Past simple: regular verbs
Talk about finished actions in the past with regular verbs: worked, played, studied — and say the -ed ending correctly.
In this lesson you will
- Form the past simple of regular verbs
- Use the spelling rules for -ed
- Pronounce -ed as /t/, /d/ or /ɪd/
Learn
We use the past simple for actions that finished at a time in the past: I walked* to work yesterday.*
Regular verbs add -ed for every person: I/you/he/she/we/they worked**. There is no -s for he/she/it in the past.
Spelling: most verbs + -ed (play → played); verbs ending in -e + -d (live → lived); consonant + y → -ied (study → studied); one vowel + one consonant (stressed) → double the consonant (stop → stopped, plan → planned).
Pronunciation: /t/ after voiceless sounds (walked, watched, laughed), /d/ after voiced sounds (played, lived, cleaned), and an extra syllable /ɪd/ only after t or d (wanted, needed, started).
| Rule | Examples |
|---|---|
| + ed | work → worked, clean → cleaned |
| -e + d | arrive → arrived, like → liked |
| consonant + y → ied | try → tried, carry → carried |
| double consonant | stop → stopped, prefer → preferred |
Examples
- We watched a film last night.
- She studied English in Canada.
- The train stopped suddenly.
- I wanted a coffee, so I waited in the queue.
Vocabulary
yesterday
the day before today
arrive
reach a place
“We arrived at six.”
decide
choose after thinking
move
go to live somewhere else
“They moved to Berlin.”
finish
come to an end; complete
Practice
Complete the sentence.
Speaking
Say six things you did last weekend using regular verbs (watched, played, cooked, visited, walked, cleaned…). Be careful with the -ed sound.
Writing
Write about yesterday (50–70 words) using at least eight regular past simple verbs.
Lesson quiz
I ___ my grandmother on Sunday.
Review
Key points
- Past simple = finished past actions.
- Regular verbs + -ed for all persons.
- Spelling: -d, -ied, double consonants.
- -ed = /t/, /d/ or /ɪd/ (after t/d only).
What you learned
- ✓ I can form regular past verbs.
- ✓ I can spell -ed forms.
- ✓ I can pronounce -ed endings.
Grammar reference: Past simple