Kurdish Academy

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Partîsîp

Participles

📌 What are Participles?

Participles (Partîsîp in Kurdish) are verb forms that can function as adjectives or be used to form compound tenses. They bridge the gap between verbs and adjectives.

In Kurdish, there are two main types of participles:

  • Present Participle: Describes ongoing actions (like "-ing" in English)
  • Past Participle: Describes completed actions (like "-ed" or "-en" in English)
1. Present Participle (Partîsîpa Niha)
Describing ongoing actions

The present participle in Kurdish is formed from the present stem of the verb. It describes an action that is happening or ongoing.

Formation:
Present Stem + (di-) prefix = Present Participle

Examples:
• xwendin (to read) → dixwîne (reading)
• çûn (to go) → diçe (going)
• hatin (to come) → tê (coming)

Common Present Participles:

Infinitive Present Stem Present Participle English
xwendin xwîn- dixwîne reading
nivîsandin nivîs- dinivîse writing
çûn ç- diçe going
hatin - tê coming
dîtin bîn- dibîne seeing
gotin bêj- dibêje saying
kirin k- dike doing
xwarin xw- dixwe eating
vexwarin vexw- divexwe drinking
xebitîn xebit- dixebite working
razan raz- dirazê sleeping
lîstin lîz- dilîze playing
📌 Present Participle as Adjective:
Zarokê dixwîne pirtûkek xweş e.
The reading child is a good book. (The child who is reading...)
Mêrê diçe hevalê min e.
The going man is my friend. (The man who is going...)
Jinê dixebite mamosteyê me ye.
The working woman is our teacher. (The woman who is working...)
💡 Usage Note!

The present participle in Kurdish is essentially the 3rd person singular present tense form used as an adjective. It describes someone or something in the act of doing the action.

2. Past Participle (Partîsîpa Borî)
Describing completed actions

The past participle is formed from the past stem of the verb. It is used to form compound past tenses and can function as an adjective describing a completed state.

Formation:
Past Stem + -î/-yî/-iyî = Past Participle

Examples:
• xwendin (to read) → xwendî (read, having read)
• çûn (to go) → çûyî (gone)
• dîtin (to see) → dîtî (seen)

Common Past Participles:

Infinitive Past Stem Past Participle English
xwendin xwend- xwendî read
nivîsandin nivîsand- nivîsandî written
çûn ç- çûyî gone
hatin hat- hatî come
dîtin dît- dîtî seen
gotin got- gotî said
kirin kir- kirî done
xwarin xwar- xwarî eaten
vexwarin vexwar- vexwarî drunk
xebitîn xebitî- xebitî worked
razan razâ- razâyî slept
lîstin lîst- lîstî played
standin stand- standî taken
dan da- dayî given
📌 Past Participle as Adjective:
Pirtûka xwendî li ser masê ye.
The read book is on the table. (The book that has been read...)
Mêrê hatî hevalê min e.
The man who came is my friend.
Nameya nivîsandî pir dirêj e.
The written letter is very long.
Xwarina xwarî pir xweş bû.
The eaten food was very good.
💡 Formation Note!

The past participle ending depends on the final sound of the past stem:
• -î after consonants: xwend → xwendî
• -yî after vowels: çû → çûyî
• Some verbs have irregular forms: hatin → hatî

3. Participles in Compound Tenses
Perfect and pluperfect tenses

Past participles are essential for forming compound past tenses in Kurdish, particularly the present perfect and past perfect (pluperfect).

A. Present Perfect (Boriya Niha)

Formation:
Past Participle + Present of "bûn" (to be)

Intransitive verbs:
Ez hatî me (I have come)
Tu çûyî yî (You have gone)
Ew raketî ye (He/She has gotten up)

Transitive verbs (with oblique pronouns):
Min xwendî ye (I have read)
Te dîtî ye (You have seen)
Wî kirî ye (He has done)
Person Intransitive (çûn - to go) Transitive (xwendin - to read)
Ez (I) Ez çûyî me Min xwendî ye
Tu (You) Tu çûyî yî Te xwendî ye
Ew (He/She) Ew çûyî ye Wî/Wê xwendî ye
Em (We) Em çûyî ne Me xwendî ye
Hûn (You pl.) Hûn çûyî ne We xwendî ye
Ew (They) Ew çûyî ne Wan xwendî ye

B. Past Perfect / Pluperfect (Boriya Dûr)

Formation:
Past Participle + Past of "bûn" (to be)

Intransitive verbs:
Ez hatî bûm (I had come)
Tu çûyî bûyî (You had gone)
Ew raketî bû (He/She had gotten up)

Transitive verbs (with oblique pronouns):
Min xwendî bû (I had read)
Te dîtî bû (You had seen)
Wî kirî bû (He had done)
Person Intransitive (hatin - to come) Transitive (dîtin - to see)
Ez (I) Ez hatî bûm Min dîtî bû
Tu (You) Tu hatî bûyî Te dîtî bû
Ew (He/She) Ew hatî bû Wî/Wê dîtî bû
Em (We) Em hatî bûn Me dîtî bû
Hûn (You pl.) Hûn hatî bûn We dîtî bû
Ew (They) Ew hatî bûn Wan dîtî bû
📌 Examples in Context:
Ez çûyî me dibistanê.
I have gone to school.
Min pirtûkek xwendî ye.
I have read a book.
Ew hatî bû berî ku ez herim.
He had come before I left.
Me kar kirî bû berî ku tu bêyî.
We had done the work before you came.
4. Participles as Adjectives
Describing nouns with verb forms

Both present and past participles can function as adjectives to describe nouns. They follow the same agreement rules as regular adjectives.

Present Participles as Adjectives:

📌 Examples:
Zarokê dilîze pir kêfxweş e.
The playing child is very happy.
Mêrê dixebite hevalê min e.
The working man is my friend.
Jinê dixwîne mamosteyê me ye.
The reading woman is our teacher.
Heywanê dirazê li ber agir e.
The sleeping animal is by the fire.

Past Participles as Adjectives:

📌 Examples:
Pirtûka xwendî li ser masê ye.
The read book is on the table.
Nameya nivîsandî pir dirêj e.
The written letter is very long.
Xwarina xwarî pir xweş bû.
The eaten food was very good.
Mêrê hatî li vir e.
The man who came is here.
Dergê vekirî mezin e.
The opened door is big.
💡 Agreement Note!

When used as adjectives, participles follow the noun and are connected with the izafe construction:
• Masculine: zarokê dixwîne (the reading child)
• Feminine: jina dixwîne (the reading woman)
• Plural: zarokên dixwînin (the reading children)

5. Special Uses of Participles
Advanced constructions

Participles have several special uses in Kurdish beyond their basic functions.

A. Relative Clauses

📌 Examples:
Mêrê ku dixebite hevalê min e.
The man who is working is my friend.
Pirtûka ku min xwendî ye pir xweş e.
The book that I read is very good.

B. Passive Constructions

📌 Examples:
Pirtûk hatiye xwendin.
The book has been read.
Mal hatiye avakirin.
The house has been built.

C. Absolute Constructions

📌 Examples:
Kar kirî, ez çûm malê.
Having done the work, I went home.
Pirtûk xwendî, ew razâ.
Having read the book, he/she slept.

Quick Reference: Participle Formation

Verb Present Participle Past Participle English
xwendin dixwîne xwendî to read
nivîsandin dinivîse nivîsandî to write
çûn diçe çûyî to go
hatin tê hatî to come
dîtin dibîne dîtî to see
gotin dibêje gotî to say
kirin dike kirî to do
xwarin dixwe xwarî to eat
vexwarin divexwe vexwarî to drink
xebitîn dixebite xebitî to work
📚 Summary:
  • Present Participle: Formed from present stem (dixwîne, diçe, tê)
  • Past Participle: Formed from past stem + -î/-yî (xwendî, çûyî, hatî)
  • As Adjectives: Both types can describe nouns with izafe connection
  • Compound Tenses: Past participle + bûn = perfect tenses
  • Present Perfect: Past participle + present of bûn (ez çûyî me)
  • Past Perfect: Past participle + past of bûn (ez çûyî bûm)
  • Transitive verbs: Use oblique pronouns in perfect tenses (min xwendî ye)
  • Intransitive verbs: Use nominative pronouns (ez çûyî me)