list of english irregular verbs

Base Form Simple Past Tense Past Participle
awake awoke awoken
be was, were been
bear bore born
beat beat beat
become became become
begin began begun
bend bent bent
beset beset beset
bet bet bet
bid bid/bade bid/bidden
bind bound bound
bite bit bitten
bleed bled bled
blow blew blown
break broke broken
breed bred bred
bring brought brought
broadcast broadcast broadcast
build built built
burn burned/burnt burned/burnt
burst burst burst
buy bought bought
cast cast cast
catch caught caught
choose chose chosen
cling clung clung
come came come
cost cost cost
creep crept crept
cut cut cut
deal dealt dealt
dig dug dug
dive dived/dove dived
do did done
draw drew drawn
dream dreamed/dreamt dreamed/dreamt
drive drove driven
drink drank drunk
eat ate eaten
fall fell fallen
feed fed fed
feel felt felt
fight fought fought
find found found
fit fit fit
flee fled fled
fling flung flung
fly flew flown
forbid forbade forbidden
forget forgot forgotten
forego (forgo) forewent foregone
forgive forgave forgiven
forsake forsook forsaken
freeze froze frozen
get got gotten
give gave given
go went gone
grind ground ground
grow grew grown
hang hung hung
hear heard heard
hide hid hidden
hit hit hit
hold held held
hurt hurt hurt
keep kept kept
kneel knelt knelt
knit knit knit
know knew know
lay laid laid
lead led led
leap leaped/leapt leaped/leapt
learn learned/learnt learned/learnt
leave left left
lend lent lent
let let let
lie lay lain
light lighted/lit lighted
lose lost lost
make made made
mean meant meant
meet met met
misspell misspelled/misspelt misspelled/misspelt
mistake mistook mistaken
mow mowed mowed/mown
overcome overcame overcome
overdo overdid overdone
overtake overtook overtaken
overthrow overthrew overthrown
pay paid paid
plead pled pled
prove proved proved/proven
put put put
quit quit quit
read read read
rid rid rid
ride rode ridden
ring rang rung
rise rose risen
run ran run
saw sawed sawed/sawn
say said said
see saw seen
seek sought sought
sell sold sold
send sent sent
set set set
sew sewed sewed/sewn
shake shook shaken
shave shaved shaved/shaven
shear shore shorn
shed shed shed
shine shone shone
shoe shoed shoed/shod
shoot shot shot
show showed showed/shown
shrink shrank shrunk
shut shut shut
sing sang sung
sink sank sunk
sit sat sat
sleep slept slept
slay slew slain
slide slid slid
sling slung slung
slit slit slit
smite smote smitten
sow sowed sowed/sown
speak spoke spoken
speed sped sped
spend spent spent
spill spilled/spilt spilled/spilt
spin spun spun
spit spit/spat spit
split split split
spread spread spread
spring sprang/sprung sprung
stand stood stood
steal stole stolen
stick stuck stuck
sting stung stung
stink stank stunk
stride strod stridden
strike struck struck
string strung strung
strive strove striven
swear swore sworn
sweep swept swept
swell swelled swelled/swollen
swim swam swum
swing swung swung
take took taken
teach taught taught
tear tore torn
tell told told
think thought thought
thrive thrived/throve thrived
throw threw thrown
thrust thrust thrust
tread trod trodden
understand understood understood
uphold upheld upheld
upset upset upset
wake woke woken
wear wore worn
weave weaved/wove weaved/woven
wed wed wed
weep wept wept
wind wound wound
win won won
withhold withheld withheld
withstand withstood withstood
wring wrung wrung
write wrote written

pronouns and adjectives
personal pronouns :i/you/he/she/it/we/you/they
object pronouns :me/you/him/her/it/us/you/them
possessive adjectives :my/your/his/her/its/our/your/their
possessive pronouns :mine/yours/his/hers/its/ours/yours/theirs
reflexive pronouns :myself/yourself/himself/herself/itself/ourselves/yourselves/themselves

comparaison and superlative
1 syllable :adj+ er/est
2 syllables ending in"y":adj+ier/iest
2 syllables :more/most+adj
3 syllables or more :more/most+adj
irregular:good-better-best
bad-worse-worst
many/much-more-most
little-less-least
far-farther-farthest

adjectives and adverbs


Definition - Adjectives are words that describe nouns or pronouns. They may come before the word they describe (That is a cute puppy.) or they may follow the word they describe (That puppy is cute.).

Definition - Adverbs are words that modify everything but nouns and pronouns. They modify adjectives, verbs, and other adverbs. A word is an adverb if it answers how, when, or where.
The only adverbs that cause grammatical problems are those that answer the question how, so focus on these.
Examples: He speaks slowly.
Answers the question how.
He speaks very slowly.
Answers the question how slowly.
Rule 1. Generally, if a word answers the question how, it is an adverb. If it can have an -ly added to it, place it there.
Examples: She thinks slow/slowly.
She thinks how? slowly.
She is a slow/slowly thinker.
Slow does not answer how, so no -ly is attached. Slow is an adjective here.
She thinks fast/fastly.
Fast answers the question how, so it is an adverb. But fast never has an -ly attached to it.
We performed bad/badly.
Badly describes how we performed.
Rule 2. A special -ly rule applies when four of the senses - taste, smell, look, feel - are the verbs. Do not ask if these senses answer the question how to determine if -ly should be attached. Instead, ask if the sense verb is being used actively. If so, use the -ly.
Examples: Roses smell sweet/sweetly.
Do the roses actively smell with noses? No, so no -ly.
The woman looked angry/angrily.
Did the woman actively look with eyes or are we describing her appearance? We are only describing appearance, so no -ly.
The woman looked angry/angrily at the paint splotches.
Here the woman did actively look with eyes, so the -ly is added.

She feels bad/badly about the news.

She is not feeling with fingers, so no -ly.

Good vs. Well
Rule 3. The word good is an adjective, while well is an adverb.
Examples: You did a good job.
Good describes the job.

You did the job well.

Well answers how.
You smell good today.
Describes your odor, not how you smell with your nose, so follow with the adjective.
You smell well for someone with a cold.
You are actively smelling with a nose here, so follow with the adverb.
Rule 4. When referring to health, use well rather than good.
Examples: I do not feel well.

You do not look well today.
NOTE: You may use good with feel when you are not referring to health.
Example: I feel good about my decision to learn Spanish.
Rule 5. A common error in using adjectives and adverbs arises from using the wrong form for comparison. For instance, to describe one thing we would say poor, as in, "She is poor." To compare two things, we should say poorer, as in, "She is the poorer of the two women." To compare more than two things, we should say poorest, as in, "She is the poorest of them all."
Examples: One Two Three or More
sweet sweeter sweetest
bad worse worst
efficient* more efficient* most efficient*
*Usually with words of three or more syllables, don't add -er or -est. Use more or most in front of the words.
Rule 6. Never drop the -ly from an adverb when using the comparison form.
Correct: She spoke quickly.
She spoke more quickly than he did.
Incorrect: She spoke quicker than he did.
Correct: Talk quietly.
Talk more quietly.
Incorrect: Talk quieter.
Rule 7. When this, that, these, and those are followed by nouns, they are adjectives. When they appear without a noun following them, they are pronouns.
Examples: This house is for sale.
This is an adjective here.
This is for sale.
This is a pronoun here.
Rule 8. This and that are singular, whether they are being used as adjectives or as pronouns. This points to something nearby while that points to something "over there."
Examples: This dog is mine.
That dog is hers.
This is mine.
That is hers.
Rule 9. These and those are plural, whether they are being used as adjectives or as pronouns. These points to something nearby while those points to something "over there."
Examples: These babies have been smiling for a long time.
These are mine.
Those babies have been crying for hours.
Those are yours.
Rule 10. Use than to show comparison. Use then to answer the question when.
Examples: I would rather go skiing than rock climbing.
First we went skiing; then we went rock climbing.

Spelling differences between American and British English




-or vs. -our
American British
color colour
favorite favourite
honor honour



-ll vs. -l
American British
enrollment enrolment
fulfill fulfil
skillful skilful



-og vs. -ogue
American British
analog analogue
catalog catalogue
dialog dialogue



-ck or -k vs. -que
American British
bank banque
check cheque
checker chequer



-ense vs. -enze
American British
defense defence
license licence





-ze vs. -se
American British
analyze analyse
criticize criticise
memorize memorise



-er vs. -re
American British
center centre
meter metre
theater theatre



-e vs. -oe or -ae
American British
encylopedia encylycopaedia
maneuver manoeuvre
medieval mediaeval



-dg vs. -dge (or -g vs. -gu)
American British
aging ageing
argument arguement
judgment judgement



Other
American British
jewelry jewellery
draft draught
pajamas pyjamas
plow plough
program programme
tire tyre

In British English, words that end in -l preceded by a vowel usually double the -l when a suffix is added, while in American English the letter is not doubled. The letter will double in the stress is on the second syllable.
Base Word American British
counsel counseling counselling
equal equaling equalling
model modeling modelling
quarrel quarreling quarrelling
signal signaling signalling
travel traveling travelling
excel excelling excelling
propel propelling propelling

Return to top

Spelling of verbs

This is related to formation of the past participle for verbs. For a complete list of irregular verb spellings, see Susan Jones' Complete List of English Irregular Verbs at this web site. Below is a sampling of the three main categories of differeneces with verbs.

-ed vs. -t

The first category involves verbs that use -ed or -t for the simple past and past participle. Generally, the rule is that if there is a verb form with -ed, American English will use it, and if there is a form with -t, British English uses it. However, these forms do not exist for every verb and there is variation. For example, both American and British English would use the word 'worked' for the past form of 'to work', and in American English it is common to hear the word 'knelt' as the past tense of 'to kneel'.
Base form American British
to dream dreamed dreamt
to leap leaped leapt
to learn leareded learnt

base form vs. -ed

The second category of difference includes verbs that use either the base form of the verb or the -ed ending for the simple past.
Base form American British
to fit fit fitted
to forecast forecast forecasted
to wed wed wedded

irregular vs. -ed

The third category of difference includes verbs that have either an irregular spelling or the -ed ending for the simple past.
Base form American British
to knit knit knitted
to light lit lighted
to strive strove strived

So what does tall his mean for learners of English? In the beginning, unfortunately, it means a lot of memorization (or memorisation) and of course, a few mistakes. For spoken English, the differences are barely audible, so forge ahead and don't be too concerned with whether a word is spelled 'dwelled' or 'dwelt'. With written English, however, if you are unsure about the spelling, better to ask your teacher or look the word up in the dictionary and see what the experts say.

A BRIEF EXPLANATION OF CONJUNCTIONS

A conjunction is a word that links words, phrases, or clauses. There are three types of conjunctions: coordinating conjunctions, correlative conjunctions, and subordinating conjunctions. Coordinating conjunctions may join single words, or they may join groups of words, but they must always join similar elements: e.g. subject+subject, verb phrase+verb phrase, sentence+sentence. When a coordinating conjunction is used to join elements, the element becomes a compound element. Correlative conjunctions also connect sentence elements of the same kind: however, unlike coordinating conjunctions, correlative conjunctions are always used in pairs. Subordinating conjunctions, the largest class of conjunctions, connect subordinate clauses to a main clause. These conjunctions are adverbs used as conjunctions.

The following --SS--s show examples of the various types of conjunctions and some sample sentences using the conjunctions. Since coordinating conjunctions and correlative conjunctions are closed sets of words, all are included in the list. Subordinating conjunctions are a larger class of words; therefore, only a few of the more common ones are included in this list.
COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS

F A N B O Y S
for and nor but or yet so

An easy way to remember these six conjunctions is to think of the word FANBOYS. Each of the letters in this somewhat unlikely word is the first letter of one of the coordinating conjunctions. Remember, when using a conjunction to join two sentences, use a comma before the conjunction.
EXAMPLES AND SENTENCES
COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS

CONJUNCTION WHAT IS LINKED SAMPLE SENTENCES
and noun phrase+noun phrase We have tickets for the symphony and the opera.
but sentence+sentence The orchestra rehearses on Tuesday, but the chorus rehearses on Wednesday.
or verb+verb Have you seen or heard the opera by Scott Joplin?
so sentence+sentence I wanted to sit in the front of the balcony, so I ordered my tickets early.

CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS

both...and not only...but also either...or neither...nor whether...or

Remember, correlative conjunctions are always used in pairs. They join similar elements.When joining singular and plural subjects, the subject closest to the verb determines whether the verb is singular or plural.


EXAMPLES AND SENTENCES
CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS

CONJUNCTIONS WHAT IS LINKED SAMPLE SENTENCE
both...and subject+subject Both my sister and my brother play the piano.
either...or noun+noun Tonight's program is either Mozart or Beethoven.
neither...nor subject+subject Neither the orchestra nor the chorus was able to overcome the terrible acoustics in the church
not only...but also sentence+sentence Not only does Sue raise money for the symphony, but she also ushers at all of their concerts.
SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS

TIME CAUSE + EFFECT OPPOSITION CONDITION
after because although if
before since though unless
when now that even though only if
while as whereas whether or not
since in order that while even if
until so in case (that)

Subordinating conjunctions, (subordinators) are most important in creating subordinating clauses. These adverbs that act like conjunctions are placed at the front of the clause. The adverbial clause can come either before or after the main clause. Subordinators are usually a single word, but there are also a number of multi-word subordinators that --SS-- like a single subordinating conjunction. They can be classified according to their use in regard to time, cause and effect, opposition, or condition. Remember, put a comma at the end of the adverbial phrase when it precedes the main clause.



EXAMPLES AND SENTENCES
SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS

CONJUNCTION SAMPLE SENTENCE
after We are going out to eat after we finish taking the test.
since Since we have lived in Atlanta, we have gone to every exhibit at the High Musuem.
while While I was waiting in line for the Matisse Exhibit, I ate my lunch.
although Although the line was long and the wait over two hours, the exhibit was well worth it
even if Even if you have already bought your ticket, you will still need to wait in line.
because I love Matisse's works because he uses color so brilliantly.

Rules for Irregular Plural Formation of Nouns

The majority of nouns in English spell their plural by simply adding a final -s. Nouns that are noncount or abstract (e.g., cheese, sugar, honesty, intelligence) generally take a singular verb, but in some instances can be plural, in which case they follow the rules for plural based on their spelling. Also, there are some categories of words which are only plural, even though their spelling does not reflect this. They are included in a list at the end of this page. For irregular count nouns and nouns that have been borrowed from other languages, the rules are as follows:

Variations of the final -s rule:
Nouns that end with -s, -z, -x, -sh, -ch
Add -es glass/glasses, buzz/buzzes, box/boxes, bush/bushes, switch/switches

Nouns that end in -o
Add -es potato/potatoes, echo/echoes, hero/heroes exceptions: studio/studios, piano/pianos, kangaroo/kangaroos, zoo/zoos either: buffalo/buffalo(e)s, cargo/cargo(e)s, motto/motto(e)s, volcano/volcano(e)s

Nouns that end in a consonant + -y
Change -y to -i and add -es baby/babies, spy/spies, poppy/poppies

Nouns that end in -f, or -fe
Change the -f to -v and add -es

shelf/shelves, wolf/wolves, knife/knives, wife/wives

Nouns adopted from other languages:
Singular ends in -is
Plural ends in -es analysis/analyses, basis/bases

Singular ends in -um
Plural ends in -a datum/data, curriculum/curricula

Singular ends in -on
Plural ends in -a criterion/criteria, phenomenon/phenomena

Singular ends in -a
Plural ends in -ae formula/formulae, antenna/antennae

Singular ends in -ex or -ix
Plural ends in -ices appendix/appendices, index/indices

Singular ends in -us
Plural ends in -i focus/foci, stimulus/stimuli

Singular ends in -us
Plural ends in -a corpus/corpora, genus/genera

Singular ends in -eau
Plural ends in -eaux bureau/bureaux, beau/beaux

Nouns that have only a plural form and so take a plural verb
Things that come in pairs
Tools: glasses, scissors, binoculars, forceps, tongs, tweezers Clothes: jeans, pants, pajamas, shorts, trousers

Nouns that end in -s but have no singular (aggregate nouns)
accommodations, amends, archives, arms (weapons), bowels, intestines, brains (intellect), clothes, communications, congratulations, --SS--s, stairs, thanks, goods

Nouns that are plural but do not end in -s
people, police, cattle, people