Practice
Irregular verbs: choose the past form you need
Sign in to saveYesterday Ana went home early. Today she has gone home early again. Go changes to went in one sentence and gone in the other because the sentence pattern changes.
Choose the base form, past simple form, or past participle of common irregular verbs in short everyday sentences.
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
go, went, gone /ɡəʊ/, /went/, /ɡɒn/
The short answer
Learn each irregular verb in three forms. Use the past simple for a completed past action, use the past participle after have, has, or had, and use the base form after did.
We saw the film last week, but we have seen the trailer today.
Why it works: Saw is the past simple of see. Seen is the past participle after have.
5 more examples
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I went to the pharmacy after work yesterday.
Went is the past simple of go for a completed action yesterday.
Not this:I
have goneto the pharmacy already. What changes: Gone is the past participle because it follows have. -
Nora wrote the address on the envelope last night.
Wrote is the past simple of write.
Not this:Nora
has writtenthe address on the envelope. What changes: Written is the past participle after has. -
The children ate lunch at school.
Ate is the past simple of eat.
Not this:The children
have eatenlunch already. What changes: Eaten is the past participle after have. -
We took the earlier bus on Monday.
Took is the past simple of take.
Not this:We
have takenthe earlier bus before. What changes: Taken is the past participle after have. -
Did you see the notice at the entrance?
See is the base form after did.
Not this:You
sawthe notice at the entrance yesterday. What changes: Saw is the past simple in a positive statement without did.
Read the full guide
Do not try to memorise a huge list in one session. Start with a few verbs you use often, such as go, see, eat, take, and write. Put each verb in a short sentence. The helper word or time phrase will tell you which form to choose.
Learn three forms together
Write an irregular verb in a set of three: base form, past simple, and past participle. For example, write go, went, gone. The first form helps after did. The second form tells a finished past story. The third form follows have, has, or had.
See, saw, seen; eat, ate, eaten; take, took, taken; write, wrote, written.
The forms may look alike, but they have different jobs in a sentence. Saw does not follow have, and seen does not usually stand alone as a past simple verb.
Which three forms belong together: go, went, gone or go, goed, gone?
Use go, went, gone. Go is irregular, so goed is not the standard past simple form.
Use the past simple for a finished past action
Use the past simple when the action happened and ended at a finished time. Yesterday, last night, last week, and in 2025 are common clues. In a positive sentence, use the past simple form after the subject.
Sam took the train to work last Friday.
Last Friday is a finished time, so take changes to took. Do not write Sam taken the train last Friday.
Complete the sentence: We ___ dinner at six yesterday. Use eat.
We ate dinner at six yesterday. Ate is the past simple of eat.
Use the past participle after have, has, or had
Have, has, and had are helper verbs. The next verb is a past participle. When the two past forms differ, this is where the three form set helps. Compare saw with seen and wrote with written.
Maya has written a message to her tutor.
Has needs written. Wrote is the past simple form, as in Maya wrote a message yesterday.
Choose the correct form: They have took or They have taken the keys?
Use They have taken the keys. Taken is the past participle after have.
Keep the base form after did
Did already marks the past in most questions and negative sentences. After did or did not, use the base form. This rule applies to irregular verbs as well as regular verbs.
Did Amir go to the meeting yesterday?
Use go after did. The positive sentence is Amir went to the meeting yesterday.
Correct the question: Did she wrote the email?
Did she write the email? Write is the base form after did.
Study a short useful set
Choose five or six verbs that you meet often. Make one sentence with the past simple and one with the past participle. Review the same small set later, then add another verb when the first set feels familiar.
| Base form | Past simple | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| go | went | gone |
| see | saw | seen |
| eat | ate | eaten |
| take | took | taken |
| write | wrote | written |
| buy | bought | bought |
I bought fruit yesterday. I have bought fruit for the picnic.
Bought works in both places for buy. The surrounding words show which grammar pattern the sentence uses.
Make a three form note for see.
Write see, saw, seen. Then add a past simple sentence and a sentence with have or has.
Before you go
Remember this
Learn a useful irregular verb in three forms. Use went, saw, ate, took, or wrote for a finished past action. Use gone, seen, eaten, taken, or written after have, has, or had. After did, return to 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 "Irregular verbs: choose the past form you need"
What is an irregular verb?
An irregular verb does not usually make its past forms by adding ed. For example, go becomes went in the past simple and gone after have, has, or had. Learn the base form and both past forms together.
I went to the pharmacy after work yesterday.
What is the difference between past simple and past participle?
Use the past simple for a completed past action, such as I went home yesterday. Use the past participle after have, has, or had, such as I have gone home. Some verbs use one form in both positions, including bought.
I have gone to the pharmacy already.
Why do irregular verbs have three forms?
The three forms help with different sentence patterns. Write is the base form, wrote is the past simple, and written is the past participle. Keeping the forms together helps you choose the correct one from the words around it.
Nora wrote the address on the envelope last night.
Do I use went after did?
No. Did already shows that the question or negative is about the past, so use the base form after it. Say Did you go? and Did you see? Use went and saw in positive past simple statements without did.
Nora has written the address on the envelope.
How should I study irregular verbs?
Start with a small group that you use often. Write each set in three forms, make a short sentence with the past simple and another after have or has, then check your memory before you add more verbs.
The children ate lunch at school.