Regular Past Participles
The past participle is the "done" form of a verb: pechar (to close) gives pechado (closed), comer gives comido (eaten), partir gives partido (split).
How It Works
Forming it. Take the infinitive, remove -ar, -er or -ir, and add the ending:
- pechar → pechado (closed)
- lavar → lavado (washed)
- coñecer → coñecido (known)
- partir → partido (split, broken)
Four forms, like an adjective. A participle that describes a noun changes for gender and number, exactly like adjective agreement: pechado, pechada, pechados, pechadas. So you say un libro coñecido but unha canción coñecida, and o prato lavado but os pratos lavados.
Where you meet it. At this level the participle works mostly as an adjective, either next to a noun (patacas cocidas) or after estar to describe a result (a tenda está pechada). That second use is covered in estar + participle, and the passive with ser in ser + participle.
No "have eaten" tense. Galician does not build an everyday past tense with haber + participle the way English and Spanish do. "I have eaten" is simply comín or xa comín; see the preterite for finished actions. The combination with ter exists, but it has a special meaning of repetition: ter + participle.
Irregular participles. Some very common verbs do not follow -ado/-ido, for example feito (done), dito (said), visto (seen) and aberto (open). See irregular participles.
Spelling. Write the full ending -ado. In relaxed speech the d can weaken, but the written standard is cansado, acabado, never cansao.
Examples (6)
- Deixa a porta pechada, por favor.
Leave the door closed, please.
Word by Word: Leave the door closed, please.
Pechada is feminine singular because it describes porta.
- Os pratos xa están lavados.
The dishes are already washed.
Word by Word: The dishes already are washed.
Lavados agrees with os pratos: masculine plural.
- De cea hai peixe con patacas cocidas.
For dinner there is fish with boiled potatoes.
Word by Word: Of dinner there-is fish with potatoes boiled.
- É unha cantante moi coñecida en Galicia.
She is a very well-known singer in Galicia.
Word by Word: Is a singer very known in Galicia.
- Os nenos chegaron cansados da excursión.
The children came back tired from the trip.
Word by Word: The children arrived tired from-the excursion.
- O traballo está rematado.
The work is finished.
Word by Word: The work is finished.
Common Mistakes
Leaving the participle in the masculine singular when it describes a feminine or plural noun.
As xanelas están pechado.As xanelas están pechadas.A participle that describes a noun agrees with it. Xanelas is feminine plural, so the participle is pechadas.
Building a "have done" past tense with haber, copied from Spanish.
Xa hei comido.Xa comín.Galician uses the simple preterite for finished actions, including ones that English expresses with "have". Hei comido is a Spanish-style construction that the standard avoids.
Writing the colloquial ending -ao instead of -ado.
Estou moi cansao.Estou moi cansado.The written standard always keeps the d: cansado, cansada, cansados, cansadas.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Regular participles use -ado or -ido and agree when describing a noun.
Related Patterns
- Irregular Past Participles
Common verbs whose participles do not end in -ado or -ido, such as feito and dito.
Level 3 - estar + ParticipleResulting States: Estar + Participle
Uses the participle after estar to describe the state that results from an action.
Level 3 - Using the Preterite for Completed Actions
Galician expresses "I have done" with the simple preterite, not haber + participle.
Level 2 - ser + ParticipleThe Passive with Ser
The passive: the participle after ser, agreeing with the subject.
Level 4 - Forming the Gerund
The other non-finite verb form, which, unlike the participle, never changes its ending.
Level 2
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice Regular Past Participles in Bubblegum
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