While most past participles end in -ado or -ido, some of the most common verbs in Spanish have irregular past participles.
Common irregular past participles
Here are the irregular forms you will use most often:
| Infinitive | Past Participle | English |
|---|---|---|
| abrir (to open) | abierto | opened / open |
| decir (to say/tell) | dicho | said / told |
| escribir (to write) | escrito | written |
| hacer (to do/make) | hecho | done / made |
| poner (to put) | puesto | put |
| romper (to break) | roto | broken |
| ver (to see) | visto | seen |
| volver (to return) | vuelto | returned |
Using them with "haber"
You will frequently use these irregular forms with the helping verb haber (to have). When a past participle is used with haber, its ending is locked to -o; it does not change to match gender or number.
| Who has made this mess? | ¿Quién ha hecho este desorden? |
| I am very clumsy and I have broken the glass. | Soy muy torpe y he roto el vaso. |
| I have seen that you have spilled the juice. | He visto que has derramado el jugo. |
Using them as adjectives
Just like regular past participles, these irregular forms can also be used as adjectives to describe the current state of a noun. When used this way, they must change their endings (-o, -a, -os, -as) to match the noun they describe.
| The window is open and the glass is broken. | La ventana está abierta y el cristal está roto. |
Notice how abierta ends in -a to match the feminine noun la ventana, while roto ends in -o to match the masculine noun el cristal.
| I have picked up a piece of the broken mirror. | He recogido un pedazo del espejo roto. |
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