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The Verb "Steal" in English

Conjugation of "To Steal"

The verb "steal" is an irregular verb. (This means that "steal" 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 Steal"

FormstealAlternative Name
Base FormstealInfinitive Form
The -S FormstealsThird Person Singular Form
Past FormstoleSimple Past Tense
The -ING FormstealingPresent Participle Form
The Past Participle Formstolen[no alternative name]

"To Steal" in All the Tenses

The tables below show how "steal" 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
  • stole
  • stole
  • stole
  • stole
  • stole
  • stole
The simple past tense is for a completed activity that happened in the past.
  • was stealing
  • were stealing
  • was stealing
  • were stealing
  • were stealing
  • were stealing
The past progressive tense is for an ongoing activity in the past. Often, it is used to set the scene for another action.
  • had stolen
  • had stolen
  • had stolen
  • had stolen
  • had stolen
  • had stolen
The past perfect tense is for emphasizing that an action was completed before another took place.
  • had been stealing
  • had been stealing
  • had been stealing
  • had been stealing
  • had been stealing
  • had been stealing
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
  • steal
  • steal
  • steals
  • steal
  • steal
  • steal
The simple present tense is mostly for a fact or a habit.
  • am stealing
  • are stealing
  • is stealing
  • are stealing
  • are stealing
  • are stealing
The present progressive tense is for an ongoing action in the present.
  • have stolen
  • have stolen
  • has stolen
  • have stolen
  • have stolen
  • have stolen
The present perfect tense is for an action that began in the past. (Often, the action continues into the present.)
  • have been stealing
  • have been stealing
  • has been stealing
  • have been stealing
  • have been stealing
  • have been stealing
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 steal
  • will steal
  • will steal
  • will steal
  • will steal
  • will steal
The simple future tense is for an action that will occur in the future.
  • will be stealing
  • will be stealing
  • will be stealing
  • will be stealing
  • will be stealing
  • will be stealing
The future progressive tense is for an ongoing action that will occur in the future.
  • will have stolen
  • will have stolen
  • will have stolen
  • will have stolen
  • will have stolen
  • will have stolen
The future perfect tense is for an action that will have been completed at some point in the future.
  • will have been stealing
  • will have been stealing
  • will have been stealing
  • will have been stealing
  • will have been stealing
  • will have been stealing
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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