A past participle is a verb form. English uses it with have, has, and had in perfect forms, and with be in passive forms. A past participle can also work like an adjective. Some past participles are the same as the past simple form, but some are different.

Regular verbs usually make the past participle with -ed. This form is often the same as the past simple form. Spelling follows the normal -ed pattern of the verb.

Verb	Form
work	worked
play	played
clean	cleaned
live	lived

Irregular verbs do not all follow one pattern. Their past participles must often be learned one by one. In some verbs, the past participle is the same as the past simple, but in others it is different.

Verb	Form
go	gone
see	seen
write	written
eat	eaten
make	made
buy	bought

Past participles appear after have, has, and had to make perfect verb forms. The auxiliary verb shows time, and the participle stays the same. This pattern is used with many common verbs.

Past participles appear after forms of be to make the passive voice. In this pattern, the subject receives the action. The participle does not change, but the form of be changes.

Some past participles work as adjectives. They describe a person, thing, or situation. In this use, the word keeps its participle form but acts like an adjective.

Word or Phrase	Definition
broken	It describes something that is damaged.
finished	It describes something that is complete.
tired	It describes a person who feels the need for rest.
closed	It describes something that is not open.

Past simple forms and past participles are sometimes identical and sometimes different. For regular verbs, they are usually the same form. For irregular verbs, both patterns exist, so learners need to notice the verb form carefully.

Verb	Form
walk	walked
find	found
come	come
do	done

You can now recognize past participles in perfect forms, passive forms, and adjective-like uses. You can form regular past participles with -ed and identify many common irregular participles. You can also see that some participles match the past simple form, while others do not.