PAST PARTICIPLE

• Theory

Participle is a word that can be used as an adjective and a verb. There are two types of participles: the present and past participle. Participle is a non-finite form of the verb which in regular verbs ends either -ing or -ed (-en for irregular verbs).

Two participles are distinguished traditionally labelled present participle (e.g. being, doing, looking, also called gerund participle or -ing participle) and past participle (e.g. been, done, drunk, looked). neither name is accurate, since both participles are used in the formation of a variety of complex constructions (tenses) and can be used in combination with one or more auxiliaries to refer to past/present/future time. Preferred term are -ing form which also includes the gerund and -ed /-d /-t /-en /-n form. The past participle is used for passive voice adjectives and the present participles is used for active voice adjectives.

For example, from word go - went – gone, see - saw – seen, and have – had. In these case, the past participles are gone, seen, and had.

Past participle is the verb which is used in passive and perfect tenses and sometimes in front of nouns. For examples:

-          I have looked everywhere to find my keys
It is showed perfect tense where there is have + past participle

-          The pancakes were eaten by my kids

In regular verbs the past participle ends in the same -ed inflection as the past tense and is called the -ed form (or -ed participle) by some grammarians others prefer the label -en form (based on distinctive ending of certain irregular verbs suach as spoken, driven) so as to distinguish it more clearly from the past tense inflection.

The past participle of an irregular verb cannot be the first verb. The past participle of a regular verb, however, is identical to the past tense of a regular verb. This means that the -ed form of a verb can sometimes be the verb in the sentence depending on the word order and also depending on whether or not there is already a verb in the clause.

Example:

·         Irregular past participle
the choosen student was happy

·         Regular past participle
the bored student was unhappy

Sometime it can be difficult to choosing between the present and past forms of the participle. But we can remember that the person or thing ‘giving’ the adjective will have an -ing adjective, and the person or thing ‘receiving’ the adjective will have an -ed adjective. This means that -ed adjectives generally apply to humans and other living things.

Uses of past participle:

·         The past participle is functioning as an adjective
e.g. The excited puppies destroyed the expensive carpet

·         As a participle phrase which function as an adjective
e.g. All the tasks is written on my note.
The participle phrase written describes “the tasks”

·         Used to form verb tenses
e.g. I had seen birth and death but had thought they were different.
In this sentence use past tense which past perfect tense ( had + past participle)

• Question

Multiple choice

1.      I had already (…….) the movie
a. see
b. saw
c. seen
d. to be see
The right answer is:  C
From the question above we can conclude that it is past perfect tense ( had + past participle). So, it has to be “I had already seen the movie”. Seen is past past participle form ended with –n which irregular verb.

2.      He have (…….) salad for lunch
a. chose
b. chosen
c. to be chosen
d. to be chose

The right answer is: B

Chosen is the best answer because, it is the present perfect tense ( have + past participle) and chosen is the past participle form.

3.      Have you (………..) my ticket to Sweden yet?
a. booked
b. book
c. read
d. see
The right answer is: A
It is present perfect tense question form, have + past participle. Booked is the past participle –ed forman and for the situation, booked is the best answer.

4.      She has finally (………) after two weeks inhospital with typhoid
a. been
b. seen
c. recovery
d. recovered
The right answer is: D
Recovered is the past participle –ed form. After  “She has finally…” must be followed by past participle. The participle  “recovered” describes  “She” 

5.      Finally (……), Lee lowered his gloves
a. broke
b. broked
c. broken
d. to be broke
The right answer is: C
The past participle form for broke is broken (irregular verb). It is part participle in participle phrase. “Finally” is the participle phrase which acts like an adjective. The participle phrase “Finally broken” describes “Lee”.

References

Aarts, Bas,. Chalker, Sylvia,. Weiner, Edmund. 2014. The Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar. UK: Oxford University Press.

Shirves, Craig. 2019. Smashing Grammar: A guide to improving your writing skills and avoiding common mistakes. UK: Hachette UK.
Stevenson, Richard. 2010. Advanced Grammar: For Academic Writing. USA:Lulu.com.
Yule, George. 2015. Oxford Practice Grammar Advanced. UK: Oxford University Press.