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principal parts

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  Ed Good  —  Grammar Tips
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Main verbs have four principal parts: (1) infinitive (to decide), (2) past tense (decided), (3) past participle (decided), and (4) present participle (deciding). A regular verb forms its past tense and past participle the same way, usually by adding ‑ed. An irregular verb, however, uses different methods to form its past tense and past participle. Typically, irregular verbs change an internal vowel (I drink, I drank, I have drunk), or they add -en to form the past participle (I choose, I chose, I have chosen).

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    Identify the sentence with correct use of the past perfect continuous tense:
    A She had been working for hours before taking a break.
    B They have been studying for hours.
    C We will be finishing our meal by the time they arrive.
    D He finished his book before the movie started.

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