Irregular Verbs Examples
You already know that verbs are words that express an action or state of being. You also already know that verbs have five forms: infinitive, simple present, simple past, present participle, and past participle.
For regular verbs, the formation of the five forms follows a pattern. Let's review using the verb "laugh":
Infinitive: to + verb = to laugh
Simple Present: verb or verb + "s" = laugh or laughs
Simple Past: verb + "ed" = laughed
Present Participle: verb + "ing" = laughing
Past Participle: verb + "ed" = laughed
The English language has many irregular verbs. This means that the forms of the verb do not follow this basic pattern. Look at the forms for the irregular verb "break."
Infinitive: to + verb = to break
Simple Present: verb or verb + "s" = break or breaks
Simple Past: irregular = broke
Present Participle: verb + "ing" = breaking
Past Participle: irregular = broken
Most native speakers of English learn these irregular forms through everyday speech. For those trying to learn English, the best way to learn the forms of irregular verbs is to memorize the forms. The chart below includes the forms of some common irregular verbs in English. There are many more.
| Infinitive | Simple Present | Simple Past | Present Participle | Past Participle |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| To go | Go or goes | went | Going | Gone |
| To eat | Eat or eats | Ate | Eating | Eaten |
| To take | Take or takes | Took | Taking | Taken |
| To lose | Lose or loses | Lost | Losing | Lost |
| To drink | Drink or drinks | Drank | Drinking | Drunk |
| To think | Think or thinks | Thought | Thinking | Thought |
| To feel | Feel or feels | felt | Feeling | felt |
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Related Links: Examples Grammar Examples Irregular Verbs Worksheets |