What is an Irregular Verb?

It's hard to sound smart when your irregular verbs are out of whack, but what is an irregular verb? Perhaps you think that "irregular " means something out of the ordinary, and in common parlance it does, but if you look up irregular in the dictionary, you'll see that the first definition is a little different. "Irregular" firstly describes something that does not adhere to established rules.

The Real Answer to "What Is an Irregular Verb?"

When someone asks you "what is an irregular verb?" you can say, "It's a verb that doesn't stick to the rules," but you might get laughed out of the room. Which verbs adhere to rules? Very few, indeed, when one thinks about it. Irregular verbs live by their own set of rules; they are the mavericks of the English language.

A regular verb, like "to walk" looks like this:

  • Present Simple: I walk to work every day.
  • Present Progressive: I am walking to work today.
  • Past Simple: I walked to work yesterday.
  • Present Perfect: I've walked to work all week.

For now, don't bother worrying about the tenses; you already know them. You've known the tenses since you were a child. In fact, when English-speaking children or English learners come across unfamiliar irregular verbs, they instinctively employ the regular form.

For example, when a child hears "speak," without any prompting, he will say "speaked" when speaking about the past. When people hear it, they might think it's cute, but it should teach everyone interested in such things a valuable lesson about irregular verbs. What is an irregular verb? Most of the verbs in the English language.

Any verb that isn't like "to walk" is an irregular verb. That means that the rest of verbal conjugation is a game of memorization. English is a language of outlaws, raised in the streets without any kind of governing body. Most of it doesn't live by rules. It's a blessing and a curse, though, so fret not, fledgling grammarians!

What's Awesome about Irregular Verbs

The English language works, more or less, without paying too much attention to irregular verbs. When an English learner says, "yesterday I speaked with the President," it makes as much sense as if he'd said "spoke." That flexibility is why English remains the lingua franca; one must not speak it properly to be understood.

Irregular verbs don't matter if all you want to do is understand and be understood. Other languages have conjugation rules that are all but required just to get a simple point across. In English, in a jam, take it or leave it. That's why you can use English to buy tea in Thailand or sphinxes in Cairo.

What's Even More Awesome about Irregular Verbs

If you want to sound intelligent or at least like a native speaker, you should mind your irregular verbs. They aren't hard to remember, and they really do make a difference when you're speaking with anyone whose opinion you care about. Having a firm grasp on one's irregular verbs displays a command of one's language.

Teachers, bosses, and English majors cringe when someone says "I should have drank" or "I should have went." Such sentences are understandable but just plain wrong. Correctly, they should be said "I should have gone" or "I should have drunk." Sometimes conjugations are nebulous or dependent on geography, but most words have three forms, and it's good to get them right.

The most common English verbs, like "go" or "have" or "be," are all irregular and take a bit of practice to master. When you have your irregular verbs down pat, you won't be able to help from noticing how many people have them all wrong. Getting them right shows a pride and responsibility that should be more common in English speakers.

English is the most versatile and expressive language on the planet, and its native speakers should put forth the effort to be a good example for the rest of the world, most of whom are spending a great deal of money and time learning it.

Most importantly, if you know your irregular verbs, you'll sound smart.

How to Learn Irregular Verbs

Since there are no rules regarding irregular verbs, the only way to really learn them is to keep your ears open. Every time you learn a new verb, make sure you know all the conjugations of that verb so that when you use it you don't misspeak.

Here are a couple verbs that are commonly misspoken to get you started on your irregular adventure:

  • To Drink:I drink coffee every morning.I drank six cups of coffee yesterday.I have drunk 27 cups of coffee this week.
  • To go:I go crazy when people kick my chair in movie theaters.I went crazy when I ran out of coffee.I have gone crazy four times this month.
  • To Swim:I swim in lake Eerie every summer.I swam through lots of garbage in July.I have swum through toxic sludge a few times.
  • To Have:I have a caffeine addiction.I had caffeine poisoning last month.I have had a caffeine addiction for seven years.
  • To Be:I am addicted to caffeine.I was tired until I found you, dear coffee!I have never been happier.