Regular -IR Verb Past Participles

Regular -IR verbs are the smallest of the three main verb groups in Spanish. Their past participles follow a consistent rule, similar to -ER verbs, making them relatively easy for English speakers to learn and use correctly.

How to Form the Past Participle

To create the past participle of regular -IR verbs:

1. Chop off the -ir ending from the infinitive.
2. Add -ido to the remaining part (the stem).

Formula: [verb stem] + ido

Some Common Examples

Here are a few common regular -IR verbs and their past participles:

1. vivir (to live) → vivido
2. escribir (to write) → escribido
3. recibir (to receive) → recibido
4. subir (to go up, to upload) → subido
5. sufrir (to suffer) → sufrido
6. decidir (to decide) → decidido
7. permitir (to allow) → permitido
8. compartir (to share) → compartido
9. discutir (to discuss) → discutido
10. existir (to exist) → existido

Using Past Participles in Context

1. Compound Tenses
   • “He vivido en España por dos años.” (I have lived in Spain for two years.)
   • “Habían recibido muchos regalos.” (They had received many gifts.)
2. As Adjectives
   • “El artículo escribido es muy interesante.” (The written article is very interesting.)
   • “Las decisiones decididas son finales.” (The decided decisions are final.)
3. In Passive Constructions
   • “El tema fue discutido en la reunión.” (The topic was discussed in the meeting.)
   • “No está permitido fumar aquí.” (Smoking is not allowed here.)

Key Points to Keep in Mind

1. The -ido ending never changes, no matter the subject’s gender or number, when used in compound tenses with “haber”.
2. When used as adjectives, past participles do agree in gender and number:
   • masculine singular: -ido
   • feminine singular: -ida
   • masculine plural: -idos
   • feminine plural: -idas
   Example: “Los archivos subidos están en la nube.” (The uploaded files are in the cloud.)
3. The conjugation of regular -IR verb past participles is identical to that of regular -ER verbs.
4. Watch out for some common -IR verbs that have irregular past participles. Examples include:
   • decir → dicho
   • abrir → abierto
   • morir → muerto
5. The stress in regular -IR past participles always falls on the second-to-last syllable (-i-do).
6. Regular -IR verb past participles do not require accent marks.

Mastering regular -IR verb past participles, along with -AR and -ER verbs, completes the set of regular past participle formations in Spanish. This knowledge is essential for expressing completed actions and forming compound tenses in everyday Spanish communication.