The word “dove” as the past tense of “dive” always looks odd to me. I am more likely to use “dived.” On the other hand, I wouldn’t write “drived” for the past tense of “drive.” Both “dove” and “dived” are acceptable past tense forms for “dive.”
The conjugation of English verbs provides an interesting look into the history and evolution of the language. Here is a fascinating explanation of Old English strong and weak verbs from the online version of the American Heritage Book of English Usage.
This article was originally posted by the Raleigh News & Observer, a subsidiary of The McClatchy Co.; is posted here to provide continuity; and is copyright © 2011 The News & Observer Publishing Company, which reserves the right to remove this post.