Top Most Important Verbs for a Lively and Expressive Speech

Verbs in English are the kings of the language and the main builders of sentences. Even the shortest usually contains this part of speech. On the contrary, with a verb, you can form a sentence in a single word, for example, "Stop!" ("¡Para!"). But these aspects of speech have certain grammatical difficulties (tenses), problems with correctness (irregular verbs), and "moods" (caprichos). Read and learn more about the importance of mastering common verbs in English.

The Most Important Regular Verbs in English and Their Uses

From the moment we wake up in the morning until we go to bed at night, we use verbs every day to describe feelings, thoughts, and perceptions of information to communicate. Many convey the idea of acting, "doing" something, for example, run, fight, do, work. But some, instead, speak about the state of being. Some of these are verbs like be, exist, and belong.

Regular verbs are those that form past tense forms as a general rule: by adding the ending -ed to the infinitive. For example, the verb ask. We add -ed and get asked, this will be the past tense form. Essential verbs are now not hidden in boring textbooks; you can easily find them in the online course. Mastering them allows you to express your thoughts without using many descriptive words.

Below, you can find a list of the top 10 basic verbs in English and Spanish, according to the analysis of the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA) collection. It will be a great help if you learn these words first, as you will encounter them in almost any sentence.

If you already know the most necessary English verbs, it is recommended to pay attention to synonyms to create more lively and natural speech.

Essential Irregular English Verbs for Everyday Life

Verbs that don’t follow the rule of adding -ed to the initial form in the past tense are considered irregular. There is no unique formula to conjugate these verbs. Therefore, students must memorize the forms of each separately. The top 10 most common verbs in English and Spanish include:

1. Be – was/were – been – ser. 
2. Do/does – did – done – hacer. 
3. Have – had – had – tener. 
4. Eat – ate – eaten – comer. 
5. Write – wrote – written – escribir. 
6. Make – made – made – hacer. 
7. Get – got – got – recibir. 
8. Take – took – taken – coger. 
9. Sleep – slept – slept – dormir.
10. Drink – drank – drunk – beber. 

In total, there are about 200 verbs that do not conform to the rules. Such a number is registered at the University of Cambridge. But if you're not a future linguist, then it makes no sense to learn them all. It's unlikely that you'll encounter many of them in regular life. Therefore, gradually master the list of the most common English verbs and make sure they will be enough for daily communication.

Verb Conjugation: Simplifying Tenses in English

Past Simple or Present Perfect, or maybe Present Continuous? Present, Past, and Future. Another thing is that these tenses have four aspects: Simple or Indefinite – simple; Continuous or Progressive – continues; Perfect – perfect; Perfect Continuous – perfect continues. There are 12 temporal forms in total.

The action is what determines how the verb is formed in English. To understand how it works, pay attention to auxiliary verbs, which make using many temporal verbal forms possible. Have, has, had, am, is, was, were, will have, etc., provide us with the necessary information about the action. If the idea is clear, start practicing as soon as possible, and very soon, you can use the appropriate temporal mode confidently.

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Practical Examples: Using Common Verbs in Daily Conversations

With verbs, it's best to practice complete sentences. Then, from the context, we "feel" where and when to use them. What to do at the beginning? For example, master the list of most frequent English verbs and learn to build short sentences, like: “I'm going home,” “My friend works at the school,” “I have a big family,” “We are going to the cinema,” etc. Then, it will be possible to diversify with synonyms and stable expressions.

Additionally, in English, you can add a preposition to the same verb and get a completely new word. For example: to look – mirar, to look after – cuidar, and to look for – buscar. Such constructions are called phrasal verbs and are frequently used by native speakers. Therefore, learning them is key to speaking English correctly.

In fact, the verb to get is a real monster, and a native speaker can use it in various situations. It will be translated absolutely differently. For example, phrases:

• I have a problem, but I’ll get through it. (Tengo un problema, pero lo superaré).
• I get on well with my classmates. (Me llevo bien con mis compañeros de clase).

Both contain to get. But with different prepositions, the translation is completely different. The verb get through means to overcome a problem or some life obstacle. And the verb get on well/badly with means to be in a good or bad relationship with someone. Very interesting, right?

Studying Common English Verbs with Promova

We are sure that the more you enjoy the process, the higher your results will be. So, we thought about your journey into the world of English down to the smallest details. We offer 1x1 English classes, both individual and group. Would you like to know if this learning method is suitable for you? After registering on the website, you will receive the first 1x1 lesson completely free, without any obligation.

With our teachers, you can tackle English verbs at a pace convenient for you. All lessons are accompanied by educational cards, practical exercises, and step-by-step explanations based on real examples without boring theory. Moreover, we pay special attention to spontaneous communication. Weekly classes in our free conversation club will teach you to speak correctly and fluently.

Advanced Tips: Improving Your English with Frequently Used Verbs

A few tricks will help you overcome the fear of English verbs:

• Master the basic verbs (10-30 words). Don't learn everything in a row, take a few verbs to build simple sentences.
• Learn how verbs work in the main tenses. With proper practice, they integrate into your speech naturally.
• Keep a to-do list in English and try to use irregular verbs.
• Start with the most important verbs for you. Maybe these are the ones necessary in your professional activity. Or those that are often used in news, movies, and series. This helps you to distinguish relevant verbs and use them.

Of course, although this will help initially, don't rely solely on this knowledge for too long. Develop the habit of practicing a new language from the beginning, and it will be easier for you to speak and understand more complex things in the future. By the way, group classes with Promova will help you expand your English vocabulary. Register on the website and enjoy communication in a warm and exciting atmosphere.

Conclusion

If you find gaps in your knowledge, don't rush to dive into textbooks. It's enough to start classes with a teacher who will help you gradually understand the complexities of English grammar and conquer the dreadful English verbs.

If you're no longer a beginner, then it's worth paying attention to synonyms to make your speech more expressive. We hope our article has helped you systematize knowledge without fear of verbs and their forms. Be brave, and let your English fly!