Cast past tense
Meaning of cast
to throw or hurl something.
Infinitive
- 1. Every summer, the local theater group casts new actors for their production.
- 2. The fisherman casts his net into the sea at dawn to catch fish.
- 3. The spell caster casts a protective spell over the village to ward off evil spirits.
Past Simple
- 1. The director cast the lead role perfectly, choosing an unknown actor who surprised everyone with his talent.
- 2. They cast their fishing lines into the river at dawn, hoping to catch some trout for breakfast.
- 3. The town's ancient ritual involved a ceremony where the villagers cast stones into the sea to bring good fortune.
Past Participle
- 1. The die has been cast by the decision-makers, sealing our fate.
- 2. By the director, a new actor was cast for the lead role yesterday.
- 3. The sculpture was cast in bronze by the artist over a month ago.
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Bare infinitive
- To express habitual actions or universal truths.Example. He casts the net into the sea every morning.Example. This theater casts only experienced actors.Example. The spell caster casts powerful spells.
- To state facts.Example. He casts the net into the sea every morning.Example. This theater casts only experienced actors.Example. The spell caster casts powerful spells.
- To give instructions or directions.Example. He casts the net into the sea every morning.Example. This theater casts only experienced actors.Example. The spell caster casts powerful spells.
Past Simple
- To describe actions that happened at a specific time in the past and are now completed.Example. She cast her vote in the last election.Example. They cast the bronze statue yesterday.
- To narrate a sequence of past events.Example. She cast her vote in the last election.Example. They cast the bronze statue yesterday.
Past Participle
- To form perfect tenses (present perfect, past perfect, future perfect) which link the past actions to the present or future.Example. The fishermen have cast their nets.Example. A new sculpture has been cast by the artist. As an adjective to describe something.Example. A new sculpture has been cast by the artist.
- In passive voice constructions.Example. The fishermen have cast their nets.Example. A new sculpture has been cast by the artist. As an adjective to describe something.Example. A new sculpture has been cast by the artist.
Common mistakes
— 01
Confusing forms
Unlike many other verbs in the English language that change form from present to past simple and then to past participle (e.g., 'walk/walked/walked' or 'begin/began/begun'), 'cast' remains the same in all three forms. Users often mistakenly believe they need to add an -ed ending for its past simple or past participle form, leading to incorrect forms like 'casted.' The correct usage for both past simple and past participle is 'cast.' For example, 'He cast the net yesterday' (past simple) and 'He has cast the net' (past participle).
— 02
Misuse in passive
Another mistake arises when using 'cast' in passive voice constructions. Due to the confusion with its unchanged form, learners might incorrectly modify 'cast' when forming passive sentences, thinking it should align with the more common -ed ending pattern for regular verbs. However, the correct form remains unchanged. For example, the correct passive construction is 'The net was cast by the fisherman,' not 'The net was casted by the fisherman.'
— 03
Misapplying tense consistency
Learners sometimes err by not maintaining tense consistency when using 'cast' in complex sentences that involve both past simple and past participle forms within the same narrative or explanation. They might mistakenly use an irregular past participle form of a different verb, thinking it aligns with tense consistency rules. However, remembering that 'cast' remains constant in all its forms helps maintain verbal and tense consistency across sentences.
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Frequently asked questions
What are the past simple and past participle forms of 'cast'?
Can you provide an example of 'cast' being used in the past simple tense?
How is 'cast' used in a sentence as a past participle?