Past Tense of "Eat" (Grammar + Examples)

What is the past tense of “eat?” Most commonly, the past tense of the word “eat” is “ate” although the word form will change based on its participle. And the sentence where it’s used. For example, referencing “eat” in the past participle form will change it to “eaten,” but in the infinitive form, will be “eat.”

Continue reading to learn more about the past tense form of this word.

What is the past tense of “eat?”

The past tense (past participle) form of “eat” is “ate.” The infinitive of the word form is “eat.” The present participle form is “eating.” The past tense form is “ate” and past participle form is “eaten.”

To learn how to use these words, refer to the sentence examples provided below.

Sentence examples for past tense of “eat”

Infinitive: I eat a whole apple to get my daily fiber.
Present participle: I am eating a whole apple to get my daily fiber.
Past tense: I ate a whole apple to get my daily fiber.
Past participle: I have eaten a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

“Eat” verb forms and examples

Example sentences in all verb forms:

Indefinite present tense

I ate a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Present continuous tense

I am eating a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Present perfect continuous tense

I have eaten a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Present perfect tense

I have been eating a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Simple past tense

I ate a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Past continuous tense

I was eating a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Past perfect tense

I had eaten a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Perfect continuous tense

I had been eating a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Simple future tense

I will eat a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Future continuous tense

I will be eating a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Future perfect tense

I will have ate a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Perfect continuous tense

I will have been eating a whole apple to get my daily fiber.

Examples in all verb tenses

Sentences examples in all participles and parts of speech:

Verb Tense	Example sentence
Simple Present Tense	I eat.
Present Continuous Tense	I am eating.
Present Perfect Tense	I have ate.
Present Perfect Continuous Tense	I have been eating.
Simple Past Tense	I ate.
Past Continuous Tense	I was eating.
Past Perfect Tense	I had ate.
Past Perfect Continuous Tense	I had been eating.
Simple Future Tense	I will eat.
Future Continuous Tense	I will be eating.
Future Perfect Tense	I will have eating.
Future Perfect Continuous Tense	I will have been eating.

FAQs

What is the past tense of the word “eat?”

Ate

What is an example sentence with the past tense of the word “eat?”

I ate dinner at the restaurant the other night.

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Participles

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About the author

Dalia Y.: Dalia is an English Major and linguistics expert with an additional degree in Psychology. Dalia has featured articles on Forbes, Inc, Fast Company, Grammarly, and many more. She covers English, ESL, and all things grammar on GrammarBrain.