Myriora English › Grammar and punctuation › Chapter 3: Tenses

Irregular past tense

Ages 7–9Chapter 3 · Lesson 2

In this lesson

Most verbs add E, D for the past tense.
Irregular verbs change in their own way: go, went, swim, swam, catch, caught.
Some follow patterns, like sing, sang.
Learn them by saying them often.

Your turn

Which is the past tense of think?

Show the answer

Thought! Think becomes thought.

The common mistake

Here's a common mistake. Lots of people add E, D to irregular verbs by mistake. But go never takes E, D: go becomes went. And catch becomes caught.

Try it at home

Yesterday ping-pong: one says a verb (swim), the other says Yesterday I... with the past tense (swam). Keep a list of the tricky ones on the fridge.

Read the whole lesson

Hello, and welcome to Myriora English! For most verbs, we make the past tense by adding E, D: walk, walked. But some verbs break the rule. They're called irregular verbs.

Go becomes went. Catch becomes caught. Swim becomes swam. Run becomes ran. And think becomes thought.

Some irregular verbs follow patterns. Sing, sang. Ring, rang. Drink, drank. The I changes to an A. And some end in ought or aught: bring, brought, and teach, taught.

Let's try one together. What's the past tense of swim? Yesterday I blank in the sea. Say it out loud!

Swam! Yesterday I swam in the sea. Swim doesn't take E, D. Well done if you said swam!

Here's a common mistake. Lots of people add E, D to irregular verbs by mistake. But go never takes E, D: go becomes went. And catch becomes caught.

Your turn! Which is the past tense of think? Pick the right card. You've got eight seconds, or pause the video. Go!

Time's up! Thought! Think becomes thought.

Quick review. Most verbs add E, D for the past tense. Irregular verbs change in their own way: go, went, swim, swam, catch, caught. Some follow patterns, like sing, sang. Learn them by saying them often. See you next time!