Browse a searchable list of 40 common irregular verbs, then test yourself in practice mode. No sign-up, no cost — just learn.
| Base form | Past simple | Past participle |
|---|
We show a base verb — type its past simple form and check your answer.
Base verb: go
Most English verbs are "regular" — you add -ed to make the past simple and past participle (walk → walked → walked). Irregular verbs break that rule, and because they include many of the most common words in the language, learning them is essential for clear speaking and writing.
Although they look random at first, irregular verbs fall into helpful patterns. A large group changes its vowel sound between forms. The i–a–u group is a classic example: sing → sang → sung, ring → rang → rung, and swim → swam → swum all follow the same melody. Another vowel-change family uses i–o–o, as in break → broke → broken and speak → spoke → spoken.
Some verbs keep one form for all three slots. Cut, put, let, and cost never change — "I cut it yesterday" looks identical to "I cut it today." Others change only the final consonant: send → sent, build → built, and spend → spent all swap a d for a t.
A third pattern shares the same word for past simple and past participle, even when it differs from the base: buy → bought → bought, think → thought → thought, and teach → taught → taught. Then there are the true loners — go → went → gone and be → was/were → been — that simply must be memorized.
The fastest way to learn is little and often. Group verbs by their pattern, say them aloud as a rhythm, and use the practice tool above every day. Within a couple of weeks the most common forms will feel automatic.