Various Categories of Irregular Verbs in English

Irregular verbs in English can be a puzzling aspect of grammar for learners. They don’t follow the predictable patterns of regular verbs, making them a unique challenge. In this article, we’ll explore various categories of irregular verbs. Understanding these categories and the individual verbs within them will help you gain confidence in using English with fluency and accuracy. Let’s explore more!

Definition of Irregular Verbs:

Irregular verbs in English are a distinct group of verbs that do not conform to the standard rules for changing from their base form (the simple present tense) to the past tense and past participle. Unlike regular verbs that typically add -ed to their base form, irregular verbs change in unpredictable ways.

General Characteristics of Irregular Verbs:

• Unpredictable Changes: Irregular verbs do not follow a fixed pattern for their past tense and past participle forms. You cannot predict how they change just by looking at their base form.
• Unique Forms: Each irregular verb has its own distinctive past tense and past participle forms. There are no universal rules that apply to all of them.

Examples:

• Base Form: “Sing”
  • Past Tense: “Sang” (not “singed” or “sunged”)
  • Past Participle: “Sung” (not “singed” or “sunged”)
• Base Form: “Go”
  • Past Tense: “Went” (not “goed” or “goed”)
  • Past Participle: “Gone” (not “goed” or “goed”)
• Base Form: “Eat”
  • Past Tense: “Ate” (not “eated” or “eatened”)
  • Past Participle: “Eaten” (not “eated” or “atened”)

Irregular verbs can be likened to the “rebels” of the verb world because they do not adhere to the rules followed by most other verbs. Instead, you must memorize their unique past forms since they change unpredictably.

Categories of Irregular Verbs

Irregular verbs in English can be categorized into four main groups based on how they change when conjugated in the past tense and past participle. Here are the categories:

1. Category 1: Simple Past and Past Participle are the Same
2. Category 2: Vowel Change in Past Tense and Past Participle
3. Category 3: Adding “-n” or “-en” in Past Participle
4. Category 4: No Regular Pattern

Category 1: Verbs with Identical Simple Past and Past Participle Forms

In this category, some verbs are irregular, meaning they don’t follow the typical pattern of changing their form in the past tense and past participle. These verbs are unique because their simple past and past participle forms are the same. It’s as if they don’t need a costume change when talking about the past; they look almost identical to their base forms.

Here are some examples:

• Put: When discussing the past, you can say, “I put the book on the table yesterday,” and for both the present and past, you use “put.” It’s “I put” (now) and “I put” (yesterday).
• Cut: If you say, “She cut the paper yesterday,” the verb “cut” remains the same for both the present and the past: “She cut” (now) and “She cut” (yesterday).
• Let: When referring to the past, you can say, “He let me play with his toy yesterday.” Just like the other examples, “let” doesn’t undergo significant changes in the past: “He let” (now) and “He let” (yesterday).

More examples:

• Hurt: “It hurt when I bumped my knee.” The past tense of “hurt” is indeed “hurt.” So, “It hurts” (now) and “It hurt” (yesterday).
• Cost: “The ice cream cost $5.” “Cost” is correct for both the past and past participle: “It costs” (now) and “It cost” (yesterday).
• Hit: “He hit the ball really far.” The past tense of “hit” is “hit.” So, “He hits” (now) and “He hit” (yesterday).
• Spread: “She spread the jam on her toast.” The past tense of “spread” is indeed “spread.” So, “She spreads” (now) and “She spread” (yesterday).
• Set: “He set the table for dinner.” The past tense of “set” is “set.” So, “He sets” (now) and “He set” (yesterday).
• Cast: “He cast the line into the water.” The past tense of “cast” is “cast.” So, “He casts” (now) and “He cast” (yesterday).

List of irregular verbs

Some irregular verbs where the Simple Past and Past Participle are the same:

Category 2: Vowel Change in Past Tense and Past Participle

In this category, some irregular verbs change their sound, particularly the vowel, when you talk about the past. Think of it like these verbs are singing a different tune when they travel back in time.

Here are a couple of examples:

• Sing: Normally, you say, “I sing a song.” But for the past, you change the vowel sound to “a” and say, “I sang a song” (yesterday). And for the past participle, you change the sound to “u” and say, “I have sung a song.”
• Swim: When you’re talking about now, you say, “I swim in the pool.” But when it’s in the past, you change the “i” to “a” and say, “I swam in the pool” (yesterday). For the past participle, you switch to “u” and say, “I have swum in the pool.”

More examples:

• Begin: In the present, you say, “I begin the race.” When talking about the past, change the “e” to “a” and say, “I began the race” (yesterday). The past participle remains “begun” – “I have begun the race.”
• Drink: When discussing a drink, you might say, “I drink water.” In the past, change the “i” to “a” and say, “I drank water” (yesterday). For the past participle, use “drunk” – “I have drunk water.”
• Ring: For phone calls, you say, “I ring her” in the present. In the past, change the “i” to “a” and say, “I rang her” (yesterday). The past participle is “rung” – “I have rung her.”
• Shrink: When describing something getting smaller, you say, “It shrinks in the wash” in the present. In the past, change the “i” to “u” and say, “It shrank in the wash” (yesterday). The past participle is “shrunk” – “It has shrunk in the wash.”
• Sing: As previously mentioned, it’s: “I sing a song” (now), “I sang a song” (yesterday), and “I have sung a song.”
• Swim: Reiterating, it’s: “I swim in the pool” (now), “I swam in the pool” (yesterday), and “I have swum in the pool.”

List of irregular verbs

Category 3: Adding “-n” or “-en” in Past Participle

In this category, some irregular verbs are like magic – they add a special ending “-n” or “-en” to their base form when talking about the past. Think of it like they’re using a magic potion to transform into their past form.

Here are a couple of examples:

• Break: Normally, you say, “I break the toy.” But in the past, you add the special “-en” ending and say, “I broke the toy” (yesterday). For the past participle, you also use the “-en” ending: “I have broken the toy.”
• Drive: When you talk about driving, it’s “I drive a car” (now). But when it’s in the past, you change it to “I drove the car” (yesterday). And for the past participle, you add the “-n” ending: “I have driven the car.”

More examples

• Choose: When you make a choice, it’s “I choose the red one” (now). In the past, you add the “-n” and say, “I chose the red one” (yesterday). For the past participle, it’s “I have chosen the red one.”
• Freeze: When it’s really cold, you might say, “The water freezes” (now). But in the past, you say, “The water froze” (yesterday), and for the past participle, it’s “The water has frozen.”
• Speak: When you’re talking, it’s “I speak English” (now). In the past, you add the “-n” and say, “I spoke English” (yesterday). And for the past participle, it’s “I have spoken English.”
• Steal: If someone takes something without permission, you say, “He steals cookies” (now). In the past, you add the “-n” and say, “He stole cookies” (yesterday). For the past participle, it’s “He has stolen cookies.”
• Write: When you put words on paper, you say, “I write a story” (now). In the past, you add the “-t” and say, “I wrote a story” (yesterday). And for the past participle, it’s “I have written a story.”

List of irregular verbs:

Category 4: No Regular Pattern

In this category, there are some irregular verbs that are like puzzle pieces that don’t quite fit in the regular pattern. They don’t follow the rules you might expect. Instead, each of them has its own unique way of changing when you talk about the past.

Here are a couple of examples:

• Go: Normally, you might say, “I go to the park.” But in the past, it becomes “I went to the park” (yesterday). And for the past participle, it’s “I have gone to the park.” It doesn’t follow the pattern like other verbs do.
• Be: When talking about yourself, it’s “I am happy” (now). But in the past, it changes to “I was happy” (yesterday). And for the past participle, it’s “I have been happy.” It’s different from most other verbs.

More examples

Here are more examples of irregular verbs in Category 4, where they don’t fit into any regular pattern and have unique forms:

• Have: In the present, you say, “I have a book.” In the past, it changes to “I had a book” (yesterday). The past participle is also “had” – “I have had that book for a while.” It’s different from most other verbs.
• Do: When you’re doing something now, it’s “I do my homework.” But in the past, it becomes “I did my homework” (yesterday). And for the past participle, it’s “I have done my homework.”
• Say: Normally, you might say, “I say hello.” In the past, it’s “I said hello” (yesterday). And for the past participle, it’s “I have said hello.” It doesn’t follow a regular pattern like many other verbs.
• Get: In the present, you say, “I get a gift.” In the past, it changes to “I got a gift” (yesterday). The past participle is also “got” – “I have got a gift.”
• Come: If you’re talking about moving closer, you might say, “I come to the party.” In the past, it’s “I came to the party” (yesterday). The past participle is “come” as well – “I have come to the party.”

List of irregular verbs with No Regular Pattern