The Passive Participle (اسم المفعول)
In Arabic, the passive participle (اسم المفعول) describes the person or object that receives the action of a verb, similar to "-ed" or "-en" adjectives in English (like "broken" or "stolen").
For Form I verbs, the passive participle is built on the predictable pattern مَفْعُول. You form it by adding the prefix مـ before the first root letter and inserting a و between the second and third root letters.
For example, from the verb فَقَدَ (to lose), we derive the passive participle مَفْقُود (lost).
| There is a lost temple in the forest. | هناك معبد مفقود في الغابة.hunâka ma'badun mafqûdun fî al-ghâbati |
Passive Participles as Adjectives
Passive participles frequently function as descriptive adjectives. Just like any other adjective in Arabic, a passive participle must agree with the noun it describes in gender, number, and definiteness.
When describing an indefinite masculine noun like كنز (treasure), the participle remains in its base form.
| There is no buried treasure under the temple. | ليس هناك كنز مدفون تحت المعبد.laysa hunâka kanzun madfûnun tahta al-ma'bad. |
If the noun is definite, the passive participle must also take the definite article الـ.
| We searched for the lost treasure because it is important. | بحثنا عن الكنز المفقود لأنه مهم.bahathnâ ani alkanzi almafqûdi li'annahu muhimm |
If the noun is feminine, you simply add the feminine marker ة to the end of the participle pattern, making it مَفْعُولَة.
| The silver buried in the temple is beautiful. | الفضة المدفونة في المعبد جميلة.al-fiddatu al-madfûnatu fî al-ma'badi jamîlah |
Describing Artifacts and Materials
When exploring historical sites, you will often use passive participles to describe artifacts, their conditions, or what they are made of. A common example is مَصْنُوع (made / manufactured). You will frequently see it paired with the preposition من (from / of) to describe materials.
| This statue is made of stone. | هذا التمثال مصنوع من الحجر.hâdhâ at-timthâlu masnû'un mina al-hajar |
Here are more examples of passive participles describing the state of archaeological discoveries. Notice how they continue to behave exactly like regular adjectives:
| The engraved stone is very old. | الحجر المنقوش قديم جدا.al-hajaru al-manqûshu qadîmun jiddan |
| The door of the temple's room is broken. | باب غرفة المعبد مكسور.bâbu ghurfati-l-ma'badi maksûr |
| There is a preserved statue in this museum. | هناك تمثال محفوظ في هذا المتحف.hunâka timthâlun mahfûzhun fî hâdhâ al-mathafi. |