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The Verb "Sink" in English

Conjugation of "To Sink"

The verb "sink" is an irregular verb. (This means that "sink" 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 Sink"

FormsinkAlternative Name
Base FormsinkInfinitive Form
The -S FormsinksThird Person Singular Form
Past FormsankSimple Past Tense
The -ING FormsinkingPresent Participle Form
The Past Participle Formsunk[no alternative name]

"To Sink" in All the Tenses

The tables below show how "sink" 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
  • sank
  • sank
  • sank
  • sank
  • sank
  • sank
The simple past tense is for a completed activity that happened in the past.
  • was sinking
  • were sinking
  • was sinking
  • were sinking
  • were sinking
  • were sinking
The past progressive tense is for an ongoing activity in the past. Often, it is used to set the scene for another action.
  • had sunk
  • had sunk
  • had sunk
  • had sunk
  • had sunk
  • had sunk
The past perfect tense is for emphasizing that an action was completed before another took place.
  • had been sinking
  • had been sinking
  • had been sinking
  • had been sinking
  • had been sinking
  • had been sinking
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
  • sink
  • sink
  • sinks
  • sink
  • sink
  • sink
The simple present tense is mostly for a fact or a habit.
  • am sinking
  • are sinking
  • is sinking
  • are sinking
  • are sinking
  • are sinking
The present progressive tense is for an ongoing action in the present.
  • have sunk
  • have sunk
  • has sunk
  • have sunk
  • have sunk
  • have sunk
The present perfect tense is for an action that began in the past. (Often, the action continues into the present.)
  • have been sinking
  • have been sinking
  • has been sinking
  • have been sinking
  • have been sinking
  • have been sinking
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 sink
  • will sink
  • will sink
  • will sink
  • will sink
  • will sink
The simple future tense is for an action that will occur in the future.
  • will be sinking
  • will be sinking
  • will be sinking
  • will be sinking
  • will be sinking
  • will be sinking
The future progressive tense is for an ongoing action that will occur in the future.
  • will have sunk
  • will have sunk
  • will have sunk
  • will have sunk
  • will have sunk
  • will have sunk
The future perfect tense is for an action that will have been completed at some point in the future.
  • will have been sinking
  • will have been sinking
  • will have been sinking
  • will have been sinking
  • will have been sinking
  • will have been sinking
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:
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This page was written by Craig Shrives.

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