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The Verb "Hear" in English

Conjugation of "To Hear"

The verb "hear" is an irregular verb. (This means that "hear" does not form its simple past tense or its past participle by adding "-ed" or "-d" to the base form.)

The Five Forms of "To Hear"

FormhearAlternative Name
Base FormhearInfinitive Form
The -S FormhearsThird Person Singular Form
Past FormheardSimple Past Tense
The -ING FormhearingPresent Participle Form
The Past Participle Formheard[no alternative name]

"To Hear" in All the Tenses

The tables below show how "hear" conjugates in the past, present, and future tenses.

Past Tenses

PersonSimple PastPast Progressive TensePast Perfect TensePast Perfect Progressive Tense
  • I
  • you
  • he/she/it
  • we
  • you
  • they
  • heard
  • heard
  • heard
  • heard
  • heard
  • heard
The simple past tense is for a completed activity that happened in the past.
  • was hearing
  • were hearing
  • was hearing
  • were hearing
  • were hearing
  • were hearing
The past progressive tense is for an ongoing activity in the past. Often, it is used to set the scene for another action.
  • had heard
  • had heard
  • had heard
  • had heard
  • had heard
  • had heard
The past perfect tense is for emphasizing that an action was completed before another took place.
  • had been hearing
  • had been hearing
  • had been hearing
  • had been hearing
  • had been hearing
  • had been hearing
The past perfect progressive tense is for showing that an ongoing action in the past has ended.

Present Tenses

PersonSimple PresentPresent Progressive TensePresent Perfect TensePresent Perfect Progressive Tense
  • I
  • you
  • he/she/it
  • we
  • you
  • they
  • hear
  • hear
  • hears
  • hear
  • hear
  • hear
The simple present tense is mostly for a fact or a habit.
  • am hearing
  • are hearing
  • is hearing
  • are hearing
  • are hearing
  • are hearing
The present progressive tense is for an ongoing action in the present.
  • have heard
  • have heard
  • has heard
  • have heard
  • have heard
  • have heard
The present perfect tense is for an action that began in the past. (Often, the action continues into the present.)
  • have been hearing
  • have been hearing
  • has been hearing
  • have been hearing
  • have been hearing
  • have been hearing
The present perfect progressive tense is for a continuous activity that began in the past and continues into the present (or finished very recently).

Future Tenses

PersonSimple FutureFuture Progressive TenseFuture Perfect TenseFuture Perfect Progressive Tense
  • I
  • you
  • he/she/it
  • we
  • you
  • they
  • will hear
  • will hear
  • will hear
  • will hear
  • will hear
  • will hear
The simple future tense is for an action that will occur in the future.
  • will be hearing
  • will be hearing
  • will be hearing
  • will be hearing
  • will be hearing
  • will be hearing
The future progressive tense is for an ongoing action that will occur in the future.
  • will have heard
  • will have heard
  • will have heard
  • will have heard
  • will have heard
  • will have heard
The future perfect tense is for an action that will have been completed at some point in the future.
  • will have been hearing
  • will have been hearing
  • will have been hearing
  • will have been hearing
  • will have been hearing
  • will have been hearing
The future perfect progressive tense is for an ongoing action that will be completed at some specified time in the future.

Most Common Irregular Verbs

The two most common irregular verbs in English are "be" and "have." These pages give more details about these two verbs: Here are the next 10 most common irregular verbs in English:

Most Common Irregular Verbs

The two most common irregular verbs in English are "be" and "have." These pages give more details about these two verbs: Here are the next 10 most common irregular verbs in English:
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This page was written by Craig Shrives.

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