Common Irregular Past Participles You Must Know
The 20 most-used irregular past participles in everyday French
Category: Past Tenses
The Rule
Many high-frequency French verbs have irregular past participles that don't follow the -é/-i/-u patterns.
Why This Matters
English has irregular past forms too (go→went, eat→ate), so the concept isn't foreign. The challenge is that French irregular participles are different from the English ones, so you can't rely on instinct. The good news: there are about 20-30 that cover most of daily conversation, and many follow sub-patterns.
Examples
• J'ai fait mes devoirs. — "I did my homework." [faire → fait] • Elle a pris le bus. — "She took the bus." [prendre → pris] • Nous avons bu du café. — "We drank coffee." [boire → bu] • Il a ouvert la porte. — "He opened the door." [ouvrir → ouvert] • Tu as été malade ? — "Were you sick?" [être → été]
Common Mistakes
❌ J'ai faisé mes devoirs. ✅ J'ai fait mes devoirs. → Faire has a fully irregular participle: fait. There is no 'faisé' form. ❌ Elle a prené le bus. ✅ Elle a pris le bus. → Prendre → pris, not prené. The -is ending is common for -endre verbs. ❌ Il a ouvré la porte. ✅ Il a ouvert la porte. → Ouvrir → ouvert, following the -rir → -ert pattern (like découvrir → découvert).
Quick Tip
Group them by ending pattern: -is (pris, mis, appris), -it (dit, écrit, fait), -u (vu, lu, bu, voulu, pu, su, connu), -ert (ouvert, découvert, offert). Patterns make memorization easier.
Group them by ending pattern: -is (pris, mis, appris), -it (dit, écrit, fait), -u (vu, lu, bu, voulu, pu, su, connu), -ert (ouvert, découvert, offert). Patterns make memorization easier.
Examples
Common Mistakes
Incorrect: J'ai faisé mes devoirs. → Correct: J'ai fait mes devoirs.. Faire has a fully irregular participle: fait. There is no 'faisé' form.
Incorrect: Elle a prené le bus. → Correct: Elle a pris le bus.. Prendre → pris, not prené. The -is ending is common for -endre verbs.
Incorrect: Il a ouvré la porte. → Correct: Il a ouvert la porte.. Ouvrir → ouvert, following the -rir → -ert pattern (like découvrir → découvert).
Quiz
What is the past participle of 'écrire' (to write)?