English strong verbs

1. First group:
group: -u- in the past participle (and mostly in the simple past)
Infinitive

Simple Past

to cling
ng
to fling
ng
to haang
to ring
ng
to sing
ng
to sling
ng
to spring
ng
to sting
ng
to string
ng
to swing
ng
to wring
ng
to drink
nk
to shrink
nk

raang
saang
spraang

draank
shraank

Past Participle

Etymological
information

clu
ung
flu
ung
hu
ung

clu
ung
flu
ung
hu
ung

Old English clingan

ru
ung RARELY
su
ung RARELY
slu
ung
spru
ung US
stu
ung
stru
ung
swu
ung
wru
ung

ru
ung
su
ung
slu
ung
spru
ung
stu
ung
stru
ung
swu
ung
wru
ung
dru
unk
shru
unk

shru
unk

OLD-

Probably Old Norse flengja

Old English hn Old English
hangian to hang is weak
Old English hringan
Old English singan
Old English slingan
Old English springan
Old English stingan
Old English streng (noun)
Old English swingan
Old English wringan
Old English drincan
Old English scrincan

FASHIONED

to sink
nk
to slink
nk
to stink
nk

su
unk RARELY/US
slu
unk
stu
unk

saank
staank

su
unk
slu
unk
stu
unk

Old English sincan (intr.)

swu
um
begu
un
ru
un

Old English swimman

Old English slincan

Old English stincan

US/AUSTR ALSO

to swim
m
to begin
n
to ru
un

swaam
begaan
raan

to spin
n
to stick
ck
to dig
g

spaan ARCH.

to snea
eak
eak
to strik
ke

sneaked

begu
un

RARELY

spu
un
stu
uck
du
ug

spu
un
stu
uck
du
ug

spaan UK ALSO

snu
uck US ALSO
stru
uck

snu
uck US ALSO
stru
uck

sneaked
striicken

Old English beginnan

Old English rinnan, irnan, iernan +
rennan
Old English spinnan
Old English stician
Probably Old French diguer
(ultimately of Germanic origin)
Perhaps Old English sncan
Old English strcan

ARCH.

2. Second group: Verbs that end on -w

Infinitive

Simple Past

Past Participle
gnawed
hewed
sawed

to gnaw
w
to hew
w7
to saw
w

gnawn
n
hewn
n
sawn
n

Etymological information

gnawed
hewed
sawed

Old English gnagan

sewed

Old English swian, sowian

Old English hawan

Old English saga (noun)

USUAL

to sew
w
to show
w
to shew
w
to sow
w7
to strew
w
to strow
w
to blow
w7
to crow
w
to draw
w
to mow
w7
to throw
w
to grow
w7
to know
w7
to fly
to slay

sewed
showed
shewed
sowed
strewed
strowed
bleew
creew UK ALSO
dreew

crowed
mowed

threew
greew
kneew
fleew
sleew

sewn
n
shown
n
shewn
n
sown
n
strewn
n
strown
n
blown
n

Old English scawian

shewed
sowed
strewed

crowed
drawn
n
mown
n
thrown
n
grown
n
known
n
flown
n
slai
ain
ain

Old English swan

Old English strewian, streowian
Old English blwan
Old English crwan
Old English dragan

mowed

Old English mwan

Old English thrwan
Old English grwan
Old English cnwan
Old English flogan
Old English slan

3. Third group: Verbs with an -i- [a

[a] in the infinitive
Infinitive

Simple Past

Past Participle

Etymological information

to biite
to diive
to driive
to hiide
to riide
to riise

bit
do
ove US ALSO
drove

biitten

Old English btan

Old English dfan, dfan

to riive
to shriive
to smiite ARCH.
to striide
to striive
to thriive

dived
hiid

ro
ode
ro
ose
rived
shrived

shro
ove
smo
ote
stro
ode
stro
ove
thro
ove

(/ strived)
US ALSO

thrived

dived

Old English drfan

driiven
hiidden
riidden
riisen

Old English hdan

Old English rdan
Old English rsan
Old Norse rfa

riiven
shriiven
smiitten
striidden
striiven

rived
shrived

US

thrived

Old English strdan

Old French estriver; possibly from a
Germanic source
Old Norse rfa

abided

Old English wrtan

Old English bdan

shined

Old English scnan

triiven

(/ strived)

Old English scrfan

Old English smtan

ALSO

to wriite
to abiide OLD USE

wro
ote
abo
ode

abided

to shiine

sho
one

shined

wriitten
abiidden /
abo
ode
sho
one

4. Fourth group:
group: Verbs that end on -ind (and to fight)
Infinitive

Simple Past

Past Participle

Etymological information

to bind
ind
to find
ind
to grind
ind
to wind
ind
to fight
ght

bound
found
ground
wound
fought

bound
found
ground
wound
fought

Old English bindan

Old English findan
Old English grindan
Old English windan
Old English fehtan

5. Fifth group: Verbs that end on -ear

Infinitive

Simple Past

Past Participle

Etymological information

to bear
ear
to shear
ear

bore
shore

born US ALSO
shorn

Old English beran

Old English sceran

sheared

borne
sheared

ARCH./POET.

to swear
ear
to tear
ear
to wear
ear

swore
tore
wore

Old English swerian

sworn
torn
worn

Old English teran

Old English werian

6. Sixth group: Verbs that end on -eaC (C being a consonant)

Infinitive

Simple Past

Past Participle

Etymological information

to break
eak
to speak
eak
to steal
eal
to weav
eave
eav

broke
spoke
stole
wove

broken
spoken
stolen
woven

Old English brecan

spake ARCH.
weaved US
ALSO

Late Old English specan (for sprecan)

Old English stelan

weaved US

Old English wefan

ALSO

7. Seventh group: Various verbs with -en in the past participle

Infinitive

Simple Past

Past Participle

Etymological information

to beat7
to bid (to request; to say)
to chide

beat
bid / bade

Old English batan

to choose
to cleave OLD USE / LITERARY

chose
clove

to eat
to fall
to freeze

ate
fell
froze

beaten
en / US ALSO beat
bidden
en / bid
chided /
chidden
en
chid
chosen
en
cleft /
cloven
en
cleaved
eaten
en
fallen
en
frozen
en

chided / chid

cleft /
cleaved

Old English biddan

Old English cidan
Also an irregular weak verb (1st group)
Old English cosan
Old English clofan
Also a mixed verb
Old English etan
Old English fallan
Old English frosan

to get
to give
to heave

got
gave
hove NAUT.

heaved

got / gotten
en US
given
en
heaved
hove(n)
e(n)

Old Norse geta

Old English gefan [West Saxon giefan]
Old English hebban

NAUT.

laded

to lade
to lie

lay
overloaded

to overload

laden
en
lain
n

laded

overladen
en

overloaded

Old English hladan

Old English licgan (not the same as to
lie [to tell lies] from logan strong)

UK ALSO

proved

to prove

proven
en

proved

US/SCOTS

to see
to swell
to tread

saw
trod

to forsake
to shake
to take
to wake

forsook
shook
took
woke

swelled
treaded US ALSO

waked

Old French prover < Latin probre

Partly perhaps Old English prfian

seen
n
swollen
en
swelled FIG.
US/AUSTR ALSO
trodden
en /
trod
forsaken
en
shaken
en
taken
en
waked
woken
en

Old English son

Old English swellan
Old English tredan
Old English forsacan
Old English sc(e)acan
Late Old English tacan (Old Norse taka)
Old English wacan (strong) + wacian (weak)

8. Restgroup
Infinitive

Simple Past

Past Participle

Etymological information

to win3
to cleave
to come4
to hold7
to shit(e) 1
to shoot2
to sit5
to spit

won
clave
came
held
shit / shat
shot
sat
spat / spit US

won

Old English winnan

to stand7
to stave

stood
stove

cleaved

shitted

staved

cleaved
come
held
shit / shat shitted
shot
sat
spat / spit US
stood
stove

Old English clifian

Old English cuman
Old English haldan
Old English scitan
Old English scotan
Old English sittan
Northern Old English spittan
Also an irregular weak verb (1st group)
Old English standan

staved

English suppletive verbs

Infinitive

Simple Past

Past Participle

Etymological information

to be
to can
to dare

was (sg.) / were (pl.)

could
dared / durst NOW RARE, USED ESP. IN

been
dared

Old English bon

done
gone
had
made
-

Old English dn

SUBJUNCTIVE SENSE

to do
to go
to have
to make
to may
to shall
to will

did
went (SUPPLIED FROM TO WEND)
had
made
might
should
would

Old English gn

English irregular
irregular weak verbs
Note: Only irregular in orthography are lay (laid - laid), pay (paid - laid) and say (said - said). The verb to lose (lost - lost)
could also be placed alongside these verbs. Verbs I find hard to classify, but seem to be irregular
weak are to cloth (clad (written language) / clothed - clad (written language) / clothed), to light (lit / lighted - lit / lighted) and to shoe (shod /
shoed (US also) - shod / shoed (US also))
.

1. First group: Verbs that end on a -t/t/-d

These verbs display an assimilation of the dental suffix with the root (imagine the following,
simplified, scenario: I have cutt
tted
td > I have cutt).
tt d > I have cutd

Infinitive

Simple Past

to bend
to bet
to bid (in auctions)
to build
to burst
to bust
to cast
to cost
to cut
to hit
to hurt
to lend
to slide
to slit

bent
bet
bid
built
burst
bust UK
cast
cost
cut
hit
hurt
lent
slid
slit

to split
to spread
to sweat
to thrust
to wed
to wet
to fit
to gild
to gird OLD USE
to knit
to put
to quit
to rend
to rid
to send
to set
to shed7
to shut
to spend
to let7

split
spread
sweat
thrust
wed
wet
US ALSO
fit
gilt
girt
knit
put
quit
rent
rid
sent
set
shed
shut
spent
let

Past Participle
(/ bended)
(/ betted)

busted ESP. US

sweated
wedded
wetted
fitted
gilded
girded
knitted
quitted
rended US
ridded
(sended NAUT.)

bent
bet
bid
built
burst
bust UK
cast
cost
cut
hit
hurt
lent
slid
slit

Etymological
information

(/ bended)
(/ betted)

split
spread
sweat
thrust
wed
wet
US ALSO
fit
gilt
girt
knit
put
quit
rent
rid
sent
set
shed
shut
spent
let

Old English bodan

busted ESP. US

Old English berstan

Orig. a coll. form of burst

Old English sldan

Middle Englsih slitten, appearently
related to Old English sltan

sweated
wedded
wetted
fitted
gilded
girded
knitted
quitted
rended US
ridded
(sended NAUT.)

Old English rendan

Old Norse ryhja
Old English settan
Old English scdan, scadan
Old English scyttan
Old English ltan

Other verbs belonging to this group are the following.

Infinitive

Simple Past

to dwell
ll
to smell
ll
to spell
ll
to spill
ll
to spoil
to bless
to burn

dwelt
UK ALSO
smelt
spelt UK
spilt UK
UK ALSO
spoilt
blest LITERARY
burnt

Past Participle
dwelled
smelled
spelled US
spilled US
spoiled
blessed
burned

dwelt
UK ALSO
smelt
spelt UK
spilt UK
UK ALSO
spoilt
blest LITERARY
burnt

dwelled
smelled
spelled US
spilled US
spoiled
blessed
burned

Etymological information

Old English brnan (trans. weak) +

beornan (intrans. strong)

to lean
to learn

UK ALSO

to pen

pent

UK ALSO

leant
learnt

leaned
learned
penned

UK ALSO

leaned
learned

leant

UK ALSO

learnt
pent

penned

English mixed (strong(strong-weak) verbs

Although there is a secondary ablaut phenomenon ([i:] that alternates with [e]), the use of a dental
suffix is still needed to form the simple past and past participle. The numerous verbs dont seem to
share a common phonological rootstructure.

Infinitive

Simple Past

to bereave

bereft USU. IN GENERAL

bereaved

SENSE

USU. BY DEATH

to deal
to dream
to feel
to flee
to hear
to kneel
to lead
to leap
to leave
to mean
to meet
to plead

dealt
dreamt
felt
fled
heard
knelt
led
leapt UK
left
meant
met
pled US, SCOTS, DIAL.

Past Participle

dreamed

kneeled
leaped US

pleaded

bereaved

bereft

Etymological information
Old English berafian
Old English dlan

dealt
dreamt
felt
fled
heard
knelt
led
leapt UK
left
meant
met
pled US,

dreamed
Old English flon

kneeled
leaped US

pleaded

SCOTS, DIAL.

to read
to bleed
eed
to breed
eed
to feed
eed
to speed
eed (to
hurry)
to creep
eep
to keep
eep
to sleep
eep
to sweep
eep
to weep
eep

read
bled
bred
fed
sped

read
bled
bred
fed
sped

Old English rdan

crept
kept
slept
swept
wept

crept
kept
slept
swept
wept

Old English cropan

trans. is weak

Old English slpan

Old English wpan

English mixed
mixed
mixed verbs with a special form
Infinitive

Simple Past

Past Participle

to buy
to bring
to catch
to beseech OLD USE / LITERARY
to seek
to teach
to think
to wreak
to sell
to tell

bought
ght
brought
ght
caught
ght
besought
ght
sought
ght
taught
ght
thought
ght
wrought
sold
told

bought
ght
brought
ght
caught
ght
besought
ght
sought
ght
taught
ght
thought
ght
wrought
ght
sold
told

beseeched

wreaked

beseeched
Old English scan

wreaked

urce material:
http://www.ldoceonline.com/
Longman dictionary
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/ Cambridge dictionary
http://www.etymonline.com/
Online Etymologic Dictionary
The Wordsworth Concise English Dictionary (2007)

Lennert De Backer (2013)

Etymological information