eat
Base form
eat
/iːt/
Past simple
ate
/et//eɪt/
Past participle
eaten
/ˈiːtn/
MeaningA1
to put food in your mouth and swallow it
to eat like a horse
In use
- Question · Form 1What did you eat for lunch today?
- After a modal verb · Form 1You shouldn’t eat so late at night if you want to sleep well.
- Past simple · Form 2We ate fish and chips by the sea on Saturday.
- Past simple · Form 2Last night the children ate all the biscuits in the tin.
- Present perfect · Form 3Have you ever eaten real Japanese food in Japan?
- Passive · Form 3All the birthday cake was eaten before the guests went home.
Watch out
Ate is /et/ or /eɪt/ in British English and /eɪt/ in American; both are right. The participle is eaten, never eated.
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