Stare past tense
Meaning of stare
to look fixedly or vacantly at someone or something with one's eyes wide open.
Infinitive
- 1. Every morning, I stare out of my window to watch the sunrise.
- 2. Cats often stare at empty spaces, making you wonder what they see.
- 3. People usually stare at art pieces in museums, trying to decipher their meanings.
Past Simple
- 1. She stared at the painting for hours, completely mesmerized by its details.
- 2. They stared out the window, watching the snow fall silently during the night.
- 3. He stared at the puzzle pieces, trying to figure out where each one fitted.
Past Participle
- 1. The painting was stared at by dozens of museum-goers throughout the day.
- 2. By the end of the performance, the actor had been stared at in awe by the entire audience.
- 3. The abandoned house had been stared at nervously by the passerby every night for a week.
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Bare infinitive
- Habitual actions or routines.Example. I stare at the sea every morning to find peace.Example. Cats often stare at nothing, leaving us puzzled.Example. The movie starts at 8 PM; please don't stare at your phone during the film.Example. In the final scene, the hero stares into the sunset, knowing peace at last.
- General truths or facts.Example. I stare at the sea every morning to find peace.Example. Cats often stare at nothing, leaving us puzzled.Example. The movie starts at 8 PM; please don't stare at your phone during the film.Example. In the final scene, the hero stares into the sunset, knowing peace at last.
- Scheduled events in the near future (often used with schedules of public transportation, cinemas, etc.).Example. I stare at the sea every morning to find peace.Example. Cats often stare at nothing, leaving us puzzled.Example. The movie starts at 8 PM; please don't stare at your phone during the film.Example. In the final scene, the hero stares into the sunset, knowing peace at last.
- Storytelling or summarizing a book, film, etc., to give more immediacy.Example. I stare at the sea every morning to find peace.Example. Cats often stare at nothing, leaving us puzzled.Example. The movie starts at 8 PM; please don't stare at your phone during the film.Example. In the final scene, the hero stares into the sunset, knowing peace at last.
Past Simple
- Actions completed at a specific time in the past.Example. Last night, I stared at the stars for hours.Example. He walked into the room, looked around, and stared at the painting.Example. We stared at the eclipse for several minutes yesterday.Example. When I was younger, I stared out the window dreaming of faraway places.Example. She stared at the computer screen all day before we got her glasses.
- Series of completed actions in the past.Example. Last night, I stared at the stars for hours.Example. He walked into the room, looked around, and stared at the painting.Example. We stared at the eclipse for several minutes yesterday.Example. When I was younger, I stared out the window dreaming of faraway places.Example. She stared at the computer screen all day before we got her glasses.
- Duration of an action in the past, when the beginning and end of the action are known.Example. Last night, I stared at the stars for hours.Example. He walked into the room, looked around, and stared at the painting.Example. We stared at the eclipse for several minutes yesterday.Example. When I was younger, I stared out the window dreaming of faraway places.Example. She stared at the computer screen all day before we got her glasses.
- Habits or situations in the past (often used with expressions like 'always,' 'often,' 'never,' 'when I was a child,' etc.).Example. Last night, I stared at the stars for hours.Example. He walked into the room, looked around, and stared at the painting.Example. We stared at the eclipse for several minutes yesterday.Example. When I was younger, I stared out the window dreaming of faraway places.Example. She stared at the computer screen all day before we got her glasses.
- Situations that were true for some time in the past.Example. Last night, I stared at the stars for hours.Example. He walked into the room, looked around, and stared at the painting.Example. We stared at the eclipse for several minutes yesterday.Example. When I was younger, I stared out the window dreaming of faraway places.Example. She stared at the computer screen all day before we got her glasses.
Past Participle
- the Past Participle form 'stared' is the same as the Past Simple form for the verb 'stare.' Nonetheless, it is used differently in different grammatical constructs.Example. Present Perfect. I have never stared at the sun without protective eyewear.Example. Past Perfect. By the time she turned around, he had already stared at the horizon for a long while.Example. Future Perfect. By next year, I will have stared at this equation long enough to solve it.Example. The painting was stared at by hundreds of visitors during the exhibition.Example. If you had stared at that painting a little longer, you might have noticed the hidden detail in the corner.
- Perfect tenses (Present Perfect, Past Perfect, Future Perfect) to express actions that are completed at the time of speaking or have an effect on the present moment.Example. Present Perfect. I have never stared at the sun without protective eyewear.Example. Past Perfect. By the time she turned around, he had already stared at the horizon for a long while.Example. Future Perfect. By next year, I will have stared at this equation long enough to solve it.Example. The painting was stared at by hundreds of visitors during the exhibition.Example. If you had stared at that painting a little longer, you might have noticed the hidden detail in the corner.
- Passive voice to indicate an action happening to the subject rather than performed by it.Example. Present Perfect. I have never stared at the sun without protective eyewear.Example. Past Perfect. By the time she turned around, he had already stared at the horizon for a long while.Example. Future Perfect. By next year, I will have stared at this equation long enough to solve it.Example. The painting was stared at by hundreds of visitors during the exhibition.Example. If you had stared at that painting a little longer, you might have noticed the hidden detail in the corner.
- Conditional sentences to express hypothetical situations that could have happened in the past.Example. Present Perfect. I have never stared at the sun without protective eyewear.Example. Past Perfect. By the time she turned around, he had already stared at the horizon for a long while.Example. Future Perfect. By next year, I will have stared at this equation long enough to solve it.Example. The painting was stared at by hundreds of visitors during the exhibition.Example. If you had stared at that painting a little longer, you might have noticed the hidden detail in the corner.
- Note. Since 'stare' is a regular verb, the Past Simple and Past Participle forms are the same ('stared'), but their usage varies depending on the sentence construction and tense.Example. Present Perfect. I have never stared at the sun without protective eyewear.Example. Past Perfect. By the time she turned around, he had already stared at the horizon for a long while.Example. Future Perfect. By next year, I will have stared at this equation long enough to solve it.Example. The painting was stared at by hundreds of visitors during the exhibition.Example. If you had stared at that painting a little longer, you might have noticed the hidden detail in the corner.
Common mistakes
— 01
Incorrect Form Usage
One of the most common mistakes is Confusing Forms for regular verbs. Regular verbs typically add '-ed' for both past simple and past participle forms. However, learners often mistakenly believe that the two forms should differ or use an irregular form instead. For example, for the verb 'stare,' the correct past simple and past participle form is 'stared.' An incorrect usage would be saying 'stareed' (which is a non-existent form) or using an irregular form pattern by mistake, like 'stare' for the past participle.
— 02
Irregular Verb Patterns
Another frequent error is applying irregular verb patterns to regular verbs. Since 'stare' follows a regular pattern by simply adding '-ed' for its past forms, it should not be treated like irregular verbs that change vowels or completely alter the word. A mistake would be treating 'stare' similarly to 'drive,' which changes from 'drive' to 'drove' (past simple) and 'driven' (past participle), leading to incorrect forms like 'strove' or 'striven' for 'stare.'
— 03
Confusion in Perfect Tenses
Learners often confuse when to use the past simple versus the past participle, especially in perfect tenses. The past participle form 'stared' should be used with auxiliary verbs to form perfect tenses (e.g., 'has stared,' 'had stared'). A common mistake is using the past simple form 'stared' without an auxiliary verb or using it incorrectly with one (e.g., 'I have stare at the painting'), which fails to convey the intended perfect tense.
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