Verbs are an important part of our daily lives and understanding the types of verbs can help expand our English vocabulary and improve communication. Furthermore, verbs can be categorised into two categories: Regular verbs and Irregular Verbs. As you move ahead with this blog post, you will get to explore the characteristics of both types of verbs, regular and irregular verbs exercises for practice, and tips for mastering their usage.
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What are Regular and Irregular Verbs?
Before moving on to the regular and irregular verbs exercises, let us understand these two types of verbs.
Regular Verbs
Regular verbs are a category of verbs in the English language that follow a predictable pattern when forming their past tense and past participle forms.
Here is the formation for regular verbs which will help you form sentences.
The past tense and past participle forms are created by adding -ed or -d. |
For instance:
- Base Form: Talk → Past Tense: Talked → Past Participle: Talked
- Base Form: Jump → Past Tense: Jumped → Past Participle: Jumped
Common examples of regular verbs include: Wak, Talk, Play, Clean and Start.
Irregular Verbs
Irregular verbs are verbs that do not follow the standard rules for conjugation in English, specifically when forming their past tense and past participle forms. Unlike regular verbs, which typically form their past tense by adding -ed to the base form (e.g., “walk” becomes “walked”), irregular verbs undergo unique changes that must be memorised.
Irregular verbs can be categorized into several patterns based on how they change from the base form to the past tense and past participle. Here are the main patterns:
1. No Change: In this first clause, no change is made. This is where the base form, past tense and past participle all remain the same.
Examples: cut, cut, cut | hit, hit, hit
2. Same Past Tense and Past Participle: In the second way, the past tense and past participle forms are the same but different from the base verb.
Example: heard, heard, heard
3. Different Forms: Thirdly, the base form, past tense, and past participle forms are all different.
Example: feel, felt, felt
4. Past Tense Ends with “t”: In this case, the past tense and the past participle form end with a ‘d’.
Example: make, made, made
5. Past Tense Ends with “d”: The past tense and past participle forms end with a “d.”
Example: make, made, made
6. Vowel Changes: Each verb form has a different vowel.
Examples: begin, began, begun
7. Vowel Change with “n” Ending: The past tense form has a vowel change from the base verb; the past participle ends with “n.”
Examples: draw, drew, drawn
Also Read: Regular and Irregular Verbs
50+ Examples of Regular and Irregular Verbs
Now that you have all the required knowledge of regular and irregular verbs. Let us look at all the examples for both which will help you with a better understanding. Also, this list will help you answer questions in regular and irregular verbs exercises.
Regular Verb Examples
Here are some common examples of Regular Verbs:
Infinitive | Simple Past | Past Participle |
Accept | Accepted | Accepted |
Add | Added | Added |
Answer | Answered | Answered |
Bake | Baked | Baked |
Call | Called | Called |
Clean | Cleaned | Cleaned |
Close | Closed | Closed |
Cook | Cooked | Cooked |
Dance | Danced | Danced |
Enjoy | Enjoyed | Enjoyed |
Finish | Finished | Finished |
Help | Helped | Helped |
Jump | Jumped | Jumped |
Like | Liked | Liked |
Look | Looked | Looked |
Play | Played | Played |
Rain | Rained | Rained |
Start | Started | Started |
Talk | Talked | Talked |
Travel | Travelled | Travelled |
Visit | Visited | Visited |
Wait | Waited | Waited |
Walk | Walked | Walked |
Work | Worked | Worked |
Yell | Yelled | Yelled |
Irregular Verb Examples
Here are some common examples of Irregular Verbs:
Infinitive | Simple Past | Past Participle |
Be | Was/Were | Been |
Come | Came | Come |
Do | Did | Done |
Feel | Felt | Felt |
Find | Found | Found |
Get | Got | Gotten |
Give | Gave | Given |
Go | Went | Gone |
Have | Had | Had |
Hear | Heard | Heard |
Hurt | Hurt | Hurt |
Keep | Kept | Kept |
Know | Knew | Known |
Leave | Left | Left |
Let | Let | Let |
Make | Made | Made |
Mean | Meant | Meant |
Put | Put | Put |
Say | Said | Said |
See | Saw | Seen |
Shows | Showed | Shown |
Take | Took | Taken |
Tell | Told | Told |
Think | Thought | Thought |
Understand | Understood | Understood |
Also Read: Verb Cheat Sheet
Regular and Irregular Verbs Exercises
Here are five exercises focused on regular and irregular verbs, along with their answers:
Exercise 1: Identifying Regular and Irregular Verbs
Instructions: Identify whether the following verbs are regular or irregular. Write “Regular” or “Irregular” next to each verb.
- Walk
- Become
- Jump
- Speak
- Flex
Answers:
- Walk – Regular
- Become – Irregular
- Jump – Regular
- Speak – Irregular
- Flex – Regular
Exercise 2: Forming Past Tense (Fill in the Blanks)
Instructions: Fill in the blanks with the appropriate past tense of the verb given in parentheses.
- Yesterday, I ___ (walk) to the park.
- She ___ (read) a novel last night.
- They ___ (dance) at the party.
- I ___ (run) in a marathon last week.
- We ___ (go) to the cinema yesterday.
Answers:
- Yesterday, I walked to the park.
- She read a novel last night.
- They danced at the party.
- I ran in a marathon last week.
- We went to the cinema yesterday.
Exercise 3: Forming Past Participle (Fill in the Blanks)
Instructions: Fill in the blanks with the appropriate past participle form of the verb given in parentheses.
- he lecture had already ___ (begin) when I arrived.
- I have ___ (write) five poems this month.
- You have ___ (drink) all the orange juice!
- She has ___ (take) her medication.
- We had ___ (see) that movie before.
Answers:
- The lecture had already begun when I arrived.
- I have written five poems this month.
- You have drunk all the orange juice!
- She has taken her medication.
- We had seen that movie before.
Exercise 4: Multiple Choice Questions
Instructions: Choose the correct past tense form of the verb in parentheses.
- Yesterday, I ___ to the park. (go)
a) went
b) goed
c) go
- She ___ a novel last night. (read)
a) read (reed)
b) read (red)
c) readed
- They ___ at the party. (dance)
a) danced
b) dance
c) dancen
- I ___ in a marathon last week. (run)
a) ranned
b) runned
c) ran
Answers:
- a) Went
- b) Read (Red)
- a) Danced
- c) Ran
Exercise 5: Correcting Verb Form
Instructions: Identify and correct any incorrect verb forms in these sentences.
- He goed to the store yesterday.
- She have seen that movie twice.
- They was playing soccer when it started to rain.
- I have wrote three letters today.
- We drinked all the juice before dinner.
Answers:
- He went to the store yesterday.
- She has seen that movie twice.
- They were playing soccer when it started to rain.
- I have written three letters today.
- We drank all the juice before dinner.
Also Read: Verb Forms v1 v2 v3 v4 v5
Regular and Irregular Verbs Exercises Free PDF
Here is a free PDF for regular and irregular verbs exercises which test your understanding of this aspect of English Grammar.
Also Read: Action Words Meaning in English
Tips for Mastering Regular and Irregular Verbs
Following are all the tips for mastering regular and irregular verbs which will be useful for you:
1. Understand the Basics: Understand what are regular and irregular verbs with definitions and examples.
2. Focus on Common Irregular Verbs: Start by memorizing the most frequently used irregular verbs. This will give you a solid foundation. Some common ones include be, have, do, go, say, see, take, get, can, will
3. Use Mnemonic Devices: Create catchy phrases, rhymes, or associations to help you remember irregular verb forms. For example: “See a saw, it’s seen!”
4. Practice, Practice, Practice: Create flashcards with the base form, past tense, and past participle of irregular verbs. Quiz yourself regularly. You can use the verbs in sentences to reinforce your understanding and see them in context. Use the verbs in sentences to reinforce your understanding and see them in context.
5. Learn in Context: Read books, watch movies, and listen to music. Pay attention to how verbs are used in different situations.
6. Group Similar Verbs: Some irregular verbs have similar patterns. Grouping them together can make them easier to learn. For example:
- -ing to -ang (sing, sang, sung; ring, rang, rung)
- -eak to -oke (speak, spoke, spoken; break, broke, broken)
7. Get Feedback: Ask a teacher, tutor, or friend to review your work and point out any mistakes.
8. Don’t Give Up: Learning irregular verbs takes time and effort. Be patient with yourself, and celebrate your progress along the way.
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FAQs
Regular Verbs: Follow a predictable pattern. To form the past tense and past participle, you usually add “-ed” or “-d” to the base form.
Example: Play -> Played
Irregular Verbs: Don’t follow any set rules. Their past tense and past participle forms change in unpredictable ways.
Example: Go -> Went -> Gone
Lack of Consistency: There’s no single rule to learn for all irregular verbs. Each one seems to have its own unique pattern.
Memorisation Required: Many irregular verbs simply need to be memorised, which can be challenging for some learners.
Exceptions to the Rules: Even within irregular verb groups, there can be exceptions that make learning more complex.
Flashcards: Create flashcards with the base form, past tense, and past participle of irregular verbs. Quiz yourself regularly.
Mnemonic Devices: Create rhymes, songs, or associations to help you remember the irregular forms.
Grouping Similar Verbs: Some irregular verbs have similar patterns. Grouping them together can make them easier to learn.
Online Dictionaries: Many online dictionaries provide information on verb conjugations, including irregular verbs.
Language Learning Apps: Several apps specialise in vocabulary building, including irregular verbs.
Grammar Workbooks: Many grammar workbooks include exercises specifically designed to practice regular and irregular verbs.
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