sent

IPA/sent/
KK[sˈɛnt]IPA/sent/

sent — verb

  • sentpresent simple I / you / we / they
  • sents3rd person singular
  • senting-ing form
  • sentedpast simple

1. the past tense and past participle form of the verb 'send'

1.verbtransitive / intransitiveA1
Definition

the past tense and past participle form of the verb 'send'

Example

Mateo sent his younger sister a postcard from Japan.

sent + someone + something (ditransitive)

The invitations were sent out three weeks before the wedding.

passive: were sent out

Common collocations
  • sent + to + place/person
  • sent + from + place/person
  • sent + by + method (mail, email, courier)
  • sent out (to multiple recipients)
  • sent back (returned)
  • sent off (to a destination, often by post)
  • sent away (to a distant place)
Synonyms
  • dispatched

    more formal register; often implies urgency or official action

  • forwarded

    specifically for passing along messages or documents received from someone else

  • transmitted

    mainly for signals, data, or diseases; technical or scientific register

Antonyms
  • received

    the opposite action — to come into possession of rather than to cause something to go

Grammar Patterns

sent + noun phrase

sent + noun phrase + to + someone

sent + someone + noun phrase

be + sent (passive)

Usage Note

Frequently used in both simple past (completed action) and past participle constructions (perfect tenses, passive voice). In simple past, no helping verb is needed ('I sent it'). In perfect or passive structures, pair with 'have' or 'be' ('She has sent it', 'It was sent'). The pattern 'sent someone something' (double object) is common in informal and formal contexts alike.

Common Mistakes

I have sent it yesterday.
I sent it yesterday.
The present perfect 'have sent' cannot be used with a specific past time like 'yesterday'.
She sent me the package to me.
She sent me the package.' or 'She sent the package to me.
The double-object pattern and the 'to' pattern should not be combined.

sent — noun

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

While 'sent' is the general past-tense form for causing something to go somewhere, the alternatives carry specific overtones. 'Dispatched' is more formal and often suggests urgency or official action — a military unit is dispatched; a letter is sent. 'Forwarded' means to pass along something that arrived for you to the correct person or place ('She forwarded the complaint to the manager'). 'Transmitted' is technical, used for signals, data, or diseases ('The data was transmitted by satellite'). 'Mailed' is restricted to postal delivery ('He mailed the contract on Monday'). For everyday use — emails, gifts, messages — 'sent' remains the natural choice across all registers.

dispatched ↗forwarded ↗transmitted ↗mailed ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • sent out
  • sent back
  • sent off
  • sent away

Prepositions

Etymology

Proto-GermanicOld EnglishEnglish

The verb form 'sent' comes from Old English 'sendan' (to send, to cause to go), which traces back to Proto-Germanic *sandijaną. Its past form has been used since Old English times. The noun 'sent' (Estonian currency) has a completely separate origin: it comes from Estonian 'sent' (cent), borrowed from German 'Cent', which itself comes from Latin 'centum' (hundred). These two meanings are unrelated — one is an ancient Germanic verb form, the other is a modern Baltic coin name.