-gan (sifatdosh)

The Past Participle -gan

Level 3

-gan lets a verb describe a noun, and the describing part comes first: men oʻqigan kitob (the book I read).

How It Works

Form. Add -gan to the verb stem: kel- → kelgan, oʻqi- → oʻqigan, yoz- → yozgan. After k it becomes -kan, and after q it becomes -qan: ek- → ekkan (planted), chiq- → chiqqan (came out). See g-initial endings after k and q. For the negative, add -ma- first: kelmagan (who did not come).

A clause becomes an adjective. Like an adjective, the -gan verb stands right before its noun, and every word that belongs to it comes before that:

  • kelgan odam (the person who came)
  • kecha kelgan odam (the person who came yesterday)
  • men oʻqigan kitob (the book I read)

Who did it? The doer stays in its basic form, with no ending: men oʻqigan kitob, siz aytgan restoran (the restaurant you mentioned). The -gan verb itself never takes -man, -san or another person ending here. You will also hear the doer with -ning and a possessive ending on the noun: mening oʻqigan kitobim (the book I read). Both are correct.

Places and times too. The noun can be the place or the time of the action, still with no extra word: men tugʻilgan shahar (the city where I was born), biz tanishgan kun (the day we met).

Related forms. With a person ending, -gan is a past tense: Men borganman (I have been there); see past with -gan. For an action still going on, use -(a)yotgan. For a habit or a future action, use -(a)digan.

Examples (6)

  1. Kecha kelgan odam mening amakim.

    The man who came yesterday is my uncle.

    Word by Word: Yesterday came man my uncle.

    Everything before odam describes him.

  2. Men oʻqigan kitob juda qiziq.

    The book I read is very interesting.

    Word by Word: I read book very interesting.

    The doer, men, stays in its basic form.

  3. Siz aytgan restoran qayerda?

    Where is the restaurant you mentioned?

    Word by Word: You said restaurant where?

    There is no word for that or which.

  4. Men tugʻilgan shahar juda chiroyli.

    The city where I was born is very beautiful.

    Word by Word: I was-born city very beautiful.

    The noun is the place of the action. No word for where is needed.

  5. Bu bobom ekkan daraxt.

    This is the tree my grandfather planted.

    Word by Word: This my-grandfather planted tree.

    After k, -gan becomes -kan: ek- → ekkan.

  6. Darsga kelmagan talabalar bormi?

    Are there any students who did not come to class?

    Word by Word: Class-to not-came students are-there?

    -ma- before -gan makes the negative.

Common Mistakes

  • Putting the describing clause after the noun, as in English.

    Kitob men oʻqigan juda qiziq.
    Men oʻqigan kitob juda qiziq.

    The -gan clause always comes before its noun, like an adjective.

  • Adding a person ending to the -gan verb inside the clause.

    Men oʻqiganman kitob juda qiziq.
    Men oʻqigan kitob juda qiziq.

    Oʻqiganman is a full sentence (I have read). Before a noun, the -gan form takes no person ending.

  • Keeping -gan after a stem that ends in k.

    Bu bobom ekgan daraxt.
    Bu bobom ekkan daraxt.

    After k, -gan becomes -kan, and after q it becomes -qan: ekkan, chiqqan.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

-gan (sifatdosh)Level 3The Past Participle -gan

Learn This First

Builds on Past With -gan and Adjectives Come First.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.