Past Tense of “become”
The past simple of “become” is “became” and the past participle is “become”. Below are the pronunciation, three example sentences, the mistake learners make most often, and a short drill to check yourself.
Forms of “become”
become – became – become
start to be
- Base form
- become/bɪˈkʌm/
- Past simple
- became/bɪˈkeɪm/
- Past participle
- become/bɪˈkʌm/
- -ing form
- becoming
- He / she / it
- becomes
Pronunciation (US)
Quick practice
5 questions. Type the missing form.
Example sentences
Three everyday sentences that show how the forms are used.
Past simple
She became a doctor in 2019.
Past participle
The app has become very popular.
Past simple
It became dark very quickly.
The most common mistake
Wrong
English has became more important at work.
Correct
English has become more important at work.
Like “come”, the past participle of “become” is “become”, not “became”.
Verbs with the same pattern
Participle = base form. Learn these together.
- come – came – come
- run – ran – run
- overcome – overcame – overcome