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Weep past tense: wept, wept

cry

Weep is an irregular English verb: the past simple of weep is wept and the past participle is wept. Learn the three forms together — weep – wept – wept.

Verb forms

Base form

weep

/wiːp/

Past Simple

wept

/wept/

Past Participle

wept

/wept/

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

Example sentences

Base form · weep

Some people weep at sad films.

Past Simple · wept

She wept with joy at the news.

Past Participle · wept

Many tears have been wept over this story.

Key tenses

Present SimplePast SimplePresent Perfect
I weep
he / she / it weeps
I weptI have wept
Present Continuous:I am weeping  ·  he / she / it is weeping
Learn when to use these forms:Past Simple lesson →Present Perfect lesson →

Grammar guide

Weep belongs to the ABB group: the past simple and the past participle are the same (wept). This is the largest group of irregular verbs — you only need to learn one past form.

  • Past simple – wept: a finished action at a definite time in the past. It is used on its own, without an auxiliary.
  • Past participle – wept: 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 weep…? I didn’t weep.

Verbs with the same pattern

have — had — hadsay — said — saidget — got — got/gottenmake — made — madethink — thought — thoughtfind — found — found

Quick quiz

Which sentence is correct?

Questions about weep

What is the past simple of weep?
The past simple of weep is wept.
What is the past participle of weep?
The past participle of weep is wept.
What are the three forms of weep?
The three forms are weep – wept – wept: base form, past simple and past participle.
Is weep a regular or an irregular verb?
Weep is irregular: its past simple is wept, not weeped.
Weep past tense: wept, wept — irregular verb forms