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Irregular and Regular
DEFINITION: Regular and irregular verbs in the English language both have specific simple past and past participle spellings. The difference is found in how the word is put into past tense. You will notice that simple past tense verbs always have just one part. Past participle tense verbs have several parts and an auxiliary verb, such as had, has or have is required. In the case of regular verbs, the past tense merely joins an “ed” to the end of the word, together with simple past and past particle taking the same form. You see and use regular verbs all the time: walked, worked, helped, smiled, hooked, burned, wanted, etc. Nevertheless, irregular verbs are the oddballs the world of verbs; they are the verbs that do not correspond to the traditional rules. With these verbs, adding the “ed” is incorrect and often awkward. The patterns for irregular verbs change, and the simple past and past participle may end in a different way. A few are just slightly different, like verbs that end in “y” and the “y” changes to “i” before the “-ed” ending is added. Others take on some very uncommon forms that you just have to remember. For example, you may ring the bell today, but you rang the bell yesterday, not “ringed.” Consider the following examples: Regular verb: I learn quickly. I learned that song yesterday. (For the verb “learn,” “learned” is both the simple past and past participle). Irregular verb: I hurt my toe today. I hurt my toe yesterday. (For the verb “hurt,” “hurt” is both the simple past and past participle. You would not write “I hurted my toe yesterday”). HOW TO: There are no exact rules that command how the simple past and past particle verbs are formed. Some irregular verbs all take a similar form, such as put (put, put, put). Others take diverse forms but sound alike, such as blow (flow, flew, flown). Yet an additional type has simple past and past particle forms that are the same yet differ from the present tense, for instance creep (creep, crept, crept). There are also those that do not fall into any of the preceding three categories, such as go (go, went, gone). Consider the following examples: Same form: • I put learning to drive at the top of my to-do list today (present tense of put). • Yesterday, I put learning to drive at the top of my list of things to learn (simple past tense of put). • I should have put learning to drive on my list of things to learn much sooner (past participle tense of put). Similar sounds: • I sink only when I swim (present tense of sink). • I sank when I swam last weekend (simple past tense of sink). • I have sunk when I swim (past participle of drink). Same simple past and past participle forms: • I make breakfast as soon as I awake (present tense of make). • I made breakfast as soon as I awoke (simple past tense of make). • I had made breakfast as soon as I awoke (past participle tense of make). Uncategorized: • I need to go to church (present tense of go). • I went to church earlier (simple past tense of go). • I have gone to church already today (part participle of go). In order to learn irregular verbs you must either memorize a rather exhaustive list of them if they are not part of your everyday vocabulary, or you can learn them as you go. The 10 most commonly used verbs in the English language are in fact irregular (be, can, do, get, go, have, say, see, take and will). Everyday Use: Irregular and regular are used every day in reading and writing and daily conversation.