Ch 34 · Lesson 9Spanish · Chapter 34 · Lesson 9 · Grammar primer
Past participles as adjectives: una puerta cerrada
Frozen after (he ), agreeing everywhere else: , , hecha . Plus the irregulars: , , , .
The short version
Freeze it after
escritas .
Why?Hide
Right after the past participle never moves: , whatever the object. Anywhere it describes a noun it is an adjective and must agree: , escritos. The pair that catches everyone is he , frozen, against escritas , agreeing, because the participle now .
.
Why?Hide
The commonest participles are irregular: , , , , , , , . As adjectives they agree like any other: , , puesta. Only right after do they stay frozen.
The participle at a glance
The whole page on one screen. Only the first row is frozen.
| Where | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| after | . | We' closed the doors. |
| with a noun | | a closed door |
| after | . | The windows are open. |
| after | . | I' got dinner made. |
| after | . | I' written three letters so far. |
| first | , . | Once the meeting was over, they left. |
One test: is right in front? Leave the participle alone. Anything else? Make it agree with the noun it describes.
Frozen after haber, agreeing everywhere else
In the perfect tenses the participle belongs to the verb, so it ignores the object:
.- I'closed the door..- We'closed the doors. Still.
Describing a noun, the same word is an adjective and agrees like or :
| Noun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| m. sing. | | a written exam |
| f. sing. | | a closed door |
| m. plural | | the broken plates |
| f. plural | | the written letters |
The irregular participles
Most participles end in -ado or -. These common ones do not, and they agree just the same:
| Verb | Participle | Example |
|---|---|---|
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | . |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | . |
| | . |
| | |
| | |
an open box
a broken heart
a fried egg
also has a regular participle: and are both correct after , but the adjective is only .
After estar, quedar, tener and llevar
Four verbs take an agreeing participle, each with its own meaning:
| Verb | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
. | The shop is closed. | |
. | The door was left open. | |
. | I' got dinner made. | |
. | I' got three letters written. | |
. | I' written three letters so far. |
gives the state now, the state something ended up in. puts the finished result in your hands, and counts a total that is still growing. With and the participle agrees with the object, not with you:
.- I have written three letters. Frozen, after..- I'got three letters written. Agrees with.
Going further: Absolute clauses: a clause in two words and the rest of the guide, when you want them. This lesson does not need them.
Practice
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