72 cards

Action Flash Cards: Verbs to Act Out and Put in the Past

Read the verb, act it out, then say what you did: jump, jumped.

stretch

Tap or click the card to see the answer.

Type the past form, such as jumped for jump

Show only

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How to practise

Next step Next: a brain break to get the class moving Find action verbs in a word search

All 72 cards

Move your body 12

bounce bounce, bounced, bouncing. Act it out: bounce on your toes like a ball.
crawl crawl, crawled, crawling. Act it out: crawl on hands and knees.
gallop gallop, galloped, galloping. Act it out: gallop like a pony.
hop hop, hopped, hopping. Act it out: hop on one foot.
jump jump, jumped, jumping. Act it out: jump up and down on the spot.
march march, marched, marching. Act it out: march in place with high knees.
skip skip, skipped, skipping. Act it out: skip across the room.
stomp stomp, stomped, stomping. Act it out: stomp your feet like a giant.
stretch stretch, stretched, stretching. Act it out: reach both arms up high.
tiptoe tiptoe, tiptoed, tiptoeing. Act it out: walk on your toes without a sound.
twirl twirl, twirled, twirling. Act it out: spin around once with arms out.
wiggle wiggle, wiggled, wiggling. Act it out: wiggle from head to toe.

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Use your hands 12

clap clap, clapped, clapping. Act it out: clap your hands three times.
fold fold, folded, folding. Act it out: fold a sheet of paper in half.
knock knock, knocked, knocking. Act it out: knock on a pretend door.
lift lift, lifted, lifting. Act it out: lift a pretend box up high.
point point, pointed, pointing. Act it out: point at the door.
pull pull, pulled, pulling. Act it out: pull a pretend rope.
push push, pushed, pushing. Act it out: push a pretend box across the floor.
scratch scratch, scratched, scratching. Act it out: scratch the top of your head.
snap snap, snapped, snapping. Act it out: snap your fingers.
squeeze squeeze, squeezed, squeezing. Act it out: squeeze a pretend sponge.
tap tap, tapped, tapping. Act it out: tap the desk with one finger.
wave wave, waved, waving. Act it out: wave hello to a friend.

Daily routine 12

brush brush, brushed, brushing. Act it out: brush your teeth with a pretend brush.
buckle buckle, buckled, buckling. Act it out: buckle a pretend seat belt.
chew chew, chewed, chewing. Act it out: chew a pretend piece of apple.
comb comb, combed, combing. Act it out: comb your hair with your fingers.
pack pack, packed, packing. Act it out: pack a pretend backpack.
pour pour, poured, pouring. Act it out: pour pretend milk into a cup.
stir stir, stirred, stirring. Act it out: stir a pretend pot of soup.
tie tie, tied, tying. Act it out: tie a pretend shoe.
wash wash, washed, washing. Act it out: scrub your hands with pretend soap.
wipe wipe, wiped, wiping. Act it out: wipe a pretend table.
yawn yawn, yawned, yawning. Act it out: open wide and cover your mouth.
zip zip, zipped, zipping. Act it out: zip up a pretend coat.

At school 12

color color, colored, coloring. Act it out: color a pretend picture.
count count, counted, counting. Act it out: count to five on your fingers.
erase erase, erased, erasing. Act it out: erase a pretend board.
listen listen, listened, listening. Act it out: cup a hand behind your ear.
open open, opened, opening. Act it out: open a pretend book.
paint paint, painted, painting. Act it out: paint a pretend wall with a big brush.
raise raise, raised, raising. Act it out: raise your hand.
share share, shared, sharing. Act it out: hand a pretend crayon to a friend.
sort sort, sorted, sorting. Act it out: sort pretend blocks into two piles.
trace trace, traced, tracing. Act it out: trace a circle in the air.
type type, typed, typing. Act it out: type on a pretend keyboard.
whisper whisper, whispered, whispering. Act it out: whisper your name.

Play and sport 12

bat bat, batted, batting. Act it out: swing a pretend bat.
climb climb, climbed, climbing. Act it out: climb a pretend ladder.
dance dance, danced, dancing. Act it out: dance in place for five counts.
dribble dribble, dribbled, dribbling. Act it out: dribble a pretend basketball.
juggle juggle, juggled, juggling. Act it out: juggle three pretend balls.
kick kick, kicked, kicking. Act it out: kick a pretend ball.
paddle paddle, paddled, paddling. Act it out: paddle a pretend canoe.
pass pass, passed, passing. Act it out: pass a pretend ball to a friend.
row row, rowed, rowing. Act it out: row a pretend boat.
serve serve, served, serving. Act it out: serve a pretend tennis ball.
skate skate, skated, skating. Act it out: glide your feet side to side.
toss toss, tossed, tossing. Act it out: toss a pretend beanbag.

Irregular pasts 12

catch catch, caught, catching. Act it out: catch a pretend ball with two hands.
draw draw, drew, drawing. Act it out: draw a star in the air.
drink drink, drank, drinking. Act it out: drink from a pretend cup.
eat eat, ate, eating. Act it out: eat a pretend sandwich.
fly fly, flew, flying. Act it out: spread your arms like wings.
ride ride, rode, riding. Act it out: ride a pretend bike.
run run, ran, running. Act it out: run in place.
sing sing, sang, singing. Act it out: sing one line of a song.
sleep sleep, slept, sleeping. Act it out: rest your head on your hands.
swim swim, swam, swimming. Act it out: swim with big arm strokes.
throw throw, threw, throwing. Act it out: throw a pretend ball.
write write, wrote, writing. Act it out: write your name in the air.

How this list was compiled: Own work: everyday verbs chosen for this deck, each with a way to act it out. Every past form and every -ing form was checked on its own page in Wiktionary, which names the verb it belongs to, in entries such as https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/hopped and https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/tying , and each spelling was found in the word list of the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary at https://github.com/cmusphinx/cmudict . Spellings are American: colored, coloring. Checked 2026-09-30. Licence: own work

How it works

Action flash cards with one verb to a card: jump, clap, stir, whisper, kick. Act the verb out, then turn the card for its past form, its -ing form and an idea for acting it out.

Read the full guide

Six sets of action verbs

Move your body, Use your hands, Daily routine, At school and Play and sport hold verbs whose past ends in -ed: hop, hopped; wave, waved; tie, tied. Irregular pasts holds verbs that change inside: run, ran; swim, swam; catch, caught. Turn one card, then pick a set under Show only, or open More options to type each past form.

Print the verb flash cards for charades

Turn a card, then press the print button under it for twelve verbs to a sheet, with the past forms mirrored on the back. Cut the cards, draw one and act it out for the group to guess.

Hop, clap and zip double the last letter: hopped, clapped, zipped.
A verb that ends in e adds only d, and drops the e before -ing: wave, waved, waving.

Questions and answers

What is an action verb?

A word for something a person or thing does: run, clap, paint, whisper. Verbs such as is, seem and have do not name an action, so they are not on these cards.

What are some action verbs for kids?

Jump, hop, skip, march, crawl, clap, wave, point, wash, brush, stir, count, paint, whisper, kick, toss, climb, dance, run, swim, throw and sing are all on the cards.

How do you make the past tense of a verb?

Most verbs add -ed: jump, jumped. Verbs ending in e add -d: dance, danced. Some change inside and must be learned one by one: run, ran; eat, ate; write, wrote.