Born vs. Borne

Born and borne are both past participles of bear. Use be born for birth or origin, as in Leah was born in June or The idea was born of a practical need. Use borne when bear means carry, support, or endure, as in The wind had borne the seeds across the field.

The forms of bear

A past participle is the form you see after have in phrases like has borne and in passive phrases like was born. To choose a form, identify the meaning of the verb and check for a helping verb such as can, has, or was. Merriam-Webster’s entry for bear.

Borne also works in the passive voice. In The repair costs were borne by the landlord, the costs are the subject and the landlord paid them. When bear means endure, you can write We’ve borne weeks of construction noise.

Birth and origins

Use was born or were born to tell when or where a birth took place. You can also use born for the start of something. The night market was born out of a need for a place where shift workers could shop. The need explains how the market came to exist. Merriam-Webster’s entry for born.

When the subject gives birth and the verb is bear, the simple past is bore and the past participle is borne. The mare bore a foal last spring. She has borne two foals so far. You may also see a formal passive such as The foals borne by her were healthy, where by her names who gave birth. The MLA Style Center’s guide to born and borne.

When evidence bears something out

Bear out means to confirm or support a claim with evidence. For a simple past event, write The trial bore out our claim about the battery. With a helping verb such as has, write A second trial has borne out the claim. You can also write The claim was borne out by the trials.

For confirmation, borne out is the main spelling Merriam-Webster lists. It also records born out as a variant. Using borne out for confirmation keeps it distinct from phrases such as born out of necessity, which explain an origin. Merriam-Webster’s entry for bear out.

Compounds with born and borne

In Canadian-born, born points to a birthplace. In airborne dust, borne tells you the air carries the dust. The same pattern gives waterborne sediment, which is carried by water. Merriam-Webster’s usage note on borne and entry for waterborne.

Practice choosing born, borne, or bore

1. Add two words to record a date of birth. The twins ___ on the first day of spring.
2. Change can bear to the simple past. The temporary platform can bear the weight of the piano.
3. Choose born or borne in both blanks. The mare has ___ three foals. The youngest was ___ in April.
4. Rewrite the sentence so it begins A follow-up survey has. A follow-up survey bore out the finding.
5. Fill in the blank to show how an idea originated. The idea for a tool library was ___ out of a need to share equipment.
6. Edit the compound to show how the dust travels. The filter traps airborn dust.

Show answers and explanations

1. The twins were born on the first day of spring. The sentence states when the birth occurred, and twins takes the plural were.
2. The temporary platform bore the weight of the piano. Bore is the simple past of bear, which here means to support.
3. The mare has borne three foals. The youngest was born in April. The mare gives birth, so has takes the past participle borne. The second sentence states when a foal came into the world.
4. A follow-up survey has borne out the finding. Has takes the past participle borne. Bear out means confirm.
5. The idea for a tool library was born out of a need to share equipment. The phrase names the need that gave rise to the idea.
6. The filter traps airborne dust. The air carries the dust, so the compound ends in -borne.

Related grammar guides

• Compare the verb bear with the adjective and verb bare. Bare vs. Bear.
• See how helping verbs affect the forms of lay and lie. Lay vs. Lie in the Present and Past.
• Find examples of other easily confused pairs. Commonly Confused Words in English.