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What’s the Past Tense of Eat? Ate or Eaten?

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Elan Yash

Elan is head of design and tech. He's also a contributor at Grammarflex.

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What’s the past tense of “eat”?

So, today’s topic: what’s the past tense of eat? Not all irregular verbs are alike; each are irregular in its own way. As is the case with the verb “eat”, which changes in its present, past and past participle form.

👍🏼Usage Note
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I ate a delicious pizza for dinner last night.
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They had eaten all the cookies before I arrived.
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Yesterday, I eat a big breakfast.
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She eaten the entire cake by herself.

  • The simple present tense is eat. Ate is the simple past.
  • The past participle is eaten; (pairs with auxiliaries to form perfect/progressive tenses (such as have or had).

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Verb forms of eat

Past tense of eat in text conversation.
Verb tenses of eat in text conversation.
present past future
simple I eat I ate I will eat
continuous I am eating I was eating I will be eating
perfect I have eaten I had eaten I will have eaten
perfect continuous I have been eating I had been eating I will have been eating
12 verb tenses of ‘eat’.

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When to use “ate” or “eaten”

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tense sentence examples
simple present I eat breakfast every morning.
present continuous I am eating breakfast with my friends.
present perfect I’ve eaten dinner already, so you don’t need to cook.
present perfect continuous I’ve been eating apples everyday to “keep the docto away”.
simple past I ate dinner with my friends last night.
past continuous I was eating dinner with my friends before he came over.
past perfect Dan had already eaten breakfast by the time the sun came up.
past perfect continuous I’d been eating sushi for years until I realized the level of mercury.
simple future I will eat dinner with my friends tomorrow.
future continuous I will be eating a lot over the Thanksgiving weekend.
future perfect tense I will have eaten my money’s worth at the buffet by the time it closes.
future perfect continuous I will have been eating for hours by then, so I might be full.
12 tenses of ‘eat’ in sentence examples.

When to use “ate” vs. “eaten”

Compare how the verb ‘eat’ appears in both sentences:

simple past I ate junk food and stopped working out.
present perfect I haven’t eaten all day.
ate vs. eaten

Both sentences refer to something that takes place initially at a time before the current moment, but the present perfect clearly connects the past and present.

Is “eat” a regular or irregular verb?

base verb past tense past participle
eat ate eaten
swim swam swum
sing sang sung
draw drew drawn
ring rang rung
drink drank drunk
Irregular verbs (two past tense conjugations).
💡Study Tip

Create sentences using the past tense of “eat” (ate) and the past participle (eaten) in various contexts. Try writing sentences in both simple past and perfect tenses to solidify your understanding.

Eat/ate/eaten, used in sentences

Examples: “eat“, present tense
Don’t you want to eat before we leave?I never eat this early in the morning. These things will eat you alive.
Examples: “ate“, past tenses
The family ate dinner together.They ate sandwiches for lunch.He ate a huge supper.
Examples: “eaten“, past participle
I haven’t eaten real food in weeks.Dan had already eaten breakfast by the time the sun came up.We discovered that the cat had eaten the cheese, but we don’t know what happened to the crackers.

Synonyms of eat

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  • consume
  • devour
  • ingest
  • nibble
  • feast
  • graze
  • chomp
  • swallow
  • munch
  • snack
  • gobble
  • dine
  • sup
  • partake
  • taste

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Phrases with the word eat

Phrase Meaning
Dog-eat-dog You have to be ruthless to achieve what you want in society.
Don’t crap where you eat Don’t fill your home or place or work with engaging in messy relationships/risky situations.
Eat an elephant one bite at a time You accomplish a onerous task by taking it one step at a time.
Could eat the crotch out of a low-flying duck A way of saying that you’re extremely hungry.
Eat crow/eat humble pie To admit when you’re wrong, even if it’s embarrassing.
To eat one’s cake and have it too To simultaneously have two things that are mutually exclusive.
Eat high on the hog To flourish or otherwise live well.
Eat the bread of idleness A phrase from the bible meaning to eat food one didn’t personally earn.
Grab a bite to eat Meant literally. To go get something to eat.

Origin of the word eat

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From etymology online on eat (v.):

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Old English etan (class V strong verb; past tense æt, past participle eten) “to consume food, devour, consume,” from Proto-Germanic *etan.

Practice questions: forms of “eat”

Questions Answer options:
1. True or false:“Eat” is a regular verb. a. trueb. false
2. True or false:Regular verbs end in “ed” to show the past. a. trueb. false
3. True or false:“Eat” looks the same in the present and past tense. a. trueb. false
4. Choose the correct tense sentence is in:I’ve already eaten, so don’t worry about making dinner. a. pastb. present perfectc. past perfect
5. The sentence is in which tense:I ate there last night. a. presentb. pastc. future
6. Choose the form of ‘eat’ to complete the sentence:I ___ pizza there a bunch of times. a. eatb. am eatingc. have eaten

‍Answers

  1. b
  2. a
  3. b
  4. b
  5. b
  6. c

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Learn more about verbs

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Worksheet

Question 1 of 10

Which sentence uses the past tense of “eat” correctly?



What is the simple past tense of “eat”?



Which sentence correctly uses the past participle of “eat”?



Is “eat” a regular or irregular verb?



In which tense is the verb “eat” used in the sentence: “I have eaten dinner already”?



I ______ a big lunch yesterday.



By the time the guests arrived, we had ______ all the food.



She ______ breakfast before she left for work.



The past participle of “eat” is ______.



They ______ all the cake before I got there.





Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the simple past tense of “eat”?
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The simple past tense of “eat” is “ate.” This is used to describe a completed action in the past, such as “I ate dinner last night.” It’s a simple past tense verb and contrasts with the past.

What is the past participle of “eat”?
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The past participle of “eat” is “eaten.” It’s used with helping verbs like “have,” “has,” or “had” to form perfect tenses (e.g., “I have eaten,” “She had eaten”). Unlike the simple past “ate,” it.

How do I use “ate” correctly?
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Use “ate” in simple past tense sentences to describe a completed action in the past. For instance, “I ate a delicious pizza.” It stands alone, unlike “eaten,” which always needs a helping verb..

When is “eaten” the correct choice?
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“Eaten” is the past participle of “eat” and requires a helping verb (have, has, had). It’s used in perfect tenses to show an action completed before another point in time (e.g., “I had eaten.

What are common mistakes with “eat”?
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Common errors include using “eat” in the past tense (“Yesterday, I eat…”) instead of “ate” or using “eaten” without a helping verb (“She eaten…”). Remember to use “ate” for simple past and.

Yash, D. "What’s the Past Tense of Eat? Ate or Eaten?." Grammarflex, Jun 14, 2025, https://www.grammarflex.com/whats-the-past-tense-of-eat-eat-ate-eaten/.

Sources

  1. Merriam-Webster, Definition of eat.

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