Los verbos irregulares: el obstáculo que todos enfrentan
No hay forma de evitarlos. Si estudias inglés, los verbos irregulares aparecen en cada conversación, cada texto y cada examen. Son los verbos más comunes del idioma y no siguen ninguna regla lógica para formar su pasado.
La realidad es que en inglés existen unos 200 verbos irregulares, pero los que realmente necesitas para comunicarte en el día a día son entre 80 y 100. Domina esos y cubre el 95% de las situaciones reales.
Esta guía te da la lista completa organizada por patrones, con ejemplos prácticos y técnicas de memorización que funcionan de verdad.
¿Qué son los verbos irregulares?
Los verbos regulares en inglés forman el pasado y el participio agregando -ed:
- work → worked → worked
- play → played → played
Los verbos irregulares cambian de forma impredecible:
- go → went → gone
- buy → bought → bought
- put → put → put
Cada verbo irregular tiene tres formas que debes conocer:
| Forma | Nombre | Uso |
|---|---|---|
| Base form | Infinitivo | Presente, futuro, imperativo |
| Past simple | Pasado simple | Oraciones en pasado |
| Past participle | Participio pasado | Present perfect, voz pasiva |
Lista completa de verbos irregulares en inglés
Grupo 1: Las tres formas iguales
Los más fáciles. La forma nunca cambia.
| Base form | Past simple | Past participle | Significado |
|---|---|---|---|
| cut | cut | cut | cortar |
| put | put | put | poner |
| let | let | let | dejar |
| set | set | set | establecer |
| shut | shut | shut | cerrar |
| hit | hit | hit | golpear |
| hurt | hurt | hurt | herir |
| cost | cost | cost | costar |
| quit | quit | quit | dejar/renunciar |
| spread | spread | spread | extender |
| split | split | split | dividir |
| burst | burst | burst | explotar |
| cast | cast | cast | lanzar |
| rid | rid | rid | librar |
| shed | shed | shed | derramar |
| spit | spit | spit | escupir |
Truco para recordarlos: la mayoría termina en -t o -d. Si el verbo termina con estos sonidos, es probable que no cambie.
Grupo 2: Past simple y past participle iguales
El grupo más grande. Aprendes dos formas en vez de tres.
| Base form | Past simple | Past participle | Significado |
|---|---|---|---|
| bring | brought | brought | traer |
| buy | bought | bought | comprar |
| think | thought | thought | pensar |
| fight | fought | fought | pelear |
| catch | caught | caught | atrapar |
| teach | taught | taught | enseñar |
| seek | sought | sought | buscar |
| build | built | built | construir |
| spend | spent | spent | gastar |
| send | sent | sent | enviar |
| lend | lent | lent | prestar |
| bend | bent | bent | doblar |
| feel | felt | felt | sentir |
| keep | kept | kept | mantener |
| sleep | slept | slept | dormir |
| sweep | swept | swept | barrer |
| leave | left | left | dejar/irse |
| mean | meant | meant | significar |
| deal | dealt | dealt | tratar |
| dream | dreamt | dreamt | soñar |
| lead | led | led | liderar |
| feed | fed | fed | alimentar |
| bleed | bled | bled | sangrar |
| breed | bred | bred | criar |
| speed | sped | sped | acelerar |
| meet | met | met | conocer/encontrar |
| read | read | read | leer |
| hold | held | held | sostener |
| sell | sold | sold | vender |
| tell | told | told | decir/contar |
| find | found | found | encontrar |
| wind | wound | wound | enrollar |
| bind | bound | bound | atar |
| grind | ground | ground | moler |
| hang | hung | hung | colgar |
| dig | dug | dug | cavar |
| stick | stuck | stuck | pegar |
| strike | struck | struck | golpear |
| spin | spun | spun | girar |
| sting | stung | stung | picar |
| swing | swung | swung | balancear |
| cling | clung | clung | aferrarse |
| win | won | won | ganar |
| shine | shone | shone | brillar |
| shoot | shot | shot | disparar |
| sit | sat | sat | sentarse |
| stand | stood | stood | estar de pie |
| understand | understood | understood | entender |
| lose | lost | lost | perder |
| get | got | got | obtener |
| have | had | had | tener |
| hear | heard | heard | oír |
| make | made | made | hacer |
| pay | paid | paid | pagar |
| say | said | said | decir |
| lay | laid | laid | colocar |
Patrones útiles:
- Verbos en -ought/-aught (buy/bought, think/thought, catch/caught, teach/taught)
- Verbos en -elt/-ept (feel/felt, keep/kept, sleep/slept)
- Verbos en -ound (find/found, wind/wound, bind/bound, grind/ground)
Grupo 3: Las tres formas diferentes
Los más difíciles. Requieren memorización directa.
| Base form | Past simple | Past participle | Significado |
|---|---|---|---|
| be | was/were | been | ser/estar |
| begin | began | begun | comenzar |
| drink | drank | drunk | beber |
| ring | rang | rung | sonar |
| sing | sang | sung | cantar |
| sink | sank | sunk | hundir |
| swim | swam | swum | nadar |
| spring | sprang | sprung | saltar |
| shrink | shrank | shrunk | encoger |
| stink | stank | stunk | apestar |
| blow | blew | blown | soplar |
| grow | grew | grown | crecer |
| know | knew | known | saber |
| throw | threw | thrown | lanzar |
| fly | flew | flown | volar |
| draw | drew | drawn | dibujar |
| show | showed | shown | mostrar |
| break | broke | broken | romper |
| choose | chose | chosen | elegir |
| freeze | froze | frozen | congelar |
| speak | spoke | spoken | hablar |
| steal | stole | stolen | robar |
| wake | woke | woken | despertar |
| weave | wove | woven | tejer |
| bite | bit | bitten | morder |
| hide | hid | hidden | esconder |
| drive | drove | driven | conducir |
| ride | rode | ridden | montar |
| rise | rose | risen | levantarse |
| write | wrote | written | escribir |
| give | gave | given | dar |
| forgive | forgave | forgiven | perdonar |
| take | took | taken | tomar |
| shake | shook | shaken | agitar |
| fall | fell | fallen | caer |
| eat | ate | eaten | comer |
| see | saw | seen | ver |
| do | did | done | hacer |
| go | went | gone | ir |
| lie | lay | lain | yacer |
| wear | wore | worn | llevar puesto |
| tear | tore | torn | rasgar |
| bear | bore | borne | soportar |
| swear | swore | sworn | jurar |
| forget | forgot | forgotten | olvidar |
| come | came | come | venir |
| become | became | become | convertirse |
| run | ran | run | correr |
Patrones útiles:
- Verbos i-a-u (drink/drank/drunk, sing/sang/sung, ring/rang/rung, swim/swam/swum)
- Verbos ow-ew-own (blow/blew/blown, grow/grew/grown, know/knew/known)
- Verbos -oke/-oken (break/broke/broken, speak/spoke/spoken, choose/chose/chosen)
Los 20 verbos irregulares más usados
Si tienes poco tiempo, concéntrate en estos. Los encontrarás en cualquier conversación:
- be (was/were, been) - I was tired. / I have been there.
- have (had, had) - She had a dog. / They have had problems.
- do (did, done) - He did it. / I have done my homework.
- say (said, said) - She said yes. / He has said enough.
- go (went, gone) - We went home. / They have gone out.
- get (got, got) - I got a new job. / She has got better.
- make (made, made) - He made dinner. / I have made a mistake.
- know (knew, known) - I knew it! / She has known him for years.
- think (thought, thought) - I thought so. / He has thought about it.
- take (took, taken) - She took the bus. / The seat has been taken.
- come (came, come) - He came late. / She has come back.
- see (saw, seen) - I saw the movie. / Have you seen this?
- find (found, found) - We found a solution. / I have found it.
- give (gave, given) - She gave me advice. / He has given up.
- tell (told, told) - He told me. / I have told you before.
- feel (felt, felt) - I felt sick. / She has felt better lately.
- leave (left, left) - He left early. / She has left the building.
- bring (brought, brought) - I brought food. / He has brought his guitar.
- write (wrote, written) - She wrote a letter. / I have written it down.
- run (ran, run) - He ran fast. / She has run 10 km.
5 técnicas para memorizar verbos irregulares
1. Agrupa por patrón de sonido
No aprendas verbos en orden alfabético. Agrúpalos por sonido como hicimos arriba. El cerebro recuerda patrones, no listas aleatorias.
2. Usa oraciones, no listas
En vez de repetir “go-went-gone”, crea una oración: “I go to work every day. Yesterday I went late. I have gone to that office for 5 years.”
3. Flashcards con repetición espaciada
Apps como Anki o Quizlet usan algoritmos científicos para mostrarte las tarjetas en el momento justo. Bastan 10 minutos al día para ver resultados concretos en 2-3 semanas.
4. Lee y escucha en inglés todos los días
Los verbos irregulares se fijan en la memoria cuando los encuentras en contexto real. Podcasts, series de TV, artículos: cada exposición refuerza la memorización.
5. Escribe un diario en inglés
Aunque sean solo 5 líneas al día. Cuenta lo que hiciste (past simple) y lo que has hecho hasta ahora (present perfect). Usarás verbos irregulares de forma natural.
Errores comunes de hispanohablantes
Agregar -ed a verbos irregulares
- ❌ “I goed to the cinema”
- ✅ “I went to the cinema”
Es el error más común y ocurre por transferencia del español, donde los verbos irregulares al menos mantienen desinencias reconocibles.
Confundir past simple y past participle
- ❌ “I have went there”
- ✅ “I have gone there”
Recuerda: después de have/has siempre va el past participle (tercera columna).
La pronunciación de “read”
El verbo read se escribe igual en todas sus formas, pero la pronunciación cambia:
- Presente: read /riːd/ (como “reed”)
- Pasado: read /red/ (como “red”)
- Participio: read /red/ (como “red”)
El verbo “lie” y sus trampas
Existen dos verbos “lie” con formas completamente diferentes:
| Significado | Base | Past simple | Past participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yacer/Acostarse | lie | lay | lain |
| Mentir | lie | lied | lied |
| Colocar/Poner | lay | laid | laid |
Este trío confunde incluso a los hablantes nativos de inglés.
Cómo usar los verbos irregulares en los tiempos verbales
Past Simple
Usa la segunda columna para acciones completadas en el pasado:
- “I bought a new phone last week.”
- “She drove to Madrid yesterday.”
- “They ate dinner at 8.”
Present Perfect
Usa la tercera columna después de have/has:
- “I have bought three phones this year.”
- “She has driven 500 km today.”
- “They have eaten already.”
Past Perfect
Usa la tercera columna después de had:
- “I had bought the tickets before the price went up.”
- “She had driven for hours before she stopped.”
Voz Pasiva
Usa la tercera columna después de be:
- “The car was stolen last night.”
- “English is spoken worldwide.”
- “The cake has been eaten.”
Verbos con doble forma (regular e irregular)
Algunos verbos aceptan ambas formas. Generalmente una es más común en inglés británico y la otra en inglés americano.
| Verbo | Regular | Irregular | Nota |
|---|---|---|---|
| dream | dreamed | dreamt | dreamt más común en UK |
| learn | learned | learnt | learnt más común en UK |
| burn | burned | burnt | burnt más común en UK |
| spell | spelled | spelt | spelt más común en UK |
| spill | spilled | spilt | spilt más común en UK |
| lean | leaned | leant | leant más común en UK |
| smell | smelled | smelt | smelt más común en UK |
Para exámenes (IELTS, Cambridge, TOEFL), ambas formas son aceptadas.
El siguiente paso
Conocer los verbos irregulares es fundamental, pero necesitas práctica constante. En ingles.ai puedes practicar con un tutor de IA que corrige tus errores en tiempo real, te explica las reglas y se adapta a tu nivel.
No te limites a leer listas. Empieza a hablar, equivocarte y mejorar. La forma más rápida de dominar los verbos irregulares es usarlos en conversación.
👉 Prueba ingles.ai gratis y transforma la teoría en práctica.