spelling 1 min read

is speaked a word

Compact form card for 'speaked', showing that it is not a standard English form, with the correct past tense 'spoke' /spoʊk/ and past participle 'spoken' /ˈspoʊkən/ in IPA.

A closer look

No, speaked is not a word. Speak is irregular: past tense spoke /spoʊk/, past participle spoken /ˈspoʊkən/. Try: I spoke to her yesterday or I have spoken to her already.

Using the forms

  • There was complete silence, nobody spoke. Here spoke /spoʊk/ does the past-tense work on its own, with no -ed ending attached.

  • He didn't like the words spoken at the meeting. This is the participial use: spoken /ˈspoʊkən/ follows another verb or describes something done, as with words spoken.

  • A useful past-participle pattern: I have spoken to her already. The second vowel reduces in speech, so /ˈspoʊkən/ sounds lighter on the final syllable than the stressed /spoʊk/ of spoke.

  • Quick check: choose spoke or spoken for She has ___ to the manager twice. The right answer is spoken, because has needs the past participle. If you picked spoke, remember that simple spoke never follows have or has.

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