{"id":176586573,"date":"2018-02-08T10:52:05","date_gmt":"2018-02-08T18:52:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lingq.com\/blog-new\/?p=176586573"},"modified":"2025-05-19T11:28:44","modified_gmt":"2025-05-19T18:28:44","slug":"spanish-past-participle-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lingq.com\/blog\/spanish-past-participle-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Learning the Versatile Spanish Past Participle"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Spanish past participle is a verb form that can be used to make more complex verbal phrases, but can also be used as an adjective. It\u2019s a great tool to have, because it\u2019s super easy to form and it can be implemented in a variety of ways.<\/span>
\nIn English, the grammar rules are a bit of a mess for past participles, so sometimes it can be difficult to distinguish them. Some past particles use the -en ending, like broken, eaten, taken, written and fallen. But most past participles in English just used the past tense of the verb. Consider the sentence, \u201cShe has told you many times\u201d or \u201cThe game was played.\u201d These are both examples of the past participle.<\/span><\/p>\n

How to Make the Spanish Past Participle<\/b><\/h2>\n

Like I mentioned earlier, forming the Spanish past participle is very simple. All you need to do is take off the ending of verb infinitives and add a new suffix. For verbs ending in -AR, we add the -ado ending and for verbs ending in -ER and -IR, we add the -ido ending. Here is what it looks like:<\/span><\/p>\n

-AR Verbs\u00a0<\/strong><\/h4>\n

cant<\/span>ar<\/b> \u2013 cant<\/span>ado<\/b>
\ncamin<\/span>ar <\/b>\u2013 camin<\/span>ado<\/b> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>
\nhabl<\/span>ar<\/b> \u2013 habl<\/span>ado<\/b>
\nest<\/span>ar<\/b> \u2013 est<\/span>ado<\/b><\/p>\n

-ER Verbs<\/strong><\/h4>\n

com<\/span>er<\/b> \u2013 com<\/span>ido<\/b>
\nten<\/span>er<\/b> \u2013 ten<\/span>ido<\/b>
\ns<\/span>er<\/b> \u2013 s<\/span>ido<\/b>
\nmet<\/span>er<\/b> \u2013 met<\/span>ido<\/b><\/p>\n

-IR Verbs<\/strong><\/h4>\n

ir<\/b> \u2013 <\/span>ido<\/b>
\nviv<\/span>ir<\/b> \u2013 viv<\/span>ido<\/b>
\ndivid<\/span>ir<\/b> \u2013 divid<\/span>ido<\/b>
\nher<\/span>ir<\/b> \u2013 her<\/span>ido <\/b>\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Learn<\/a><\/h3>\n

When the Rules are Broken<\/b><\/h3>\n

Like any verb form or tense, there are always exceptions to the rules. Here are a few common irregular past participles to learn:<\/span><\/p>\n

poner \u2013 puesto<\/span>
\nhacer \u2013 hecho<\/span>
\ndecir \u2013 dicho<\/span>
\nvolver \u2013 vuelto<\/span><\/p>\n

abrir \u2013 abierto<\/span>
\nromper \u2013 roto<\/span>
\nescribir \u2013 escrito<\/span>
\nver \u2013 visto<\/span><\/p>\n

morir \u2013 muerto<\/span>
\nfre\u00edr \u2013 frito<\/span>
\ncubrir \u2013 cubierto<\/span>
\nresolver \u2013 resuelto<\/span><\/p>\n

\"<\/p>\n

How to Use It<\/b><\/h2>\n

There are three ways in which the past participle is most commonly implemented in Spanish. It can be used as an adjective, in the passive voice and in the present perfect tense? Don\u2019t know what all of those grammar terms mean? That\u2019s ok. Let\u2019s take a look.<\/span><\/p>\n

Adjectives:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Even though they are a verb form, with -ado or -ido ending, the Spanish past participle can be transformed into adjectives.<\/span>
\nRemember that as adjectives, the past participle must always agree with the noun it is describing, just like any adjective. If the noun is plural, a final -s must be added and if the noun is feminine, the last letter will be an -a instead of an -o, making the endings -ada and -ida. Let\u2019s look at examples:<\/span><\/p>\n

Los ni\u00f1os est\u00e1n cansa<\/span>dos<\/b>. \u2013 The children are tired.<\/span>
\nEl perro her<\/span>ido<\/b> ladra. \u2013 The wounded dog barks.<\/span>
\nLa ventana est\u00e1 <\/span>rota<\/b>. \u2013 The window is broken.<\/span>
\nPasan por las puertas <\/span>abiertas<\/b>. \u2013 They pass through the open doors.<\/span><\/p>\n

Present Perfect:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The present perfect tense<\/a> uses the auxiliary verb \u201chaber\u201d in the present tense with the past participle to form sentences like, \u201cI haven\u2019t read the book for class\u201d or \u201cThey have seen everything.\u201d (put in link to other article?) Here are some examples:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00bf<\/span>Has hecho<\/b> tu trabajo? \u2013 Have you done your work?<\/span>
\nNo se <\/span>han puesto<\/b> su ropa. \u2013 They haven\u2019t put their clothes on.<\/span>
\nHe <\/b>viv<\/span>ido<\/b> en varios lugares. \u2013 I\u2019ve lived in many places.<\/span>
\n\u00c9l no <\/span>ha <\/b>le<\/span>\u00eddo<\/b> la carta. \u2013 He hasn\u2019t read the letter.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"<\/p>\n

Passive Voice:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The passive voice in Spanish is formed by conjugating the verb \u201cser\u201d in the past or future tense and adding the past participle. It conveys an action without including the subject who does the action in the sentence. It looks like this:<\/span><\/p>\n

Las casas <\/span>fueron<\/b> abandon<\/span>adas<\/b>. \u2013 The houses were abandoned.<\/span>
\nEl pastel<\/span> fue<\/b> com<\/span>ido<\/b>. \u2013 The cake was eaten.<\/span>
\nEl juego <\/span>ser\u00e1<\/b> jug<\/span>ado<\/b>. \u2013 The game will be played.<\/span>
\nLa ciudad <\/span>ser\u00e1<\/b> inund<\/span>ada<\/b>. \u2013 The city will be flooded.<\/span><\/p>\n

This verbal construction is less common than the other two examples, so don\u2019t worry if you haven\u2019t gotten the hang of it just yet.<\/span>
\n\"Learn<\/a><\/p>\n

Everyday Occurrences<\/b><\/h2>\n

Now that you\u2019ve seen how to form and when to use the Spanish past participle, let\u2019s look at some examples of when it comes into play. I\u2019ve found a few examples from common expressions and pop culture to help.<\/span><\/p>\n

Es pan com<\/span>ido<\/b>: This is an idiomatic expression, which literally translates to \u201cit\u2019s eaten bread,\u201d is the Spanish equivalent to \u201cpiece of cake\u201d or \u201ceasy as pie.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Ahog<\/span>ado<\/b> el ni\u00f1o, a tapar el pozo: This expression means, \u201cthe child drowned, let\u2019s cover the well.\u201d It refers to when you\u2019ve already made a mistake and the only thing you can do now is move on and fix it so it doesn\u2019t happen again.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEl Chapul\u00edn Color<\/span>ado<\/b>\u201d: This is a popular Mexican television series which was widely syndicated throughout Latin American. The title means the colored\/red grasshopper, an unlikely superhero who is the main character of the comedy.<\/span><\/p>\n

Still want more practice? Mexican rock group Man\u00e1 has the perfect song! It\u2019s called, \u201cClavado en un bar\u201d and it\u2019s a classic that will teach you how versatile and useful the past participle can be.<\/span><\/p>\n