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The Verb "Swell" in English

Conjugation of "To Swell"

The verb "swell" is an irregular verb. (This means that "swell" 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 Swell"

FormswellAlternative Name
Base FormswellInfinitive Form
The -S FormswellsThird Person Singular Form
Past FormswelledSimple Past Tense
The -ING FormswellingPresent Participle Form
The Past Participle Formswollen[no alternative name]

"To Swell" in All the Tenses

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