Blog
English learning tips, guides, and news from WELE
Learning Tips
The Past Tense of Swear: Swore and Sworn, Between an Oath and a Curse
The simple past of swear is swore, the past participle is sworn. The same verb is used for an oath in court and a curse on the street, and the preposition is what decides.
Technical English for Mechanical Engineering: Vocabulary, Roadmap, and Self-Study Resources
A mechanical engineering English vocabulary set organized into 5 real job groups, a three-stage path from blueprints to the machine shop, and a curated selection of free self-study resources.
The Past Tense of Stick Is Stuck — and the Vowel Ladder Stick, Stuck, Stack, Steak
The simple past of stick is stuck, and the past participle is stuck too. The hard part is separating stuck from stack and stock by ear, and catching when it's turned into an adjective.
The Past Tense of Split Is Still Split: Unchanging Verbs and the /spl/ Cluster Your Ear Clips
Split keeps the same word for all three slots — V1, V2, V3. The hard part isn't remembering the form, it's catching the /spl/ cluster at the start of the word, and telling which tense you're in when the word never changes shape.
The Past Tense of Smile: Smiled, Why -ed Sounds Like /d/, and the Final D Your Ear Keeps Dropping
The simple past and past participle of smile are both smiled, with the -ed pronounced /d/. The hard part is the final /ld/ cluster — the sound Vietnamese ears drop almost by default.
The Past Tense of Shoot Is Shot: How Vietnamese Ears Mix Up Shoot, Shot, and Short
The simple past of shoot is shot, and the past participle is shot too. The hard part is separating shot from short in real speech, and the fact that shot is very often not even a verb.
Loved: Why Your Ears Skip the D at the End of "Love"
The simple past and past participle of love are both loved. The hard part is the /vd/ consonant cluster at the end — a sound shape that Vietnamese doesn't have in that position.
The Past Tense of Light: Lit or Lighted, and Why Highlight Never Becomes Highlit
Light has two past tense forms, lit and lighted, but the choice isn't about British versus American English — it depends on the word's role in the sentence.
Happen's Past Tense Is Happened — and Why You Keep Mishearing 'What Happened'
The simple past and past participle of happen are both happened. The hard part is that the -ed ending is just a short /d/ sound, and happen never takes the passive.
Dived or Dove? The Past Tense of Dive Is Turning Irregular
The past tense of dive is dived, and Americans also say dove. This is a rare case that goes against the trend — a regular verb carving out its own irregular form.
Deal's Past Tense Is Dealt — Pronounced /delt/, Not /diːlt/
The simple past and past participle of deal are both dealt, and it's pronounced /delt/, not /diːlt/. That ending drops right before with.
Strike's Past Tense Is Struck — Here's Where Stricken Still Survives
The simple past and past participle of strike are both struck — stricken only survives in a handful of fixed phrases. The hard part is telling struck apart from stuck by ear.
Electrical English: Three Learning Levels, Vocabulary, and Free Resources
Electrical English vocabulary organized by real job tasks, how to read figures and measurements, a three-level learning path, and verified free self-study resources.
Smelled or Smelt? The Past Tense of Smell Depends on the Accent
The simple past and past participle of smell are both smelled; British English also uses smelt. The hard part is that ending disappears in real speech.
Past Tense of Seek Is Sought: The Whole -ought Family and Three Words That Sound Just Like It
The simple past and past participle of seek are both sought. The hard part is that six other words rhyme with it, and in an English accent, sought lands right on top of sort.
The Past Tense of Finish Is Finished: The /t/ Ending, and When It Sounds Just Like "Finish It"
Finish is a regular verb — both the simple past and the past participle are finished. The hard part is the final /t/: it tends to disappear, and it tends to get mistaken for the word it.
The Past Tense of Cry Is Cried: The Y-to-IED Rule and the Cried/Tried Mix-Up
Cry is a regular verb — the simple past and the past participle are both cried. The hard part is the /d/ ending, which lasts just one beat, and the fact that cried runs straight into tried when you hear it.
Burned or Burnt: The Past Tense of Burn, and When Only One Sounds Right
The past tense of burn is burned or burnt — both are correct. The hard part is knowing when only one sounds natural, and catching the final consonant when the sentence runs fast.
The Past Tense of Ask Is Asked — But the Final Consonant Cluster Is the Hard Part
Ask is a regular verb — both the simple past and the past participle are asked. The hard part is the final three-consonant cluster, which even native speakers don't fully pronounce.
The Past Tense of "Answer" Is "Answered": The Silent W and the Vanishing /d/
Answer is a regular verb — both the simple past and past participle are answered. The hard part is the /d/ ending, which gets swallowed before almost any consonant when native speakers talk fast.