What is the past participle of forgive?

The past participle of forgive is forgiven.

What are the three forms of forgive?

The three forms are forgive – forgave – forgiven: base form, past simple and past participle.

Is forgive a regular or an irregular verb?

Forgive is irregular: its past simple is forgave, not forgived.

Forgive past tense: forgave, forgiven

stop being angry

Forgive is an irregular English verb: the past simple of forgive is forgave and the past participle is forgiven. Learn the three forms together — forgive – forgave – forgiven.

Verb forms

Base form

forgive

/fəˈɡɪv/

Past Simple

forgave

/fəˈɡeɪv/

Past Participle

forgiven

/fəˈɡɪvn/

Press the speaker button to hear each form. The transcription under each word shows the British pronunciation (IPA).

Example sentences

Base form · forgive

True friends forgive each other's mistakes.

Past Simple · forgave

She forgave him for being late again.

Past Participle · forgiven

All debts have been forgiven.

Key tenses

Present Simple	Past Simple	Present Perfect
I forgive he / she / it forgives	I forgave	I have forgiven
Present Continuous:I am forgiving · he / she / it is forgiving

Learn when to use these forms:Past Simple lesson →Present Perfect lesson →

Grammar guide

Forgive belongs to the ABC group: all three forms are different (forgive – forgave – forgiven), so each form has to be learnt separately.

Past simple – forgave: a finished action at a definite time in the past. It is used on its own, without an auxiliary.
Past participle – forgiven: after have, has or had (present perfect, past perfect) and after be in the passive voice.
Questions and negatives in the past simple use did + the base form: Did you forgive…? I didn’t forgive.

Verbs with the same pattern

be — was/were — been do — did — done go — went — gone know — knew — known take — took — taken see — saw — seen

Quick quiz

Which sentence is correct?

Questions about forgive

What is the past simple of forgive?: The past simple of forgive is forgave.
What is the past participle of forgive?: The past participle of forgive is forgiven.
What are the three forms of forgive?: The three forms are forgive – forgave – forgiven: base form, past simple and past participle.
Is forgive a regular or an irregular verb?: Forgive is irregular: its past simple is forgave, not forgived.