Irregular verb
speak
/spiːk/
- Base
- speak
- Past simple
- spoke
- Past participle
- spoken
Usage
spoke names a single conversation; spoken needs have/has/had, as in have spoken.
Meaning
- to say words using your voice
Example
I spoke to the manager yesterday.
She spoke calmly despite the pressure.
We have spoken about this before.
Teaching note
Speak forms spoke in the simple past and spoken as a participle, mirroring the vowel-and-n contrast found in break, wake, and steal.
Common mistake
Do not write ‘We have spoke already’; spoke describes simple past and is not the third form.
Correction: Use ‘We spoke yesterday’ for a finished event or ‘We have spoken already’ when the conversation affects the present.