Irregular Verbs – English Grammar Exercises for A2
Read the story below about a winter trip and a valuable lesson learned. Choose the best option (a, b, or c) to complete each sentence.
1 Last weekend, I ______ to the mountains with my friends.
(a) went
(b) goed
(c) go
2 I was in a hurry, so I ______ my thick winter jacket at home.
(a) leaving
(b) left
(c) leaved
3 Before the trip, my mother ______ me to dress warmly.
(a) tells
(b) telled
(c) told
4 I ______ the weather forecast on my phone, but I ignored it.
(a) readed
(b) read
(c) reading
5 When we arrived at the cabin, the freezing wind ______ hard.
(a) blew
(b) blowed
(c) blow
6 Despite the freezing cold, I only ______ a thin cotton T-shirt.
(a) weared
(b) wearing
(c) wore
7 Because of my careless clothing choice, I ______ a terrible flu.
(a) catched
(b) caught
(c) catch
8 By the evening, I ______ so sick that I couldn’t enjoy the campfire.
(a) felt
(b) feeled
(c) feel
9 I immediately ______ a hot cup of ginger tea to warm my body up.
(a) drinked
(b) drank
(c) drunk
10 After that, my friend gave me some medicine and I ______ it right away.
(a) taked
(b) to take
(c) took
11 I ______ for twelve hours because the fever made me completely exhausted.
(a) slept
(b) sleeped
(c) sleep
12 At that exact moment, I ______ that I had made a huge mistake.
(a) knowed
(b) know
(c) knew
13 I finally ______ why my mom was so worried about my clothes.
(a) understanded
(b) understood
(c) understand
14 So please listen to me! Yesterday, I saw you outside and you ______ only a light shirt too!
(a) wore
(b) worn
(c) weared
15 You shouldn’t go out right now. Have you ______ the temperature outside?
(a) saw
(b) seed
(c) seen
16 My old winter coat was completely ______ out, so I had to buy a new one today.
(a) wore
(b) worn
(c) weared
17 If you are not careful, you will be ______ by a nasty cold just like me.
(a) caught
(b) catched
(c) catch
18 I have ______ you about this danger many times, but you never listen!
(a) tell
(b) told
(c) telled
19 This painful illness has ______ me to always check the thermometer before going out.
(a) teached
(b) teach
(c) taught
20 Please put on your sweater! I don’t want you to say you have ______ my advice.
(a) forgotten
(b) forgot
(c) forget
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (a)
Explanation: “went” is the correct past simple (V2) of “go”. (b) is a common mistake (applying the regular “-ed” rule to an irregular verb). (c) is a basic grammar error because it uses the present tense instead of the past tense required by “Last weekend”.
2 (b)
Explanation: “left” is the correct V2 of “leave”. (c) is a common mistake (over-regularization with “-ed”). (a) is grammatically incorrect as the “-ing” form cannot act as the main verb without the verb “to be”.
3 (c)
Explanation: “told” is the correct V2 of “tell”. (b) is a common mistake. (a) is a grammar error because the story is told in the past tense.
4 (b)
Explanation: “read” is the correct V2 of “read” (spelled the same but pronounced /red/). (a) is a common spelling mistake. (c) is a grammar error because it lacks an auxiliary verb.
5 (a)
Explanation: “blew” is the correct V2 of “blow”. (b) is a common mistake. (c) is a grammar error due to tense mismatch.
6 (c)
Explanation: “wore” is the correct V2 of “wear”. This shows the direct cause of the illness. (a) is a very common mistake for learners who forget “wear” is irregular. (b) is a grammar error.
7 (b)
Explanation: “caught” is the correct V2 of “catch” (to catch a cold/flu). (a) is a common mistake. (c) is a grammar error because the event happened in the past.
8 (a)
Explanation: “felt” is the correct V2 of “feel”. (b) is a common spelling/conjugation mistake. (c) is a grammar error.
9 (b)
Explanation: “drank” is the correct V2 of “drink”. (a) is a common mistake. (c) is a grammar error because “drunk” is the past participle (V3), not the past simple form (V2).
10 (c)
Explanation: “took” is the correct V2 of “take”. (a) is a common mistake. (b) is a grammar error as an infinitive cannot follow the subject directly here.
11 (a)
Explanation: “slept” is the correct V2 of “sleep”. (b) is a common mistake. (c) is a grammar error due to using the base form in a past context.
12 (c)
Explanation: “knew” is the correct V2 of “know”. (a) is a common mistake. (b) is a grammar error.
13 (b)
Explanation: “understood” is the correct V2 of “understand”. (a) is a common mistake. (c) is a grammar error.
14 (a)
Explanation: “wore” is the correct V2 of “wear”. (c) is a common mistake. (b) “worn” is a grammar error because it is the past participle (V3) and cannot be used alone as a main verb here.
15 (c)
Explanation: “seen” is the correct past participle (V3) of “see”, required here for the Present Perfect tense (“Have you…”). (b) is a common mistake. (a) is a grammar error because “saw” is V2 and cannot follow “have”.
16 (b)
Explanation: “worn” is the correct V3 of “wear”. Here, “worn out” acts as an adjective/passive construction. (c) is a common mistake. (a) is a grammar error because V2 (“wore”) cannot follow the verb “to be” (“was”) in this structure.
17 (a)
Explanation: “caught” acts as the past participle (V3) of “catch” here, forming the passive voice (“will be caught”). (b) is a common mistake. (c) is a grammar error because the base form cannot follow “be” in a passive sentence.
18 (b)
Explanation: “told” is the correct V3 (same as V2) of “tell” for the Present Perfect tense (“I have told”). (c) is a common mistake. (a) is a grammar error.
19 (c)
Explanation: “taught” is the correct V3 of “teach” (Present Perfect: “has taught”). (a) is a common mistake. (b) is a grammar error.
20 (a)
Explanation: “forgotten” is the correct V3 of “forget”. (b) “forgot” is a common mistake because many people incorrectly use the V2 form after “have”. (c) is a grammar error.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- The Rule of Irregular Verbs: Unlike regular verbs that simply take “-ed” (like play -> played), irregular verbs completely change their spelling in the Past Simple (V2) and Past Participle (V3).
- Focus on “WEAR”:
- V1 (Base): wear (I wear a jacket every day).
- V2 (Past Simple): wore (Yesterday, I wore a thin shirt).
- V3 (Past Participle): worn (My old coat is worn out / I have worn this jacket before).
- Focus on “CATCH”:
- V1 (Base): catch (Don’t catch a cold!).
- V2 & V3: caught (I caught a flu last week / I have caught a cold).
- Common Trap (The “-ed” trap): The biggest mistake A2 learners make is adding “-ed” to irregular verbs (e.g., catched, weared, goed). Always memorize the V2 and V3 forms!
- V2 vs V3: Use V2 (Past Simple) for finished actions in the past (e.g., I went). Use V3 (Past Participle) after “have/has” for Perfect Tenses (e.g., I have seen) or after “to be” for the Passive Voice (e.g., It was brought).