Introduction to Past Regular Verbs
When we discuss events from the past, we frequently use the past simple tense. Regular verbs are simple because they follow a predictable pattern. Let’s look at how we construct and employ these verbs to describe past events.
Forming Past Simple Sentences with Regular Verbs
To form the past simple tense of regular verbs, you generally add “-ed” to the base form of the verb.
Examples:
- Play becomes played: I played soccer yesterday.
- Walk becomes walked: She walked to the store.
- Call becomes called: He called his friend.
Special Rules for Forming Past Simple
While most common verbs simply take a “-ed” ending, there are several specific rules you should be aware of:
- Verbs ending in “e”: Just add “d”.
- Love becomes loved: They loved the movie.
- Hope becomes hoped: She hoped for good news.
- Dance becomes danced: He danced all night.
- Verbs ending in a consonant + “y”: Change the “y” to “i” and add “ed”.
- Carry becomes carried: She carried the books.
- Hurry becomes hurried: He hurried to the meeting.
- Try becomes tried: They tried the new restaurant.
- Verbs with a short vowel followed by a single consonant: Double the consonant and add “ed”.
- Plan becomes planned: She planned the party.
- Stop becomes stopped: He stopped the car.
- Commit becomes committed: They committed to the project.
Pronouns and Verb Forms
Pronouns do not alter the form of the past simple verb. The verb is the same regardless of the subject pronoun.
Examples:
- I enjoyed the show.
- You worked late.
- They visited the museum.
Pronunciation of “-ed” Ending Verbs
The pronunciation of the “-ed” ending depends on the final sound of the base verb. There are three different pronunciations:
- /t/: For verbs ending in voiceless sounds (except /t/), such as /p/, /k/, /s/, /sh/, /ch/, /f/.
- Worked /wɜrkt/
- Stopped /stɑpt/
- Laughed /læft/
- /d/: For verbs ending in voiced sounds (except /d/), such as /b/, /g/, /z/, /v/, /m/, /n/, /r/, and all vowel sounds.
- Played /pleɪd/
- Opened /ˈoʊpənd/
- Lived /lɪvd/
- /ɪd/ or /əd/: For verbs ending in /t/ or /d/.
- Wanted /ˈwɑntɪd/
- Decided /dɪˈsaɪdɪd/
- Needed /ˈnidɪd/
Forming Questions and Negative Sentences
To form questions and negative sentences in the past simple tense, we use the auxiliary verb “did”.
Questions:
- Did you watch the movie?
- Did they visit the park?
- Did she call her friend?
Negative Sentences:
- I did not (didn’t) like the meal.
- He did not (didn’t) finish his homework.
- They did not (didn’t) arrive on time.
Introduction to Irregular Verbs
Not all verbs are regular. Irregular verbs do not follow the “-ed” rule and have unique past forms. We will cover more in depth about that topic in the next POST.
Examples:
- Go becomes went: She went to the market.
- Have becomes had: They had a great time.
- See becomes saw: He saw the movie last night.
Conclusion
Understanding regular past verbs is critical to studying English. Remember the specific rules for constructing them, the many pronunciations of the “-ed” ending, and how to construct questions and negative statements. Regular verbs give a consistent pattern for articulating previous events, but irregular verbs need memory.
To gain confidence in describing previous events in English, we created a special game Quiz where you can pratice your grammar combined with listening that has more than 80 regular verbs and more than 160 sentences where they are used, so take a look:
