VERBONKSPlay freeKeep past tense and past participlekeep · kept · kept
The past participle (the 3rd form) of keep is kept and the past simple is kept. The three forms are keep, kept, kept. Not "keeped"! keep is an irregular verb, so it doesn't add -ed.
Keep in a sentence
I kept the cookies a secret.
| Tense | Example |
|---|---|
| Present simple | I keep · she keeps |
| Present continuous | I am keeping · they are keeping |
| Past simple | I kept · she kept · they kept |
| Past simple, negative | I didn't keep · she didn't keep |
| Past simple, question | Did you keep? · Did she keep? |
| Present perfect | I have kept · she has kept |
| Past perfect | I had kept |
| Future | I will keep |
Common mistakes with keep
✗ I keeped✓ I kept✗ I didn't kept✓ I didn't keep✗ Did you kept?✓ Did you keep?✗ I have keep✓ I have kept
After didn't and in questions with did, use the base form. After have / has / had, use the past participle.
❓ Test yourself: 10-question quizEn español
keep significa guardar, mantener. Pasado: kept. Participio: kept.
🛌 keep runs with The Sleepy Gang
ee → e + t
Every member of the Sleepy Gang has a long, dreamy ee sound... until they wake up in the past. Then the long sound snaps short and a little -t appears at the end, like an alarm clock: sleep → slept, keep → kept, feel → felt, leave → left. Witnesses say you can hear it: sleeeep... slept!
🔎 How to spot one: A long ee now, a short e + t in the past. Past and participle are twins.
Irregular verbs come in gangs that change the same way. Learn one and you can guess the rest of the gang:
| Base | Past | Participle |
|---|---|---|
| sleep | slept | slept |
| keep | kept | kept |
| sweep | swept | swept |
| weep | wept | wept |
| feel | felt | felt |
| leave | left | left |
Questions about keep
What is the past tense of keep?
The past simple of "keep" is "kept". Example: I kept the cookies a secret.
What is the past participle of keep?
The past participle (3rd form, V3) of "keep" is "kept", as in "I have kept".
What are the 3 forms of keep?
V1 keep, V2 kept, V3 kept.
Is keep a regular or an irregular verb?
"keep" is an irregular verb: the past is not "keeped" but "kept".
¿Cuál es el pasado y el participio de keep?
"keep" significa "guardar, mantener". Pasado: kept. Participio: kept.