Practice
Regular and irregular verbs exercise 2: choose the past form
On Saturday, Mia arrived early, but her friends came late. Arrived follows the usual -ed pattern. Came is a form that learners need to remember.
Choose common regular and irregular past simple forms, including the base form after did.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
planned, arrived, bought /plænd/, /əˈraɪvd/, /bɔːt/
The short answer
For a finished action in the past, use the past simple. Regular verbs usually take -ed, while irregular verbs use a form you learn separately. After did or did not, use the base verb.
We planned the trip last week, then bought the tickets on Friday.
Why it works: Planned is a regular past form. Bought is the irregular past form of buy.
4 more examples
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The train arrived ten minutes late.
Arrive is regular. It ends in e, so the past simple adds d.
Not this:The train
cameten minutes late. What changes: Come is irregular. Its past simple form is came. -
We planned a picnic for Sunday.
Plan is regular. In this short stressed verb pattern, double the final consonant before -ed.
Not this:We
chosea park for Sunday. What changes: Choose is irregular. Its past simple form is chose. -
I bought a notebook after class.
Buy is irregular, so bought must be learned as its past form.
Not this:I
checkedthe price after class. What changes: Check is regular. Its past simple form adds -ed. -
Did you see the notice on the door?
After did, use the base form see.
Not this:I
sawthe notice on the door. What changes: A positive past statement uses saw, the past simple of see.
Read the full guide
Do one quick check before you answer. Is the sentence a positive past statement, or does it use did? A positive statement needs the past form. Did already carries the past meaning, so the verb after it returns to its base form.
Read the whole past situation
Read all the words before choosing a verb form. A time phrase often helps, but the completed event may also be clear from the sentence. Look for the subject, the action, and the past context.
Last Tuesday, Noor visited her uncle after work.
Choose the past form: Yesterday, I ___ my keys under the sofa. Use find.
Yesterday, I found my keys under the sofa. Find is irregular, so use found.
Use the regular spelling pattern
Most regular verbs add -ed: cook becomes cooked and wait becomes waited. Add only d after a final e: arrive becomes arrived. Change a final consonant plus y to ied: study becomes studied.
cook to cooked; arrive to arrived; study to studied. These are all regular past forms.
Complete the sentence: Lina ___ for her driving test last month. Use study.
Lina studied for her driving test last month. Study changes y to i before -ed.
Keep irregular verbs in pairs
Irregular verbs do not take the usual -ed ending. Keep the base verb and its past form together in your notes. For this exercise, practise come to came, find to found, buy to bought, and see to saw.
My cousin came to dinner on Friday.
Complete the sentence: We ___ fruit at the market this morning. Use buy.
We bought fruit at the market this morning. Buy is irregular, so use bought.
Return to the base form after did
Did and did not already show that the sentence is about the past. The verb after them is the base form, whether it is regular or irregular. This rule applies in questions and negative sentences.
Positive: Omar saw the email. Question: Did Omar see the email?
Correct the sentence: She did not bought a ticket.
She did not buy a ticket. Use the base verb buy after did not.
Check the verb before you finish
Before you check an answer, ask two questions. Does the sentence need a positive past form? Does it contain did or did not? That small check can stop two common errors: adding -ed to an irregular verb, or using a past form after did.
They went home after the meeting.
Choose the best sentence: Did they went home after the meeting? Did they go home after the meeting?
Did they go home after the meeting? After did, use go, the base form.
Before you go
Remember this
Choose the past simple for a completed past action. Use regular spelling rules for verbs such as arrive, plan, and study. Learn irregular pairs such as come and came, buy and bought, and see and saw. After did, use the base form.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Regular and irregular verbs exercise 2: choose the past form"
How do I know whether a verb is regular or irregular?
Check its past form. A regular verb normally follows an -ed pattern, such as call to called or study to studied. An irregular verb has a form to learn separately, such as buy to bought or find to found.
The train arrived ten minutes late.
Why does plan become planned?
Plan is a short stressed verb that ends in one vowel and one consonant. Double the final consonant before adding -ed: plan to planned.
The train came ten minutes late.
Why does study become studied?
Study ends in a consonant followed by y. For its regular past form, change y to i and add -ed: studied.
We planned a picnic for Sunday.
Do I use saw after did?
No. Did already marks past time, so use the base form see: Did you see it? Use saw in a positive past statement: I saw it.
We chose a park for Sunday.
Should I learn irregular verbs in a list?
A short list can help, but learn each form in a sentence as well. Write or say a pair such as buy to bought, then use it in a complete past-time sentence.
I bought a notebook after class.
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