Irregular Past Tense Verbs for Kids: Words That Break the Rules (Grade 3 English)

Hi, I'm Luna from DoodleBeez. Most verbs tell about the past by adding ed. Walk becomes walked. But some verbs break the rule. They are called irregular verbs. Let's meet them!

A regular verb just adds ed. Jump, jumped. Play, played. An irregular verb changes in a different way. Run becomes ran, not runned. Eat becomes ate, not eated.

Some irregular verbs change one vowel. Sing becomes sang. Drink becomes drank. Swim becomes swam. Ring becomes rang. Listen for the I changing to A.

Some change into new words completely. Go becomes went. Be becomes was or were. Buy becomes bought. These ones follow no pattern, so you just have to practice and remember them.

A few irregular verbs do not change at all! Today I cut my hair. Yesterday I cut my hair. Put and hit stay the same too. Cut, put and hit look the same in the past.

Here is a tip. If adding ed sounds strange, it may be irregular. Say the sentence out loud. Yesterday I thinked sounds wrong. Yesterday I thought sounds right!

Now it's your turn. Change this sentence to the past. Today I write a letter. Yesterday I blank a letter. Pause and try. The answer is wrote. Yesterday I wrote a letter.

Great job! Remember, irregular verbs do not use ed. Some change a vowel, some become new words, and some stay the same. Practice irregular past verbs in the English Lab at doodlebeez.com. See you next time!