

From now on, if you come across a new verb in a lesson, in a book, in a conversation - and open the dictionary to find out the meaning of this new verb (in the case where this makes sense, see “ “) - at the same time look at the correct he or not; if incorrect, how does it change. This will give you a chance to learn both the new word and the forms it takes.

Build sentences

Learn irregular verb s, like a poem - old, proven, but not the best effective way. Maybe you, like me, are not particularly talented at memorizing poetry; the right line will fall out of your head at the most inopportune moment. Instead, treat new forms like new words - build sentences with second and third forms of the verb, come up with associations and stories, draw pictures - in short, do everything we talked about in the article ““.

Pay attention to irregular verbs when reading or listening

Now that you know about the existence of irregular verbs, pay attention to them in the texts you read, in the films you watch, in the speech you hear. At first, just take a split second to realize: you just heard one of the forms of the irregular verb, you remember its meaning and all the other forms. Of course, you don't have to spend too much effort on this - especially if you end up forgetting what the other person said. But after you encounter a verb several times in a real situation and pay attention to it, it is unlikely to be forgotten in the foreseeable future.

How to determine verb forms using a dictionary

And one last thing. What do regular and irregular verbs look like in English dictionaries? What’s interesting is that there will be no direct indication of whether such and such a verb is correct or incorrect in the dictionary. Apparently because the boundary between regular and irregular verbs is not very clear. There are, for example, verbs that behave as irregular in American English and as regular in British.

In addition, each dictionary has its own characteristics - for example, they do not look like anything in the Oxford online dictionary; it assumes that you already know how irregular and regular verbs change. Here's another example - the online dictionary learningdictionary.com (which I highly recommend if you don't already use it). If you open the definition of a verb, right before the definition all its existing forms will be listed - starting with the -s form and ending with the -ing form. Between them - one or two, depending on whether they are the same or different - there will be either an -ed form, or forms for the past tense and for the past participle. Therefore, feel free to look into this dictionary if you want to know for sure how to do it correctly.

At this point, it’s time to end the story about regular and irregular verbs - and move on to what all this torment was for - to the tenses of the verb. We will talk about this in future articles.

Here you can find a table of irregular English verbs with translation into Russian and transcription, videos on learning and memorizing irregular verbs, links.

There is a special category of verbs in the English language that does not follow generally accepted rules when forming the past participle. They are usually called “wrong”. Unlike “regular” verbs, to which the ending –ed is added to form the past participle, these verbs either remain unchanged or take unusual forms that are not always easy to remember. For example:

put – put – put;
drive – drove – driven.

If the first verb is easy to learn and use in sentences, then the second one has to be learned directly by memorization.

Where did such difficulties with some verbs come from? Scientists have concluded that these are some kind of “fossils” remaining in the language from ancient times. During its development, the English language has taken large number words from other European languages, but some words remained unchanged. It is this category that irregular verbs belong to.

Table of irregular English verbs:

VERB	PAST SIMPLE	PAST PARTICIPLE	TRANSLATION
abide [əbʌid]	abode [əbəud]	abode [əbəud]	endure, endure
arise [ə"raiz]	arose [ə"rəuz]	arisen [ə"riz(ə)n]	To arise, to happen
awake [ə"weik]	awoke [ə"wəuk]	awoken [ə"wəukən]	Wake up, wake up
be	was, were	been	Be
bear	bore	borne	carry, bear
beat	beat	beaten ["bi:tn]	Beat
become	became	become	Become
begin	began	begun	Start off
hold	beheld	beheld	contemplate, see
bend	bent	bent	Bend
bereave		bereft/bereaved	Deprive, take away
beseech		bethought/beseeched	Beg, beg
beset	beset	beset	Surround
bet	bet	bet	argue
bid	bid / bade	bidden	Offer, order
bind	bound	bound	Bind
bite	bit	bitten	bite, peck
bleed	bled	bled	Bleed
blow	blew	blown	Blow
break	broke	broken ["brouk(e)n]	Break
breed	bred	bred	Breed, multiply
bring	brought	brought	Bring
browbeat ["braubi:t]	browbeat ["braubi:t]	browbeaten ["braubi:tn]/ browbeat ["braubi:t]	Intimidate, intimidate
build	built	built	Build
burn	burnt	burnt	burn
burst	burst	burst	Break out
bust	busted	busted	Go bankrupt, go broke
buy	bought	bought	Buy
cast	cast	cast	Throw, throw away
catch	caught	caught	Catch, grab, catch
choose	chose [ʃəuz]	chosen	Choose
cleave	cleft	cleft	Split, cut
cling	clung	clung	cling, hold on
clothe		clothed/clad	Dress
come	came	come	Come
cost	cost	cost	Cost
creep	crept	crept	Crawl
cut	cut	cut	Cut
deal	dealt	dealt	Deal with
dig	dug	dug	Dig
disprove	disproved	disproved/disproven	Refute
dive	dove	dived	Dive, submerge
do	did	done	Do
draw	drew	drawn	Draw, drag
dream	dream	dream	Dream, doze
drink	drank	drunk	Drink
drive	drove	driven ["drivn]	Drive
dwell		dwelt/dwelled	reside, inhabit
eat	ate	eaten ["i:tn]	Eat
fall	fell	fallen ["fɔ:lən]	Fall
feed	fed	fed	Feed
feel	felt	felt	Feel
fight	fought	fought	Fight
find	found	found	Find
fit	fit	fit	Fit to size
flee	fled	fled	Run away, disappear
fling	flung	flung	Throw, throw
fly	flew	flown	Fly
forbid	forbade	forbidden	Forbid
forgo (forego)	forewent	foregone	refuse, abstain
forecast ["fɔ:ka:st]	forecast ["fɔ:ka:st]	forecast ["fɔ:ka:st]	Forecast
foresee	foresaw	foreseen	Anticipate, predict
foretell	foretold	foretold	Predict, foretell
forget	forgot	forgotten	Forget
forgive	forgave	forgiven	Forgive
forsake	forsook	forsaken	Leave, leave
freeze	froze	frozen ["frouzn]	Freeze
get	got	got	Receive
gild	gilt	gilt	Gild
give	gave	given	Giving
go	went	gone	Go
grind	ground	ground	Grind, grind
grow	grew	grown	Grow
hang	hung	hung	Hang
have	had	had	Have
hear	heard	heard	Hear
hide	hid	hidden ["hidn]	Hide
heave	heaved / hove	heaved / hove	Pull, push
hew	hewed	hewn/hewed/	chop down, cut down
hit	hit	hit	Hit the target
hide	hid	hidden	Hide, hide
hold	held	held	Hold
hurt	hurt	hurt	Hurt
inlay [ɪnˈleɪ]	inlaid [ɪnˈleɪd]	inlaid [ɪnˈleɪd]	invest (money), inlay
input [ˈɪnpʊt]	input [ˈɪnpʊt]	input [ˈɪnpʊt]	Enter, enter
interweave [ɪntəˈwiːv]	interwove [ɪntəˈwəʊv]	interwoven [ɪntəˈwəʊv(ə)n]	Weave
keep	kept	kept	Contain
kneel	knelt	knelt	Kneel
knit	knit	knit	Knit, darn
know	knew	known	Know
lay	laid	laid	Putting
lead	led	led	News
lean	leant	leant	Tilt
leap	leapt	leapt	Jump, gallop
learn	learn	learn	Learn
leave	left	left	Leave
lend	tape	tape	Occupy
let	let	let	Let
lie	lay	lain	Lie
light	lit	lit	illuminate
lose	lost	lost	Lose
make	made	made	Produce
mean	meant	meant	Mean
meet	met	met	Meet
mistake	mistook	mistaken	To be wrong
mow	mowed	town	Mow, cut
overcome [əʊvəˈkʌm]	overcame [əʊvəˈkeɪm]	overcome [əʊvəˈkʌm]	overcome, overcome
pay	paid	paid	Pay
plead		declare / pled	Beg, beg
prove	proved	proven	Prove
put	put	put	Put
quit	quit	quit	Go out
read	read	read	Read
relay	relayed	relayed	Transmit, broadcast
rid	rid	rid	To deliver, to liberate
ride	rode	ridden ["ridn]	Ride a horse
ring	rank	rung	Ring
rise	rose	risen ["rizn]	Get up
run	ran	run	Run
saw	sawed	sawed / sawn	saw, saw
say	said	said	Speak
see	saw	seen	See
seek	sought	sought	Search
sell	sold	sold	Sell
send	sent	sent	Send
set	set	set	Put
sew	sewed	sewn	Sew
shake [ʃeik]	shook [ʃuk]	shaken ["ʃeik(ə)n]	Shake
shave [ʃeɪv]	shaved [ʃeɪvd]	shaved [ʃeɪvd]/ shaven [ʃeɪvən]	Shave, shave
shear [ʃɪə]	sheared [ʃɪəd]	sheared [ʃɪəd]/ shorn [ʃɔ:n]	Cut, cut
shed [ʃed]	shed [ʃed]	shed [ʃed]	Spill, lose
shine [ʃaɪn]	shone [ʃoʊn]	shone [ʃoʊn]	Shine, shine
shit [ʃit]	shit [ʃit]	shit [ʃit]	Shit
shoe [ʃu:]	shod [ʃɒd]	shod [ʃɒd]	Shoe, shoe
shoot [ʃu:t]	shot [ʃɒt]	shot [ʃɒt]	Shoot, take pictures
show [ʃəu]	showed [ʃəud]	shown [ʃəun]	Show
shrink [ʃriŋk]	shrank [ʃræŋk]	shrunk [ʃrʌŋk]	Reduce
shut [ʃʌt]	shut [ʃʌt]	shut [ʃʌt]	Close
sing	sang	sung	Sing
sink	sank, sunk	sunk	Drown
sit	sat	sat	Sit
slay	slew	slain	Kill, put to death
sleep	slept	slept	Sleep
slide	slide	slide	Slide
sling	slung	slung	Hang
slink		slunk/slinked	Slip away
slit	slit	slit	Cut, cut
smell	smelt	smelt	Smell, feel
smite	smote	smitten [ˈsmɪtn]	Hit, hit
sow	sowed	south	Sow
speak	spoke	spoken ["spouk(e)n]	Speak
speed	sped	sped	Hurry, rush
spell	spelled	spelled	Spell it out
spend	spent	spent	Spend
spill	spilt	spilt	Spill
spin	spun	spun	Twist, twirl
spit	spit/spat	spit/spat	Spit
split	split	split	Divide, break
spoiler	spoilt	spoilt	Spoil
spread	spread	spread	spread out
spring	sprang	sprung	Jump
stand	stood	stood	Stand
steal	stole	stolen ["stəulən]	Steal
stick	stuck	stuck	Stab
sting	stung	stung	Sting
stink	stank	stunk	Stink, smell
strew	strewed	strewn	Sprinkle
stride	strode	stridden	Step
strike	struck	struck / stricken	Strike, strike
string	strung	strung	string, hang
strive		strive / strive	Try, try
swear	swore	sworn	swear, swear
sweat		sweat / sweated	Sweat
sweep	swept	swept	Sweep
swell	swelled	swollen ["swoul(e)n]	Swell
swim	swam	swum	Swim
swing	swung	swung	Sway
take	took	taken ["teik(ə)n]	Take, take
teach	taught	taught	Learn
tear	tore	torn	Tear
tell	told	told	Tell
think [θiŋk]	thought [θɔ:t]	thought [θɔ:t]	Think
throw [θrəu]	threw [θru:]	thrown [θrəun]	Throw
thrust [θrʌst]	thrust [θrʌst]	thrust [θrʌst]	Stick it in, stick it in
thread	trod	trodden	Trample, crush
[ʌndəˈɡəʊ]	passed [ʌndə"wɛnt]	undergone [ʌndə"ɡɒn]	experience, endure
understand [ʌndə"stænd]	understood [ʌndə"stud]	understood [ʌndə"stud]	Understand
undertake [ʌndəˈteɪk]	undertook [ʌndəˈtʊk]	took [ʌndəˈteɪk(ə)n]	undertake, commit
undo ["ʌn"du:]	undid ["ʌn"dɪd]	undone ["ʌn"dʌn]	Destroy, cancel
upset [ʌp"set]	upset [ʌp"set]	upset [ʌp"set]	Upset, upset
wake	woke up	woken ["wouk(e)n]	Wake up
wear	wore	worn	Wear
weave	wove / weaved	wove / weaved	Weave, weave
wed	wed / wedded ["wɛdɪd]	wed / wedded ["wɛdɪd]	Marry
weep	wept	wept	Cry
wet	wet	wet	Get wet
win	won	won	Win
wind	wound	wound	Wriggle
withdraw	withdrew	withdrawn	Remove, delete
withhold	withheld	withheld	Hold, hide
withstand	withstood	withstood	Withstand, resist
wring	wrung	wrung	Squeeze, twist
write	wrote	written ["ritn]	Write

Video on learning and memorizing irregular English verbs:

Top 100 irregular verbs in English.

In this video, the author analyzes the most popular irregular verbs in the English language (top 100, compiled by himself). Examples are given for all irregular verbs, voiceovers, etc. The most commonly used irregular verbs come first, then the least used.

Pronunciation of irregular English verbs.

British version of English irregular verbs. The author gives you the opportunity to repeat after him and thus hone the correct pronunciation of irregular verbs.

Learning irregular English verbs using rap.

An interesting video for learning English irregular verbs superimposed on rap.

Examples of using irregular verbs:

1. I could swim when I was five.	1. I knew how to swim when I was five years old.
2.Peter became an entrepreneur by chance.	2. Peter became an entrepreneur by accident.
3. He took another day off.	3. He took another day off.
4. They had two cats and a dog.	4. They had two cats and one dog.
5. We did lots of work yesterday.	5. We did great job yesterday.
6.Jane ate the last piece of cake.	6. Jane ate the last piece of pie.
7. He got another chance to gain her heart.	7. He got another chance to win her heart.
8. I gave my old bycicle to the neighbor's son.	8. I gave my old bicycle to my neighbor's son.
9. We went shopping to the mall two days ago..	9. We went to the nearest store shopping mall two days ago.
10. She made a rather delicious pasta.	10. She made quite tasty pasta.
11.Have you bought a new car?	11. Did you buy a new car?
12. We've driven all the way down to her house.	12. We drove all the way to her house.
13. She's grown so much since we last saw her.	13. She has grown so much since we last saw her.
14. Have you ever ridden a trycicle?	14. Have you ever ridden a tricycle?
15. You don't need to repeat twice, as it is understood.	15. You don’t need to repeat it twice, since everything is understood.
16. Their dog has bitten my sister today.	16. Their dog bit my sister today.
17.Have you chosen your future profession?	17. Have you chosen your future profession?
18. We've completely forgotten to call the Smiths.	18. We completely forgot to call the Smiths.
19. I've hidden a folder and now I can"t find it.	19. I hid the folder and now I can’t find it.
20. It was thought to be necessary for him.	20. Everyone thought that this would benefit him.

Here you can take a lesson on the topic: Simple past tense in English. Regular and irregular verbs. Past Simple. Regular and Irregular verbs.

In this lesson we will get acquainted with regular and irregular verbs in English and how to use them in sentences simple past tense. It is these verbs that in most cases are integral part past tense.

To express thoughts in the past, the English often use the verbs was and were. Well, what if the main action is expressed by another verb, for example, swim, or play? In such cases, knowledge of regular and irregular English verbs is required. We will look at each category of verbs separately:

Regular verbs Regular verbs are a special group of English verbs that easily form the past tense by adding the suffix -ed to the infinitive (the regular form of the verb). Here are some examples of such verbs:

talk - talked (talk - spoke)
jump - jumped (jump - jumped)
check - checked (check - checked)
look - looked (look - looked)
stay - remained (stop - stopped)
ask - asked (ask - asked)
show -showed (show - showed)
work - worked (work - worked)

Regular verbs ending in -ed do not change for person or number. Let's look at the example of the verb walk (walk, stroll):

I walked - I walked
you walked - you walked / You walked
he walked - he walked
she walked - she walked
it walked - he/she walked/walked (inanimate)
we walked - we walked
they walked - they walked

I. There are some spelling rules when adding the ending -ed.

1. So, for example, if the verb is already ends with a letter-e , then only -d is added to it. For example:

Change - changed (change - changed)
arrive - arrived (arrive - arrived)
smoke - smoked (smoking - smoked)

2. If the verb ends with the letter -y, then the ending, with rare exceptions, changes to -ied. For example:

study - studied (teach - taught)
tidy - tidied (clean - cleaned)
try - tried (try - tried)

The exceptions are the verbs: play - played (play), stay - remained (stop), enjoy - enjoyed (enjoy).

3. In some short verbs(in 1 syllable) by adding the ending -ed The consonant is doubled. This rule applies to verbs that ends with one vowel and one consonant letters. For example:

stop - stop ped (stop - stopped)
rob - rob bed (rob - robbed)

II. Regarding regular English verbs, there are also several reading rules.

1. So, for example, in verbs, ending in a voiceless consonant(f, k, p, t), the ending -ed is read softly, like /t/. For example:

walk ed /wɔ:kt/
look ed /lukt/
jump ed /dʒʌmpt/
ask ed /a:skt/

2. In verbs, ending in voiced and all other sounds, the ending -ed is pronounced voiced, like /d/. For example:

play ed /pleid/
show ed /ʃəud/
arrived /ə"raivd/
chang ed /tʃeindʒd/

3. The pronunciation of the verb ending -ed changes slightly when the verbs end with the sounds /t/ or /d/. Then the ending is pronounced /id/. For example:

decid ed /di"saidid/
wait ed /"weitid /
land ed /"lændid /
fad ed/"feidid/

Now let's look at the regular verbs in affirmative sentences. Here are some examples:

Miriam waited for Adam for several hours. - Miriam waited for Adam for several hours.
She walked towards the river. - She walked towards the river.
They changed their mind. - They changed their decision.
The woman carried a heavy bag. - The woman was carrying a heavy bag.
When I arrived the party was over. - When I arrived, the party was over.
The plane landed near the village. - The plane landed near the village.
The car stopped next to my house. - The car stopped next to my house.
Children played hide-and-seek. - The children played hide and seek.
We stayed at my grandmother's. - We stayed with my grandmother.
I looked around but there was noone. - I looked around, but there was no one there.
He studied German at school. - He studied German at school.

As can be seen from the examples, the place of subjects and verbs in affirmative sentences is fixed, and the remaining members of the sentences can be used depending on the context. When reading the examples, pay attention to the spelling of regular verbs and their pronunciation.

In contrast to regular verbs, English also has a number of irregular verbs, which do not obey the rule of adding the ending -ed, but are formed completely unexpectedly and in different ways. For example:

find - found (find - found)
take - took (take - took)
sleep - slept (sleep - slept)
fight - fought (fight - fought)
get - got (receive - received)
give - gave (give - gave)
buy - bought (buy - bought)
catch - caught (catch - caught)
lose - lost (lose - lost) and many others.

Here you can find the complete
The simple past tense uses verbs from the second column (Past Simple).

In affirmative sentences, irregular verbs are used in the same way as regular ones. The order of the sentence is fixed: Subject - Predicate - Object - Adverbial modifier. Let's look at examples:

He lost his key a day ago. - He lost his key a day ago.
Simon took my phone number yesterday. - Simon took my phone number yesterday.
I gave her a birthday present. - I gave her a present for her birthday.
They slept for eight hours last night. - They slept eight hours last night.

To form negative and interrogative sentences with regular and irregular verbs (except to be and modal verbs), the auxiliary verb did must be used.

So, for example, in interrogative sentences comes first auxiliary verb did, then the subject and the verb, but in its original form (infinitive), since the auxiliary verb did takes on the function of the past tense. Let's look at a few examples:

(+) Her watch stopped working. - Her watch stopped working.
(?) Did her watch stop working? - Has her watch stopped working?

(+) He caught a big fish. - He caught big fish.
(?) Did he catch a big fish? - Did he catch a big fish?

(+) They played cards in the evening. - They played cards in the evening.
(?) Did they play cards in the evening? - Did they play cards in the evening?

(+) Mr.Right found a purse with money. - Mr. Wright found a wallet with money.
(?) Did Mr.Right find a purse money? - Did Mr. Wright find a wallet with money?

(+) His father called him yesterday. - His father called him yesterday.
(?) Did his father call him yesterday? - Did his father call him yesterday?

As can be seen from the examples, the auxiliary verb did does not change in persons or numbers, such as the verbs do and does, was and were. Also, these questions belong to the general category, and require short answers, which, unlike the Russian “yes” and “no”, depend largely on the question itself and auxiliary verb. Let's take a closer look:

Did you leave early last night? -Yes, I did. -No, I didn't. -Did you leave early last night? -Yes. -No.
Did they like the cake? -Yes, they did. -No, they didn't. - Did they like the cake? - Yes. - No.
Did their children break the remote control? -Yes, they did. -No, they didn't." -Did their children break the remote control? -Yes. -No.

Special questions with regular and irregular verbs are formed in the same order as common ones, but with the addition question word at the beginning. For example:

Where did you find the map? - Where did you find the map?
Why did they call us last night? - Why did they call us last night?
Who did you invite to the party? -Who did you invite to the party?
What did she cook fro dinner? - What did she cook for dinner?

Negative sentences with regular and irregular verbs are also formed using the auxiliary verb did, and negative particle"not". The main verbs in such sentences remain in their original form, i.e. in the infinitive. Let's look at examples:

(+) He didn’t want us to go. - He wanted us to leave.
(-) He didn't (did not) want us to go. - He didn't want us to leave.

(+) They enjoyed the concert. - They liked the concert.
(-) They didn’t enjoy the concert. - They didn’t like the concert.

(+) Albert promised me something. - Albert promised me something.
(-) Albert didn’t promise me anything. - Albert didn’t promise me anything.

(+) My friend paid t he fine. - My friend paid the fine.
(-) My friend didn't pay the fine. - My friend did not pay the fine.

(+) It broke after all. - And yet it broke.
(-) It didn’t break after all. - And yet it didn’t break.

As can be seen from the examples, the word did can be combined with the particle not, and then the abbreviated form is obtained - didn't.

Thus, we examined regular and irregular verbs in English, and also became familiar with their use in affirmative, negative and interrogative sentences. The category of regular verbs does not require targeted memorization, but it is recommended to learn irregular verbs several times a day and try to use them in your sentences.

English is a language of exceptions, where when learning a new grammatical rule, students are faced with a dozen buts in which this rule does not apply. One of these rules is the use of irregular verbs in the past tense. For many English learners, this topic is a nightmare. But you can’t live without them, because these are the realities of English! However, there is good news - modern English is gradually getting rid of irregular verbs, replacing them with regular ones. Why and how - we'll look at it in the article.

Why are English verbs irregular?

Not only foreigners, but also native speakers themselves experience difficulty in using irregular verbs. But nevertheless, for English philologists, the non-standardity of this part of speech is not a drawback, but a reason for pride. They believe that irregular verbs are a cultural monument that perpetuates the history of the English language. The explanation for this fact is the Germanic roots of the origin of irregular verbs, which makes British English a traditional variant of the language. For comparison, Americans are trying hard to get rid of irregular shape, remaking it into the correct one. Therefore, the list of non-standard verbs increases for those who learn both versions of the language. Thus, the incorrect version is ancient, which is reflected in prose and poetry.

How many forms does a verb have in English?

Speaking about verbs in English, it should be noted that they have 3 forms:

• infinitive, aka ;
• I, or Participle I, - this form is used in the simple past tense (Past Simple) and the 2nd and 3rd cases of the conditional mood (Conditional of the 2-d and of the 3-d case);
• Past Participle II, or Participle II, for the simple perfect tense of the long past tense ( Past Perfect), passive voice (Passive Voice) and conditional of the 3-d case.

The table "Three in English" is presented later in the article.

What are regular and irregular verbs? Education rules

Regular verbs are those in which the past form (Past Simple) and the form Participle II (Participle II) are formed by adding the ending -ed to the initial form. The table "Three verb forms in English. Regular verbs" will help you better understand this rule.

There are some features when forming Participle I and Participle II:

• if the verb ends with the letter -e, then adding -ed does not double it;
• The consonant in monosyllabic verbs is duplicated when added. Example: stop - stopped (stop - stopped);
• if the verb ends in -y with a preceding consonant, then y changes to i before adding -ed.

Verbs that do not obey are called irregular general rule during the formation of temporary forms. In English, these include the Past Simple and Participle II verb forms.

Irregular verbs are formed using:

ablauta, in which the root changes. Example: swim - swam - swum (swim - swam - swam);

the use of suffixes different from those accepted in the grammar of the language. Example: do - did - done (do - did - did);

identical or unchangeable form. Example: cut - cut - cut (cut - cut - cut).

Due to the fact that each irregular verb has its own inflection, they should be learned by heart.

There are a total of 218 irregular verbs in the English language, of which approximately 195 are in active use.

Recent research in the field of language shows that rare verbs are gradually disappearing from the language due to the replacement of the 2nd and 3rd forms with forms of the regular verb, that is, the addition of the ending - ed. This fact is confirmed by the table “Three verb forms in English” - the table presents a number of verbs that have both regular and irregular forms.

Table of irregular verbs

The table "Three Forms of Irregular Verbs in English" includes the most frequently used verbs. The table shows 3 forms and translation.

Irregular verbs came to modern English from Old English, which was spoken by the Angles and Saxons - British tribes.

Irregular verbs evolved from so-called strong verbs, each of which had its own type of conjugation.

Researchers from Harvard found that the majority of verbs used are irregular, and they will remain so because they are used more often than others.

There is also a phenomenon in the history of the English language when a regular verb became irregular. For example, sneak, which has 2 forms - sneaked and snuck.

Not only English learners have problems with verbs, but also native speakers, as even they find themselves in awkward situations when it comes to this difficult part of speech.

One of them is Jennifer Garner, who all her life was sure that sneak was the correct verb.

She was corrected by the host of one of the programs in which the actress took part. With a dictionary in hand, he pointed out to Jennifer her mistake.

Therefore, you should not be upset if you make mistakes when using irregular verbs. The main thing is that they do not become systematic.

Regular verbs

The table "Three forms of regular verbs in English with transcription and translation" is compiled on the basis of the most frequently used verbs.

			Past Participle I and II
ask
answer
allow
agree
borrow, borrow
copy, rewrite
prepare
close
carry, drag
call, call
discuss
decide, decide
explain		explain
slide
cry, scream
finish, finish, end
shine
rub
grab
help
happen, happen
manage
look
like
move, move
manage
to be necessary, to need
open
recall
suggest		sadgesture
study, study
stop, stop
start off
travel
speak
transfer		translate
try, try
use
worry
walk, walk
look
work

Examples of using 3 forms of verbs with translation

Above we looked at 3 forms of verbs in English. A table with examples of use and translation will help reinforce the topic.

Here, for each grammatical construction, two examples are given - one with regular and one with irregular verbs.

Grammar design	Example in English	Translation
Past Simple	Peter worked yesterday. She felt bad last week.	Peter worked yesterday. She didn't feel well last week.
Present Perfect Tense	James has already helped me. Have you ever been to Thailand?	James has already helped me. Have you ever been to Thailand?
Past Perfect Tense	I understood that I had used my last ticket. Helen noticed that she had forgotten her documents at home.	I realized that I had used the last ticket. She realized that she had forgotten the documents at home.
Passive Voice	Amy was taken to the zoo last Sunday. A baby is sung a lullaby every night.	Amy was taken to the zoo last Sunday. The baby is sung a lullaby every night.
Conditional	If I had money, I would buy a car. If she could help us, she would have done it.	If I had money, I would buy a car. If she could help us, she would.

Exercises

To better memorize irregular verbs, you need not only to learn them by heart and repeat them, but also to perform various exercises.

Exercise 1. Here is the table "Three verb forms in English. Irregular verbs." Fill in one of the three missing forms.

Exercise 2. Here is the table "Three verb forms in English. Regular verbs." Insert forms Participle I and II.

Exercise 3. Using the tables, translate the following sentences into English.

1. I was reading a book.
2. We saw them yesterday.
3. The Smiths lived in London until 2000. They then moved to Manchester.
4. Alice was a university student in 2014.
5. They worked in the same company two years ago.
6. He just finished training.
7. When we were children, my mother often took us to this park.
8. I drove a toy car as a child.

Answers to the exercises

Exercise 1.

Exercise 2.

asked, borrowed, closed, decided, explained, helped, started, traveled, used, worked.

Exercise 3.

1. I read a book.
2. We saw them yesterday.
3. The Smiths lived in London till 2000. Then they moved to Manchester.
4. Alice was a student of Univercity in 2014.
5. They worked in the same company two years ago.
6. He has just finished training.
7. When we were children we took for a walk to this park.
8. I drove a toy car in my childhood.

Make it a habit to periodically repeat the basic forms of the English verb. A table with irregular verbs, doing exercises and periodic repetition will help you quickly cope with the difficulties of the English language.

Personal view.

We know that the verb in English is everything. We also know that there is a list of irregular verbs that are the basis of the English language. It just so happens that they are the stumbling block in learning. I recommend you watch I . Perhaps this will help you look at the problem from a different perspective. In those slightly absurd poems, I tried to include the most common irregular verbs.

But now let's talk about REGULAR verbs.

These are most verbs in the English language, to which we add ED. I was interested in collecting the most basic verbs that I use in my daily life.

I will specifically give examples in the past tense and in the perfect tense so that the difference in tenses can be seen.

1. Love loved loved (to love)

For example:

I loved him two years ago. I loved him two years ago.

I have loved him. I fell in love with him

2. Want wanted wanted (want)

I wanted an apple yesterday. I wanted an apple yesterday.

I have always wanted to work in a team. I always wanted to work in a team.

3. Use used used (use, use)

I used this pen last week. I used this pen a week ago.

I have used this car today. I used this machine today.

4. Work worked worked

He worked yesterday. She worked yesterday.

I have just worked.

5. Walk walked walked (to walk, stroll)

I walked in the forest two days ago. I walked in the forest 2 days ago.

I have walked in the park today. I took a walk in the park today.

6. Call called (call, call)

I called for a doctor yesterday. I called the doctor yesterday.

I have just called the police. I just called the police.

7. Try tried tried (try, try)

I tried to repair my house in 1987.

I have already tried this cream. I have already tried this cream.

8. Cry cried cried (cry, scream)

He cried yesterday. He cried yesterday.

He has never cried in his life. He never cried in his life.

9. Ask asked asked (ask, request)

She asked for help yesterday.He asked for help yesterday.

I`ve never asked for help. I never asked for help.

10. Answered answered answered (answer)

He answered that he was ill. He replied that he was sick.

I`ve just answered the question. I just answered the question.

11. Need needed needed

I needed help yesterday. I needed help yesterday.

I've suddenly needed help. I suddenly needed help.

12. Play played played

I played computer an hour ago. I was playing on the computer an hour ago.

I have already played this game! I've already played this game!

13. Help helped helped (help)

He helped them in 1999. He helped them in 1999.

He has never helped them. He never helped them.

14. Live lived lived

I lived in London 2 years ago. I lived in London 2 years ago.

I have already lived in London for 10 years. I have already lived in London for 10 years.

15. Move moved moved (move, move)

I`ve moved to Moscow. I moved to Moscow.

He moved to Paris two years ago. He moved to Paris 2 years ago.

16. Learn learned learned (can be an irregular verb) (teach, study, learn)

I have just learned the poem! I just learned a verse!

I learned Spanish when I was young. I learned Spanish when I was young.

17. Watch watched watched (watch, watch)

I watched TV yesterday. I watched TV yesterday.

He has watched this program lately. He recently reviewed this program.

18. Open opened opened (open)

He opened the door yesterday. He opened the door yesterday.

I've opened the door. I just opened the door.

19. Close closed closed (close)

I`ve just closed the eyes. I just closed my eyes.

I closed my company two days ago. I closed my company 2 years ago.

20. Die died died

This knight died many years ago. This knight died many years ago.

He has recently died. He recently died.

21. Pass passed (pass, pass)

He passed exams 2 days ago. He passed his exams 2 years ago.

He has passed the trial. He passed the test!

22. Serve served served (to serve)

He served in the army two days ago. He served in the army 2 years ago.

He has served in the army lately. He has already served in the army.

23. Change changed changed (change, change)

He has changed his style lately. He recently changed his style

He changed computer yesterday. He changed the computer yesterday.

24. Stop stopped stopped

He stopped smoking 2 years ago. He stopped smoking 2 years ago.

He has just stopped (he just stopped).

25. Remember remembered remembered(remember, remember)

I remembered him last night. I remembered him last night.

He has remembered everything today. He remembered everything today.

26. Promise promised promised (Promise)

He promised to come. He promised to come.

He has never promised that. He never promised this.

27. Believe believed believed.(believe)

I didn`t believe him 2 years ago. I didn't believe him 2 years ago.

She has never believed me. She never believed me.

28. Hoped hoped. (Hope)

I hoped to do it yesterday. I was hoping to do this yesterday.

I`ve hoped for him. I hoped for him.

29. Realize realized realized. (Recognize, implement).

I realized that he was wrong. I realized that he was wrong.

I`ve finally realized my goal. I finally achieved my goal.

30. look looked looked (look)

I have looked in the mirror. I looked in the mirror.

He looked into this documents yesterday. He carefully studied these documents yesterday.

P.S I also want to include here 2 verbs that I liked lately and they all start with the letter “M”.

Mention mentioned mentioned.

Don`t mention it. It's OK.

I have already mentioned it. I already mentioned this.

She mentioned the book to me. She told me about this book.

Manage managed . (Manage, succeed, manage to do something).

I managed to do it yesterday. I managed to do this yesterday.

I`ve managed with it. I got over it.

Have a great day