Mistake clinic
Ten common irregular-verb mistakes
Most errors here are not random. They come from using the past simple after a helping verb, keeping a past form after did, or confusing two verbs that look alike.
1. “I have went”
I have went home.
I have gone home.
After have, use the participle gone. Use wentwithout have: I went home at six.
2. “Did you saw it?”
Did you saw it? → Did you see it?
Did already carries the past tense, so the main verb returns to its base form. The same rule gives She didn't take it
.
3. “She has wrote”
She has wrote twice. → She has written twice.
The sequence is write–wrote–written.Wrote is past simple; written follows has.
4. “We have chose”
We have chose a colour. → We have chosen a colour.
Several verbs add an -en sound in the participle:chosen, broken, spoken, and taken.
5. “The film has began”
The film has began. → The film has begun.
Keep the three-vowel sequence together:begin–began–begun. The helping verb signals the third form.
6. “I have been there yesterday”
I have been there yesterday. → I was there yesterday.
A finished time such as yesterday normally calls for the past simple.I have been there before
works because before means at some unspecified time up to now.
7. “She lay the book down”
She lay the book down. → She laid the book down.
The transitive verb is lay–laid–laid. The form lay is also the past of lie, which does not take an object. See thelie versus lay guide.
8. “The picture was hanged on the wall”
The picture was hanged on the wall. → The picture was hung on the wall.
Use hung for suspended objects. Hanged is reserved for execution by hanging.
9. “I seen her last week”
I seen her last week. → I saw her last week.
Seen needs a helping verb: I have seen her
. The completed event last week requires past-simple saw.
10. “He has took my seat”
He has took my seat. → He has taken my seat.
Learn take–took–taken as a complete set. The middle form reports a simple past event; the third follows has.
Practice
- Correct: “Did Mina wrote back?”
- Correct: “The glass has broke.”
- Correct: “They have ate already.”
- Correct: “I seen that film on Friday.”
- Correct: “He lay the keys on the desk.”
Answers
- Did Mina write back?
- The glass has broken.
- They have eaten already.
- I saw that film on Friday.
- He laid the keys on the desk.