Verb Forms

Last Updated : 09 Apr, 2025

Verbs are one of the most essential parts of speech in any language, as they express actions, states, or occurrences. Understanding the different forms of verbs is key to mastering grammar and effective communication. Verb forms can vary depending on tense, voice, and mood, and knowing how to use them correctly helps to build clear and accurate sentences.

In this article, we will explore the various verb forms, their uses, and how they change to convey different meanings in English.

What is a Verb Form?

Verbs are components of speech that describe an activity or a condition of someone being. Every verb has five alternative forms. A verb form is a method that means shaping or modifying a verb to match the setting that communicates about an activity that is conducted at a given moment. When to employ one of these forms is determined by the topic and content of the statement.

Root Form of the Verb

The verb root, commonly referred to as both the "base form of a verb" or the "root form of a verb", is a dictionary rendition of the word. The verb root is identical to the infinitive form, except for missing the word "to." In these other terms, this verb root seems to be the version of the verb that does not have any ends such as "es, s, ing, etc."

Examples of Root Verbs:

"I love watching movies with my friends." (Root verb – love)
"I finish my homework before 6 p.m. every day." (Root verb – finish)
"You play well." (Root verb – play)
"You are beautiful." (Root verb – be)

Characteristics:

These verbs are used in their original form.
They are known as root verbs because they serve as the base form for other verb tenses and forms.

Verb Forms V1, V2, V3, V4, V5

V1 (Base Form): This is the infinitive form without "to." It is used for the present simple tense, except in the third person singular. Examples include "go," "speak," and "write."
V2 (Past Simple Form): This form is used for expressing actions that occurred in the past and have no connection to the present. Examples are "went," "spoke," and "wrote."
V3 (Past Participle Form): Employed in perfect tenses and the passive voice, the past participle form often differs from the past simple form. Examples include "gone," "spoken," and "written."
V4 (Gerund/ Present Participle Form): This form ends in "-ing" and is used for continuous tenses and as a gerund. Examples are "going," "speaking," and "writing."
V5 (Third Person Singular Present Form): This form is used in the present simple tense for third-person singular subjects, often ending in "-s" or "-es." Examples include "goes," "speaks," and "writes."

Forms of Verbs

Below mentioned are the forms of verbs:

Simple Past Form of the Verb with Examples

The simple past form of the verb is used to denote an action that took place in the past. It is usually formed by adding an ‘ed’ or ‘d’ (for words ending in ‘e’) to the end of the root verb. However, there are irregular verbs that do not follow the general rule. Let us look at a few examples of the simple past form of the verb.

Examples of Simple Past Form

Regular verbs in the simple past form
- Cheat – Cheated
- Dodge – Dodged
- Jump – Jumped
- Skip – Skipped
- Iron – Ironed
Verbs that take the same form as the root verb in the simple past form of the verb
- Read – Read
- Cut – Cut
- Put – Put
- Let – Let
- Hit – Hit
- Hurt – Hurt
Irregular verb forms
- Run – Ran
- Sit – Sat
- Sing – Sang
- Throw – Threw
- Fly – Flew
- Bring – Brought
- Buy – Bought
- Think – Though
- Ring – Rang
- Find – Found
- Lose – Lost
- Meet – Met

Past Participle Form of the Verb with Examples

The perfect tense of the verb is denoted by its past participle form. Regular verbs maintain their same form in both the simple past and past participle forms, while irregular verbs change in spelling when they become past participle. To gain a better understanding, let us examine a few cases.

Examples of Past Participle Form

Verbs that take the same spelling in the simple past and past participle forms of the verb

Root Verb	Simple Past	Past Participle
Read	Read	Read
Sit	Sat	Sat
Think	Thought	Thought
Throw	Threw	Threw
Cut	Cut	Cut
Buy	Bought	Bought
Stand	Stood	Stood
Pull	Pulled	Pulled
Draw	Drew	Drew
Tumble	Tumbled	Tumbled

Verbs that take a different spelling when used in the simple past form and the past participle form

Root Verb	Simple Past	Past Participle
Drink	Drank	Drunk
Sing	Sang	Sung
Ring	Rang	Rung
Choose	Chose	Chosen
Write	Wrote	Written

Present Participle Form of the Verb with Examples

The verb's base form, or root verb, is transformed into its present participle form by appending a "ing." Sometimes the final consonant of a monosyllabic word that ends in a vowel and a consonant is doubled before the word "ing" is added. In most circumstances, the "ing" is added to verbs that finish in "e," while the "e" is omitted. When a verb is changed from its base form to its present participle form, some verbs do not lose their initial "e."

The continuous/progressive tenses of this verb are used to show that the activity is still in process. Verbs can also be changed into nouns that describe actions using this technique.

Examples of Present Participle Form

Words that have double consonants
- Run – Running
- Swim – Swimming
- Forget – Forgetting
- Sit – Sitting
- Cut – Cutting
Examples of regular verbs converted to the present participle form
- Cry – crying
- Try – Trying
- Read – Reading
- Write – Writing (‘e’ is removed)
- Age – Ageing (‘e’ is retained)

Third Person Singular Present Form with Examples

The third person singular form of the verb is used to represent the simple present tense. As far as regular verbs are concerned, the third person singular form is indicated by the addition of an ‘s’ or ‘es’ to the end of the root verb.

Examples of Third Person Singular Present Form

Tom likes having cereal for breakfast.

Root verb – like, Third person singular form – likes

Sheela teaches English for sixth grade students.

Root verb – teach, Third person singular form – teaches

My father reads the newspaper everyday.

Root verb – read, Third person singular form – reads

The Sun rises in the east and sets in the west.

Root verb – rise, set; Third person singular form – rises, sets

List of Verb Forms

Present (Root) form	Simple past form	Past participles form	Present participle form	Third -Person singular present form
complete	completed	completed	completing	completes
bring	brought	brought	bringing	brings
teach	taught	taught	teaching	teaches
take	took	taken	taking	takes
open	opened	opened	opening	opens
grow	grew	grown	growing	grows
notice	noticed	noticed	notices	noticing
fight	fought	fought	fights	fighting
build	built	built	built	building
freeze	froze	frozen	freezes	freezing

Verb Forms that Remain the Same in All Forms

Present (Root) form	Simple past form	Past participles form
cut	cut	cut
put	put	put
quit	quit	quit
hurt	hurt	hurt
upset	upset	upset
spread	spread	spread
set	set	set
reset	reset	reset
shut	shut	shut
wet	wet	wet

Examples of Verb Forms Used in Sentences

1. Present (Root) form:

I love dogs.
Rohit sing in the concert.
We daily walk to our school.
I cook dinner for guests.
I realize it was my mistake.

2. Simple past form:

We ate noodles yesterday.
I missed my bus.
She spoke good hind.
I wrote a letter for the first time.
My mother buys these fruits.

3. Past participle form:

The baby cried a lot after getting hurt.
The police worked hard the whole day.
I have finished all my work yesterday.
We gone to the park yesterday.
The office will be closed at 9:00 p.m.

4. Present participle form:

We are working for a long time.
What are the kids doing?
My friends went shopping.
I am reading a novel of Harry Potter.
Students are studying history.

5. Third -Person singular present form:

She needs food.
The cheetah runs very fast.
My sister brings lots of chocolates for me.
He gives me the book.
She climbs trees just like a monkey.

Practice Questions - Five Forms of Verbs

Q1. Complete the following table.

Present (Root) form	Simple past form	Past participle form	Present participle form	Third -Person singular present form
	dreamt	dreamt		dreams
read		read	reading
	spoke	spoken		speaks
write	wrote		writing	writes
sleep		slept	sleeping
go	went		going	goes
	ate	eaten		eats
see		seen	seeing
pay			paying	pays
	chose	chosen		chooses

Answers:

Present (Root) form	Simple past form	Past participle form	Present Participle form	Third-Person Singular Present Form
dream	dreamt	dreamt	dreaming	dreams
read	read	read	reading	reads
speak	spoke	spoken	speaking	speaks
write	wrote	written	writing	writes
sleep	slept	slept	sleeping	sleeps
go	went	gone	going	goes
eat	ate	eaten	eating	eats
see	saw	seen	seeing	sees
pay	paid	paid	paying	pays
choose	chose	chosen	choosing	chooses

Main Verbs - Meaning, Types and Examples

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Article Tags :

Verb Forms

What is a Verb Form?

Root Form of the Verb

Examples of Root Verbs:

Verb Forms V1, V2, V3, V4, V5

Forms of Verbs

Simple Past Form of the Verb with Examples

Examples of Simple Past Form

Past Participle Form of the Verb with Examples

Examples of Past Participle Form

Present Participle Form of the Verb with Examples

Examples of Present Participle Form

Third Person Singular Present Form with Examples

Examples of Third Person Singular Present Form

List of Verb Forms

Verb Forms that Remain the Same in All Forms

Examples of Verb Forms Used in Sentences

Practice Questions - Five Forms of Verbs

Q1. Complete the following table.

Answers:

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