How to Use Feed vs. Fed (Explanation, Examples & Worksheet)

What's the past tense of "feed"?

The simple past tense of feed is fed, and the past participle is also fed. Use fed for both simple past and past participle forms.

Definition of feed

The Oxford Learner's Dictionary defines feed as "to give food to a person or animal." It's used in both literal contexts (feeding a baby, feeding animals) and figurative contexts (feeding information, feeding a fire).

• The past tense of feed is fed.

• The past participle of feed is fed.

Verb forms of 'feed'

Is "feed" a regular or irregular verb?

The verb feed is irregular. Like many common English verbs that trace back to Old English, it doesn't follow the standard rule of adding '-ed' to form its past tense. Instead, both its past tense and past participle forms are fed.

When to use "fed" (past) vs. "fed" (participle)

He fed the cat before he left for work.

The cat had already been fed when he got home.

The verb feed uses the same form for both simple past tense and present or past perfect), it requires an auxiliary verb like have, has, or had. The simple past doesn't use a helper verb since it's a complete tense, so fed can stand alone in sentences, whereas participles require an auxiliary verb.

Similar irregular verbs

Like feed, these verbs use the same form for both past tense and past participle:

Sentence examples: feed, fed, fed

Synonyms & nearby words

Origin of the verb, feed

Old English fedan "nourish, give food to, sustain, foster" (transitive), from Proto-Germanic *fodjan "to give food."

Practice: feed or fed