Wipe past tense
Meaning of wipe
clean or dry (something) by rubbing its surface with a cloth, a piece of paper, or one's hand.
Infinitive
- 1. She always wipes the table clean after dinner.
- 2. He wipes his glasses with a special cloth to avoid scratches.
- 3. Every morning, they wipe the counters in the kitchen to maintain hygiene.
Past Simple
- 1. She wiped the tears from her eyes after watching the emotional movie.
- 2. Last weekend, I wiped the dust off the old furniture in the attic.
- 3. He wiped his muddy boots on the mat before entering the house.
Past Participle
- 1. The whiteboard was wiped clean before the meeting started.
- 2. The tears were wiped away gently from her cheeks.
- 3. The countertop had been wiped down by the time the guests arrived.
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Bare infinitive
- For habitual actions or general truths.Example. She always wipes the table after dinner.Example. First, you wipe the surface with a cloth.Example. The cleaning crew wipes down the gym equipment every morning before opening.
- For instructions or directions.Example. She always wipes the table after dinner.Example. First, you wipe the surface with a cloth.Example. The cleaning crew wipes down the gym equipment every morning before opening.
- To express scheduled events in the near future (often used in timetables or programs).Example. She always wipes the table after dinner.Example. First, you wipe the surface with a cloth.Example. The cleaning crew wipes down the gym equipment every morning before opening.
Past Simple
- For actions completed at a specific time in the past.Example. He wiped the tears from his eyes yesterday.Example. She wiped the counter, then she swept the floor.Example. When he was young, he always wiped his shoes on the mat before entering.
- To describe a sequence of actions in the past.Example. He wiped the tears from his eyes yesterday.Example. She wiped the counter, then she swept the floor.Example. When he was young, he always wiped his shoes on the mat before entering.
- For habits or actions repeatedly done in the past but not anymore.Example. He wiped the tears from his eyes yesterday.Example. She wiped the counter, then she swept the floor.Example. When he was young, he always wiped his shoes on the mat before entering.
Past Participle
- To form the perfect tenses (have/has/had wiped).Example. They have wiped all the data from the hard drive.Example. The blackboards are wiped clean every day by the janitor.Example. With all evidence wiped clean, the detective had to start over.
- In passive voice sentences to show an action being done to the subject.Example. They have wiped all the data from the hard drive.Example. The blackboards are wiped clean every day by the janitor.Example. With all evidence wiped clean, the detective had to start over.
- As an adjective to describe a condition.Example. They have wiped all the data from the hard drive.Example. The blackboards are wiped clean every day by the janitor.Example. With all evidence wiped clean, the detective had to start over.
- These examples cover the various uses of the Present Simple, Past Simple, and Past Participle forms of the verb 'wipe.'Example. They have wiped all the data from the hard drive.Example. The blackboards are wiped clean every day by the janitor.Example. With all evidence wiped clean, the detective had to start over.
Common mistakes
— 01
Confusing Forms
One of the most common mistakes involves confusing the past simple form of 'wipe' with its past participle form. The past simple form is 'wiped,' which is used to describe an action that was completed in the past. For example, 'Yesterday, I wiped the table clean.' However, the past participle form is also 'wiped,' which might lead to confusion since it is identical. The past participle is used in perfect tenses and passive voice, such as in 'The table has been wiped clean.' Mistakes occur when learners use the base form 'wipe' or an incorrect form in places where 'wiped' is required, not recognizing that 'wiped' serves as both the past simple and past participle form.
— 02
Incorrect Past Participle
Another common mistake is attempting to add an irregular ending to 'wipe' when forming the past participle, influenced by patterns from truly irregular verbs. For instance, some might incorrectly say 'wopen' (mimicking 'spoken' from 'speak') instead of the correct 'wiped.' This mistake stems from misunderstanding regular versus irregular verb forms in English.
— 03
Misuse in Perfect Tenses
Since 'wiped' serves as both the past simple and past participle form, learners sometimes misuse it when constructing perfect tenses. They might incorrectly use the past simple form of the verb 'to have' instead of its present form, leading to errors like 'I had wiped the table' instead of 'I have wiped the table' when intending to use the present perfect tense. This mistake alters the intended time reference, shifting it inaccurately into the past perfect tense.
Past tense quiz
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