Compete past tense

Meaning of compete

to strive to gain or win something by defeating or establishing superiority over others who are trying to do the same.

Infinitive

Word: compete /kəmˈpiːt/

Examples:

1. They often compete in local chess tournaments to sharpen their skills.
2. In the animal kingdom, species compete for resources to survive.
3. We compete not just against others, but against our own previous best performances.

Past Simple

Word: competed /ˈkɒm.piː.tɪd/

Examples:

1. Yesterday, she competed in her first marathon and finished with an impressive time.
2. Last year, our team competed in the national championship and won the second place.
3. He competed fiercely in the chess tournament but eventually lost in the final round.

Past Participle

Word: competed /kəmˈpiː.tɪd/

Examples:

1. The marathon has been competed in by thousands of athletes from around the world.
2. The final round of the chess tournament was competed fiercely by the two grandmasters.
3. All challenges were successfully competed against by the team, leading to their victory.

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Bare infinitive

Habitual actions or routines.
Example. She competes in triathlons every summer.
Example. He competes with a sense of honor and integrity.
Example. The team competes next Friday at the regional finals.
General truths or facts.
Example. She competes in triathlons every summer.
Example. He competes with a sense of honor and integrity.
Example. The team competes next Friday at the regional finals.
Scheduled events in the near future (especially for timetables or programs).
Example. She competes in triathlons every summer.
Example. He competes with a sense of honor and integrity.
Example. The team competes next Friday at the regional finals.

Past Simple

Actions completed at a specific time in the past.
Example. They competed in the national championship last year.
Example. She competed, won several matches, and received a medal.
Example. When he was in college, he competed in various sports.
A series of completed actions in the past.
Example. They competed in the national championship last year.
Example. She competed, won several matches, and received a medal.
Example. When he was in college, he competed in various sports.
Past habits or states.
Example. They competed in the national championship last year.
Example. She competed, won several matches, and received a medal.
Example. When he was in college, he competed in various sports.

Past Participle

Perfect aspects (present perfect, past perfect, future perfect) to show actions that have a connection to the present, past, or future.
Example. Present Perfect. They have competed in many international contests.
Example. Past Perfect. She had competed in three marathons before she turned 2
Example. Future Perfect. By next year, he will have competed in over ten competitions.
Example. The championship was competed fiercely by all teams.
Passive Voice to show the action is done onto the verb's subject.
Example. Present Perfect. They have competed in many international contests.
Example. Past Perfect. She had competed in three marathons before she turned 2
Example. Future Perfect. By next year, he will have competed in over ten competitions.
Example. The championship was competed fiercely by all teams.

Common mistakes

— 01

Misuse of Infinitive

A frequent mistake involves using the simple past form of 'compete,' which is 'competed,' in places where the past participle form, also 'competed,' is required, and vice versa. This error often occurs in perfect tenses and passive voice constructions. For example, incorrectly saying 'I have compete in many tournaments' instead of the correct 'I have competed in many tournaments' mixes up the forms. Both the simple past and past participle forms of 'compete' are the same ('competed'), making it crucial to understand the sentence structure rather than relying on the form change to guide you.

— 02

Incorrect Past Participle

Another common mistake is misforming the past participle of 'compete.' Some learners might incorrectly add an extra '-ed' or alter the ending, creating forms like 'competeded' or 'competered' due to misunderstanding regular and irregular verb conjugations. The correct form, 'competed,' should be used for both the simple past and past participle.

— 03

Misusing 'Competed'

A third mistake involves the misuse of 'competed' with auxiliary verbs, particularly in perfect and passive constructions. Learners sometimes forget to include the auxiliary verb, leading to sentences like 'She competed in the competition last year' when attempting to use a perfect tense ('She has competed in the competition last year'). This mistake alters the meaning and tense of the sentence, demonstrating a misunderstanding of the structure required for forming perfect tenses and passive voice.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the past simple form of 'compete'?

The past simple form of 'compete' is 'competed.' It is used to describe an action that was completed at a specific time in the past. For example, 'Last year, she competed in the national championships.'

How is the past participle of 'compete' used?

The past participle form of 'compete' is also 'competed.' It is used in perfect tenses to describe actions that have been completed at the time of speaking or by a specific point in the past or future. For instance, in the present perfect tense, you might say, 'She has competed in many tournaments this year.'

Can you give an example of 'competed' used in a sentence in the past perfect tense?

Certainly! In the past perfect tense, 'competed' helps us talk about an action that was completed before another action in the past. An example sentence is, 'By the time she turned 18, she had already competed in international competitions.' Is there a difference in the usage of 'competed' in American and British English