Irregular Verbs List

Nearly 150 common English irregular verbs — base, past simple, and past participle — grouped by pattern, with translations and a self-test mode.

All three forms are the same

Base, past simple, and past participle are identical — nothing to change at all.

• bet – bet – bet
• bid – bid – bid
• burst – burst – burst
• cast – cast – cast
• cost – cost – cost
• cut – cut – cut
• hit – hit – hit
• hurt – hurt – hurt
• let – let – let
• put – put – put
• quit – quit – quit
• read – read – read
• rid – rid – rid
• set – set – set
• shed – shed – shed
• shut – shut – shut
• split – split – split
• spread – spread – spread
• upset – upset – upset

Base and past simple are the same

A pattern with essentially one member — beat is the only common English verb where the base and past simple are identical but the past participle changes. Learners often default to "beaten" everywhere, or "beated" nowhere — it's beat/beat/beaten.

• beat – beat – beaten

Base and past participle are the same

The one pattern that trips people up most, because it looks backwards: the past simple is the odd one out, not the base form. Learners often say "I have ran" by analogy with bring/brought/brought — but it's run/ran/run.

• become – became – become
• come – came – come
• overcome – overcame – overcome
• run – ran – run

Past simple and past participle are the same

The most common irregular pattern — one change from the base, then it stays that way.

• bend – bent – bent
• bring – brought – brought
• build – built – built
• burn – burnt – burnt
• buy – bought – bought
• catch – caught – caught
• deal – dealt – dealt
• dig – dug – dug
• feed – fed – fed
• feel – felt – felt
• fight – fought – fought
• find – found – found
• get – got – got
• grind – ground – ground
• hang – hung – hung
• have – had – had
• hear – heard – heard
• hold – held – held
• keep – kept – kept
• kneel – knelt – knelt
• lay – laid – laid
• lead – led – led
• leave – left – left
• lend – lent – lent
• light – lit – lit
• lose – lost – lost
• make – made – made
• mean – meant – meant
• meet – met – met
• pay – paid – paid
• say – said – said
• seek – sought – sought
• sell – sold – sold
• send – sent – sent
• shine – shone – shone
• shoot – shot – shot
• sit – sat – sat
• sleep – slept – slept
• smell – smelt – smelt
• spell – spelt – spelt
• spend – spent – spent
• spoil – spoilt – spoilt
• stand – stood – stood
• stick – stuck – stuck
• strike – struck – struck
• sweep – swept – swept
• swing – swung – swung
• teach – taught – taught
• tell – told – told
• think – thought – thought
• understand – understood – understood
• weep – wept – wept
• win – won – won
• wind – wound – wound
• bind – bound – bound
• cling – clung – clung
• creep – crept – crept
• dwell – dwelt – dwelt
• fling – flung – flung
• lean – leant – leant
• leap – leapt – leapt
• mislay – mislaid – mislaid
• overhear – overheard – overheard
• slide – slid – slid
• spin – spun – spun
• spit – spat – spat
• sting – stung – stung
• string – strung – strung
• withhold – withheld – withheld
• withstand – withstood – withstood
• wring – wrung – wrung

All three forms are different

The trickiest group — a genuinely new word for the past participle, so it just has to be learned.

• arise – arose – arisen
• be – was / were – been
• bear – bore – borne
• begin – began – begun
• bite – bit – bitten
• blow – blew – blown
• break – broke – broken
• choose – chose – chosen
• do – did – done
• draw – drew – drawn
• drink – drank – drunk
• drive – drove – driven
• eat – ate – eaten
• fall – fell – fallen
• fly – flew – flown
• forbid – forbade – forbidden
• forget – forgot – forgotten
• forgive – forgave – forgiven
• freeze – froze – frozen
• give – gave – given
• go – went – gone
• grow – grew – grown
• hide – hid – hidden
• know – knew – known
• lie (recline) – lay – lain
• mistake – mistook – mistaken
• ride – rode – ridden
• ring – rang – rung
• rise – rose – risen
• see – saw – seen
• sew – sewed – sewn
• shake – shook – shaken
• show – showed – shown
• sing – sang – sung
• sink – sank – sunk
• speak – spoke – spoken
• spring – sprang – sprung
• steal – stole – stolen
• swear – swore – sworn
• swim – swam – swum
• take – took – taken
• tear – tore – torn
• throw – threw – thrown
• wake – woke – woken
• wear – wore – worn
• write – wrote – written
• shrink – shrank – shrunk
• slay – slew – slain
• sow – sowed – sown
• stink – stank – stunk
• strive – strove – striven
• thrive – throve – thriven
• undergo – underwent – undergone
• weave – wove – woven