Easy Way to Learn English Verb Tenses / COOK + ed (PAST SIMPLE)
Most English verbs have five forms. Below are examples, which belong to four different kinds of verbs.
Example 1: cook (V1), cooked (V2), cooked (V3), cooking (V4), cooks (V5)
V2 and V3 have the same ending, 'ed' so they are called 'regular verbs'.
Example 2: write, wrote, written, writing, writes
V2 and V3 do not have the 'ed' ending so we call them 'irregular verbs'.
Example 3: will, would
Helping verbs have only two forms. They are used to help other verbs so they always come with another verb.
Example 4: be, was/were, been, being, is/am/are
Be verbs are special verbs. They do not always have meanings and they have very different forms (details are in the lessons regarding 'be verbs').
In this lesson, our discussion focuses mainly on V2 verbs and we also need some V1 verbs in special patterns. Be verbs are not included because they are the topics in other lessons. From the examples above, you can see some V2 verbs are regular and have the ending 'ed'.
I am showing you the rules of adding 'ed' to the verbs and forming V2 regular verbs.
Rule 1 - add 'ed'
'Work' becomes 'worked'.
Rule 2 - add 'd' if the end of the verb is letter 'e'
'Move' becomes 'moved'.
Rule 3 - delete 'y' and add 'ied' if there are a consonant and the letter 'y' at the end of the verb
'Fly' becomes 'flied'.
Compare the two words, fly and delay. There is a vowel and a letter 'y' at the end of 'delay' instead of a consonant and a letter 'y' as in 'fly'. In this case, do not delete 'y' but just add 'ed' as in Rule 1.
'Cram' (with one vowel sound /æ/) becomes 'crammed' and 'defer' (with two vowel sounds /ɪ/ and /ɜː/) becomes 'deferred'. It does not matter how many vowel sounds there are in a word.
'Model' becomes 'modeled' in American English.
Rule 5 - add 'k' and then 'ed' if there is a letter 'c' at the end of the verb
'Panic' becomes 'panicked'.
Here you can review all types of 'ed' endings:
1. work-worked
2. move-moved
3. fly-flied
4. excel-excelled, model-modelled / modeled
5. panic-panicked
After learning how to add 'ed' to form V2 verbs, we also need to know how to pronounce them correctly to help our listening and speaking.
Pronunciation rule 1:
If the verb ends in the sound /t/ or /d/, 'ed' is pronounced /ɪd/.
Eg. waited /'weɪtɪd/
Eg. noded /'nɑːdɪd/
[go to my lesson 'English vowels in 3 mins' and 'English consonants in 5 mins' if you want to review all the vowels and consonants]
Pronunciation rule 2:
If the verb ends in a voiceless sound (but not /t/ in Pronunciation rule 1), 'ed' is pronounced /t/.
Eg. pushed /pʊʃt/.
When you pronounce a voiceless sound, you cannot feel the vibration if you touch your throat.
Pronunciation rule 3:
If the verb ends in a voiced sound (but not /d/ in Pronunciation rule 2), 'ed' is pronounced /d/.
Eg. pulled /puːld/.
When a voiced sound is pronounced, you can feel the vibration if you touch your throat.
Who (someone; sb) or what (something; sth) can come with V2 verbs?
Eg.
He/She/It/You + fell.
We/You/They + fell.
THE SITUATION/TIMING FOR V2
What is the right situation or the right timing to use V2 verbs?
Generally speaking, something that happened in the past can be described using V2 verbs.
The following are the examples to help you understand the situation/timing to use V2. Before each example, a context is offered to help you fully understand the situation in which the example happens.
Context: Tom joined the Big Eater Game last month.
Example: [Sb/Sth] + [action in the past]
He + swallowed 50 cakes.
-This happened last month so V2 verb (swallowed) is used.
-'last' can be connected by other words to form the past time expressions, eg. last month/January/week/Friday/season/summer/year/night.
Context: I watched this exciting news yesterday.
Example: [Sb/Sth] + [action in the past]
The police + arrested the drug dealer!
-Something happened yesterday so V2 verb (arrested) is used.
-Other time expressions can go after 'yesterday', eg. yesterday morning/afternoon/evening.
Context: When Roger entered the house ten minutes ago ......
Example: [Sb/Sth] + [state in the past; feeling in the past]
His wife + looked astonished.
-This happened ten minutes ago so V2 (looked) is used to described his wife's state or feeling.
-'Ago' can come after other words to form different past time expressions, eg. ten minutes/ten seconds/ten hours/ten days/ten weeks/ten months/ten years ago.
State or repeated action in the past
In addition to using only V2 verbs, there is another way to describe a long-term state or a repeated action in the past and that is 'used (V2) to + V1'.
Context: When I was a little girl, I ate a lot of apples. I don't eat them often now.
Example: [Sb/Sth] + [long-term state in the past; feeling in the past]
I + used to like apples.
-The love of apples existed in my childhood so we can use this pattern: used (V2) to + V1 (like).
Context: There were a lot of crimes happening in our neighborhood before so we organized a patrol workforce.
Example: [Sb/Sth] + [repeated action in the past]
The men + used to patrol the community
-The action, 'patrol the community', happened regularly during the period of time when there were a lot of crimes in the neighborhood so we use this pattern: used (V2) to + V1 (patrol).
Past habit in a specific situation
The pattern, 'would (V2) + V1', can be used to emphasize a past habit in a specific situation.
Context: When their mom was still alive, ......
Example: [Sb/Sth] + [past habit in a specific situation]
They + would call her once a week.
-The children had a habit of calling their mom once a week and it happened in a specific situation, 'when she was still alive', so we choose this pattern: would (V2) + V1 (call).
Context: When Peter still lived with us in this apartment, ......
Example: [Sb/Sth] + [past habit in a specific situation]
He + would repair everything.
-Peter used to repair everything in the apartment in a specific situation, 'when he still lived in that apartment', so we use this pattern: would (V2) + V1 (call).
Many learners are confused with the two patterns: 'used (V2) to V1' and 'would (V2) + V1' because they are similar (repeated actions can mean habits) and sometimes you can use either one of them. I am comparing them both and it will help you choose the right one in the right situation.
1. 'Used to' can be used for a long-term state or feeling, but not 'would'.
2. 'Would' can only be used to describe a past habit when there is a specific situation mentioned.
Watch the video and speak out loud your own sentences by following my examples. Don't forget a crucial and effective way to learn a language, listening and speaking.
[Reminder] Watch the video before starting reading the text and you can see all the pictures together if you click on one of them! You can also use the 'Translate' tool on the blog to help you understand the text. What's better, all the key vocabulary in my examples ranges from elementary to advanced levels (CEFR: A1~C2 / IELTS: 1~9) so you will learn a lot of English words if you keep studying each lesson. You will also benefit more if you use a dictionary to help you. Finally, don't forget to use English in daily life so all the grammar/vocabulary can be stored in your mind easier. While using this language, you are also learning from others and observing when is the appropriate context for different usages.
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