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principal parts definition

principal parts

the principal inflected forms of a verb, from which the other forms may be derived: in English, the principal parts are the infinitive, past tense, and past participle (Ex: drink, drank, drunk; go, went, gone): the present participle, derived from the present infinitive with the addition of -ing (sense ), is sometimes regarded as one of the principal parts

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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