English verbs are classified as regular and irregular , depending on their conjugation.
As a general rule, those that follow a standard conjugation of endings are called regular verbs .
The irregular verbs are those who do not follow a combination of model and therefore tend to be more complicated for students.
To help you with this matter, we provide complete tables of regular and irregular verbs as well as example sentences and exercises on the topic.
Regular English verbs
Regular verbs are those whose inflections of Simple Past (simple past) and Past Participle (past participle) are formed by the addition of – ed or – d .
Check the table below for a list of regular English verbs.
| Verb ( Verb ) | Past Simple ( Simple Past ) | Past participle ( past participle ) | Translation ( Translation ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agree | Agreed | Agreed | To agree |
| Answer | Answered | Answered | Answer |
| Apologize | Apologized | Apologized | Apologize |
| Ask | Asked | Asked | To ask |
| Awaken | Awakened | Awakened | Wake up; awakening |
| Breathe | Breathed | Breathed | Breathe |
| Brush | Brushed | Brushed | to brush |
| Call | Called | Called | To call; to phone |
| Care | Cared | Cared | Take care; call to |
| Change | Changed | Changed | To change; to exchange |
| Clean | Cleaned | Cleaned | To clean |
| Clear | Cleared | Cleared | Release; lighten; illuminate |
| Close | Closed | Closed | Close |
| Cook | Cooked | Cooked | Cook |
| Cross | Crossed | Crossed | To cross; pass through |
| Cry | Cried | Cried | Cry; shout out; cry out |
| Dance | Danced | Danced | To dance |
| Deliver | Delivered | Delivered | Deliver |
| Describe | Described | Described | To describe |
| Desire | Desired | Desired | Wish |
| Die | Died | Died | Die |
| Disagree | Disagreed | Disagreed | Disagree |
| Disappear | Disappeared | Disappeared | to vanish |
| Dislike | Disliked | Disliked | Dislike (of) |
| End | Ended | Ended | finish |
| Enjoy | Enjoyed | Enjoyed | To have fun; appreciate |
| Establish | Established | Established | To establish |
| Exchange | Exchanged | Exchanged | To exchange |
| Fail | Failed | Failed | Fail; fail |
| Fear | Feared | Feared | To fear; fear |
| Guess | Guessed | Guessed | Guess |
| Hate | Hated | Hated | To hate |
| Help | Helped | Helped | Rescue; to help |
| Invite | Invited | Invited | To invite |
| Join | Joined | Joined | To get together; log in to |
| Kill | Killed | Killed | Kill |
| Learn | Learned | Learned | Learn |
| Lie | Lied | Lied | To lie |
| Like | Liked | Liked | Like) |
| Listen (to) | Listened | Listened | Listen carefully |
| Live | Lived | Lived | To live; live |
| Look | Looked | Looked | Look |
| Love | Loved | Loved | Love |
| Miss | Missed | Missed | Lose; miss |
| Move | Moved | Moved | Move |
| Study | Studied | Studied | To study |
| Walk | Walked | Walked | Walk; walk |
| Want | Wanted | Wanted | Want |
| Work | Worked | Worked | To work; work |
| Worry (about) | Worried | Worried | Worry about) |
Irregular verbs in English (irregular verbs)
Irregular verbs in English do not follow a pattern of formation, since they do not form Simple Past (simple past) and Past Participle (past participle) by adding – ed or – d .
For this reason, the best way to know irregular verbs is to memorize them. Check below the list of irregular verbs in English.
| Verb ( Verb ) | Simple Past ( Past Simple ) | Past participle ( past participle ) | Translation ( Translation ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| be | was | been | to be; be |
| bear | bore | born | born; to produce |
| become | became | become | become; transform |
| begin | began | begun | begin |
| break | broke | broken | to break; break up |
| bring | brought | brought | bring; run |
| build | built | built | ramp up; manufacture |
| buy | bought | bought | purchase |
| choose | chose | chosen | to choose; to prefer |
| eats | cam | eats | come over; to arrive |
| of | did | done | do; take care; work |
| drink | drank | drunk | drink |
| drive | drove | driven | to drive; guide |
| eat | up until | eaten | eat; chew |
| feed | fed | fed | to feed; nurture |
| feel | felt | felt | to feel; to perceive |
| find | found | found | meet; to discover |
| forbid | forbade; forbad | forbidden; forbid | forbid; prevent |
| forget | forgot | forgotten | forget |
| get | got | gotten | to receive; get |
| give | gave | given | to give; deliver |
| go | went | gone | go; leave |
| have | had | had | Tue; to possess |
| hear | heard | heard | listen; listen |
| hide | hid | hidden | hide; to hide |
| keep | kept | kept | keep; save |
| know | knew | known | to know; to know |
| lead | led | led | to command; guide |
| learn | learned | learned | learn; to study |
| lose | lost | lost | lose; to waste |
| make | made | made | do; create |
| mean | meant | meant | think; to mean |
| meet | met | met | to know; meet |
| pay | paid | paid | pay; pay off |
| put | put | put | per; put on |
| read | read | read | read; learn |
| ride | run | ridden | walk; walk |
| run | ran | run | run; to run away |
| say | said | said | tell; tell |
| see | saw | seen | to see; observe |
| sell | sold | sold | sell; Negotiate |
| send | sent | sent | submit; order |
| sleep | slept | slept | to sleep; rest |
| speak | spoke | spoken | speak; tell |
| take | took | taken | take; take out |
| tell | told | told | tell; to know |
| think | thought | thought | think; to believe |
| wake | woke | waked | wake up; awakening |
| win | won | won | win; get |
| write | wrote | written | write; write down |
Exercises on regular and irregular English verbs
Now that you know the regular and irregular verbs most used in English, test your knowledge with the exercises below.
1 . (Mackenzie / 2000) Check the alternative that correctly fills in the gaps I, II and III of the following sentences:
He __________ (I) me in favor 2 months ago.
They __________ (II) an attempt to escape.
I __________ (III) an important decision last night.
a) did – made – made
b) made – did – made
c) did – made – did
d) made – made – made
e) made – did – did
Answer
Correct alternative: a) did – made – made.
To better understand the explanations, understand the meaning of the sentences:
He __________ (I) me in favor 2 months ago . (He _____________ (I) did me a favor 2 months ago.)
They __________ (II) an attempt to escape. (They _____________ (II) an attempt to escape.)
I __________ (III) an important decision last night. (I _____________ (III) an important decision last night.)
a) CORRECT. In the expression “to do a favor”, the verb “to do” is translated into English as to do . The phrase indicates an action that took place 2 months ago. Thus, the verb must be conjugated in the past ( did = did).
In the expression “make an attempt”, the verb “do” is translated as to make . The inflection of this verb in the past is made .
In the expression “to make a decision”, the verb “to take” is translated into English as to make . The inflection of this verb in the past is made .
b) WRONG. In letter b), the first and second alternatives are wrong.
In the expression “to do me a favor”, the verb “to do” is translated into English as to do . The inflection of this verb in the past is did . In the expression “to make an attempt”, the verb “to do” is translated as to make . The inflection of this verb in the past is made .
c) WRONG. The letter c) is wrong because of the last alternative. In the expression “to make a decision”, the verb “to take” is translated into English as to make . The inflection of this verb in the past is made .
d) WRONG. The letter d) is wrong because of the first alternative. In the expression “to do a favor”, the verb “to do” is translated into English as to do . The inflection of this verb in the past is did .
e) WRONG. In letter e) all alternatives are wrong. In the expression “to do a favor”, the verb “to do” is translated into English as to do . The inflection of this verb in the past is did .
In the expression “make an attempt”, the verb “do” is translated as to make . The inflection of this verb in the past is made .
In the expression “to make a decision”, the verb “to take” is translated into English as t o make . The inflection of this verb in the past is made .
2 . (PUC-GO / 2015) In Text 8, most of the verbs in Portuguese are conjugated in the past tense, such as “arrived”, “fell in love” and “resisted”. Complete the following text using the correct past tense conjugation of the verbs in parenthesis in English:
Last night Susan (go) ____________ to her friend’s birthday party. She (dance) ____________ with her boyfriend, and (eat) ____________ cake. After they (leave) ____________ the party, Susan and her boyfriend (decide) ____________ to go and watch a movie at the theater. They (see) ____________ the new Transformer’s movie, and then they went home. When she (get) ____________ home, Susan (take) ____________ a shower and (fall) ____________ asleep quickly.
Choose the correct option from the ones listed below:
a) go / dance / eat / leave / decide / see / get / take / fall.
b) went / danced / ate / left / decided / saw / got / took / fell.
c) will go / will dance / will eat / will leave / will decide / will see / will get / will take / will fall.
d) had gone / had danced / had eaten / had left / had decided / had seen / had gotten / had taken / had fallen.
Answer
Correct alternative: b) went / danced / ate / left / decided / saw / got / took / fell.
a) WRONG. All verbs are not conjugated in the past. They are in infinitive form without the to .
b) CORRECT. This is the only alternative where all verbs are conjugated in the correct past tense: Simple Past Tense (simple past). The Simple Past indicates past actions already completed. Thus, it is used to speak of facts that have already happened; that started and completed in the past.
c) WRONG. All verbs are conjugated in the simple future with will .
d) WRONG. Although all the verbs are conjugated in a past tense, the alternative is wrong, as the past tense used was Past Perfect Tense .
The Past Perfect is used to express past actions that happened before another action that had occurred in the past. In the text, the actions described did not precede any other action, they just started and ended.
Therefore, the correct tense to use is Simple Past .
3 . (Unesp / 2010) Check the alternative in which all words are verbal forms related to the past.
a) Adopted, become, decided, recognized, ruled.
b) Adopted, allow, become, recognized, ruled.
c) Approved, became, been, decided, ruled.
d) Allow, approved, became, decided, may.
e) Can, debated, entitled, made, offered.
Answer
Correct alternative: c) Approved, became, been, decided, ruled.
a) WRONG. Become is not a verbal form related to the past, but the verb to become in its infinitive form without to .
b) WRONG. Become is not a verbal form related to the past, but the verb to become in its infinitive form without to .
The same occurs with allow , which is the verb t o allow (allow; authorize) in its infinitive form without to .
c) CORRECT. This alternative presents all verbal forms in the past.
- Approved : inflection of Simple Past (simple past) of the verb to approve.
- Became: inflection of Simple Past (simple past) of the verb to become .
- Been : is the Past Participle (past participle) form of the verb to be .
- Decided : inflection of Simple Past (simple past) of the verb to decide (decide).
- Ruled : inflection of Simple Past (simple past) of the verb to rule (govern; govern)
d) WRONG. Allow is not a verbal form related to the past, but the verb to allow in its infinitive form without ot o .
May is also not a verbal form related to the past, but a modal verb.
e) WRONG. Can is not a verbal form related to the past, but a modal verb.
4 . Write the verbs below in Simple Past (simple past) and indicate their respective translations.
a) Learn
Answer
- Translation: learn
- Simple Pas t: learned
The verb to learn is a regular verb. Its form of past is done with the addition of the ending – ed .
b) Miss
Answer
- Translation: lose; miss
- Simple Past : missed
The verb to miss is a regular verb. Its form of past is done with the addition of the ending – ed .
c) Know
Answer
- Translation: to know; to know
- Simple Past : knew
The verb to know is an irregular verb. Its past form is not done with the addition of the ending – ed , as it has its own form.
d) Break
Answer
- Translation: break, break
- Simple Past : broke
The verb to break is an irregular verb. Its past form is not done with the addition of the ending – ed , as it has its own form.
e) Keep
Answer
- Translation: keep, keep
- Simple Past : kept
The verb to keep is an irregular verb. Its past form is not done with the addition of the ending – ed , as it has its own form.
5 . Choose the alternative containing the Past Participle (past participle) of the verbs to be , to bear and to become :
a) was; bore; became
b) was; born; became
c) been; born; become
d) been; bore; become
e) been; born; became
Answer
Correct alternative: c) been; born; become.
a) WRONG. Was is the form of Simple Past (simple past), and not of Past Participle (past participle), from the verb to be .
Furthermore, bore is the form of Simple Past (simple past), not Past Participle (past participle), the verb to bear (bear), and became is the form of Simple Past (simple past) of the verb to become ( become).
b) WRONG: Was is the form of Simple Past (simple past), and not of Past Participle (past participle), of the verb t o be (to be).
Furthermore, became is the Simple Past form of the verb to become .
c) CORRECT: In letter c), all alternatives are correct:
- Been : Past Participle of the verb to be (to be);
- Born : Past Participle of the verb to bear (bear). Another alternative is the terminal shape ;
- Become : Past Participle of the verb to become .
d) WRONG. Bore is the form of Simple Past (simple past), not Past Participle (past participle), from the verb to bear (bear).
e) WRONG. Became is the Simple Past form of the verb to become .