And what about the poor verbs? Why is it make-made-made, but take-took-taken and shake-shook-shaken? For this first group, however, there's an alternative: shake-shoke-shaken (shapen after wake-woke-waken). The other groups are quite regular... now.
| Suffix | Verb | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| -ake, -ook, -aken | bake | book or boke | baken |
| fake | fook or foke | faken | |
| forsake | forsook or forsoke | forsaken | |
| make | mook or moke | maken | |
| mistake | mistook | mistaken | |
| rake | rook or roke | raken | |
| shake | shook or shoke | shaken | |
| take | took or toke | taken | |
| wake | wook or woke | waken | |
| -ay | play | plew | plain |
| play | plaid | plaid | |
| slay | slew | slain | |
| stay | stew | stain | |
| may | mew | main | |
| -eak, -eek | break | broke | broken |
| creak | croke | croken | |
| freak | froke | froken | |
| leak | loke | loken | |
| peak | poke | poken | |
| peek | poke | poken | |
| reek | roke | roken | |
| seek | soke | soken | |
| sleek | sloke | sloken | |
| sneak | snoke | snoken | |
| speak | spoke | spoken | |
| squeak | squoke | squoken | |
| streak | stroke | stroken | |
| tweak | twoke | twoken | |
| wreak | wroke | wroken | |
| -eech, -each | beseech | besought | besought |
| bleach | blaught | blaught | |
| impeach | impought | impought | |
| leech | lought | lought | |
| pleach | plaught | plaught | |
| preach | prought | prought | |
| reach | rought | rought | |
| teach | taught | taught | |
| -ell | bell | bold | bold |
| fell | fold | fold | |
| jell | jold | jold | |
| quell | quold | quold | |
| sell | sold | sold | |
| tell | told | told | |
| yell | yold | yold | |
| -ick, -uck | click | cluck | |
| flick | fluck | ||
| kick | kuck | ||
| lipstick | lipstuck | ||
| stick | stuck | ||
| -ight | right | rought | rought |
| fight | fought | fought | |
| light | lought | lought | |
| -in, -an | scan |
scun
| |
| spin | spun | ||
| -ite | kite | kote | kitten |
| smite | smote | smitten | |
| write | wrote | written | |
| spite | spote | spitten | |
| -ow, -ew, -own | bestow | bestew | bestown |
| blow | blew | blown | |
| bow | bew | bown | |
| flow | flew | flown | |
| glow | glew | glown | |
| grow | grew | grown | |
| know | knew | known | |
| plow | plew | plown | |
| row | rew | rown | |
| show | shew | shown | |
| snow | snew | snown | |
| stow | stew | stown | |
| throw | threw | thrown |