Master Irregular Verbs: 100 Examples with Meanings for Exam Triumph

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Introduction

Irregular verbs are a cornerstone of English grammar, defying standard conjugation patterns and challenging learners with unique forms for past tense and past participle. These verbs, such as “go” (went, gone) or “eat” (ate, eaten), are frequently tested in competitive exams like SSC, IELTS, TOEFL, and GRE, making them essential for students and candidates. Mastering irregular verbs enhances your grammar accuracy and vocabulary, crucial for excelling in sentence correction, cloze tests, and essay writing. This article provides 100 irregular verbs with their meanings, along with practical tips to help you succeed in exams and beyond.

What Are Irregular Verbs?

Irregular verbs are verbs that do not follow the regular pattern of adding “-ed” to form past tense and past participle (e.g., “walk” becomes “walked”). Instead, they have unique forms, often memorized through practice. They are integral to English, appearing in various tenses and contexts, and are a key focus in competitive exam grammar sections.

100 Irregular Verbs with Meanings

Below is a detailed list of 100 irregular verbs, including common and exam-relevant examples, with their base form, past tense, past participle, and meanings to boost your grammar skills:

1. Be (was/were, been) – To exist or occur.
2. Become (became, become) – To transform into.
3. Begin (began, begun) – To start.
4. Break (broke, broken) – To shatter or stop functioning.
5. Bring (brought, brought) – To carry to a place.
6. Build (built, built) – To construct.
7. Buy (bought, bought) – To purchase.
8. Catch (caught, caught) – To capture or seize.
9. Choose (chose, chosen) – To select.
10. Come (came, come) – To move toward.
11. Cut (cut, cut) – To slice or divide.
12. Do (did, done) – To perform an action.
13. Draw (drew, drawn) – To create a picture.
14. Drink (drank, drunk) – To consume liquid.
15. Drive (drove, driven) – To operate a vehicle.
16. Eat (ate, eaten) – To consume food.
17. Fall (fell, fallen) – To drop or descend.
18. Feel (felt, felt) – To experience an emotion.
19. Find (found, found) – To discover.
20. Fly (flew, flown) – To move through the air.
21. Forget (forgot, forgotten) – To fail to remember.
22. Get (got, got/gotten) – To receive or obtain.
23. Give (gave, given) – To hand over.
24. Go (went, gone) – To move or travel.
25. Grow (grew, grown) – To increase in size.
26. Have (had, had) – To possess.
27. Hear (heard, heard) – To perceive sound.
28. Hide (hid, hidden) – To conceal.
29. Hit (hit, hit) – To strike.
30. Hold (held, held) – To grasp or maintain.
31. Keep (kept, kept) – To retain.
32. Know (knew, known) – To understand.
33. Lead (led, led) – To guide.
34. Leave (left, left) – To depart or abandon.
35. Lend (lent, lent) – To give temporarily.
36. Let (let, let) – To allow.
37. Lie (lay, lain) – To recline.
38. Lose (lost, lost) – To misplace or fail.
39. Make (made, made) – To create.
40. Meet (met, met) – To encounter.
41. Pay (paid, paid) – To give money.
42. Put (put, put) – To place.
43. Read (read, read) – To look at and understand text.
44. Ride (rode, ridden) – To travel on.
45. Ring (rang, rung) – To call or sound.
46. Rise (rose, risen) – To ascend.
47. Run (ran, run) – To move quickly.
48. Say (said, said) – To express in words.
49. See (saw, seen) – To perceive with eyes.
50. Sell (sold, sold) – To exchange for money.
51. Send (sent, sent) – To dispatch.
52. Set (set, set) – To place or adjust.
53. Shake (shook, shaken) – To move back and forth.
54. Shine (shone, shone) – To emit light.
55. Shoot (shot, shot) – To fire a weapon.
56. Show (showed, shown) – To display.
57. Shut (shut, shut) – To close.
58. Sing (sang, sung) – To produce music vocally.
59. Sit (sat, sat) – To rest on a surface.
60. Sleep (slept, slept) – To rest unconsciously.
61. Speak (spoke, spoken) – To talk.
62. Spend (spent, spent) – To use money or time.
63. Stand (stood, stood) – To rise to an upright position.
64. Steal (stole, stolen) – To take illegally.
65. Stick (stuck, stuck) – To adhere or pierce.
66. Strike (struck, struck) – To hit.
67. Swim (swam, swum) – To move through water.
68. Take (took, taken) – To grab or accept.
69. Teach (taught, taught) – To instruct.
70. Tear (tore, torn) – To rip.
71. Tell (told, told) – To narrate or inform.
72. Think (thought, thought) – To consider.
73. Throw (threw, thrown) – To propel.
74. Understand (understood, understood) – To comprehend.
75. Wake (woke, woken) – To stop sleeping.
76. Wear (wore, worn) – To have on the body.
77. Win (won, won) – To achieve victory.
78. Write (wrote, written) – To compose text.
79. Beat (beat, beaten) – To strike repeatedly.
80. Bend (bent, bent) – To curve.
81. Bind (bound, bound) – To tie or unite.
82. Bite (bit, bitten) – To use teeth.
83. Bleed (bled, bled) – To lose blood.
84. Blow (blew, blown) – To move air.
85. Burn (burnt, burnt) – To consume by fire.
86. Deal (dealt, dealt) – To distribute.
87. Dig (dug, dug) – To excavate.
88. Feed (fed, fed) – To give food.
89. Fight (fought, fought) – To engage in conflict.
90. Flee (fled, fled) – To run away.
91. Freeze (froze, frozen) – To turn to ice.
92. Hang (hung, hung) – To suspend.
93. Lay (laid, laid) – To place down.
94. Mean (meant, meant) – To intend.
95. Prove (proved, proven) – To demonstrate.
96. Seek (sought, sought) – To search for.
97. Sew (sewed, sewn) – To stitch.
98. Sink (sank, sunk) – To go under water.
99. Slide (slid, slid) – To move smoothly.
100. Spin (spun, spun) – To rotate.

Tips for Using Irregular Verbs in Competitive Examinations

Irregular verbs are a frequent focus in SSC, IELTS, TOEFL, and GRE exams, tested through verb conjugation, sentence correction, and vocabulary sections. Here are key tips to master them:

1. Memorize in Groups: Group irregular verbs by similar patterns (e.g., “drink, drank, drunk” with “sink, sank, sunk”) to simplify memorization for SSC cloze tests.
2. Practice Past and Participle Forms: Focus on past tense and past participle pairs (e.g., “see, saw, seen”) for IELTS grammar tasks to avoid errors.
3. Use in Sentences: Write sentences with irregular verbs (e.g., “She has eaten lunch”) to reinforce usage, critical for TOEFL writing.
4. Identify in Texts: Spot irregular verbs in reading passages (e.g., “gone,” “taken”) to improve GRE comprehension and vocabulary skills.
5. Avoid Overgeneralization: Don’t add “-ed” to irregular verbs (e.g., “goed” is wrong for “went”), a common mistake in SSC grammar questions.
6. Learn Common Errors: Watch for incorrect forms like “thinked” (should be “thought”) in multiple-choice questions.
7. Practice with Exercises: Use SSC/IELTS workbooks with fill-in-the-blank exercises to master irregular verb forms under time pressure.
8. Enhance Speaking: Use irregular verbs naturally in IELTS/TOEFL speaking (e.g., “I have seen that movie”) to sound fluent.
9. Review Regularly: Create flashcards with base, past, and participle forms for daily revision, aiding GRE vocabulary retention.
10. Test Yourself: Take mock exams to identify weak areas in irregular verb usage, ensuring readiness for competitive tests.

Conclusion

Irregular verbs are a fundamental aspect of English grammar, requiring dedicated practice to master their unique forms and meanings. By learning the 100 irregular verbs listed above and applying the provided tips, students and candidates can confidently excel in competitive exams like SSC, IELTS, TOEFL, and GRE. Regular practice, contextual understanding, and error avoidance will transform irregular verbs into a strength, boosting your overall language proficiency and exam performance.

Also Read: Boost Your English with 100 Phrasal Verbs: Meanings and Tips for Exam Success

Mastering Modal Verbs: 100 Examples with Meanings for Exam Success

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