Portuguese past participles fall into three groups: those that are fully regular, those that are fully irregular (a short closed list), and those that have both a regular and an irregular form and use them in different contexts. This page is the master reference for the irregular forms. For a focused treatment of the third category, see Double Participle Verbs List. For the general theory of how past participles work, see Past Participle Overview.
The past participle is the verb form you use in three major constructions: the compound tenses with ter (tenho escrito, tinha feito), the passive voice with ser (foi escrito, foram feitos), and the resulting-state construction with estar (está aberto, estavam escondidos). Which participle to use depends on two things: the verb, and the construction. That is what this reference is for.
The three types
Every Portuguese verb with an irregular past participle falls into one of three categories:
Type 1 — only irregular. A handful of high-frequency verbs have just one participle, which is irregular, and it is used in every construction. Examples: fazer → feito, dizer → dito, ver → visto.
Type 2 — double, but only the irregular is used with ser/estar. A verb has both a regular and an irregular form. The irregular form is used with ser (passive) and estar (resulting state). The regular form is used with ter (compound tenses). Example: aceitar: tenho aceitado (I have accepted) vs. a proposta foi aceite (the proposal was accepted).
Type 3 — double, both forms usable with ter. A small subset of Type 2 verbs has softened over time so that either participle is heard with ter, though one form may be slightly preferred. Example: ganhar: tenho ganhado and tenho ganho are both heard.
Type 1 — irregular-only participles
These are the verbs whose past participle has no regular alternative. The irregular form is used in every construction — with ter, with ser, and with estar. You must memorize these. Fortunately, the list is short and every verb on it is extremely common.
| Infinitive | English | Irregular participle | Example with ter (compound) | Example with ser/estar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| fazer | to do, to make | feito | tenho feito | foi feito / está feito |
| dizer | to say | dito | tinha dito | foi dito |
| ver | to see | visto | tenho visto | foi visto |
| pôr | to put | posto | tinha posto | foi posto / está posto |
| escrever | to write | escrito | tenho escrito | foi escrito / está escrito |
| abrir | to open | aberto | tenho aberto | foi aberto / está aberto |
| cobrir | to cover | coberto | tenho coberto | foi coberto / está coberto |
| descobrir | to discover | descoberto | tenho descoberto | foi descoberto |
| vir | to come | vindo | tenho vindo | tem vindo |
| ter | to have | tido | tenho tido | (rare) |
A note on vir: its participle vindo is identical in form to its gerund, which can cause confusion. Context tells you which is which. Tenho vindo = "I have come" (compound tense); estou vindo would be the gerund — but European Portuguese uses estar a vir instead for the progressive, so you rarely encounter the ambiguity in speech.
A note on ter: tido does exist as a past participle but is used almost exclusively in compound tenses (tenho tido, tinha tido). The passive with ser is rare because ter is itself an auxiliary, so you don't normally passivize it.
And note that participles built from these stems — satisfazer, desfazer, refazer, predizer, contradizer, prever, rever, antever, repor, compor, dispor, supor, expor, transpor, propor, impor, descrever, inscrever, transcrever, subscrever, encobrir, recobrir, sobrevir, intervir, convir, provir, advir — all inherit the irregular participle of their root verb. Satisfeito, desfeito, refeito, predito, contradito, previsto, revisto, antevisto, reposto, composto, disposto, suposto, exposto, transposto, proposto, imposto, descrito, inscrito, transcrito, subscrito, encoberto, recoberto, sobrevindo, intervindo, convindo, provindo, advindo.
Tenho feito muito exercício este mês.
I have been exercising a lot this month.
A carta foi escrita em 1890 e ainda está bem conservada.
The letter was written in 1890 and is still well preserved.
Não tinha visto esse filme antes. Gostei muito.
I hadn't seen that film before. I really liked it.
A mesa já está posta para o jantar.
The table is already set for dinner.
Type 2 — double participle, irregular with ser/estar
This is the largest group of verbs with irregular participles, and the one that causes the most trouble for learners. The verbs in this list have two past participle forms:
- The regular form (ending in -ado or -ido) is used in compound tenses with ter (and historically with haver).
- The irregular form (often shorter, sometimes resembling an adjective) is used in the passive with ser and in the resulting-state construction with estar.
The reason for the split is historical. These verbs had irregular Latin participles that survived in the passive voice (because the passive participle functions as an adjective, which tends to preserve older forms), but the regularizing forces of medieval Portuguese created new regular participles for the compound tenses (which function more verbally). Result: two forms, each specialized for a role.
Core Type 2 list
| Infinitive | English | Regular (with ter) | Irregular (with ser/estar) |
|---|---|---|---|
| aceitar | to accept | aceitado | aceite (EP) / aceito (BP) |
| acender | to light, to turn on | acendido | aceso |
| benzer | to bless | benzido | bento |
| eleger | to elect | elegido | eleito |
| emergir | to emerge | emergido | emerso |
| entregar | to hand over, to deliver | entregado | entregue |
| envolver | to wrap, to involve | envolvido | envolto |
| expressar | to express | expressado | expresso |
| exprimir | to express | exprimido | expresso |
| extinguir | to extinguish, to go out | extinguido | extinto |
| imergir | to immerse | imergido | imerso |
| imprimir | to print | imprimido | impresso |
| incluir | to include | incluído | incluso |
| isentar | to exempt | isentado | isento |
| limpar | to clean | limpado | limpo |
| matar | to kill | matado | morto |
| morrer | to die | morrido | morto |
| pagar | to pay | pagado | pago |
| prender | to arrest, to tie up | prendido | preso |
| romper | to break, to tear | rompido | roto |
| salvar | to save | salvado | salvo |
| secar | to dry | secado | seco |
| soltar | to release | soltado | solto |
| submergir | to submerge | submergido | submerso |
| suspender | to suspend | suspendido | suspenso |
Watch aceitar: in European Portuguese the irregular participle is aceite (a proposta foi aceite). In Brazilian Portuguese it is aceito. If you are writing for a Portuguese audience, use aceite.
Watch matar / morrer: these two verbs share the irregular participle morto. Ele foi morto = "he was killed." Ele está morto = "he is dead." The regular forms matado and morrido are used only with ter, and even then ter matado is rare — speakers prefer the periphrastic construction.
A empresa tinha aceitado a oferta inicial.
The company had accepted the initial offer. (compound tense, ter + regular participle)
A oferta foi aceite pela empresa.
The offer was accepted by the company. (passive, ser + irregular participle)
Tinha pagado a conta duas vezes sem se lembrar.
He had paid the bill twice without remembering. (ter + regular)
A conta já está paga.
The bill is already paid. (estar + irregular)
As luzes estão acesas no terceiro andar.
The lights are on on the third floor. (estar + irregular: acesas)
O fogo foi extinto pelos bombeiros em duas horas.
The fire was extinguished by the firefighters in two hours. (passive + irregular)
A criança tinha adormecido no sofá.
The child had fallen asleep on the sofa. (ter + regular: adormecido)
Ele foi preso depois da perseguição.
He was arrested after the chase. (passive + irregular: preso)
Type 3 — double participle where both are used with ter
A shorter list where speakers have become flexible about which form to use with ter. Traditionally the regular form is prescribed for ter, but the irregular form has become common in speech, and in a few cases (ganhar, gastar, pagar) the irregular has taken over almost entirely in modern spoken EP.
| Infinitive | English | Regular | Irregular | Modern EP preference with ter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ganhar | to win, to earn | ganhado | ganho | ganho is now dominant |
| gastar | to spend | gastado | gasto | gasto is now dominant |
| pagar | to pay | pagado | pago | pago is now dominant |
| entregar | to deliver | entregado | entregue | both heard; entregue increasingly common |
| soltar | to release | soltado | solto | both heard |
| limpar | to clean | limpado | limpo | both heard, limpo gaining ground |
| morrer | to die | morrido | morto | morrido with ter (rare); morto only with ser/estar |
| matar | to kill | matado | morto | matado with ter (tinha matado); morto only with ser/estar (foi morto, está morto) |
The trend in modern EP is toward generalizing the irregular form, at least for these high-frequency verbs. You will hear educated speakers say both tenho ganhado muito dinheiro (older, more formal) and tenho ganho muito dinheiro (newer, everyday). Either is acceptable.
Tenho ganho bastante dinheiro com este trabalho.
I've been earning a lot of money from this job. (modern EP usage)
Tenho gasto muito em livros este ano.
I've spent a lot on books this year.
Ele tinha pago todas as dívidas antes de partir.
He had paid all his debts before leaving.
Reading an unknown participle
When you meet an unfamiliar past participle in the wild, there is a reliable way to figure out whether it is regular or irregular, and which verb it belongs to.
Does it end in -ado or -ido with no irregularities? Likely regular. Strip the ending, add -ar, -er, or -ir, and you have a candidate infinitive. Cantado → cantar. Vendido → vender. Partido → partir.
Does it end in a consonant (-o, -to, -so, -eso, -ago, -ogo)? Likely irregular. Memorize it together with its base verb.
Is it identical to an adjective you know? If aberto, seco, morto, limpo, or pronto ring as adjectives to you, that is because irregular participles are adjectives historically — they agree in gender and number when used with ser or estar, just like any adjective.
As janelas estão abertas, fecha-as por favor.
The windows are open, please close them. (abertas agrees in gender and number)
As contas já foram pagas esta semana.
The bills were paid this week. (pagas agrees with contas — feminine plural)
Agreement rules for irregular participles
The agreement rules apply equally to regular and irregular past participles. Here is a quick summary, because irregular participles make agreement mistakes more visible.
- With ter or haver (compound tenses): no agreement. The participle is invariable. Ela tinha escrito cartas. (not escritas)
- With ser (passive): agrees with the subject in gender and number. As cartas foram escritas.
- With estar (state): agrees with the subject in gender and number. As cartas estão escritas.
- Used as a pure adjective: agrees with the noun it modifies. As cartas escritas estavam em cima da mesa.
Tenho visto muitos filmes portugueses ultimamente.
I've seen a lot of Portuguese films lately. (with ter — no agreement)
Os filmes portugueses foram vistos por milhões.
The Portuguese films were watched by millions. (with ser — vistos agrees)
Os filmes vistos ontem foram surpreendentes.
The films watched yesterday were surprising. (adjectival use — vistos agrees)
Common mistakes
❌ A carta foi escrevida ontem.
Incorrect — you must use the irregular participle with ser.
✅ A carta foi escrita ontem.
The letter was written yesterday.
❌ Tenho escrito dez cartas esta semana.
Actually acceptable in modern EP, and very common — but note that 'tenho escrito' means 'I have been writing repeatedly', not simply 'I wrote.' For a one-time action use the preterite: escrevi.
✅ Escrevi dez cartas esta semana.
I wrote ten letters this week.
❌ As portas estão aberto.
Incorrect — the participle must agree in gender and number.
✅ As portas estão abertas.
The doors are open.
❌ A lista foi aceito pela comissão.
In European Portuguese, the irregular participle is aceite, not aceito.
✅ A lista foi aceite pela comissão.
The list was accepted by the committee.
❌ Tinha morto de tristeza se não tivesses vindo.
Incorrect — morto is not used with ter in this sense. Use the reflexive construction or the regular form.
✅ Teria morrido de tristeza se não tivesses vindo.
I would have died of sadness if you hadn't come.
Key takeaways
- Past participles come in three types: irregular-only (Type 1), double-with-ser/estar split (Type 2), and double-with-ter flexibility (Type 3).
- The rule of thumb is: ter → regular, ser/estar → irregular. Modern EP weakens this rule for a few frequent verbs (ganhar → ganho, gastar → gasto, pagar → pago) where the irregular is taking over in compound tenses too.
- Type 1 verbs (fazer, dizer, ver, pôr, escrever, abrir, cobrir, descobrir, vir) use the irregular form everywhere. Learn them cold.
- Compound verbs inherit their root's irregular participle: satisfazer → satisfeito, propor → proposto, inscrever → inscrito.
- With ter there is no gender/number agreement. With ser, estar, or as an adjective, the participle always agrees.
- European Portuguese prefers aceite where Brazilian Portuguese uses aceito. This is one of the small but visible spelling differences between the two varieties.
Related Topics
- Past Participle: Irregular FormsA2 — The comprehensive list of Portuguese verbs with irregular past participles — feito, dito, visto, escrito, aberto, posto, vindo, and the whole family of -pôr and -cobrir derivatives.
- The Past Participle in European PortugueseA2 — Formation and three main uses of the past participle (particípio passado) in EP: compound tenses with ter (invariable), passive voice with ser (agrees), and resultative/adjectival use with estar or as a modifier (agrees). Regular endings -ado/-ido, the key irregulars, and why Portuguese uses ter — not haver — as the compound auxiliary.
- Double Participle Verbs ListB1 — Complete list of Portuguese verbs with both regular and irregular past participles
- The Past Participle in Compound TensesA2 — How the past participle combines with ter across every compound tense in European Portuguese — present perfect, pluperfect, future perfect, conditional perfect, and the three compound subjunctives.
- Ser + Past Participle (Analytic Passive)B1 — The Portuguese analytic passive — ser + past participle + (por + agent). The most explicit passive construction, with mandatory participle agreement and the por contractions (pelo, pela, pelos, pelas).
- Past Participles as AdjectivesA2 — Using Portuguese past participles to describe states — full agreement, irregular forms, double participles (pago/pagado), and the key distinction between ser and estar with participles.