Verbs where all three forms are the same (Base = V2 = V3)

 

Category 1: All Three Forms are the Same (Base = Simple Past = Past Participle)

These verbs are often the easiest to remember for their past forms because they don't change at all!

• bet - bet - bet
  • I bet you can do it.
  • Yesterday, I bet on the winning horse.
  • I have bet on this team many times.
• bid - bid - bid (to offer a price, e.g., at an auction)
  • I will bid on that painting.
  • He bid $100 for the antique table.
  • She has bid on several items today.
• broadcast - broadcast - broadcast
  • They will broadcast the news live.
  • The concert was broadcast last night.
  • The show has been broadcast since 1990.
• burst - burst - burst
  • The balloon will burst.
  • The pipe burst during the cold weather.
  • The dam has burst.
• cast - cast - cast (to throw, to put actors in a play)
  • He will cast his fishing line.
  • She cast a spell.
  • The movie was cast perfectly.
• cost - cost - cost
  • This book costs too much.
  • The new car cost him a fortune.
  • It has always cost a lot to live here.
• cut - cut - cut
  • Please cut the cake.
  • He cut his finger yesterday.
  • The tailor has cut the fabric.
• hit - hit - hit
  • Don't hit your brother!
  • The ball hit the window.
  • He has hit the target every time.
• hurt - hurt - hurt
  • Does your tooth hurt?
  • My arm hurt after the fall.
  • My feelings have been hurt.
• let - let - let
  • Please let me go.
  • She let the dog out.
  • He has always let his kids play.
• put - put - put
  • Put your books on the table.
  • I put the keys here yesterday.
  • She has put a lot of effort into this.
• quit - quit - quit
  • I want to quit my job.
  • He quit smoking last year.
  • She has quit school to travel.
• read - read - read (pronounced /riːd/ in base form, /red/ in past and participle forms)
  • I like to read books.
  • Yesterday, I read a whole novel.
  • I have read that story before.
• set - set - set
  • Please set the table.
  • She set the alarm for 6 AM.
  • He has set a new record.
• shed - shed - shed (to lose or cast off, e.g., tears, skin, leaves)
  • Trees shed their leaves in autumn.
  • The snake shed its skin.
  • She has shed many tears.
• shut - shut - shut
  • Please shut the door.
  • He shut his eyes tightly.
  • The store has been shut for an hour.
• slit - slit - slit
  • He will slit the paper.
  • She slit open the envelope.
  • The package had been slit open.
• split - split - split
  • We need to split the wood.
  • They split the pizza in half.
  • The group has split into two factions.
• spread - spread - spread
  • Spread the butter on the bread.
  • The news spread quickly.
  • The rumor had spread all over town.
• thrust - thrust - thrust
  • He will thrust the spear forward.
  • She thrust her hand into her pocket.
  • The rocket had thrust off the launchpad.
• upset - upset - upset
  • Don't upset your little sister.
  • The bad news upset her.
  • She has been very upset lately.
• wet - wet - wet
  • Don't wet your clothes.
  • He accidentally wet his pants.
  • The ground has been wet from the rain.

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Category 2: Simple Past (V2) and Past Participle (V3) are the Same

These verbs change from their base form, but then stay the same for both past tenses.

• bend - bent - bent
  • I can bend my arm.
  • He bent the wire.
  • The old man has bent his back from work.
• bind - bound - bound
  • Please bind these papers together.
  • He bound the prisoner's hands.
  • The book is bound in leather.
• bleed - bled - bled
  • My finger will bleed if I cut it.
  • His nose bled for a few minutes.
  • He has bled from that wound before.
• bring - brought - brought
  • Please bring me a glass of water.
  • She brought a cake to the party.
  • They have brought many gifts.
• build - built - built
  • They will build a new house.
  • We built a sandcastle on the beach.
  • The city has built many skyscrapers.
• buy - bought - bought
  • I want to buy a new phone.
  • She bought a new dress yesterday.
  • He has bought many gadgets.
• catch - caught - caught
  • Can you catch the ball?
  • The police caught the thief.
  • I have caught a cold.
• cling - clung - clung
  • The baby will cling to its mother.
  • The wet leaves clung to the window.
  • He had clung to the hope for years.
• creep - crept - crept
  • The cat will creep silently.
  • The spider crept up the wall.
  • Doubt has crept into his mind.
• deal - dealt - dealt
  • I will deal with the problem.
  • She dealt the cards.
  • They have dealt with difficult customers before.
• dig - dug - dug
  • We will dig a hole.
  • The dog dug a big hole in the garden.
  • They have dug for gold.
• dream - dreamt - dreamt (also dreamed - dreamed)
  • I often dream at night.
  • She dreamt of flying.
  • I have often dreamt of that place.
• feed - fed - fed
  • Please feed the cat.
  • I fed the birds this morning.
  • She has fed her baby.
• feel - felt - felt
  • I feel happy today.
  • He felt a strange sensation.
  • She has always felt comfortable here.
• fight - fought - fought
  • Children often fight over toys.
  • The soldiers fought bravely.
  • They have fought many battles.
• find - found - found
  • I hope to find my keys.
  • She found a lost puppy.
  • He has found his passion in life.
• flee - fled - fled
  • The criminals will flee the scene.
  • The refugees fled their country.
  • They had fled before the storm hit.
• fling - flung - flung
  • He will fling the ball.
  • She flung her bag on the chair.
  • He has flung insults at me.
• get - got - got (US English often uses gotten for past participle)
  • I will get a new book.
  • He got a good grade.
  • I have got (or gotten) a new car.
• grind - ground - ground
  • We need to grind the coffee beans.
  • The machine ground the corn.
  • The grains have been ground into flour.
• hang - hung - hung (to suspend something; for execution, it's hanged)
  • Please hang your coat here.
  • She hung the picture on the wall.
  • The clothes have been hung to dry.
• have - had - had
  • I have a new bicycle.
  • Yesterday, I had a great time.
  • She has had a long day.
• hear - heard - heard
  • Can you hear me?
  • I heard a strange noise.
  • Have you heard the news?
• hold - held - held
  • Please hold my hand.
  • She held the baby carefully.
  • He has held that position for years.
• keep - kept - kept
  • Keep your promise.
  • I kept my secret safe.
  • She has kept all her old letters.
• kneel - knelt - knelt (also kneeled - kneeled)
  • He will kneel to pray.
  • She knelt down to pick up the coin.
  • They have knelt in reverence.
• lay - laid - laid (to put something down)
  • Lay the book on the table.
  • She laid the baby in the crib.
  • He has laid the bricks.
• lead - led - led
  • I will lead the team.
  • He led the group through the forest.
  • She has led many successful projects.
• lean - leant - leant (also leaned - leaned)
  • Don't lean against the wall.
  • He leant against the tree.
  • The ladder has leant against the house for days.
• learn - learnt - learnt (also learned - learned)
  • I want to learn French.
  • She learnt to play the piano quickly.
  • They have learnt a lot from their mistakes.
• leave - left - left
  • I will leave at 5 PM.
  • He left his keys at home.
  • She has left her mark on the world.
• lend - lent - lent
  • Can you lend me some money?
  • I lent him my pen yesterday.
  • She has lent her car many times.
• light - lit - lit (to ignite)
  • Please light the candle.
  • He lit a fire in the fireplace.
  • The fireworks have lit up the sky.
• lose - lost - lost
  • Don't lose your temper.
  • I lost my wallet yesterday.
  • She has lost a lot of weight.
• make - made - made
  • I will make a cake.
  • She made a beautiful dress.
  • This product is made in Bangladesh.
• mean - meant - meant
  • What do you mean?
  • He meant what he said.
  • I have always meant to visit that place.
• meet - met - met
  • Let's meet for coffee.
  • I met my friend at the park.
  • They have met before.
• overhear - overheard - overheard
  • I hope I don't overhear any secrets.
  • I accidentally overheard their conversation.
  • She had overheard the plan.
• pay - paid - paid
  • I need to pay the bill.
  • He paid for the meal.
  • Have you paid your rent?
• say - said - said
  • What do you want to say?
  • She said hello to me.
  • He has said that many times.
• seek - sought - sought
  • We must seek justice.
  • They sought shelter from the storm.
  • He has sought advice from experts.
• sell - sold - sold
  • I want to sell my old bicycle.
  • They sold their house last month.
  • All the tickets have been sold.
• send - sent - sent
  • I will send you an email.
  • She sent me a letter.
  • The package has been sent.
• shine - shone - shone (to emit light; if to polish, it's shined)
  • The sun will shine brightly.
  • The moon shone in the night sky.
  • The stars have shone brightly tonight.
• shoot - shot - shot
  • Don't shoot the bird.
  • The hunter shot the deer.
  • He has shot a movie before.
• sit - sat - sat
  • Please sit down.
  • She sat on the bench.
  • He has sat there for hours.
• sleep - slept - slept
  • I need to sleep now.
  • He slept soundly last night.
  • She has slept for ten hours.
• slide - slid - slid
  • The children will slide down the hill.
  • The car slid on the ice.
  • He has slid into bad habits.
• smell - smelt - smelt (also smelled - smelled)
  • I can smell something burning.
  • The flowers smelt lovely.
  • It has smelt good in here all day.
• spend - spent - spent
  • I want to spend time with you.
  • She spent all her money on clothes.
  • We have spent a wonderful holiday here.
• spill - spilt - spilt (also spilled - spilled)
  • Don't spill the milk!
  • He accidentally spilt coffee on his shirt.
  • The milk has been spilt.
• spin - spun - spun
  • The earth will spin on its axis.
  • The dancer spun around quickly.
  • The top has spun for a long time.
• spit - spat - spat (also spit - spit)
  • Don't spit on the floor.
  • He spat out the bad taste.
  • The cat has spat at me.
• stand - stood - stood
  • Please stand up.
  • He stood by the window.
  • She has stood firm in her beliefs.
• stick - stuck - stuck
  • The glue will stick the papers together.
  • My car got stuck in the mud.
  • The picture has stuck to the wall.
• sting - stung - stung
  • A bee might sting you.
  • The jellyfish stung me.
  • I have been stung by a wasp.
• strike - struck - struck
  • The clock will strike noon.
  • Lightning struck the tree.
  • He has struck oil.
• swing - swung - swung
  • The children like to swing on the playground.
  • He swung the bat.
  • The door has swung open.
• teach - taught - taught
  • I will teach you English.
  • She taught me how to cook.
  • He has taught at this school for years.
• tell - told - told
  • Please tell me a story.
  • She told him the truth.
  • I have told you many times.
• think - thought - thought
  • What do you think?
  • I thought about you yesterday.
  • She has thought about it carefully.
• understand - understood - understood
  • Do you understand the lesson?
  • I understood the instructions.
  • They have understood the problem now.
• weep - wept - wept
  • Don't weep, it's alright.
  • She wept silently.
  • He had wept over the loss.
• win - won - won
  • I hope to win the game.
  • Our team won the championship.
  • She has won many awards.
• wind - wound - wound (to turn or wrap around; distinct from wind meaning air movement)
  • Please wind the clock.
  • He wound the string around the stick.
  • The path has wound through the hills.