El plato está roto.

to be

Breakdown of El plato está roto.

• el plato: the plate
• roto: broken

Questions & Answers about El plato está roto.

Why is el used before plato? Can I say Plato está roto without it?

In Spanish, most singular countable nouns require an article. El is the definite article (“the”) and specifies you’re talking about that particular plate. Saying Plato está roto without an article sounds incomplete. If you meant “a plate is broken” (not a specific one), you’d say Un plato está roto.

Why is está used instead of es?

Spanish has two verbs for “to be”: ser (es) and estar (está). Estar expresses temporary states or conditions—being broken is a condition. Es roto would use ser, which conveys inherent or permanent characteristics, so it doesn’t fit here.

Why is roto used instead of rompido?

The verb romper has an irregular past participle: roto. Unlike regular verbs that add -ido (e.g., comer → comido), romper becomes roto, and that form is what you use as an adjective after estar.

Why is the adjective roto placed after the noun and verb? Could it come before plato?