Learned or learnt ?

[MiniMonty]

What say you?

I'm seeing homework and I'm railing against certain spellings that go unchecked and unmolested.
Dreamed or dreamt?
Learnt or learned?
(there are many others).

I am perfectly happy for the language to evolve and change - hang on - no I'm not...

So what say you?

[MollyMango]

I'm always slightly scared posting on this forum but i would always say learnt and dreamt. Is this incorrect?

[kickassangel]

I don't know for sure but I think it could be a US UK thing. I Live in the US and dreamed learned etc seems wrong but is always use here. Either I have been doing it wrong all my life or I learnt the UK version an now notice the US version as wrong

[keelo123]

I was always led to believe it as...
Learned is when you talk about yourself in the past ("When I did that, I learned how...!") and learnt is when your speaking of someone else and what they should/could have done("He could of learnt the easy way how to...!").
Sorry if that doesn't make complete sense but that is the only way I could explain it lol.
Would be nice to know all the correct ways if saying all these things :).

[NotDead]

could HAVE HAVE HAVE jesus

[LeMousquetaireAnonyme]

Learnt is the verb and learned the adj. ? (UK)

I learnt maths at school.

Learned behaviour makes the monkeys use tools.

[mathanxiety]

I always use learned, but I use dreamt and dreamed. Dreamed is used in the sense of 'They dreamed of visiting Disneyland', whereas dreamt would be used in the context of nocturnal dreaming.

I grew up in Ireland. The DCs, who speak American English, never use learnt -- it's always learned, but use dreamed and dreamt as I do.

They learned math in school and dreamed of getting As in their finals, but dreamt of getting Fs the night before their exams...

I was always taught that learnt is a colloquial form of the more correct learned -- spelled as it is pronounced but not really correct.

Dreamt and dreamed otoh have different pronunciations.

[mathanxiety]

Learned as an adjective would be pronounced lur-ned?

[changeforthebetter]

According to the BBC (can't do link on the iPad) both are correct but you should be consistent using either as a past participle. You cannot substitute 'learnt' for 'learned' as an adjective - my learned friend.

Arrogant fecker X (ex English teacher) insisted it was learned.

[JustBecauseICan]

Both are fine.

I use the "t" ones.

[JustBecauseICan]

(fine as verbs obv)

[nagynolonger]

I was always taught that the past tense was always learnt, dreamt, slept, kept etc. English irregular verbs.

More people do say learned and dreamed now but not sleeped and keeped.

Spelt and spelled is another one where both forms are used.

[yeghoulsandlittledevils]

I use learned and dreamed and pronounce them learnt and dreamt. Is that wrong too?

[mathanxiety]

I use burnt as an adjective, and burned as a verb.
'I burned the toast'
'Burnt toast'

[Mummyoftheyear]

Both fine

[PiratePanda]

Hey, I still use amongst rather than among.

[NoComet]

is leart not used in the US, my windows spell checker is having a huff. It seems american as it can't spell colour and stuffs zzzzzz in all over.

[mathanxiety]

No, learnt is an incorrect spelling in the US. Dreamt is also incorrect. Burnt is fine though.

[EverythingUnderControl]

Also spoiled and spoilt. I'm never sure when to use them

[mathanxiety]

Always spoiled in the US. Spoiled child, spoiled food, they spoiled the day for everyone, etc.

[kickassangel]

And they use dove not dived. Freaks me every time

[mathanxiety]

I cannot abide 'dove'.

[NewBlueShoesToo]

Burnt and burned?

[TeacakeEater]

Proven or proved? Would someone put me out of my misery?

[ReallyOverThis]

Learned can be an adjective but not pronounced "lur-ned" as in le mousquetaire anonyme's example about the learned behaviour of the monkeys - that is not "lur-ned" because the monkeys are not wise like a "lur-ned" lawyer. The adjective is describing the behaviour.

Nb I am pretty sure that "he burnt the toast" is just as correct as "he burned the toast".

[ReallyOverThis]

Teacake, proven is the past participle in the perfect tense-he has proven his point. But he proved his point.