Past Tense of Bring | Explanation & Examples
The simple past tense and past participle of bring is brought. Bring is an irregular verb that means “cause something or someone to come with you from one place to another.” It can be something you carry, something that simply accompanies you, or something more abstract (e.g., “The thunderstorm brought cooler, cleaner air to the mountains”).
Bring can also mean “cause” or “make happen” (e.g., “The ceremony brought the event to a close”).
Some dictionaries recognize “brung” as a nonstandard form of the verb, but it should not be used in academic writing.
The singer’s rousing finale had brought the crowd to its feet in rapture!
Nobody knew who had brought the cake, but everyone enjoyed it!
Past tense of bring
The simple past tense of bring is brought. As an irregular verb, bring doesn’t form the past tense by adding “-ed.” Brought is pronounced to rhyme with “bought” (i.e., the past tense of “buy“).
Abigail’s appointment brought a sense of calm and professionalism to the team.
The first light of dawn brought hope to the stranded drivers.
Past participle of bring
The past participle of bring is also brought. The past participle is used to form the perfect tenses and the passive voice.
Rather skillfully, the conversation had been brought back to the central topic by Roiseen.
Deanne was the best guest ever—she had brought chocolates for everyone!
Brung
Some dictionaries recognize brung and brang as nonstandard or dialectical forms of bring. They seem appealing as past tenses of bring because of verbs like “sing,” “ring,” and “sting,” which form their past tenses by changing the “i” (e.g., “sang,” “rang,” and “stung”).
However, and despite some widespread regional use, brung and brang should be avoided in academic writing.
FAQ title Frequently asked questions about the past tense of bring
- Is bringed a word?
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“Bringed” is not a word in standard English. The simple past tense and past participle of bring is brought. Regular verbs in English add “-ed” to the infinitive to make the past tense. The past tense of bring doesn’t follow this pattern.
You can use the QuillBot Grammar Checker to make sure your writing is accurate.
- Is brang a word?
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“Brang” is not considered a standard word in English. However, it is used in some dialects.
Brought is the correct simple past tense form and past participle of the verb “bring.”
You can use the QuillBot Grammar Checker to ensure you’re using the past tense of bring correctly.
