Guide
Past simple vs past participle: the difference, with examples
Every English verb has a past simple and a past participle. For regular verbs they look the same (worked, worked), but for many irregular verbs they are different (went, gone). Choosing the right one usually comes down to one question: is there a helper verb?
The past simple stands alone
Use the past simple, the second form, for a finished action at a time in the past. It needs no other verb in front of it:
- I saw that film last week.
- We went to Rome last summer.
- She wrote three emails before lunch.
Questions and negatives in the past simple use did, and the main verb goes back to its base form: Did you see it? I didn't go. Never Did you saw it?
The past participle needs a helper
The past participle, the third form, is never the main verb on its own. It comes after a form of have or be:
- Present perfect, with have or has: I have seen that film. She has gone home.
- Past perfect, with had: They had already eaten when we arrived.
- Passive voice, with a form of be: The window was broken. This book is written in simple English.
- After a modal verb and have: You should have told me.
If have, has, had or a form of be comes just before the verb, you almost always need the past participle.
Same or different? It depends on the verb
In many irregular verbs the two forms are identical, so you can't choose the wrong one. These follow the ABB pattern:
| Base form | Past simple | Past participle | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| buy | bought | bought | Obtain in exchange for payment. | A1 |
| feel | felt | felt | Experience (an emotion or sensation). | A1 |
| find | found | found | Discover or perceive by chance or unexpectedly. | A1 |
| make | made | made | Form (something) by putting parts together or combining substances; construct; create. | A1 |
| tell | told | told | Communicate information, facts, or news to someone in spoken or written words. | A1 |
In others the two forms are different, and these cause most of the mistakes. They follow the ABC pattern:
| Base form | Past simple | Past participle | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| be | was or were | been | Exist. | A1 |
| do | did | done | Perform (an action, the precise nature of which is often unspecified). | A1 |
| go | went | gone | Move from one place to another; travel. | A1 |
| see | saw | seen | Perceive with the eyes; discern visually. | A1 |
| take | took | taken | Lay hold of (something) with one's hands; reach for and hold. | A1 |
| write | wrote | written | Mark (letters, words, or other symbols) on a surface, typically paper, with a pen, pencil, or similar implement. | A1 |
A few verbs have a past participle that looks like the base form, the ABA pattern:
| Base form | Past simple | Past participle | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| come | came | come | Move or travel toward or into a place thought of as near or familiar to the speaker. | A1 |
| become | became | become | Begin to be. | A2 |
| run | ran | run | Move at a speed faster than a walk, never having both or all the feet on the ground at the same time. | A1 |
The most common mistakes
- I seen him yesterday. The past participle can't stand alone. Say I saw him yesterday or I have seen him.
- I have went there before. After have, use the past participle: I have gone there, or I have been there for a visit you came back from.
- The cake was ate. The passive needs the past participle: The cake was eaten.
- Did you took it? After did, use the base form: Did you take it?
Got or gotten?
In the app, get has two past participles: got and gotten. Gotten is common in American English, as in It has gotten colder, while British English usually says It has got colder. Both are correct.
Practise both forms
A reliable way to stop mixing them up is to learn all three forms together and to use each one in its own kind of sentence. Every verb page on this site shows the three forms with an example, and you can learn the irregular verbs step by step, from the most common ones up.