past participle

American  

[past pahr-tuh-sip-uhl] / ˈpæst ˈpɑr təˌsɪp əl /

noun

Grammar.

1. a participle with past or passive meaning, such as fallen, worked, caught, or defeated: used in English and some other languages as an adjective, as in a broken record, or along with an auxiliary to form perfect and passive verb constructions, as in We have eaten and He was wounded.

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past participle British  

noun

1. a participial form of verbs used to modify a noun that is logically the object of a verb, also used in certain compound tenses and passive forms of the verb in English and other languages

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Etymology

Origin of past participle

First recorded in 1790–1800

Example Sentences

Correct French would not have used the infinitive “tuer,” but rather the past participle, ending with an “e” to agree with the female writer, Ms. Marchal.

From New York Times • Nov. 20, 2021

“Clad” is a past participle form and is not used as a transitive verb in this sense.

From New York Times • Dec. 23, 2014

It turned out that Pinker, who is also a celebrated linguist, had quoted her rare use of the past participle “stridden” to illustrate a grammatical point.

From The Guardian • Oct. 19, 2014

Jonathan, Birmingham "Gotten" is the past participle of "get" and a perfectly cromulent word.

From BBC • Jul. 20, 2011

Factum, the neuter past participle, means ‘that which has been done’.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton