Reconstructed strong verbs
Many strong verbs died out in Old English and Middle English, and so they are put here with their reconstructed strong forms. Some modern dialectal verbs are put here if they survive in forms that greatly differ from how they would have phonologically developed if they had survived in standard speech.
For a list of currently used strong verbs, see here.
Attested strong verbs[edit]
Class 1[edit]
| Infinitive | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| aquine (OE acwīnan, to dwindle) | aquone | aquinnen |
| blike (ME bliken, to shine) | bloke | blicken |
| belive (ME biliven, to remain) | belove | beliven |
| chine (ME chinen, to crack) | chone | chinnen |
| gnide (ME gniden, to rub) | gnode | gnitten |
| knide (OE cnīdan, to beat) | knode | knitten |
| lee (OE lēon, to lend) | loe | line |
| lide (OE hlīdan, to cover) | lode | lidden |
| lite (OE wlītan, to look) | lote | litten |
| lithe (ME lithen, to sail) | lothe | lithen |
| mithe (ME mithen, to hide) | mothe | mithen |
| mye (ME miȝen, to urinate) | moe | mine |
| nite (OE hnītan, to strike) | note | nitten |
| nipe (OE nīpan, to become dark) | nope | nippen |
| nye (OE hnīgan, to bow) | noe | nine |
| rine (ME rinen, to touch) | rone | rinnen |
| rise (OE rīsan, to seize) | rose | risen |
| shrithe (ME scrithen, to move) | shrothe | shrithen |
| sie (ME sien, to sink) | soe | sine |
| snike (ME sniken, to creep) | snoke | snicken |
| sty (ME stien, to ascend) | stoe | stine |
| swike (ME swiken, to deceive) | swoke | swicken |
| tee (ME ten, to accuse) | toe | tine |
| thine (OE þīnan, to become moist) | thone | thinnen |
| thwine (OE þwīnan, to be reduced) | thwone | thwinnen |
| wike (OE wīcan, to give way) | woke | wicken |
| wite (ME witen, to blame) | wote | witten |
| wite (ME witen, to depart) | wote | witten |
| yine (OE yīnan, to yawn) | yone | yinnen |
Notes:
- Lee (OE lēon), tee (OE tēon meaning accuse), and thee (OE þēon) are historically contracted forms of Class 1 verbs (though the Proto-Germanic forebear of þēon was of Class 3 instead), but because the infinitive resembled those of Class 2 verbs, the past tense and past participle were often changed by analogy.
- There was an OE verb rīsan that appeared to be distinct from rīsan meaning rise. It meant seize, carry off and was also inflected like a Class 1 verb.
- OE scrīþan was later influenced in form by the Norse cognate, and in the end, ME scrithen died out in the 15th century. In the late 20th century, the word was revived by the translator Kevin Crossley-Holland as shrithe, the expected development of the Old English word.
Class 2[edit]
| Infinitive | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| breet (OE brēotan, to break) | brote | broten |
| breethe (OE brēoðan, to degenerate) | brothe | brothen |
| dove (ME duven, to sink (intransitive), rhymes with shove) | dove | doven |
| dreeze (ME dresen, to fall) | droze | drozen |
| dry (ME drien, to endure) | drow | drown |
| leed (OE lēodan, to grow (intransitive)) | lode | loden |
| leet (OE hlēotan, to cast lots) | lote | loten |
| neet (OE nēotan, to use) | note | noten |
| reed (OE rēodan, to redden with blood) | rode | roden |
| reet (OE rēotan, to lament) | rote | roten |
| reeze (ME resen, to fall) | roze | rozen |
| sloop (OE slūpan, to slip) | slope | slopen |
| smow (ME smuʒen, to crawl) | smow | smown |
| sow (OE sūgan, to suck) | sow | sown |
| stroud (OE strūdan, to pillage) | strode | stroden |
| tee (ME ten, to train) | tow | town |
| theet (ME theoten, to howl) | thote | thoten |
| threet (OE þrēotan, to weary) | throte | throten |
| yeet (ME yeten, to pour) | yote | yoten |
Notes:
- ME duven fell into disuse since it was conflated with the weak verb dive (which originally was a transitive verb meaning dip, immerse).
- ME drien (meaning endure, from OE drēogan) became dree (sometimes spelled drie) in the dialects of Scotland and Northern England. The word would have developed into dry in the standard tongue; this phonetic development can be seen in fly (OE flēogan) and lie (OE lēogan).
- The past participle of the obsolete verb tee (meaning to train) lives on in wanton, wherein the wan is a dead prefix showing deficiency. Thus, wanton literally means untrained, whence the meaning of unrestrained.
- Yeet is the expected modern form of the Old English word; it survives in a few regional dialects with sundry forms.
Class 3[edit]
Class 3-1:
| Infinitive | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| aquink (OE acwincan, to disappear) | aquank | aqunken, aqunk |
| crim (OE crimman, to crumble) | cram | crummen, crum |
| cring (OE cringan, to perish) | crang | crungen, crung |
| lim (OE hlimman, to sound) | lam | lummen, lum |
| limp (ME limpen, to happen) | lamp | lumpen, lump |
| rimp (OE gehrimpan, to wrinkle) | ramp | rumpen, rump |
| rind (OE hrindan, to thrust) | rand, round | rounden, round |
| sin (OE sinnan, to heed) | san | sunnen, sun |
| sling (OE slingan, to creep) | slang | slungen, slung |
| swind (ME swinden, to vanish) | swand, swound | swounden, swound |
| thind (OE þindan, to swell) | thand, thound | thounden, thound |
| thrint (OE þrintan, to swell) | thrant | thrunten, thrunt |
| ting (OE getingan, to press upon) | tang | tungen, tung |
Notes:
- OE slingan is etymologically connected to the modern verb sling, which is likely from Old Norse. It is attested only twice in Old English, wherein it has the meaning of twist, move as a serpent.
Class 3-2:
| Infinitive | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| aquar (OE acweorran, to guzzle) | aquore | aquorn |
| aselk (OE āseolcan, to become sluggish) | asolk | asolken |
| bellow (OE belgan, to make or become angry) | bollow | bollown |
| barrow (ME berwen, to protect) | borrow | borrown |
| char (OE ceorran, to creak) | chore | chorn |
| darve (ME derfen, to labor) | dorve | dorven |
| feel (ME felen, to reach) | fool | foolen |
| sharve (OE sceorfan, to gnaw) | shorve | shorven |
| straid (OE stregdan, to strew) | strowd | strowden |
| swerk (ME swærken, to become dark) | swork | sworken |
| tield (ME telden, to pitch a tent) | told | tolden |
| wharve (ME wharven, to turn) | whorve | whorven |
| yar (ME yerren, to howl) | yore | yorn |
Notes:
- OE fleohtan (weave) is attested only in the adjective flohtenfōte (web-footed), which has its past participle. The verb would have become flight.
Class 4[edit]
| Infinitive | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| leak (OE hlecan, to cohere) | lake, loke | loken |
| queal (ME quelen, to die) | quale, quole | quolen |
| thwear (OE þweran, to stir) | thware, thwore | thworn |
| yeal (OE togelan, to diffuse) | yale, yole | yolen |
Notes:
- The OE past participle adjective gedwolen (erroneous) is from the unattested Old English verb dwelan (err), the causative of which is dwellan (which became dwell, originally meaning lead into error).
- OE hlecan is attested in the plural present indicative hlecaþ and tohlocene, the past participle of the otherwise unattested verb tohlecan.
- OE togelan has a prefix that is always lost in Modern English. The modern yeal, if it had survived, might include an adverbial to bits or asunder to compensate for the lost to-, which is cognate with Modern German zer-.
Class 5[edit]
| Infinitive | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| dreap (ME drepen, to kill) | drape | dreapen |
| feat (OE gefetan, to fall) | fate | featen |
| fee (OE gefēon, to rejoice) | faugh | (unattested) |
| fry (OE fricgan, to ask) | fray | frine |
| nease (OE nesan, to be saved) | nase | neasen |
| plee (OE plēon, to risk) | plaugh | (unattested) |
| reak (ME reken, to cover over) | rake | reaken |
| shreap (OE screpan, to scrape) | shrape | shreapen |
| snease (OE fnesan, to sneeze) | snase | sneasen |
| sweave (ME sweven, to sleep) | swave | sweaven |
| thie (ME thiggen, to beg) | thaugh | thain |
| yeave (ME yeven, to give) | yave | yeaven |
Notes:
- OE fnesan (sneeze) is related to the unattested Class 2 verb fnēosan (apparently the source of sneeze). Likely, the initial consonant would have been changed to s, as it did for sneeze.
- OE recan is rare, mainly attested in glosses, and the only attested strong form is the past singular form geræc. The verb is found only in derivatives in Old English, and they seldom appear. ME reken has the meaning of proceed hastily, but there is also a verb reken that means cover; presumably, the latter is the continuation of the strong verb, since the verb's cognates in other Germanic speeches all mean heap up.
- OE þicgan was conjugated as a strong verb in poetry and was otherwise weak.
Class 6[edit]
| Infinitive | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| ale (OE alan, to grow) | ool | alen |
| cale (OE calan, to become cold) | cool | calen |
| lay (OE lēan, to blame) | lew | lain |
| shathe (OE sceaþan, to scathe) | shoothe | shathen |
| spane (OE spanan, to seduce) | spoon | spanen |
| thway (OE þwēan, to wash) | thwew | thwain |
Class 7[edit]
Class 7-1:
| Infinitive | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| spow (OE spōwan, to be successful) | spew | spown |
| wow (OE wāwan, to blow) | wew | wown |
Class 7-2:
| Infinitive | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| bland (OE blandan, to blend) | blend | blanden |
| bloot (OE blōtan, to sacrifice) | bleet | blooten |
| hote (ME hoten, to call) | hight | hoten |
| knood (OE cnōdan, to attribute) | kneed | knooden |
| loke (OE lācan, to play) | leek | loken |
| roop (ME ropen, to cry out) | reep | roopen |
| span (ME spannen, to clasp) | spen | spannen |
| swow (ME swouen, to resound) | swey | swown |
| wall (ME wallen, to boil (intransitive)) | well | wallen |
| whoop (OE hwōpan, to threaten) | wheep | whoopen |
| whooze (OE hwōsan, to cough) | wheeze | whoozen |
| wold (ME wolden, to rule) | weld | wolden |
Notes:
- Hight (an archaic word meaning named, called) was originally the past tense of the obsolete ME verb hoten, and the old past participle form would have become hoten. In Middle English, the past tense form took over the old past participle form. The infinitive in later use was often replaced with the past participle hight.
- OE ēadan (grant) and ēacan (be increased) are attested only in the past participle.
- OE swōgan became ME swouen and then survived only in Northern England and Scotland until reintroduced into literary English in the 19th century as sough. If the word had survived in standard English, it might have become swow (rhyming with cow).
- A byform of the past participle of OE swōgan lives on in standard English as swoon.
In Old English, a few Class 7 verbs kept past tense forms gotten from reduplication. The verbs and the past tense forms were:
| Old English infinitive | Reduplicated past tense |
|---|---|
| hātan (hote) | hēht (hight) |
| lācan (loke) | leolc |
| lǣtan (let) | leort |
| ondrǣdan (dread) | ondreord |
| rǣdan (read) | reord |
These are attested in poetry or texts written in the Anglian dialects.
Poorly attested verbs[edit]
The following is a list of verbs that are said to have been strong at some point, but have no strong past tense or past participle attested in Old English. All these verbs are now regular.
Class 1:
- OE clīfan (adhere) is rather rare, its weak derivative clifian being used oftener, and is attested in the present participle clīfende and the inflected form ōþclīfeþ of the derivative ōþclīfan. In the end, cleave (from OE clifian) prevails. Note that this cleave means adhere and is etymologically unrelated to cleave meaning cut.
- In Middle English, there is also an infinitive cliven that corresponds to the Old English strong verb, but means climb instead of cling, adhere and is only found in the text Ayenbite of Inwyt. It also matches the Old Norse cognate in form and meaning, and so it is possible that it is a Scandinavian borrowing, but the Middle Dutch cognate also has both meanings of cling, adhere and climb, which betokens the possibility that the new meaning is a native development.
- Drite (defecate) is attested in Old English as the verbal noun drīting and the inflected form gedrīteþ of the unattested verb gedrītan. A strong form appears in the 18th century as drate (the northern dialectal form of the expected drote).
- Grise (fear) is not attested in Old English, but it is implied in the verb āgrīsan, though the past tense and the past participle are not attested. In Middle English, the verbs grisen and agrisen are found, and strong forms are found for both; these verbs survive up to Early New English, and by then, the strong forms have become disused. Now, the only trace of the verb is found in the adjective grisly.
- Whine is found in Old English only in the present participle hwīnende of the unattested verb hwīnan, which means whizz in the lone attestation and is used to describe the sound of an arrow.
- OE wīgan (combat) is not attested in the past tense or the past participle. It is cognate with Gothic weihan, a Class 1 verb.
- OE wrīdan (put forth shoots) is not attested in the past tense or the past participle, nor is its ME form wriden (flourish). The verb appears to have died off in Middle English, though the verb is attested sparsely in modern southwestern dialect. It is unclear whether this use is a continuation of the verb, or a new verb derived from the dialectal noun wride. The original verb is apparently akin to the Old High German past participle garidan (meaning arisen).
- OE afigen possibly shows the past participle of an unattested verb fīgan meaning parch, but it is found only in glosses, and according to Herbert Dean Meritt, it may be an error for asigen, the past participle of asēon (strain out).
- In Old English, there is a verbal noun fīsting (breaking wind) that suggests that there is an unattested Old English verb fīstan (fart); it is said to have been strong, since its cognates in other Germanic tongues suggest that it was a Class 1 verb. It is found in New English as the obsolete verb fist (pronounced feist), which was used in the phrase fisting hound, whence fist came to mean small dog. Thence, the adjective feisty is gotten.
Class 2:
Because the infinitive cannot be assumed only from the past tense or the past participle, any verb whose infinitive cannot be inferred is put here.
- Greet (meaning weep and distinct from the regular greet) is not attested in Old English in the past tense or the past participle. A past participle groten is attested in Middle English, but it could very well be the past participle of groten, a Norse borrowing akin to the Old English grētan presumably of Class 7. Greet is now a dialectal verb, and since grētan presumably of Class 7 has the same meaning, the modern verb results from a merging of the two verbs. Therefore, the same verb is listed in both classes to show what its original strong forms might have become.
- Sneeze comes from the unattested Old English verb fnēosan, which is attested in the verbal noun fnēosung, and the Old English word fnora (sneezing) is akin to it. There was also an Old English verb fnesan (sneeze) that was related to the unattested fnēosan and was conjugated like a Class 5 verb.
- Sprout is attested in Old English in āsprotene, the past participle of the otherwise unattested verb āsprūtan, and in gēondsprēot, likely the third-person singular past indicative, according to the OED. The verb begins to show up in Middle English as sprouten, and the past participle sproten is attested.
- The Old English form gēap is the past singular of a verb that means receive and is apparently akin to Old Norse gaupn (meaning palm).
- The Old English word gehroden appears to be a past participle from an unattested verb meaning adorn.
- In Old English, there is a past participle berofen that belongs to an unattested verb meaning rend.
Class 3:
- Bell (meaning bellow and distinct from the regular bell) is attested in the present participle bellende in Old English; no strong forms appear in Middle English.
- OE sceorpan (scrape) is attested in the present subjunctive sceorpe.
- OE scrimman (contract) is attested in the present subjunctive scrimme.
- Smart is attested in Old English as the verbal noun smertung and the inflected present participle fyrsmeortendum.
- ME snarchen is attested in Old English as gesnerc and means shrivel. A lone attestation is found in Middle English as snercte (written as snarcte in another manuscript), a weak past tense form.
- The past singular form gisprunt suggests an Old English verb gesprintan meaning burst forth or an early Scandinavian borrowing that later became the dialectal verb sprent, but it appears only in one uncertain attestation.
- The Old English scyllan (the Late West Saxon form of the unattested sciellan) meant resound and was likely a strong verb, though no past tense or past participle is attested. The verb became the dialectal verb shill (meaning resound).
- The Old English scelfan (meaning shake, quiver) is attested in scylfþ and scelfaeð.
- Fart is found in Old English only as the verbal noun feorting, which suggests that there is an unattested verb feortan, and the verb is likely strong.
Class 4:
- Sweal (burn), now a dialectal verb, is not attested in the past tense or the past participle in Old English, and no strong forms appear in Middle English (mainly because it has merged with the related weak verb swǣlan).
- OE hwelan (clamor) is attested only in the verbal noun hwelung and the inflected form hwileþ.
- OE stenan (roar) appears to have only asten as a Late West Saxon attestation of a strong form, in which attestation e has been substituted for æ. If this attestation is not an error, then it seems to be the only Class 4 verb whose root ends with n.
Class 5:
- OE plegan (play) is attested as a strong verb only in the present tense. Otherwise, it is conjugated as the weak verb plegian.
Class 6:
- The strong past tense of ache is not attested in Old English and begins to appear only in Middle English. The strong past participle has never been attested.
- In Old English, there is a plural past tense form berōfon from an unattested verb, either berafan or berebban. The base verb would have become rave (if the former) or reave (if the latter).
Class 7:
Because the infinitive cannot be predicted simply with the past tense, if there is nothing that shows what the infinitive is, then the verb is put here.
- The past tense forms ahnēop and stēold are attested. Presumably, the infinitives are ahnēapan (pluck out) and stealdan (possess).
- The Old English verb grētan (meaning weep and attested only in the Anglian form) is assumed to be a strong verb, but it has no attested strong forms; begrētte, apparently a weak past participle in the plural, is attested. Strong forms appear in Middle English, though in the past tense, weak forms also appear. The verb later merged with greet that also meant weep, but was from the OE strong verb grēotan, and greet meaning weep is now dialectal.
- OE flōcan (clap) has no attested strong forms.
- No strong forms of low and root (as in root out) are attested in Old English.
- In Middle English, the past tense form clew is found for the verb clauen (which became claw). It is either an inherited form from an unattested strong Old English verb or an analogical Middle English formation.