Irregular Past Participles

Level 3

Most participles end in -ado or -ido, but some everyday verbs have irregular ones: feito (facer), dito (dicir), visto (ver), posto (pór), escrito (escribir), aberto (abrir), morto (morrer).

How It Works

The main irregular participles

  • facer → feito (done, made)
  • dicir → dito (said)
  • ver → visto (seen)
  • pór / poñer → posto (put, set)
  • escribir → escrito (written)
  • abrir → aberto (open, opened)
  • cubrir → cuberto (covered)
  • morrer → morto (dead)
  • romper → roto (broken)

Compounds follow the base verb: desfeito, satisfeito (facer); previsto (ver); composto, suposto (pór); descrito (escribir); descuberto (cubrir).

Watch out for vir and ver. Vir (to come) has vido, the standard form; ver (to see) has visto. Ir has the regular ido.

Agreement. The participle changes like an adjective: feito, feita, feitos, feitas. A cea está feita, Os papeis están escritos.

Where you will see them. With estar for states (estar + participle), with ser for the passive (ser + participle), with ter for accumulated actions (ter + participle), and in fixed phrases such as Dito e feito (no sooner said than done) and Ben feito! (well done!).

Examples (6)

  1. A mesa xa está posta: podemos cear.

    The table is already set; we can have dinner.

    Word by Word: The table already is set: we-can have-dinner.

    Posto is the participle of pór; it agrees with mesa (feminine).

  2. Deixaches a porta aberta.

    You left the door open.

    Aberta, from abrir, agrees with porta.

  3. Recibín unha carta escrita a man.

    I received a handwritten letter.

    Escrita, from escribir, describes the letter like an adjective.

  4. O ceo está cuberto e vai chover.

    The sky is overcast and it is going to rain.

    Cuberto is the participle of cubrir.

  5. Ese filme foi visto por millóns de persoas.

    That film was seen by millions of people.

    Visto, from ver, in a passive with ser.

  6. Dito e feito: ao día seguinte xa estaba aquí.

    No sooner said than done: the next day he was already here.

    A fixed phrase with the participles of dicir and facer.

Common Mistakes

  • Making a regular participle for facer.

    A cea xa está facida.
    A cea xa está feita.

    The participle of facer is feito, feminine feita.

  • Making a regular participle for escribir.

    O libro foi escribido en 1950.
    O libro foi escrito en 1950.

    The participle of escribir is escrito.

  • Using vido (from vir) for "seen".

    Ese filme foi vido por millóns de persoas.
    Ese filme foi visto por millóns de persoas.

    Vido is the participle of vir (to come). The participle of ver (to see) is visto.

How It Connects

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Irregular Past ParticiplesLevel 3

Learn This First

Irregular participles retain the agreement behavior of regular participles.

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Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

ditoabertocubertomorto