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Sometimes you know a word has two forms， but you’re not sure which one is appropriate to use in the situation at hand. This happens a lot with verbs， where past-tense forms can compete for acceptance and supremacy1 with language users. Here are ten verbs whose past tense can be confusing， along with some tidbits2 about their history and related linguistic phenomena.
move slowly； in the case of people or animals with the body near the ground
Creeped or crept？ Crept is the past tense， but creeped is popping up because of its presence in the phrasal verb creep out， the past tense of which is indeed creeped out.4 Exceptions like this can often be accepted in certain contexts. With time， these specific instances can slowly reach the mainstream.
inhabit or live in； be an inhabitant of
Dwelt or dwelled ？ Unlike several entries on the list， in the case of dwelt the unusual form predates the one ending in -ed.5 Dwelled is popular in the United States， while dwelt is dominant in Britain.
raise or haul up7 with or as if with mechanical help
Hoist or hoisted ？ Hoist as a past tense form is what linguists would call a zero-derived8 form： Nothing changes on the surface， but on some level it has to be marked as “past.” There was a verb hoise used primarily in nautical context， and it is thought that its past tense， hoist， was mistaken for a root.9
appeal or request earnestly
Pleaded or pled ？ The grammar guides geared towards lawyers were once insistent that pleaded was the correct form， but the persistence of pled has caused the usually adamant attorneys to accept both.10 There may be more going on here， because“he pled guilty11” sounds much better than “he pleaded guilty，” but “she pled with the judge”sounds awful to many ears， while pleaded sounds fine there.
make by needlework with interlacing yarn12
Knit or knitted ？ Like plead， these two forms are both accepted nowadays and are in a virtual statistical dead heat in terms of usage.13 Knitted is more popular in its adjectival use. In other words， people more often say “a knitted hat” than “a knit hat.”
wither， as with a loss of moisture15
Shrunk or shrank ？ A grammar maven’s least favorite movie： Honey， I Shrunk the Kids.16 The movie title gets the past tenses confused： Shrunk is past participle and shrank is simple past.17 Technically， it should be Honey， I Shrank the Kids.
1. creep3
move slowly； in the case of people or animals with the body near the ground
Creeped or crept？ Crept is the past tense， but creeped is popping up because of its presence in the phrasal verb creep out， the past tense of which is indeed creeped out.4 Exceptions like this can often be accepted in certain contexts. With time， these specific instances can slowly reach the mainstream.
2. dwell
inhabit or live in； be an inhabitant of
Dwelt or dwelled ？ Unlike several entries on the list， in the case of dwelt the unusual form predates the one ending in -ed.5 Dwelled is popular in the United States， while dwelt is dominant in Britain.
3. hoist6
raise or haul up7 with or as if with mechanical help
Hoist or hoisted ？ Hoist as a past tense form is what linguists would call a zero-derived8 form： Nothing changes on the surface， but on some level it has to be marked as “past.” There was a verb hoise used primarily in nautical context， and it is thought that its past tense， hoist， was mistaken for a root.9
4. plead
appeal or request earnestly
Pleaded or pled ？ The grammar guides geared towards lawyers were once insistent that pleaded was the correct form， but the persistence of pled has caused the usually adamant attorneys to accept both.10 There may be more going on here， because“he pled guilty11” sounds much better than “he pleaded guilty，” but “she pled with the judge”sounds awful to many ears， while pleaded sounds fine there.
5. knit
make by needlework with interlacing yarn12
Knit or knitted ？ Like plead， these two forms are both accepted nowadays and are in a virtual statistical dead heat in terms of usage.13 Knitted is more popular in its adjectival use. In other words， people more often say “a knitted hat” than “a knit hat.”
6. shrink14
wither， as with a loss of moisture15
Shrunk or shrank ？ A grammar maven’s least favorite movie： Honey， I Shrunk the Kids.16 The movie title gets the past tenses confused： Shrunk is past participle and shrank is simple past.17 Technically， it should be Honey， I Shrank the Kids.