Past Participles: When and How to Use Them

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To say the English language is complicated would be a gross understatement. If you grew up speaking English, the use of certain verbiage and tenses come naturally. For the most part, you can probably speak correctly without having to think about why you are choosing your words.

However, when you study grammar, it is often confusing to identify the various elements of a sentence– especially with inconsistencies in patterns and structure. Taking some time to become better acquainted with grammar will make you a better speaker, writer, and overall communicator. In addition, familiarizing yourself with the various parts of speech and their functions will also help you tremendously if you are trying to learn a foreign language.

For an introductory overview on all tenses of English grammar, explore this course.

What is a Past Participle?

A past participle is the form of a verb that represents (you guessed it) the past.

Past participles have three uses in the English language.

Perfect Tenses
The Passive Voice
As Adjectives/Descriptors

Since participles are forms of verbs, in order to use them correctly, you need to recognize that there are two types of verbs – regular and irregular.

For regular verbs, the past forms (both simple and perfect) are simply the verb with ed added to the end.

Present Verb Simple Past Past Participle

help helped (have) helped

stop stopped (have) stopped

play played (have) played

Irregular verbs do not follow a rule or pattern. They simply need to be learned and memorized. Below are some examples:

Present Verb Simple Past Past Participle

run ran (have) run

go went (have) gone

am was (have) been

give gave (have) given

Irregular verb usage is something that many struggle with when learning English. Udemy offers the course: Focus on ESL Skills: Phrasal Verbs to help English language learners with phrasal verbs — another common obstacle when learning English.

Past Participles in the Perfect Tense

The perfect aspect is when you are describing something that occurred in the past, but it is linked to another time. In the perfect tenses, a past participle is used with the helping verbs has, have or had.

The following are some examples that show the use of past participles with the different perfect tenses. The past participles are italicized.

Present Perfect [has/have + past participle]

The contractors still haven’t finished the renovation.
The detective has not found the jewelry thief.

Past Perfect [had + past participle]

Jessica aced her test because she had studied all night.
They took the dog to the vet because he hadn’t eaten for days.

Future Perfect [will have + past participle]

You will have mastered the basics of algebra after completing this course.
Will you have completed your homework by the time I get home?

Conditional Perfect [would have + past participle]

If it wasn’t for the bad call, he would have won the basketball game.
I would not have succeeded if it wasn’t for your help.

Past Participles in the Passive Voice

There are two types of forms you can use when writing or speaking: active and passive. When using the active form, the thing doing the action is the subject and the thing receiving the action is the object. Most of the time, people speak and write this way. It is more direct and usually is more action oriented. Check out this course to improve your writing skills through the study of grammar essentials.

When using the passive form, the thing receiving is the subject of the sentence. The thing doing the action is included near the end of the sentence. Passive form is sometimes used if you want to emphasize the thing receiving the action. In all passive forms, past participles are used with helping or auxiliary verbs. These helping verbs are the forms of would, like, have, do, or will.

Below are examples of the passive form. These sentences are passive because subject is not doing the action.

The little girl was bitten by the dog. (girl is the subject)
The bill was paid by the generous stranger. (bill is the subject)

In the active voice, the sentences would read:

The dog bit the little girl. (dog is the subject)
The generous stranger paid the bill. (stranger is the subject)

In the active voice, the subject is performing the action.

Past Participles as Adjectives

Past participles can also be used as an adjective to describe a noun. Below are some examples:

You should walk cautiously on the frozen pond.

The past participle form of “freeze” describes the pond.

The exhausted athlete needed take a break and recharge.

The past participle of “exhaust” describes the athlete.

Commonly Misused Past Participles

There are many irregular verbs with past participles that are often used incorrectly. Below is a list of commonly misused past forms so you do not make the same mistakes and feel confident about your word choice.

Verb Past Tense Past Participle Example Using Past Participle

swim swam swum She had swum the entire length of the pool.

dive dived/dove dived He had dived perfectly and scored a ten.

ring rang rung You are late if the bell has already rung.

spit spit/spat spat The crying baby had spat out his milk.

lie lay lain She had lain outside to try to get a tan.

lay laid laid The librarian laid the book on the table.

hang hung hung She had hung her photos on the wall.

hang hanged hanged The sheriff had hanged the criminal.

Whether you are studying grammar, or learning to speak English, it is important to be able to recognize how words function within a sentence. If you will be taking the SAT’s, check out this course to improve your scores on the grammar and essay sections. Continuing to study grammar and explore how thoughts and sentences are pieced together, will help to improve your writing and speaking skills. You will become a better communicator whether you are engaging in a simple conversation or showcasing and executing your ideas in the professional world.