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Grammar Challenge

Grammar Challenge © BBC Learning English

Regret Page 1 of 1

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Grammar Point – 'Regret'

To express regrets about past events, you can use the verb 'regret' with an -ing

verb, or with not and an -ing verb, or with a noun.

Positive

I, You regret

taking, not taking

an umbrella

He/she/it regrets

We, You They regret

It, that

Negative

I, You

don't regret taking, not taking

an umbrella

He/she/it doesn't regret

We, You, They ,don’t regret

It, that

Question

Do, I, you

regret taking, not taking

an umbrella?

Does he/she/it regret

Do, we, you, they regret

it?, that?

Grammar Challenge

Catherine:

Hi Mariela! Hina lost touch with her friends, and now she regrets it. Mark didn’t move

abroad, and he regrets that, too.

When we want to talk about past regrets, we can use 'regret' as a verb. If we want

to use a second verb, it must be an -ing form. Listen to Hina:

Hina: I really regret losing touch with some of my good friends.

The first verb is regret, and the second verb is 'losing' - it takes –ing. Listen again:

Hina: I really regret losing touch with some of my good friends.

If we regret something that didn't happen, we put not before the -ing verb. Here's

Mark:

Mark: I regret not moving abroad as many of my friends did, even for a year

or two.

Of course, you don't have to use a second verb with -ing after regret; you could use

a noun instead. You could just say what happened and then say something like 'I

regret that situation' or 'I regret that' or just 'I regret it'.

Elena: When I first went to university, I was quite young, and I don't think I

put in as much work as I should have done, and I kind of regret it

now.

So, that's regret with an -ing verb, regret with not and an -ing verb, or regret with

a noun. That's all from me, good luck with your grammar challenge!