Irregular Verbs in English: A Simple Explanation with Examples
Irregular Verbs in English
Have you ever wondered why we say “I went to the store” instead of “I goed to the store”? Or why it’s “I have eaten lunch” and not “I have eated lunch”? The answer lies in something called irregular verbs, and understanding them will make your English much stronger.
What Exactly Are Irregular Verbs?
Think of verbs as action words that tell us what someone is doing. Most verbs in English follow a simple pattern when we talk about the past. For regular verbs, we just add “-ed” to show that something happened before now. For example:
- Walk becomes walked
- Play becomes played
- Jump becomes jumped
But irregular verbs are the rebels of the English language. They don’t follow this simple rule. Instead, they change in their own special ways when we talk about the past. The verb “go” becomes “went,” not “goed.” The verb “eat” becomes “ate,” not “eated.”
Why Do Irregular Verbs Exist?
You might be thinking, “Why can’t all verbs just follow the same pattern?
It would be so much easier!” You’re absolutely right, but language doesn’t always work that way.
Irregular verbs exist because English is an old language that has borrowed words from many other languages over hundreds of years.
Many irregular verbs come from very old forms of English and other languages like German and Latin.
These verbs were used so often by people throughout history that their unusual forms became locked into the language. Even though they don’t follow the regular pattern, people kept using them because they were familiar and comfortable.
Think of it like this: if you’ve been calling your grandmother “Nana” your whole life, you’re not going to suddenly start calling her “Grandmother” just because that’s the more formal word. Irregular verbs are like the “Nanas” of the English language.
The Three Forms Every Irregular Verb Has
Every irregular verb has three important forms that you need to know:
Present Form: This is the basic form of the verb that you use for things happening now or things that happen regularly. Examples include “go,” “eat,” “run,” and “see.”
Past Form: This is what you use when talking about something that happened before now. For irregular verbs, this form can look completely different from the present form. “Go” becomes “went,” “eat” becomes “ate,” “run” becomes “ran,” and “see” becomes “saw.”
Past Participle: This is the form you use with helping words like “have,” “has,” or “had.” For some irregular verbs, the past participle is the same as the past form, but for others, it’s different. “Go” becomes “gone,” “eat” becomes “eaten,” “run” becomes “run,” and “see” becomes “seen.”
Common Irregular Verbs You Use Every Day
Let’s look at some irregular verbs that you probably use all the time without even thinking about it:
Be: This is probably the most irregular verb in English. It changes to “was” or “were” in the past, and “been” as a past participle. We say “I am happy” (present), “I was happy yesterday” (past), and “I have been happy” (past participle).
Have: This changes to “had” in the past and stays “had” as a past participle. “I have a dog” becomes “I had a dog” and “I have had a dog for three years.”
Do: This becomes “did” in the past and “done” as a past participle. “I do my homework” becomes “I did my homework” and “I have done my homework.”
Say: This changes to “said” for both past and past participle forms. “I say hello” becomes “I said hello” and “I have said hello.”
Get: This becomes “got” in the past and “gotten” (in American English) or “got” (in British English) as a past participle.
Patterns That Can Help You Remember
While irregular verbs don’t follow the regular “-ed” pattern, some of them do follow their own smaller patterns that can help you remember them:
Verbs that stay the same: Some verbs don’t change at all. “Cut” stays “cut,” “put” stays “put,” and “hit” stays “hit” in all three forms.
Verbs that change vowels: Many irregular verbs change their middle vowel sound. “Sing” becomes “sang” and “sung,” “ring” becomes “rang” and “rung,” and “begin” becomes “began” and “begun.”
Verbs ending in -ought or -aught: Several verbs follow this pattern. “Think” becomes “thought,” “buy” becomes “bought,” “catch” becomes “caught,” and “teach” becomes “taught.”
How to Learn Irregular Verbs Without Going Crazy
Learning irregular verbs might seem overwhelming at first, but here are some strategies that really work:
Start with the most common ones: Focus on learning the irregular verbs you use most often first. Verbs like “go,” “have,” “be,” “do,” and “say” should be your priority because you’ll use them in almost every conversation.
Practice in sentences: Don’t just memorize lists. Use the verbs in real sentences that make sense to you. Instead of just memorizing “go-went-gone,” practice with “I go to school every day. Yesterday I went to the mall. I have gone to that restaurant before.”
Use them in your daily life: Try to use irregular verbs when you’re speaking or writing. The more you use them, the more natural they’ll become.
Make connections: Look for patterns and connections between similar verbs. If you know that “sing” becomes “sang” and “sung,” it’s easier to remember that “ring” becomes “rang” and “rung.”
Read and listen: Pay attention to irregular verbs when you’re reading books, watching movies, or listening to music. Notice how native speakers use them naturally.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Even native English speakers sometimes make mistakes with irregular verbs, so don’t feel bad if you struggle with them. Here are some common errors to watch out for:
Don’t add “-ed” to irregular verbs: Remember that irregular verbs don’t follow the regular pattern. It’s “I went” not “I goed,” and “I saw” not “I seed.”
Don’t mix up past and past participle forms: Pay attention to whether you need the past form or the past participle. “I seen that movie” is incorrect; it should be “I saw that movie” or “I have seen that movie.”
Be careful with “been” and “gone”: These are both past participles of “go” and “be,” but they’re used differently. “I have been to Paris” means you went and came back. “I have gone to Paris” might mean you’re still there.
Why Learning Irregular Verbs Matters
You might wonder if irregular verbs are really that important. After all, people will probably understand you even if you say “goed” instead of “went.” While that’s true, learning irregular verbs correctly will make your English sound much more natural and fluent.
Think about it this way: irregular verbs are some of the most commonly used words in English. When you master them, you’ll sound more confident and natural in your speaking and writing. Plus, understanding irregular verbs will help you better understand native speakers and written English.
Keep Practicing and Be Patient
Learning irregular verbs takes time and practice, so be patient with yourself. Start with the most common ones, use them in real sentences, and don’t try to memorize everything at once. Focus on a few verbs each week and practice using them until they feel natural.
Remember, even native speakers had to learn these verbs when they were young, and they made mistakes too. The key is to keep practicing and not give up. Every time you use an irregular verb correctly, you’re building stronger English skills.
Irregular verbs might seem tricky at first, but they’re an important part of English that will help you communicate more effectively. With practice and patience, you’ll master them and feel much more confident in your English abilities.
