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Unit 02
Past Simple: Irregular Verbs
went, saw, had, did...
What are Irregular Verbs?
Irregular verbs do not follow the -ed rule. Their past forms must be memorised. The sentence structures (negative, question) are exactly the same as regular verbs — only the affirmative form changes.
Essential Irregular Verbs
| Base form | Past form | Base form | Past form |
|---|---|---|---|
| go | went | see | saw |
| come | came | get | got |
| eat | ate | buy | bought |
| drink | drank | have | had |
| make | made | take | took |
| give | gave | say | said |
| think | thought | know | knew |
| leave | left | write | wrote |
| read | read* | meet | met |
| find | found | tell | told |
| feel | felt | sleep | slept |
| run | ran | begin | began |
Learn Them in Groups
Irregular verbs are easier to remember in groups that change in the same way. For the full list, open the Irregular Verbs table.
| Pattern | Examples |
|---|---|
| No change | cut → cut · put → put · hit → hit · cost → cost · let → let · shut → shut |
| -ought / -aught | buy → bought · bring → brought · think → thought · catch → caught · teach → taught · fight → fought |
| i → a | begin → began · drink → drank · swim → swam · sing → sang · ring → rang · sit → sat |
| -ew | know → knew · grow → grew · throw → threw · fly → flew · draw → drew |
| -d → -t | send → sent · spend → spent · build → built · lend → lent |
| ee → e / ea → e | meet → met · feel → felt · keep → kept · sleep → slept · leave → left · mean → meant |
* "Read" — Same Spelling, Different Pronunciation
- Base: read /riːd/ → Past: read /red/
- The spelling is identical but the vowel sound changes in the past.
The Most Important Irregular Verb: be
Be has two past forms, and it does not use did/didn't:
| Subject | Affirmative | Negative | Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| I / he / she / it | was | wasn't | Was I...? |
| you / we / they | were | weren't | Were you...? |
Negatives & Questions Still Use the BASE Form
Even with irregular verbs, didn't and did are followed by the base form — never the past form.
| Type | Example |
|---|---|
| Affirmative (irregular) | She went to the gym. |
| Negative (base!) | She didn't go to the gym. |
| Question (base!) | Did she go to the gym? |
"Do" as a Main Verb
- Do can be both the auxiliary and the main verb, so you may see it twice: I didn't do my homework. What did you do at the weekend? This is correct!
- With adjectives and places, use was/were — not did: I was tired. (not
I did tired) · Were you at home? (notDid you at home?)
Annotated Examples
Subject
Verb
Auxiliary
Object
Adjective
Adverb
Preposition
Hover over any word to see its role.
subjectHeverbboughtobjecta new phoneadverbyesterday.
↳ buy → bought (irregular affirmative).
subjectWeauxiliarydidn'tverbgoadverboutadverblast night.
↳ Negative: didn't + BASE form (go, not went).
auxiliaryDidsubjectsheverbseeobjectthe film?
↳ Question: Did + BASE form (see, not saw).
Common Mistakes
I didn't went to school.
→
I didn't go to school.
After "didn't" always use the base form — not the past.
Did she saw the movie?
→
Did she see the movie?
After "did" always use the base form.
He goed to Istanbul.
→
He went to Istanbul.
go is irregular: go → went.
They buyed new clothes.
→
They bought new clothes.
buy is irregular: buy → bought.
She maked a cake.
→
She made a cake.
make is irregular: make → made.
Did you tired yesterday?
→
Were you tired yesterday?
With adjectives, use was/were, not did.
I didn't my homework.
→
I didn't do my homework.
"Do" is the main verb here — you need it after didn't.
He brang his laptop.
→
He brought his laptop.
bring → brought (-ought group).