The Complete Irregular Verbs List In English

There is no exact number of irregular verbs in the English language, as this can vary depending on the source and the criteria used to define irregularity. However, it is generally estimated that there are around 200-250 irregular verbs in English.

These verbs do not follow the standard pattern of adding “-ed” to form their past simple and past participle forms.

Instead, they undergo internal changes in spelling, such as “sing” becoming “sang” in the past simple and “sung” in the past participle. Keep in mind that language is constantly evolving, so this number might not be fixed over time.

While this list is large we have omitted some of the very rare verbs just to keep the length of the page manageable. However you will find the vast majority of English irregular verbs here in these tables.

What is included in the irregular verb tables?

We have included the following forms of these irregular verbs here in the tables below to give you some ideas.

1. Base Form: This is the infinitive form of the verb without the “to” (e.g., “be,” “begin,” “break”).
2. Past Simple: The past tense form of the verb (e.g., “was/were,” “began,” “broke”).
3. Past Participle: The form used with “have” to indicate a completed action (e.g., “been,” “begun,” “broken”).
4. Present Participle: The form ending in “-ing,” used to indicate continuous or progressive actions (e.g., “being,” “beginning,” “breaking”).
5. Third Person Singular: The form used with third person singular subjects in the present tense (e.g., “is,” “begins,” “breaks”).
6. Meaning: A brief definition or explanation of the verb’s meaning(s) (e.g., “to exist,” “to start,” “to cause something to separate into pieces”).

How to Navigate the Irregular Verb Tables.

We have also made it easier to navigate as the page is quite long, so if you have an irregular verb you want to check out then you can click on the letters below to jump to that section.

A – C

D – F

G – L

M – R

S – T

U – Z

English Irregular Verbs – A- C

Base Form	Past Simple	Past Participle	Present Participle	Third Person Singular	Meaning
alight	alit/alighted	alit/alighted	alighting	alights	to descend, to come to rest
arise	arose	arisen	arising	arises	to emerge, come up
awake	awoke/awaked	awoken/awaked	awaking	awakes	to wake up, become aware
be	was/were	been	being	is	to exist, to be
bear	bore	borne/born	bearing	bears	to carry, to endure, to give birth
beat	beat	beaten/beat	beating	beats	to strike, to defeat
become	became	become	becoming	becomes	to begin to be, to develop into
befall	befell	befallen	befalling	befalls	to happen, to occur
beget	begot	begotten	begetting	begets	to produce, to cause
begin	began	begun	beginning	begins	to start, to initiate
bend	bent	bent	bending	bends	to curve, to change direction
bereave	bereaved/bereft	bereaved/bereft	bereaving	bereaves	to deprive, to take away
beseech	besought	besought	beseeching	beseeches	to implore, to beg earnestly
bet	bet/betted	bet/betted	betting	bets	to risk money on an outcome
betake	betook	betaken	betaking	betakes	to go to, to resort to
bethink	bethought	bethought	bethinking	bethinks	to consider, to reflect upon
bid	bid/bade	bid/bidden	bidding	bids	to offer, to command
bind	bound	bound	binding	binds	to tie, to fasten
bite	bit	bitten	biting	bites	to cut with teeth
bleed	bled	bled	bleeding	bleeds	to lose blood
blow	blew	blown	blowing	blows	to produce air, to move with air
break	broke	broken	breaking	breaks	to separate into pieces
breed	bred	bred	breeding	breeds	to reproduce, to raise
bring	brought	brought	bringing	brings	to carry, to cause to come
build	built	built	building	builds	to construct
burn	burned/burnt	burned/burnt	burning	burns	to be on fire, to destroy with fire
burst	burst	burst	bursting	bursts	to break open suddenly
buy	bought	bought	buying	buys	to acquire by paying for
cast	cast	cast	casting	casts	to throw, to project
catch	caught	caught	catching	catches	to seize, to grasp
choose	chose	chosen	choosing	chooses	to select, to decide on
cleave	clove/cleft	cloven/cleft	cleaving	cleaves	to split, to adhere
cling	clung	clung	clinging	clings	to hold tightly, to stick to
clothe	clothed/clad	clothed/clad	clothing	clothes	to dress, to provide with clothes
come	came	come	coming	comes	to move toward, to arrive
cost	cost	cost	costing	costs	to have a price, to require effort
cowrite	cowrote	cowritten	cowriting	cowrites	to write collaboratively
creep	crept	crept	creeping	creeps	to move slowly and quietly
cut	cut	cut	cutting	cut	to slice

English Irregular Verbs from D-F:

Base Form	Past Simple	Past Participle	Present Participle	Third Person Singular	Meaning
deal	dealt	dealt	dealing	deals	to distribute, to trade
dig	dug	dug	digging	digs	to break up and remove earth
dive	dove/dived	dived	diving	dives	to plunge into water, to descend
do	did	done	doing	does	to perform, to execute
draw	drew	drawn	drawing	draws	to produce a picture, to pull
dream	dreamed/dreamt	dreamed/dreamt	dreaming	dreams	to experience while sleeping
drink	drank	drunk	drinking	drinks	to consume liquid
drive	drove	driven	driving	drives	to operate a vehicle, to push
dwell	dwelt/dwelled	dwelt/dwelled	dwelling	dwells	to live, to reside
eat	ate	eaten	eating	eats	to consume food
fall	fell	fallen	falling	falls	to descend through air, to drop
feed	fed	fed	feeding	feeds	to give food to
feel	felt	felt	feeling	feels	to experience a sensation
fight	fought	fought	fighting	fights	to struggle, to engage in combat
find	found	found	finding	finds	to locate, to discover
fit	fit/fitted	fit/fitted	fitting	fits	to be the correct size or shape
flee	fled	fled	fleeing	flees	to run away, to escape
fling	flung	flung	flinging	flings	to throw with force
fly	flew	flown	flying	flies	to move through the air
forbid	forbade/forbad	forbidden	forbidding	forbids	to disallow, to prohibit
forget	forgot	forgotten	forgetting	forgets	to fail to remember
forgive	forgave	forgiven	forgiving	forgives	to grant pardon, to excuse
forswear	forswore	forsworn	forswearing	forswears	to renounce, to deny under oath
freeze	froze	frozen	freezing	freezes	to become solid from cold
frostbite	frostbit	frostbitten	frostbiting	frostbites	to damage by freezing

English Irregular Verbs from G-L:

Base Form	Past Simple	Past Participle	Present Participle	Third Person Singular	Meaning
gainsay	gainsaid	gainsaid	gainsaying	gainsays	to contradict, to deny
get	got	gotten/got	getting	gets	to obtain, to receive
give	gave	given	giving	gives	to present, to provide
go	went	gone	going	goes	to move, to travel
grind	ground	ground	grinding	grinds	to reduce to powder or small pieces
grow	grew	grown	growing	grows	to increase in size, to develop
hang	hung/hanged	hung/hanged	hanging	hangs	to suspend, to attach
have	had	had	having	has	to possess, to own
hear	heard	heard	hearing	hears	to perceive sound
hide	hid	hidden	hiding	hides	to conceal, to keep out of sight
hit	hit	hit	hitting	hits	to strike, to come into contact
hold	held	held	holding	holds	to grasp, to contain
hurt	hurt	hurt	hurting	hurts	to cause pain or injury
inlay	inlaid	inlaid	inlaying	inlays	to insert, to decorate
keep	kept	kept	keeping	keeps	to retain, to maintain
kneel	knelt/kneeled	knelt/kneeled	kneeling	kneels	to bend at the knee
know	knew	known	knowing	knows	to be aware, to understand
lay	laid	laid	laying	lays	to put, to place
lead	led	led	leading	leads	to guide, to be in charge
lean	leaned/leant	leaned/leant	leaning	leans	to incline, to rest on
leap	leaped/leapt	leaped/leapt	leaping	leaps	to jump, to bound
learn	learned/learnt	learned/learnt	learning	learns	to acquire knowledge or skill
leave	left	left	leaving	leaves	to depart, to allow to remain
lend	lent	lent	lending	lends	to grant temporary use
let	let	let	letting	lets	to allow, to permit
lie	lay	lain	lying	lies	to recline, to rest
light	lit/lighted	lit/lighted	lighting	lights	to illuminate, to start a fire
lose	lost	lost	losing	loses	to misplace, to be deprived of

English Irregular Verbs from M-R:

Base Form	Past Simple	Past Participle	Present Participle	Third Person Singular	Meaning
make	made	made	making	makes	to create, to produce
mean	meant	meant	meaning	means	to signify, to intend
meet	met	met	meeting	meets	to encounter, to come together
mislead	misled	misled	misleading	misleads	to deceive, to guide wrongly
outbid	outbid	outbid	outbidding	outbids	to offer a higher price than others
outdo	outdid	outdone	outdoing	outdoes	to surpass, to do better than
outgrow	outgrew	outgrown	outgrowing	outgrows	to grow beyond, to surpass
outrun	outran	outrun	outrunning	outruns	to run faster than, to surpass
outshine	outshone	outshone	outshining	outshines	to surpass in shining or brightness
outwit	outwitted	outwitted	outwitting	outwits	to outsmart, to get the better of
overbear	overbore	overborne	overbearing	overbears	to dominate, to overcome
overcome	overcame	overcome	overcoming	overcomes	to defeat, to master
overdo	overdid	overdone	overdoing	overdoes	to do too much, to exaggerate
overeat	overate	overeaten	overeating	overeats	to eat too much
overhang	overhung	overhung	overhanging	overhangs	to project over, to loom
overhear	overheard	overheard	overhearing	overhears	to hear without intending to
override	overrode	overridden	overriding	overrides	to overrule, to prevail
oversee	oversaw	overseen	overseeing	oversees	to supervise, to manage
oversleep	overslept	overslept	oversleeping	oversleeps	to sleep longer than intended
overtake	overtook	overtaken	overtaking	overtakes	to pass, to catch up with
overthrow	overthrew	overthrown	overthrowing	overthrows	to remove from power, to topple
partake	partook	partaken	partaking	partakes	to participate, to share
pay	paid	paid	paying	pays	to give money for goods or services
plead	pled/pleaded	pled/pleaded	pleading	pleads	to make an earnest request
preset	preset	preset	presetting	presets	to set in advance
proofread	proofread	proofread	proofreading	proofreads	to check for errors
put	put	put	putting	puts	to place, to position
quit	quit/quitted	quit/quitted	quitting	quits	to leave, to stop
read	read	read	reading	reads	to look at and comprehend text
rebuild	rebuilt	rebuilt	rebuilding	rebuilds	to build again, to restore
recast	recast	recast	recasting	recasts	to change, to reassign
redo	redid	redone	redoing	redoes	to do again, to revise
rend	rent	rent	rending	rends	to tear, to split
repay	repaid	repaid	repaying	repays	to pay back, to recompense
rerun	reran	rerun	rerunning	reruns	to run again, to repeat
ride	rode	ridden	riding	rides	to be carried on, to travel on
ring	rang	rung	ringing	rings	to produce a sound, to encircle
rise	rose	risen	rising	rises	to move upward, to increase
run	ran	run	running	runs	to move quickly, to operate

English Irregular Verbs from S-T:

Base Form	Past Simple	Past Participle	Present Participle	Third Person Singular	Meaning
saw	sawed	sawed/sawn	sawing	saws	to cut with a saw
say	said	said	saying	says	to speak, to express
see	saw	seen	seeing	sees	to perceive, to understand
seek	sought	sought	seeking	seeks	to search for, to try to find
sell	sold	sold	selling	sells	to exchange for money
send	sent	sent	sending	sends	to cause to go, to dispatch
set	set	set	setting	sets	to put in position, to adjust
sew	sewed	sewn/sewed	sewing	sews	to join with stitches
shake	shook	shaken	shaking	shakes	to move with short, quick motions
shear	sheared	sheared/shorn	shearing	shears	to cut, to remove by cutting
shed	shed	shed	shedding	sheds	to cast off, to lose
shine	shone	shone	shining	shines	to emit light, to be bright
shoe	shod	shod	shoeing	shoes	to furnish with shoes
shoot	shot	shot	shooting	shoots	to discharge a projectile
show	showed	shown/showed	showing	shows	to display, to exhibit
shrink	shrank/shrunk	shrunk	shrinking	shrinks	to become smaller
shut	shut	shut	shutting	shuts	to close, to block
sing	sang	sung	singing	sings	to produce musical sounds
sink	sank	sunk	sinking	sinks	to descend, to fall
sit	sat	sat	sitting	sits	to be in a resting position
slay	slew/slayed	slain/slayed	slaying	slays	to kill, to destroy
sleep	slept	slept	sleeping	sleeps	to be in a state of rest
slide	slid	slid	sliding	slides	to move smoothly along a surface
sling	slung	slung	slinging	slings	to throw, to hurl
slink	slunk	slunk	slinking	slinks	to move smoothly and quietly
slit	slit	slit	slitting	slits	to make a long, narrow cut
smell	smelled/smelt	smelled/smelt	smelling	smells	to perceive odor
smite	smote	smitten/smited	smiting	smites	to strike, to inflict a heavy blow
sneak	snuck/sneaked	snuck/sneaked	sneaking	sneaks	to move quietly and stealthily
sow	sowed	sown/sowed	sowing	sows	to scatter seeds
speak	spoke	spoken	speaking	speaks	to talk, to converse
speed	sped/speeded	sped/speeded	speeding	speeds	to move quickly
spell	spelled/spelt	spelled/spelt	spelling	spells	to form words with letters
spend	spent	spent	spending	spends	to use money, to pass time
spill	spilled/spilt	spilled/spilt	spilling	spills	to cause liquid to flow out
spin	spun	spun	spinning	spins	to rotate, to whirl
spit	spat/spit	spat/spit	spitting	spits	to eject saliva from the mouth

Base Form	Past Simple	Past Participle	Present Participle	Third Person Singular	Meaning
split	split	split	splitting	splits	to divide, to separate
spoil	spoiled/spoilt	spoiled/spoilt	spoiling	spoils	to ruin, to become bad
spread	spread	spread	spreading	spreads	to extend, to distribute
spring	sprang/sprung	sprung	springing	springs	to jump, to arise
stand	stood	stood	standing	stands	to be upright, to remain
steal	stole	stolen	stealing	steals	to take without permission
stick	stuck	stuck	sticking	sticks	to attach, to adhere
sting	stung	stung	stinging	stings	to prick, to cause pain
stink	stank/stunk	stunk	stinking	stinks	to smell bad
stride	strode	stridden	striding	strides	to walk with long steps
strike	struck	struck/stricken	striking	strikes	to hit, to collide with
string	strung	strung	stringing	strings	to thread, to stretch
strive	strove	striven	striving	strives	to make an effort, to try hard
swear	swore	sworn	swearing	swears	to promise, to use offensive language
sweep	swept	swept	sweeping	sweeps	to clean, to move swiftly
swell	swelled	swollen/swelled	swelling	swells	to increase in size, to expand
swim	swam	swum	swimming	swims	to move through water
swing	swung	swung	swinging	swings	to move back and forth
take	took	taken	taking	takes	to grasp, to receive
teach	taught	taught	teaching	teaches	to instruct, to impart knowledge
tear	tore	torn	tearing	tears	to pull apart, to rip
tell	told	told	telling	tells	to communicate, to inform
think	thought	thought	thinking	thinks	to consider, to ponder
throw	threw	thrown	throwing	throws	to propel, to send through the air
thrust	thrust	thrust	thrusting	thrusts	to push, to shove
tread	trod	trodden/trod	treading	treads	to walk, to step

English Irregular Verbs from U – Z

Base Form	Past Simple	Past Participle	Present Participle	Third Person Singular	Meaning
undergo	underwent	undergone	undergoing	undergoes	to experience, to endure
understand	understood	understood	understanding	understands	to comprehend, to grasp
undertake	undertook	undertaken	undertaking	undertakes	to commit to, to embark on
undo	undid	undone	undoing	undoes	to reverse, to unfasten
unfold	unfolded	unfolded	unfolding	unfolds	to open, to reveal
unlearn	unlearned/unlearnt	unlearned/unlearnt	unlearning	unlearns	to forget or lose knowledge or skills
unwind	unwound	unwound	unwinding	unwinds	to relax, to uncoil
uphold	upheld	upheld	upholding	upholds	to support, to maintain
upset	upset	upset	upsetting	upsets	to disturb, to overturn
use	used	used	using	uses	to employ, to utilize
wake	woke	woken	waking	wakes	to cease sleeping, to rouse
wear	wore	worn	wearing	wears	to have on one’s body, to erode
weave	wove	woven	weaving	weaves	to form by interlacing
weep	wept	wept	weeping	weeps	to cry, to shed tears
wet	wet/wetted	wet/wetted	wetting	wets	to make or become moist
win	won	won	winning	wins	to achieve victory, to succeed
wind	wound	wound	winding	winds	to coil, to twist
withdraw	withdrew	withdrawn	withdrawing	withdraws	to remove, to retreat
withstand	withstood	withstood	withstanding	withstands	to resist, to endure
wring	wrung	wrung	wringing	wrings	to twist, to extract by twisting
write	wrote	written	writing	writes	to form letters or symbols

We also have articles and worksheets which we will link examples of below, and if you need more you can try the search box.

• Free Simple Past Tense Worksheets
• irregular verb list
• Simple Present Tense Worksheets
• Regular and irregular past tense worksheets
• Free online past tense games.
• Present perfect tense worksheets
• Simple Future tense worksheets
• Simple Past tense ‘ed’ ending rules and handouts

Conclusion

At this point, we have covered most of the common and many less common irregular verbs in the English language. As we mentioned at the top there are others some of which are rare some of which are slang, and some of which are old English.

We have left these out to keep the tables above a reasonable length, and even then its quite a page!

however we hope these are useful and don’t forget you can navigate to each verbs page as we write and post them up on the site. There are a lot! so bear with us!

Other Resources

• https://www.englishclub.com/vocabulary/irregular-verbs-list.php
• https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/grammar/english-grammar-reference/irregular-verbs
• https://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/grammar/unreg_verben1.htm