English Language Learners’
Reference Guide
from the Writing Center
Irregular Verbs
Unfortunately, there is no way around memorizing the list of irregular verbs in English. Below is an adapted list of the most
common irregular verbs (Maurer A-1). Please note that the past participle is used in perfect tenses and the passive voice.
Base Form
Simple Past
Past Participle
Base Form
Simple Past
Past Participle
Be
Become
Begin
Bend
Bite
Blow
Break
Bring
Build
Burn
Buy
Catch
Choose
Come
Cost
Cut
Dig
Do
Draw
Dream
Drink
Eat
Fall
Feed
Feel
Fight
Find
Fling
Fly
Forget
Forgive
Freeze
Get
Give
Go
Grow
Have
Hear
Hide
Hit
Hold
Hurt
Keep
Know
Lead
Was/Were
Became
Began
Bent
Bit
Blew
Broke
Brought
Built
Burned/Burnt
Bought
Caught
Chose
Came
Cost
Cut
Dug
Did
Drew
Dreamed/Dreamt
Drank
Ate
Fell
Fed
Felt
Fought
Found
Flung
Flew
Forgot
Forgave
Froze
Got
Gave
Went
Grew
Had
Heard
Hid
Hit
Held
Hurt
Kept
Knew
Led
Been
Become
Begun
Bent
Bitten
Blown
Broken
Brought
Built
Burned/Burnt
Bought
Caught
Chosen
Come
Cost
Cut
Dug
Done
Drawn
Dreamed/Dreamt
Drunk
Eaten
Fallen
Fed
Felt
Fought
Found
Flung
Flown
Forgotten
Forgiven
Frozen
Got
Given
Gone
Grown
Had
Heard
Hidden
Hit
Held
Hurt
Kept
Known
Led
Learn
Lend
Let
Light
Lose
Make
Mean
Meet
Pay
Plead
Prove
Put
Quit
Read
Ride
Ring
Rise
Run
Say
See
Sell
Send
Set
Shake
Show
Shut
Sing
Sit
Sleep
Speak
Spend
Spread
Stand
Swear
Swim
Take
Teach
Tell
Think
Throw
Understand
Upset
Wake
Withdraw
Write
Learnt/Learned
Lent
Let
Lit/Lighted
Lost
Made
Meant
Met
Paid
Pled/Pleaded
Proved
Put
Quit
Read
Rode
Rang
Rose
Ran
Said
Saw
Sold
Sent
Set
Shook
Showed
Shut
Sang
Sat
Slept
Spoke
Spent
Spread
Stood
Swore
Swam
Took
Taught
Told
Thought
Threw
Understood
Upset
Woke
Withdrew
Wrote
Learn/Learned
Lent
Let
Lit/Lighted
Lost
Made
Meant
Met
Paid
Pled/Pleaded
Proved/Proven
Put
Quit
Read
Ridden
Rung
Risen
Ran
Said
Seen
Sold
Sent
Set
Shaken
Shown
Shut
Sung
Sat
Slept
Spoken
Spent
Spread
Stood
Sworn
Swum
Taken
Taught
Told
Thought
Thrown
Understood
Upset
Woken
Withdrawn
Written
Irregular Verbs
continued
If you are having trouble remembering these irregulars, it might be helpful to study them in
groups of similar patterns.
Base Form
Simple Past
Past Participle
Blow
Fly
Grow
Know
Throw
Withdraw
-ew
Blew
Flew
Grew
Knew
Threw
Withdrew
-own
Blown
Flown
Grown
Known
Thrown
Withdrawn
Base Form
Simple Past
Past Participle
Bend
Dream
Feel
Send
Spend
-t
Bent
Dreamt/Dreamed
Felt
Sent
Spent
-t
Bent
Dreamt/Dreamed
Felt
Sent
Spent
Base Form
Base Form
Simple Past
Simple Past
Past Participle
Past Participle
Cost
Cut
Hurt
Let
Put
Quit
Read
Set
Shut
Upset
No change
Cost
Cut
Hurt
Let
Put
Quit
Read
Set
Shut
Upset
No change
Cost
Cut
Hurt
Let
Put
Quit
Read
Set
Shut
Upset
Works Cited
Maurer, Jay. Focus on Grammar 5. 4th ed. New York: Pearson, 2012. Print.
Need more help: Email Rachel Toncelli, ELL Director, at [email protected]
for a schedule of English Language Seminars.