Master the five forms every verb can take — Base, Past Simple, Past Participle, Present Participle & Third Person Singular!
V1, V2, V3, V4 & V5 — every verb wears five different costumes
Every English verb has five forms. These forms are used to build different tenses. Knowing all five forms of a verb is the key to writing correct sentences!
| Verb | V1 (Base) | V2 (Past) | V3 (Past Part.) | V4 (-ing) | V5 (-s/-es) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🎾 | play | played | played | playing | plays |
| 🚶 | go | went | gone | going | goes |
| ✍️ | write | wrote | written | writing | writes |
| 🍔 | eat | ate | eaten | eating | eats |
💡 Notice: For regular verbs, V2 and V3 are the same (played/played). For irregular verbs, they can all be different!
Rules for adding -s or -es to create the third person singular form
V5 is used only in the Simple Present Tense when the subject is he, she, it, or any singular noun.
Most verbs — just add -s to the base form.
If the verb ends in -s, -sh, -ch, -x, -z, or -o, add -es.
If the verb ends in a consonant + y, change y to i and add -es.
If the verb ends in a vowel + y, simply add -s.
A few verbs have special V5 forms.
25 common regular verbs with all five forms
For regular verbs, V2 and V3 are always the same. V4 adds -ing. V5 adds -s/-es.
| # | V1 (Base) | V2 (Past) | V3 (Past Part.) | V4 (-ing) | V5 (-s/-es) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | play | played | played | playing | plays |
| 2 | walk | walked | walked | walking | walks |
| 3 | talk | talked | talked | talking | talks |
| 4 | jump | jumped | jumped | jumping | jumps |
| 5 | cook | cooked | cooked | cooking | cooks |
| 6 | like | liked | liked | liking | likes |
| 7 | love | loved | loved | loving | loves |
| 8 | open | opened | opened | opening | opens |
| 9 | close | closed | closed | closing | closes |
| 10 | study | studied | studied | studying | studies |
| 11 | carry | carried | carried | carrying | carries |
| 12 | stop | stopped | stopped | stopping | stops |
| 13 | clap | clapped | clapped | clapping | claps |
| 14 | paint | painted | painted | painting | paints |
| 15 | dance | danced | danced | dancing | dances |
| 16 | watch | watched | watched | watching | watches |
| 17 | wash | washed | washed | washing | washes |
| 18 | help | helped | helped | helping | helps |
| 19 | call | called | called | calling | calls |
| 20 | ask | asked | asked | asking | asks |
| 21 | need | needed | needed | needing | needs |
| 22 | try | tried | tried | trying | tries |
| 23 | use | used | used | using | uses |
| 24 | work | worked | worked | working | works |
| 25 | enjoy | enjoyed | enjoyed | enjoying | enjoys |
40 common irregular verbs grouped by pattern
| # | V1 (Base) | V2 (Past) | V3 (Past Part.) | V4 (-ing) | V5 (-s/-es) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | go | went | gone | going | goes |
| 2 | eat | ate | eaten | eating | eats |
| 3 | write | wrote | written | writing | writes |
| 4 | sing | sang | sung | singing | sings |
| 5 | drink | drank | drunk | drinking | drinks |
| 6 | swim | swam | swum | swimming | swims |
| 7 | take | took | taken | taking | takes |
| 8 | give | gave | given | giving | gives |
| 9 | see | saw | seen | seeing | sees |
| 10 | break | broke | broken | breaking | breaks |
| 11 | speak | spoke | spoken | speaking | speaks |
| 12 | begin | began | begun | beginning | begins |
| 13 | choose | chose | chosen | choosing | chooses |
| 14 | fly | flew | flown | flying | flies |
| 15 | know | knew | known | knowing | knows |
| 16 | throw | threw | thrown | throwing | throws |
| 17 | drive | drove | driven | driving | drives |
| 18 | forget | forgot | forgotten | forgetting | forgets |
| 19 | draw | drew | drawn | drawing | draws |
| 20 | fall | fell | fallen | falling | falls |
| 21 | grow | grew | grown | growing | grows |
| 22 | hide | hid | hidden | hiding | hides |
| 23 | ride | rode | ridden | riding | rides |
| 24 | rise | rose | risen | rising | rises |
| 25 | shake | shook | shaken | shaking | shakes |
| # | V1 (Base) | V2 (Past) | V3 (Past Part.) | V4 (-ing) | V5 (-s/-es) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | buy | bought | bought | buying | buys |
| 2 | bring | brought | brought | bringing | brings |
| 3 | catch | caught | caught | catching | catches |
| 4 | teach | taught | taught | teaching | teaches |
| 5 | think | thought | thought | thinking | thinks |
| 6 | fight | fought | fought | fighting | fights |
| 7 | find | found | found | finding | finds |
| 8 | feel | felt | felt | feeling | feels |
| 9 | keep | kept | kept | keeping | keeps |
| 10 | leave | left | left | leaving | leaves |
| 11 | lose | lost | lost | losing | loses |
| 12 | sit | sat | sat | sitting | sits |
| # | V1 (Base) | V2 (Past) | V3 (Past Part.) | V4 (-ing) | V5 (-s/-es) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | cut | cut | cut | cutting | cuts |
| 2 | put | put | put | putting | puts |
| 3 | shut | shut | shut | shutting | shuts |
| 4 | set | set | set | setting | sets |
| 5 | let | let | let | letting | lets |
| 6 | hit | hit | hit | hitting | hits |
| 7 | hurt | hurt | hurt | hurting | hurts |
| 8 | read | read | read | reading | reads |
| # | V1 (Base) | V2 (Past) | V3 (Past Part.) | V4 (-ing) | V5 (-s/-es) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | come | came | come | coming | comes |
| 2 | run | ran | run | running | runs |
| 3 | become | became | become | becoming | becomes |
| 4 | overcome | overcame | overcome | overcoming | overcomes |
🌟 The verb "read" is a tricky one! It looks the same in V1, V2, and V3, but the pronunciation changes: V1 = "reed," V2 & V3 = "red."
🌟 The verb "be" is the most irregular verb in English. It has 8 forms: be, am, is, are, was, were, been, being!
🌟 Only about 200 verbs in English are irregular. The other thousands of verbs are all regular — just add -ed!
A quick reference to know exactly which V-form goes where
This table shows you which verb form (V1–V5) is used in each tense.
| Tense | Structure | Form Used | Example (verb: write) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple Present (I/you/we/they) | Subject + V1 | V1 | They write letters. |
| Simple Present (he/she/it) | Subject + V5 | V5 | She writes letters. |
| Simple Past | Subject + V2 | V2 | She wrote a letter. |
| Simple Future | Subject + will + V1 | V1 | She will write a letter. |
| Present Continuous | Subject + is/am/are + V4 | V4 | She is writing a letter. |
| Past Continuous | Subject + was/were + V4 | V4 | She was writing a letter. |
| Future Continuous | Subject + will be + V4 | V4 | She will be writing a letter. |
| Present Perfect | Subject + has/have + V3 | V3 | She has written a letter. |
| Past Perfect | Subject + had + V3 | V3 | She had written a letter. |
| Future Perfect | Subject + will have + V3 | V3 | She will have written a letter. |
| Present Perfect Continuous | Subject + has/have been + V4 | V4 | She has been writing since morning. |
| Past Perfect Continuous | Subject + had been + V4 | V4 | She had been writing for an hour. |
💡 Memory trick: Continuous = V4 (-ing), Perfect = V3 (past participle), Simple Past = V2, Simple Present with he/she/it = V5!
Understand the differences between verb forms through side-by-side comparisons
Students often confuse V2 and V3, especially because for regular verbs, they are the same! But for irregular verbs, they can be very different.
| Verb (V1) | V2 | V3 | Same? | V2 in sentence | V3 in sentence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| play | played | played | Yes | She played yesterday. | She has played well. |
| go | went | gone | No | He went home. | He has gone home. |
| write | wrote | written | No | I wrote a letter. | I have written a letter. |
| eat | ate | eaten | No | We ate lunch. | We have eaten lunch. |
| buy | bought | bought | Yes | She bought a book. | She has bought a book. |
| sing | sang | sung | No | They sang a song. | They have sung a song. |
| cut | cut | cut | Yes | He cut the rope. | He has cut the rope. |
| swim | swam | swum | No | She swam fast. | She has swum fast. |
In the Simple Present Tense, the verb form depends on the subject:
| Subject | Form Used | Example | Why? |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | V1 | I play cricket. | First person → always V1 |
| You | V1 | You play cricket. | Second person → always V1 |
| We / They | V1 | They play cricket. | Plural → always V1 |
| He / She / It | V5 | He plays cricket. | Third person singular → V5 |
| Ram (name) | V5 | Ram plays cricket. | One person = he/she → V5 |
| The dog | V5 | The dog runs fast. | One animal = it → V5 |
| The boys | V1 | The boys run fast. | Plural = they → V1 |
| Feature | Regular Verbs | Irregular Verbs |
|---|---|---|
| V2 rule | Add -ed (played, walked, jumped) | Changes unpredictably (went, wrote, ate) |
| V3 rule | Same as V2 — add -ed (played, walked) | Often different from V2 (gone, written, eaten) |
| V2 = V3? | Always yes | Sometimes yes, sometimes no |
| V4 rule | Add -ing (playing, walking) | Add -ing (going, writing) |
| V5 rule | Add -s/-es (plays, walks) | Add -s/-es (goes, writes) |
| How many? | Thousands (most English verbs) | About 200 common ones |
| Easy to learn? | Yes — one pattern for all | Harder — must memorise each one |
| Examples | play, walk, jump, cook, dance, help | go, eat, write, sing, swim, buy, run |
These verb pairs look or sound similar but have different meanings and forms:
| Verb | Meaning | V1 | V2 | V3 | V4 | V5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ① | lie (to recline) | lie | lay | lain | lying | lies |
| lay (to put down) | lay | laid | laid | laying | lays | |
| ② | rise (go up) | rise | rose | risen | rising | rises |
| raise (lift something) | raise | raised | raised | raising | raises | |
| ③ | sit (be seated) | sit | sat | sat | sitting | sits |
| set (place something) | set | set | set | setting | sets | |
| ④ | hang (suspend) | hang | hung | hung | hanging | hangs |
| hang (execute) | hang | hanged | hanged | hanging | hangs | |
| ⑤ | find (discover) | find | found | found | finding | finds |
| found (establish) | found | founded | founded | founding | founds |
See how the verb "write" changes across every tense:
| Tense | V-Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple Present | V1 / V5 | S + V1/V5 | I write / She writes |
| Present Continuous | V4 | S + is/am/are + V4 | She is writing |
| Present Perfect | V3 | S + has/have + V3 | She has written |
| Simple Past | V2 | S + V2 | She wrote |
| Past Continuous | V4 | S + was/were + V4 | She was writing |
| Past Perfect | V3 | S + had + V3 | She had written |
| Simple Future | V1 | S + will + V1 | She will write |
| Future Continuous | V4 | S + will be + V4 | She will be writing |
| Future Perfect | V3 | S + will have + V3 | She will have written |
Test yourself! Fill in the missing verb forms and check your answers
Click any card to flip it and reveal all verb forms!
Drag each word to the correct V-column!
5 exercises to master all five verb forms!
Write the V1, V2, V3, V4, and V5 forms of each verb given below.
Choose the correct form of the verb given in brackets to complete each sentence.
Read each sentence and identify which form (V1, V2, V3, V4, or V5) the underlined verb is in.
Each sentence has one wrong verb form. Rewrite the sentence with the correct form.
A mix of matching, odd-one-out, and quick-fire questions!
Part 1: Match the Column
Match each V1 in Column A with its correct V3 in Column B:
| Column A (V1) | Column B (V3) |
|---|---|
| 1. take | a. driven |
| 2. sing | b. known |
| 3. drive | c. taken |
| 4. know | d. thrown |
| 5. throw | e. sung |
Part 2: Odd One Out
Circle the verb that does NOT belong to the same pattern as the others:
Part 3: Quick Fire — True or False?
Now you know all five verb forms (V1–V5) and exactly where each one is used. Keep practising and these will become second nature!
Next up: Chapter 20 — Tenses (V1–V5) →