Look a little closer
Irregular verbs are not mistakes caused by a language losing logic. Many preserve older conjugation patterns that were once more widespread. After newer rules became productive, frequently used words remained strong enough in memory to keep inherited forms as exceptions.
Before English broadly adopted the -ed past-tense rule, more verb classes marked past time through vowel changes and other patterns. The productive system simplified over centuries, while parts of the older system survived in familiar words.
Learners store individual forms as well as applying rules. A child may temporarily produce a regularized form such as goed, then stabilize went after repeatedly hearing it in surrounding speech. High exposure supports memory for an exception.
A study tracking English verbs across 1,200 years found that rare irregular verbs regularized faster than common ones. Highly frequent verbs such as be, have and go are encountered so often that communities have many opportunities to preserve their special forms.
Change is not always one-way. Regular and irregular variants can compete across dialects and periods, while groups of rhyming verbs influence one another. A form may become irregular or two alternatives may coexist.
Irregularity is closer to a fossil of language history than a design flaw. Inherited patterns, repetition, memory and community usage combine to shape today's exceptions, and future use will determine which ones disappear or persist.
