Past Tense of “shrink”
The past tense of shrink is shrank/shrunk; the past participle is shrunk/shrunken.
Why “shrink” behaves this way
"Shrink" comes from Old English "scrincan," a strong verb with a classic three-vowel-grade pattern (shrink/shrank/shrunk) similar to "sing/sang/sung" and "drink/drank/drunk." Modern usage has increasingly blurred this three-way distinction, with "shrunk" now commonly used as both simple past and participle in casual speech, even though careful, formal writing still distinguishes "shrank" (simple past) from "shrunk" (participle).
This blurring reflects a broader trend among the small family of "sing/sang/sung"-pattern verbs, where casual spoken English is gradually collapsing the three distinct forms toward just two, a change linguists have documented happening gradually over the 20th century, likely accelerated by how rarely these verbs' simple past forms get reinforced compared to their much more frequent participle use in passive constructions ("the sweater was shrunk"). Retail and manufacturing use "shrinkage" as a specific technical term for inventory loss, a noun derived from this verb but referring to theft and errors rather than any literal reduction in size.
The common confusion
The confusion is choosing between "shrank" and "shrunk" for the simple past: formal writing still prefers "the sweater shrank in the dryer," while casual speech very commonly says "the sweater shrunk in the dryer" — both are widely understood, but "shrank" remains the more traditionally correct choice for the simple past in edited prose.
How it's actually used
"Shrunk" as a participle is fully standard ("the economy has shrunk this quarter"), while its increasingly common use as a simple past ("the economy shrunk last quarter") remains more casual and is still flagged by some style guides in favor of the traditional "shrank." Economics writing tracks whether an economy has "shrunk" or "grown" each quarter as one of its most closely watched recurring measurements. A tight budget forces many households to watch their discretionary spending shrink first. A worried shareholder watches quarterly earnings closely for any sign that margins have begun to shrink. A cautious retailer watches foot traffic data closely for any early sign that weekend crowds have started to shrink. A shrinking population in some rural towns has left entire school districts consolidating classrooms. A retiree's fixed income can shrink in real terms even when the actual dollar amount never changes. A neglected garden hose shrinks and cracks badly after just one harsh winter outdoors. A once-thriving downtown shrank considerably after the highway bypass opened.
Across the tense system
Formal usage: "shrank" for simple past, "shrunk" for the participle ("has shrunk," "was shrunk"). The adjective "shrunken" (a shrunken head, a shrunken figure) survives as a separate, purely descriptive form used only before a noun, never as a conjugated verb. Central bank reports track quarter over quarter whether the money supply has shrunk or expanded, treating the distinction as one of the most closely watched economic indicators available.
Common real mistakes
The main point of confusion, rather than a strict error, is using "shrunk" for the simple past in formal writing, where "shrank" remains the traditionally preferred choice — this is a style consideration more than an outright grammatical mistake given how common "shrunk" has become in speech. A further point: casual slang uses "shrink" as a noun for a psychiatrist or therapist, an entirely separate usage unrelated to the verb's literal or economic senses. Writers should avoid casually swapping "shrink" for "decrease" in strictly financial writing, since some readers expect "shrink" reserved for size or scale and "decrease" for numerical values, though usage varies by publication.
Examples
- The wool sweater shrank noticeably after just one wash.
- The company's market share has shrunk considerably since the merger.
- Her savings shrank fast during the unexpected medical expenses.
- The shrunken old photograph barely resembled the original print.
- The glacier has shrunk dramatically over the past three decades.
- Household savings shrank noticeably during the period of high inflation.
- The company's workforce has shrunk by nearly a third since the acquisition.
Memory trick
Pair it with "sing/sang/sung" and "drink/drank/drunk" — shrink follows the same three-vowel pattern, so "has shrunk" (like "has sung") is always safe, while "shrank" (like "sang") belongs strictly to the simple past.